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Alberta Environment recognizes that fluorescent bulbs are both an environmental and a waste management issue and encourages all Albertans to divert fluorescent bulbs from landfills to other end-of-life management options such as recycling. When your CFL bulbs have expired, take them to designated recycling bins at your local Home Depot, IKEA, or Totem store. In the capital region, fluorescent bulbs can also be taken to your local Eco-Centre. As well, some communities accept this material as part of the household hazardous waste collection facilities or events. “Toxic Round-ups” are held in many communities throughout the year, where your HHW are collected at one central event. Find out when a Round-up is scheduled in your area by visiting Alberta Environment's Round-up Schedule. If your community does not have a scheduled Round-up contact your municipality, local fire station or local landfill for information on household hazardous waste (HHW) drop-off depots. Some municipalities in Alberta incur the extra cost of collecting and recycling compact fluorescent bulbs for their residents. In addition many businesses and organizations, including the Government of Alberta, are paying to recycle their spent fluorescent lamps. While the disposal of fluorescent bulbs is an issue it is important to note that the use and disposal of mercury-containing lamps rather than incandescent bulbs actually results in less mercury being emitted to the environment, as the highest source of mercury entering the atmosphere occurs through the burning of fossil fuels for energy. Incandescent bulbs consume significantly more energy than fluorescent bulbs, so they result in greater mercury emissions over the lifecycle of the bulbs. By using fluorescent bulbs, you are reducing both your energy use and your overall mercury emissions. At this time, no viable replacement has been found for mercury, an essential component, in fluorescent lamps. Most lamp manufacturers are working to reduce the mercury content of fluorescent lamps to the minimum amount feasible without reducing lamp life. Through the Canada-Wide Standards initiative, manufacturers have committed to significant reductions in the amount of mercury in lamps. Mercury-free fluorescent lamps are available using xenon; however, their efficiency is about 30 per cent of that of a mercury-based fluorescent lamp. For more information on fluorescent bulbs, visit
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