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Laws & Policies to Reduce Mercury Use & Releases

Industrial Releases

State regulations on mercury releases from wastewater treatment, chlor-alkali plants, hazardous waste, municipal solid waste incinerators.

Mercury Products

    By Law Washington requires

• Labeling for mercury lamps.
• State government is required to purchase only low mercury or mercury-free products.
• Sale of mercury-containing novelties, thermometers, thermostats, manometers, and automobiles with mercury switches is prohibited.
• Schools are not allowed to purchase, use, or posses elemental mercury.

    By Policy

• Voluntary collection and recycling programs for mercury containing products, elemental mercury, & mercury waste.
• Collected mercury goes to retort facilities.
• Funding provided to local governments for mercury lamp recycling. Either the state or county pays for thermostat collection bins, and King County provides a rebate for recycled thermostats.
• Department of Ecology sent a letter to US EPA in 2004 highlighting the need for a national mercury repository (required by legislation passed in 2003).

Public Outreach Efforts

Topics:
Sources, monitoring, disposal & clean-up, health effects, research, & reduction progress
Outreach Tools:
Website, fact sheets, reports, brochures, workshops, emails, press releases, business training, citizens training, & phone hotlines
Languages:
Spanish, Korean, Hmong, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Mandarin, Somalian, & Arabic
Targeted Constituencies:
Women of child-bearing age, pregnant women, subsistence fishers, sport-fishermen, HVAC business owners, & school administrators.
Unique Outreach:
Mercury education and outreach plan was mandated by legislation.