Press Releases
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 8, 2005
2005 Highlights of the Mercury Thermometer
Exchange Program
Knox County Health Department over the past year has held a series of very successful mercury thermometer exchanges, in cooperation with the TN Department of Environment and Conservation, the City of Knoxville Public Service Division, and the Safe Kids Coalition of the Greater Knox Area.
The Knox County Health Department (KCHD) is pleased to announce the progress made protecting the environment and public health through their ongoing mercury thermometer exchange program throughout 2005. The exchanges, conducted in cooperation with the TN Department of Environment and Conservation, the City of Knoxville Public Service Division, and the Safe Kids Coalition of the Greater Knox Area, collected over 1000 mercury thermometers from Knox County residents, containing a total of over two pounds of mercury. New digital thermometers were given out for each used mercury thermometer turned in.
One gram of mercury (1/28 of an ounce, the content of one thermometer) is sufficient to contaminate a 20-acre lake to the point that the mercury would concentrate in the fish and result in a fish advisory. The mercury thermometer collection program in Knox County collected enough mercury in 2005 to protect 1000 such 20-acre lakes, or 20,000 lake-acres, or 1.4 times the surface area of Ft. Loudon Lake!
Ten one-day thermometer exchanges were held in 2005 at locations around the county, including Earth Fest, Safety City, UT, West Town Mall, Home Depot stores, and the O’Connor Senior Center. Additionally, exchanges were offered on an ongoing basis at Farragut Town Hall and the Knoxville/Knox County Household Hazardous Waste Collection Center.
Upcoming thermometer exchanges are already planned for 2006 at the following locations, and additional sites are now in the planning stages for groups that might want to sponsor a thermometer exchange at their site or event. Please note the addition for 2006 of all Knox County Convenience Center [recycling center] locations (during hours when an attendant is present) as additional sites where thermometers may be exchanged:
- Healthy Living Expo – January 27-28, 2006
- Earth Fest at Worlds Fair Park – April 22, 2006
- Safety City – Date TBA
- Knox County and Knoxville City Offices – Date TBA
- Farragut Town Hall – Continuous Basis
- Knoxville/Knox County Household Hazardous Waste Collection Center – Continuous Basis
- Knox County Convenience Centers – Ongoing Basis (when attendant is present)
Media Inquiries can be directed to:
John Homa, Waste Reduction Specialist, City of Knoxville,
215-2872
Albert Iannacone, Environmental Epidemiologist, Knox County Health Department, 215-5242
Mark Penland, Environmental Coordinator, TN Dept. of Environment and Conservation, 594-5512
Additional Information:
Mercury thermometers are both an environmental and a health and safety problem. Broken thermometers are a potential source of injury from the broken glass, as well as a chemical hazard from the mercury in the thermometer.
In the environment, mercury falls with rain and snow, contaminating lakes and streams and accumulating in the bodies of fish and wildlife. It is found in small amounts in coal; consequently, it is released into the air from coal-burning power plant emissions. It is released from trash incineration if the trash contains thermometers, batteries, or other sources of mercury. It can also leach into streams and lakes from landfills or dumps where mercury-containing trash is disposed. Natural processes can convert mercury into methylmercury, an even more dangerous form of the metal. In either form, the mercury concentrates up the food chain as larger animals eat smaller ones. Humans are not exempt from this process.
Mercury has many toxic effects in the human body. If a thermometer is broken and not properly cleaned up, tiny droplets of mercury can evaporate over time. When mercury vapor is inhaled, it enters the blood and can damage the brain, spinal cord, kidneys and liver. Children and fetuses are at special risk. Swallowing or touching mercury metal is not nearly as toxic; thus if a broken thermometer is cleaned up properly and promptly people will not be harmed.
In the event a mercury thermometer breaks, the public is reminded that they should NEVER use a vacuum cleaner to clean up the mercury.
The vacuum cleaner can make tiny droplets in the air, increasing the problem and contaminating the vacuum cleaner as well. The state of Tennessee has a fact sheet describing proper cleanup procedures for broken thermometers at: http://www2.state.tn.us/health/FactSheets/mercury.htm
Parents are especially encouraged to take advantage of the local thermometer exchange program to safely dispose of a household hazard and replace it with a safe substitute for free. Small children can easily break thermometers, and they find the shiny drops of mercury fascinating.
To avoid possibly cleaning up a broken thermometer, residents are encouraged to come to any of the thermometer exchange events held around the county. Exchanging mercury thermometers for digital ones at the thermometer exchange gives each participating family one less thing to worry about.
For safety while transporting the thermometers, the public should bring them in their storage cases. If the case is not available or the thermometer is broken, the thermometer can be brought in a 12-ounce plastic soda bottle with a screw-cap lid.
Note: If your thermometer contains a red liquid it is not a mercury thermometer, and can be disposed safely in your trash. Mercury-containing thermometers always have silverliquid.
Unless otherwise announced, exchanges are limited to mercury thermometers from households; other type of mercury-containing waste such as old non-digital thermostats, barometers, manometers and other household mercury waste or devices should be brought to the Knoxville Household Hazardous Waste Center, where it will be accepted for disposal during business hours. The Household Hazardous Waste Center is free to residents of Knox County and City of Knoxville residents only and is located at 1033 Elm Street. The Center does not accept material from businesses, or residents from outside Knox County. Additional information about the Knoxville Household Hazardous Waste Center is available at 215-6700 or on their website, http://www.cityofknoxville.org/solidwaste/hazwaste.asp
