The Home Depot Canada Launches CFL Recycling Initiative

Let's hope something like this is coming to the US soon!

Toronto—The Home Depot Canada announced a national in-store compact fluorescent lightbulb (CFL) recyclingprogram at all 160 The Home Depot Canada locations, helping customers make environmentally conscious decisions from purchase to disposal.

This free service is the first such offering so widely available in Canada, and by November 22, Canadians will be able to bring in their expired CFLs to any The Home Depot store, assured that each bulb will be recycled safely. The program is supported by Philips Lighting and Fluorescent Lamp Recyclers Inc.

“The CFL recycling program is another example of how The Home Depot is encouraging customers to make energy efficient changes in their homes,” said Annette Verschuren, President, The Home Depot Canada and Asia. “With stores located in every province, this program is the first national solution to providing Canadians with a convenient way to recycle CFLs.”

At each The Home Depot store, customers will find a CFL recycling unit located at the entrance by the special services desk. Customers can simply bring in their expired CFLs, place them in one of the plastic bags provided, seal the bag and deposit it into the display.

Each store monitors the unit and once full, sends the expired CFLs to be responsibly recycled by Fluorescent Lamp Recyclers Inc., in Ayr, Ontario.

“Consumers face a barrier in making better environmental decisions, such as what to do with their expired CFLs,” said Michael Gentile, Vice President and General Manager, Philips Lighting. “Having CFL recycling units located in so many stores across Canada will allow customers to feel completely confident in purchasing and using CFLs in their homes.”

While more energy efficient than incandescent bulbs, CFLs contain mercury, which can be toxic to the environment if disposed of improperly.

As the largest retailer of light bulbs in the country, The Home Depot is on track to sell seven million CFLs in 2007, which will provide Canadians approximately $315 million in energy savings and save 755,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases over the life of the bulbs.