US EPA Will Propose Rule to Reduce Mercury Emissions from Dental Offices
September 29th, 2010
U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyPress Release: 09/27/2010
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced it intends to propose a rule to reduce mercury waste from dental offices. Dental amalgams, or fillings containing mercury, account for 3.7 tons of mercury discharged from dental offices each year. The mercury waste results when old mercury fillings are replaced with new ones. The mercury in dental fillings is flushed into chair-side drains and enters the wastewater systems, making its way into the environment through discharges to rivers and lakes, incineration or land application of sewage sludge. Mercury released through amalgam discharges can be easily managed and prevented.
