We have a solution for you. Keep that pile of bulbs in regulatory compliance and keep mercury out of the environment by raising employee awareness of recycling mercury-containing lamps. Download the 8-1/2" by 11" color poster from the Office of Sustainability website at http://blue.usps.gov/sustainability/_pdf/bulb-poster-508.pdf and encourage employees to use the prepaid shipping approach for recycling fluorescent bulbs. Fluorescent bulbs are classified as universal waste and regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
This special poster was created to assist Post Offices™ with the regulatory issues connected with properly recycling fluorescent lamps. It should be posted in convenient workroom areas where custodians, maintenance workers, and other staff can routinely access this information.
The poster supports a mailing strategy for returning used lamps to a recycler. This approach is especially useful for suburban and rural Post Offices without access to direct pickup lamp recycling services. The poster also reinforces the fluorescent lamp Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) published on page 53 of Postal Bulletin 223561 (April 18, 2013). That SOP provides instructions on ordering a pre-Pack recycling box from eBuy2, shipping procedures, and paperwork requirements; the procedures are simple, easy, and keep the Postal Service™ compliant.
Please remember old fluorescent bulbs must be recycled within one year to comply with universal waste storage time regulations. If you have any questions about lamp recycling or the use of the poster, contact the Office of Sustainability at sustainability@usps.gov.
— Corporate Sustainability Initiatives,
Office of Sustainability, 7-25-13
