Light bulb recycling scheme a bright idea - Greens

Green Party Co-Leader Jeanette Fitzsimons today launched the first nationwide recycling scheme for compact fluorescent light bulbs.

Ms Fitzsimons congratulated Energy Mad, the scheme’s organisers, in being proactive in setting up a system long before there was any government requirement to do so.

“This is a small company that has always had big ideas and is not afraid to go nationwide. They embody the entrepreneurial spirit which is the hallmark of the best New Zealand businesses - competitive, imaginative and environmentally sustainable.

“On July 20 I called for a recycling system, and consumer information, for energy efficient bulbs which contain mercury. I'm so impressed that just over a month later Energy Mad has risen to the occasion and provided this facility.

“A number of people have been concerned at the mercury content of the bulbs. While this is tiny, and less than in some other household items, if we are trying to get every home to install them we need a proper way of disposing them without harm to people or the environment,” Ms Fitzsimons says.