SOCIO-ECO-ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF RESOURCE RECYCLE IN UKRAINE: THE CASE OF FLUORESCENT LAMPS UTILIZATION
Oleksandra Bilopilska
SymyStateUniversity, Sumy, Ukraine
Due to the energy saving technologies implementation for the apartment lighting, inhabitants and organizations more and more use fluorescent (energy-saving) lamps, which allow economizing electric power to a great extent. Ukrainian government even forbid budget organizations to buy incandescent lamps making them use energy saving lighting tools this way.
At the same time some dangers caused by such implementations should be mentioned. For example, every fluorescent lamp contains certain amount of mercury – toxic metal, one of the waste products of the first class of danger with special requirements for utilization. But producers and medical researchers assure that everyday use of such lamps is quite safe due to the insignificance of mercury amount revealed even in case of broken lamp bulb. Simple cleaning and ventilation can solve the problem here.
Another thing with utilization of great number of used lamps. Experts calculated the expected number of more than 500 kilograms of mercury reaching Ukrainian rubbish heaps every year. It is extremely dangerous because even barely noticeable doses of mercury in environment are enough to result in acute physical and psychical disorders.
Most frequently worked out lamps are thrown away with the solid everyday domestic waste. Public just not informed well enough about the harm of such lamps for environment after their exploitation. Most of the producers of energy saving lamps do not follow the requirements and do not inform their customers about danger of toxic gas vapors in their products.
In general Ukraine does not have developed enough conditions for management mechanism related to collecting and recycle of fluorescent lamps used by inhabitants. State administrations and private firms are obliged to return worked out lamps for utilization. The penalty for not doing this is up to 25 not-taxed minimums but inspections are held only twice a year and it is hard to control all the violations. Also the responsibility of producer and importer of mercury-containing lamps is absent in Ukraine.
We may use the international experience related to such utilization problem. The main two aspects here are the possibility for everyone to return dangerous waste for utilization and motivation for all stakeholders in this situation (producers, importers, sellers, customers, state and local administrations) for such possibility implementation and use. Our suggestion is to include some deposit to the price of the lamp that can be returned in exchange to the worked out bulb. This mechanism works in the best way only if public can get such deposits in the closest supermarket in their neighborhood. In other cases additional educational work (along with great penalties for violations of rules) can be used for motivation.