In Three Moves, Veolia Takes CFL Recycling Mainstream

Jan. 1, 2008
Veolia Environmental Services, Lombard, Ill., announced that retailers and other businesses can now participate in a consistent, convenient and cost-effective

Veolia Environmental Services, Lombard, Ill., announced that retailers and other businesses can now participate in a consistent, convenient and cost-effective recycling program for their customers. The recyclebulb.com program is designed to support retailers, utilities and manufacturers with their compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) take-back programs. The company has also partnered with a major CFL manufacturer and developed a mail-in recycling option for consumers as well.

Recyclebulb.com brings together a network of retailers, utilities, businesses and manufacturers that accept CFLs from consumers in order to properly recycle them. The site promotes the participating entities and instructs consumers on how to recycle their CFLs through take-back programs sponsored by this network.

“Our recycleabulb.com program is an extension of our award-winning Recyclepak program,” explained John McShane, general manager at Veolia ES Technical Solutions, LLC “We are attempting to bring together the fragmented network of return programs and facilities to create a consistent, cost-effective and national program for recycling CFLs.”

Veolia initiated this program in response to growing concerns over improper disposal of energy-efficient CFLs, as well as the lack of a suitable network of take-back locations and retail promotions surrounding the sale of CFLs.

Under Veolia's agreement with CFL manufacturer TCP Inc., TCP will promote Veolia's Recyclepak prepaid lamp recycling program on its Web site at www.tcpi.com.

Anyone wanting to recycle CFLs can order appropriate containers online through the TCP site. The price paid includes everything needed to recycle mercury-bearing lamps. The user simply assembles the container, fills it and ships it using the prepaid shipping label. Veolia will even send environmental compliance documentation to the generator.

“We're proud to add TCP to a growing list of manufacturers working directly with Veolia that support recycling mercury-containing lamps, sustainability and environmental responsibility,” notes Rob Wlezien, vice president, sales and marketing, at Veolia ES Technical Solutions, LLC.

Finally, Veolia announced that its Recyclepak containers for CFLs can now be shipped via the United States Postal Service (USPS), making it easier than ever to recycle CFLs.

“We've worked very closely with the USPS to design a program that's safe and easy to use for residential customers,” says Wlezien. “Our Recyclepak program can now be used by more than 300 million people in 146 million homes, businesses and P.O. Boxes in every state, city and town in the U.S.”

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