The Department of Environment and Conservation, with funding from the Multi Material Stewardship Board (MMSB), have recently supplied two fluorescent lighting tube crushers to the Department of Transportation and Works to be used at the Confederation Complex; one for the East Block and one for the West Block. The Confederation Complex generates approximately 12,000 spent fluorescent tubes per year which had previously gone to landfill. The bulb crusher removes the mercury and mercury-impregnated phosphorous in these tubes through a filtering process and allows them to be destroyed in a way that does not pose any health and safety risk to employees handling them. This initiative should divert approximately 200 grams of mercury per year from entering the environment.

The Department of Environment and Conservation has led an initiative to introduce the RBRC Rechargeable Battery Stewardship Program to all government departments across the Province. Battery collection containers have been distributed to17 government departments in seven major centres across the Province. It is estimated that about 85 - 90% of the government population now has access to a battery collection container. RBRC  is an international, non-profit organization created to promote the recycling of rechargeable batteries found in many consumer products such as power tools, cell phones, and camcorders. The program is set up to have participants collect used rechargeable batteries and return them for recycling. The five year old program has recently expanded to include, in addition to Ni-Cd rechargeable batteries, three other types of recyclable, rechargeable batteries (Ni-MH, Li-ion, Small sealed lead).For more information visit the website of RBRC at www.rbrc.org

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