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Projector Lamps are defined as a hazardous waste (NZ Waste List) and the disposal of mercury to landfill is tightly regulated in terms of current Landfill Criteria. Studies suggest that mercury from lamps can impact water quality when lamps are broken in skips and landfills. When broken lamps are exposed to moisture from rain or groundwater they leak and mercury enters the environment. Once deposited, certain microorganisms can change mercury into methylmercury, a highly toxic form that builds up in seafood and animals that eat fish.
The Resource Management Act 1991, Section 340 (1) states that 'by any person acting as the agent (ie; electrical contractor) or employee of another person, that other person shall without prejudice to the liability of the first-mentioned person, be liable under this Act in the same manner and to the extent as if he, she, or it had personally committed the offence'. In simple terms, this means that the generator of the hazardous waste is ultimately responsible for its safe and legally compliant disposal.
Regretfully nearly all used mercury-containing lamps in New Zealand are disposed of in an environmentally unsound manner. (ie; dumped in the skip / landfilled.)
Communication Partners has committed to ecologically friendly disposal of the lamps that are used in Projectors and Electronic Whiteboards. We endeavour to recycle these and other hazardous materials in a responsible and sustainable manner.
While we meet the cost of this recycling process for our existing clients and for any new equipment we put out into the marketplace, we can also extend this service at a reasonable cost for any equipment sourced elsewhere.
(Communication Partners is a specialist Audio-Visual company in New Zealand and offers a full zero-to-landfill recycling service for FL and HID lamps from our Wellington CBD location) |
