Collection, free to households, is May 19 in Murray

Contact: Kerri Cope, Division of Waste Management

MURRAY, Ky. (May 14, 2007) – A free mercury collection program for residents of Calloway, Graves and Marshall counties will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. (CDT) on May 19 at Roy Stewart Stadium, North 12th Street (Hwy 641), Murray.

Mercury and household items containing mercury will be collected and recycled. Fluorescent bulbs will not be accepted.

The collection is sponsored by the Kentucky Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet (EPPC) in partnership with the Cabinet for Health and Family Services. Some 1,770 pounds of mercury have been collected since the program began in October 2005.

Kentucky has had 112 mercury incidents since 2000 that required a state or federal emergency response. Forty-one involved schools, 25 involved residences, 34 involved businesses, three involved a government agency and nine were “other,” a category that includes, for example, mercury that is found or turned over to a government agency.

Exposure to liquid mercury or “quicksilver,” whether through skin contact, breathing the vapors or ingesting mercury in food or drink, can be harmful to your health. Information on safely dealing with a mercury spill can be obtained by calling the EPPC’s Division of Waste Management at 502-564-6716 or going online to http://www.waste.ky.gov/factsheets/