Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/09/08
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Don't tell anyone, but I have about 5 1/2 pounds of the stuff lying around my apartment (safely sealed, mind you, just in case you DO tell someone!) Dan C. At 10:20 AM 08-09-00 -0400, khmiska wrote: >John, >The idiocy of banning mercury has reached new heights in Ann Arbor, Michigan. >After a small mercury spill in a nearby school, the Ann Arbor city council passed >a resolution banning mercury thermometers. Owners of mercury fever thermometers >may trade theirs in for a non-Hg version at no charge. The idocy of it boggles the >mond. >Kurt >Ann Arbor > >John Coan wrote: > >> There are other sources of mercury that were NOT banned, many with much larger >> quantities than tiny photo batteries. Take for instance fluorescent lights. >> Or, as a personal example, I recently purchased a sphygmomanometer . It >> contains about an ounce of pure elemental mercury. How come that wasn't >> banned? I think banning the batteries was a symbolic gesture and we >> photographers were sacrificed on the enviroalter. >> >> Buzz Hausner wrote: >> >> > Trust me, Hans-Peter, mercury is one very nasty environmental contaminant, >> > it is extremely toxic in even small doses and it may be both ingested in its >> > liquid form and inhaled as a vapor. EU and US regulators were unusually >> > wise in banning the production of mercury batteries. They were not being >> > capriciously mean to devotees of old photographic equipment. >> > >> > Buzz Hausner >> > >> > -----Original Message----- >> > From: Hans-Peter.Lammerich@t-online.de >> > [mailto:Hans-Peter.Lammerich@t-online.de] >> > Sent: Thursday, September 07, 2000 4:43 PM >> > To: leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us >> > Subject: [Leica] Re: Battery adapter wanted (became a long story) >> > >> > After all I find it stupid that EU and US legislators banned mercury >> > batteries instead of just requiring that new cameras, hearing aids etc. >> > shall work with mercury free batteries. Mercury cells in my cameras seem >> > to last for years instead of the 4 to 6 weeks quoted for zinc-air cells. >> > Are 30 to 60 zinc-air cells that I would need to purchase over five >> > years better for the environment than a single mercury cell, even >> > without recycling? Where is the proper environmental impact assessment >> > to prove that zinc-air is better? Why legislators are bashing the >> > minority of classic camera users, but not owners of 3 ton, 400 hp "sport >> > utilitiy vehicles"? Zinc-air is probably ok for hearing aids which suck >> > any battery in 4 weeks, for occasional use and low current applications >> > like photoelectric meters mercury is hard to beat. I am not really >> > willing to accept the limited life of the . Because the battery is >> > hidden inside the Rollei 35 and Leica CL, you can replace it only in the >> > dark or when you change the film. > > >