"Mass. Takes Heat for Mercury Recycling Law"

"The job of removing mercury from the environment can be so dangerous that Brian Chapman sometimes wears the equivalent of a spacesuit to scoop up the toxic balls of liquid metal.

In a typical month, his crews also perform the more mundane task of collecting fluorescent light bulbs, electrical ballasts, thermo-meters, blood pressure machines, and thermostats — all containing mercury.

“It wasn’t so long ago that most people would just toss them in the trash,” said Chapman, president of Mill City Environmental, a waste management company in Lowell.
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Too many mercury-laden products still end up in landfills, however, which prompted passage last month of a state law intended to boost the dismal recycling rate of mercury in Massachusetts. But environmental advocates say industry lobbyists persuaded lawmakers to strip recycling requirements from a previous law and argue the new law pales in comparison to similar laws in other states that seek to curb mercury. Even minuscule amounts can cause grave health consequences and poison the environment. "

David Abel reports for the Boston Globe August 24, 2014.