Humans are terrible at risk assessment
May. 1st, 2007 07:43 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
elfsAfter the big worry yesterday over compact fluorescent bulbs, I've had myself spanked again. It turns out the story was being flogged by Steve Milloy, a well-known (at least, in the science media community) junk science advocate who also has served up some of the weirdest "there is no such thing as global warming" literature ever seen.
As PZ Meyers points out, the total environmental mercury impact from a single CFC bulb is less than that of an incadescent bulb. A CFC has 4 milligrams of mercury and uses enough electricity in its lifetime that, if your power is coal-fired (and almost all of the East Coast is coal-fired), it will generate another 2.4 milligrams. An incandescent uses enough eletricity to produce about 10 milligrams, or 3.6 milligrams more.
As it turns out, the original article goes to great lengths to emphasize that the risk of mercury poisoning from CFCs is very minimal, that there are things you can do in your own home to minimize the risk, and yes, you can dispose of the bulbs properly.
On the other hand, the human brain will turn this over and argue that you know where four grams of mercury is, in your light socket, whereas the ten grams are "just in the atmosphere, somewhere over there," and they're not about to poison you. Well, neither is the mercury in your lightbulb.
[Edited: I originally had 'grams'; it's 'milligrams of mercury'. Thanks to blaisepascal for pointing out the typo.]
As PZ Meyers points out, the total environmental mercury impact from a single CFC bulb is less than that of an incadescent bulb. A CFC has 4 milligrams of mercury and uses enough electricity in its lifetime that, if your power is coal-fired (and almost all of the East Coast is coal-fired), it will generate another 2.4 milligrams. An incandescent uses enough eletricity to produce about 10 milligrams, or 3.6 milligrams more.
As it turns out, the original article goes to great lengths to emphasize that the risk of mercury poisoning from CFCs is very minimal, that there are things you can do in your own home to minimize the risk, and yes, you can dispose of the bulbs properly.
On the other hand, the human brain will turn this over and argue that you know where four grams of mercury is, in your light socket, whereas the ten grams are "just in the atmosphere, somewhere over there," and they're not about to poison you. Well, neither is the mercury in your lightbulb.
[Edited: I originally had 'grams'; it's 'milligrams of mercury'. Thanks to blaisepascal for pointing out the typo.]
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Uh, it still says "grams" in paragraph 4
Date: 2007-05-02 12:04 am (UTC)Maybe I'm just unlucky, but the CFLs I have installed in my house-- all the high-use locations where CFLs are suitable-- only seem to last about twice as long as the old incandescents. I don't know if that's long enough to pay off the higher up-front cost.
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Re: Uh, it still says "grams" in paragraph 4
Date: 2007-05-02 04:02 am (UTC)