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Massachusetts

All Massachusetts businesses, facilities, schools, government agencies and even households are affected by Chapter 190 of the Acts of 2006 – An Act Relative to Mercury Management (amended in 2014) – which banned mercury-containing lamps from landfills and incinerators.

Businesses should store unbroken spent lamps in a box or fiber drum labeled “Universal Waste – Spent Fluorescent Lamps,” and keep the container in a secure area. Lamps can then be collected by or delivered to an authorized lamp recycler within one year. Household lamps can be brought to municipal household hazardous waste facilities or retail outlets that choose to accept them. 

IMPORTANT FACTS:

  • Fluorescent, compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), high intensity discharge (HID) lamps, and some neon lighting lamps contain small amounts of mercury and are identified with the symbol hgsymbol.
  • State law covers all these mercury-containing lamps, including the “low mercury” lamps with green markings.
  • If you choose not to follow these rules, you may be subject to a fine of up to $25,000 per violation per day by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP).

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