MIDWEST can accept mercury-containing equipment as UNIVERSAL WASTE

The EPA has added mercury-containing equipment to the universal waste rule. The universal waste rule provides streamlined management and fewer requirements to follow than under the general hazardous waste rules. The types of waste in the universal waste rule are items unregulated by households and small businesses that are often thrown in the trash. The EPA implemented this to encourage more recycling of mercury and help prevent the items from entering municipal landfills.

If mercury containing devices are not managed under the universal waste rules, then they must be sent to a permitted hazardous waste facility and treated as hazardous waste. This option means more regulations to follow and the potential for higher disposal costs.

Mercury containing equipment includes devices, items, or articles that contain varying amounts of elemental mercury. Examples are thermostats, barometers, manometers, temperature and pressure gauges, and mercury switches. The EPA estimates that implementing this rule will affect 1,877 generators handling approximately 550 tons of mercury containing equipment.

Midwest Environmental Services offers the option of accepting mercury-containing equipment (MCE) as universal waste. This allows us to handle the material more effectively and find the best means for recycling. Midwest also accepts hazardous wastes that are either mercury contaminated or contain mercury compounds at our Cincinnati facility. Please feel free to contact our Cincinnati, Ohio facility at 513-681-9990 if you have any further questions.

Midwest Environmental Services, Inc.
PO Box 218 . Brownstown, IN 47220 . 812.358.5160 /phone . 812.358.5642 /fax
info@midwestenvironmentalservices.com /email
24 HOUR EMERGENCY RESPONSE : 1.877.999.7745