[EVO X]

You're welcome to avoid CFLs, I don't care. But I thought you'd want to be aware that mercury is nothing new or specific to the CFLs. As far as I can tell, the reason for the concern these days is a) the freakin' EPA, and b) there will be a lot more of these CFLs around per capita, so that multiplies the total amount of mercury. That's all; nothing new.

CFL's reduce the total amount of mercury released into the environment by coal fired plants at the risk of higher localized mercury releases in living spaces and landfills.

The general trend has been to ban products with mercury in them unless no viable alternatives are available. The EPA seems to being saying CFL's are OK because there is no viable alternative for light bulbs..

[DBrow]

“CFL’s reduce the total amount of mercury released into the environment by coal fired plants”

Yes, the government is using that logic.

And as we build more and more windmills and solar stations, the equation of relative risks shifts.

Another risk factor is that almost all of the Gorebulbs are made in China. The workers will get more exposure, then the Hg is diluted by being placed in millions of Gorebulbs, which after a stint in a home, goes into a USA landfill.