June 30, 2011

The global lamp industry, led by the European Lamp Companies Federation (ELC), is currently addressing the complex web of national and international regulations for certain lighting products which contain very small amounts of ionizing substances. These substances are harmless to health and environment, but necessary to facilitate quick and reliable starts. In fact, the extremely low level of ionizing radiation emitted means they are as safe as everyday life1. Despite the fact that these products are safe at any stage of their lifecycle and do not pose a risk to health or the environment, they are subject to regulations in the U.S. and in other countries.

Affected lamps are high-intensity discharge types such as metal halide, typically used for commercial, industrial and utility applications such as public area lighting, stadiums, manufacturing facilities, shopping centers, and street lighting. EYE Lighting is committed to the safe handling, use, transportation, and disposal of ionizing emitting HID lamp sources. Visit www.nema.org/LRlamps for additional information about these lamps. To learn more about the safe disposal of HID lamps, visit http://www.lamprecycle.org for more information.

 

1For more information on background radiation in the environment and other sources, consult
http://web.princeton.edu/sites/ehs/osradtraining/backgroundradiation/background.htm or
http://www.worldnuclear.org/education/ral.htm.