CONCORD, N.H. (AP) – Nearly 25 tons of mercury is hanging on the walls of New England homes, according to a group working to rid the region of the toxic element.

The New England Zero Mercury campaign says that’s the amount that could be removed if home thermostats containing mercury were banned across the region.

The group asks lawmakers to think about how much could be removed if the six states passed laws banning use of a wide range of mercury-containing products.

In New Hampshire, the campaign is pushing for passage of two mercury reduction bills that soon will go before House committees.

One bill proposes banning from landfills and waste stations products containing mercury. Parts containing mercury would be stripped, separated and recycled before going to the dump.

Another wants to lengthen the list of mercury-containing products banned for sale in New Hampshire. The expanded list would encompass cleaning and pharmaceutical products, lamps and measuring devices – such as thermostats – and establish a deadline for phasing them out.

New Hampshire schools are prohibited from buying or using products with mercury unless no other substitutes are available.

Connecticut also objected, and criticism from the incident prompted Kellogg to cease using the batteries in all subsequent promotions.

Connecticut is the only state where a law banning mercury thermostats has taken effect. In Northern New England, a similar rule would get rid of more than two tons of mercury in New Hampshire, almost three tons in Maine and one ton in Vermont, according to the Zero Mercury Campaign. A ban on mercury thermostats would get rid of 10 tons in Massachusetts; more than two tons in Rhode Island.

A bill introduced in Vermont seeks to ban the sale of thermometers, thermostats and dairy equipment containing mercury as well as mercury switches and relays. Vermont led the nation in 1998 passing the first law requiring products containing mercury to be labeled in 1998.

But Vermont “has lagged behind most New England states in adopting controls on mercury products,” according to a committee established by the Legislature to report on mercury contamination. The latest bill would require mercury be banned from landfills and incinerators. It also proposes to study ways to remove mercury parts from automobiles and appliances at solid waste facilities and salvaging businesses.

AP-ES-02-10-05 1533EST