A. Mercury as a health problem
Sometimes ridiculed, stringent EPA recommendations of what to do when a bulb breaks was more than confirmed by recent Maine state testing
See http://www.ceolas.net/#li191x

B. CFL mercury compared to coal power mercury emissions

CFL mercury is a bigger problem than coal power mercury emissions

The often repeated argument that emissions are worse, was only ever true where untreated coal power use dominated.
In the USA like the EU and Canada,
vigorous mercury emission control programs are in place
(using new injection and photochemical techniques as well as so-called wet scrubbers)
= USA EPA for example overseeing
90% reduction by 2018, as confirmed by new EPA administrator Lisa Jackson early 2009.
More: http://www.ceolas.net/#li198x

In a nutshell:
1. We know where the ever decreasing local coal power stations chimneys are and we can treat their emissions with ever increasing efficiency at lower costs.
2. Compare that with billions of scattered broken lights on dump sites, when we do not know where the broken lights will be, and so we can’t do anything about them

CFL refund chemes would alleviate but not solve the problem, as shown by low European compliancy…