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Storing Compact Fluorescent Lamps

I use compact fluorescent lamps and have on occasion needed to swap one out for an incandescent bulb. If you are worried about the CFL breaking during storage (we did not keep the original packing...a good idea to keep it if you intend to store them) a solution is to fit a styrofoam cup over spiral bulb to protect it from blows and enclose the whole thing in a sealed plastic bag in case it should break. mercury escaping from these lamps has been in the news lately, and it is a legitimate health concern, especially if the number of CFLs in use increase dramatically. Although the amount of mercury is less than in a large fluorescent tube, I would prefer to avoid a hot spot in my home or the mercury getting into the environment, which according to the California state government's Waste Prevention Information Exchange website document on Fluorescent Lamps and Tubes in the year 2000 contributed approximately 370 pounds of mercury to the environment in California "due to the breakage of electric lamps and tubes during storage and transportation." It is worth noting that at least some "...mercury in urban storm water sediment results in part from improperly discarded fluorescent lamps and tubes." Given human nature, if we do scale the use of CFLs to replace most incandescent lamps in homes, it is going to be difficult to get people to dispose of the CFLs in a proper facility. The number of fluorescent lamps in homes will probably grow to exceed those in businesses, so it is not a small issue.
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