Jenn Platt

Period 8
Lansdale Catholic Managing e-Waste/ Fluorescent Bulb Disposal
Tuesday January 28, 2014
Name of Speaker: Joseph Connors













The presentation performed on Tuesday was about recycling e-waste. We learned many
things on what is safe, what is dangerous, and how to safely dispose of any type of electronics.
First we learned about fluorescent light bulb disposal. Fluorescent light bulbs contain two
chemicals, mercury and phosphorous. These two chemicals are extremely hazardous, highly
toxic and highly volatile. Mercury is easily absorbed into the body which can lead to serious
health issues such as problems with nervous system, kidneys, lungs, the liver, and immune
system suppression. Phosphorous can also lead to many health problems including severe burns
and organ calcification. We learned disposing of fluorescent light bulbs must be done in a very
careful matter. You can dispose of your light bulbs in either a local grocery store collector or
package and send them to a certified light bulb processor. What both of these options will do is
securely send the light bulbs to their headquarters in Indianapolis. The bulbs will go through a
machine where the mercury and phosphorous are taken out and the glass is crushed. The mercury
and phosphorous will be sent to a smelter, which takes these two recycled materials and makes a
product out of it. Here they will be put into a kiln, a large oven, which will create commercial
grade mercury, this will then be sold to make steel or plastic. These materials are often used for
car components. After the glass from the recycled light bulb is crushed, it will be cleaned. This
part of the bulb will also be reused, its pieces will be used to make highway tar. If a fluorescent
light bulb is not disposed of properly and is simply thrown out to be put in a landfill, it will stay
there for years and cause a hazard for humans. There is limited space in a landfill and there is not
enough room for items that can so easily be recycled. You must send your bulbs to a certified
Pennsylvania uniform waste recycler, or else your recycler may be caught improperly disposing
of mercury-containing bulbs and you would be responsible for fines and cleanup costs. The next
thing we learned about was managing e-Waste. E-waste is defined as discarded electronic
devices such as cell phones, CDs, toasters, printers and their cartridges, or any type of electronic
device and its accessories. Absolutely any type of e-Waste can be recycled! What many people
dont know is that when a cell phone is recycled the next person to receive their phone will also
receive all of their information. There are two types of wiping, the first type will simply pose
as if your data was actually erased, when bits and pieces of it, such as private emails or private
contacts, are still there. The other is actually wiping where your entire cell phone is completely
erased of any personal or public data, everything is completely gone. Improper cell phone
disposal can lead to an invasion of privacy or even identity theft. World-wide 50 million tons of
e-Waste are generated annually and 3.4 million tons are generated in the US. Only 5% of that
huge amount of e-Waste is recycled, meaning 95% is simply thrown out and left in a landfill.
Recycling e-Waste is easy; there are Recycling/ Re-Use Centers available to you in any location.
Even Lansdale Catholic High School offers a day in which anyone from the area can drop off
their e-Waste for it to be recycled and reused. Just this small contribution one or two days a year
can make a huge difference. One example of an invasion of privacy was the breaching of
Targets credit card system. In this situation, one man saved everyones credit card information
from downloaded software. 40 million Target customers credit and debit card information, as
well as 70 million additional customers personal information was downloaded, causing countless
numbers of identity theft. Amazingly, only 29 states have laws requiring data destruction at
electronics recycling centers. Finally, we talked about how students like us could get involved in
occupations like these. Mr. Connors explained we would need specific levels of education such
as an accounting degree, and economics degree, and an environmental science degree. The
environmental science would include and type of science from engineering to business. A
business opportunity in this field would be a help to the community and a well paying job!
This presentation applies to my life in many ways. First of all I now know many
things that I did not know before. One thing that stuck out the most was the recycling of cell
phones. My parents have recycled probably 5 or 6 cell phones of mine, my sisters, or their own
in my life time. This means that the person who received our old, recycled cell phone also
received a lot of our personal information. This could lead to numerous problems; just from
doing what we thought was right and recycling. Now we know to never recycle a cell phone or
anything else containing personal information to just any company, it must be one that will
dispose of our personal information properly. The recycling of e-Waste affects my life and the
lives of those around me also. If not recycled properly fluorescent light bulbs can let off harsh
and hazardous chemicals that can be extremely harmful to our bodies. Without realizing it, the
simple, proper disposal of e-Waste and fluorescent light bulbs can effect or even change the lives
of everyone around you. The part of the presentation that stuck out the most to me was that the
first plastic ever made, in 1930, will finally go back to its complete natural state in the year 2150.
This is extremely shocking. It completely took me back that plastic, sitting in a landfill, would
take so long to finally break down. You may be wondering how this relates to recycling, and it
is because of this; plastic comes from an oil in the ground called crude oil, this oil must be used
to create plastic for anything from a Barbie to a part of a vehicle. We can use a simple
replacement for this oil rather than continuing to create it from scratch, the replacement is
recycled mercury and phosphorous. The combination of these two, when put into a kiln, create
plastic. This means that another good thing can come from recycling other than the benefits to
our health as humans. There are two types of sciences that I believe the recycling of e-Waste
relates to, the first is chemistry. I believe it relates to chemistry because of the two chemicals
found in the fluorescent light bulbs that can create such an effect on the human body. Recycling
can also reduce the effects of these chemicals rather than having them released unsafely in a
landfill. The next type of science involved is environmental science. This relates because of the
relationship between the environment and the organisms living in it. Any type of environment
and any organisms livelihood may be effected when it comes to improper recycling. The proper
recycling of e-Waste prevents irregular balances from occurring.