Yes Jeff, I too have seen similar scenarios for producing the public scare results that the instigators of some of this legislation need in order to validate it ( and the existence of their jobs and departments, and their own over-inflated opinions of themselves ). I didn't realise that it had got as far as trying to ban lead glass over there. At least here in Europe, as I said, CRT technology has been granted an exemption. Going back to schoolboy chemistry, I seem to think that normal rain is actually slightly acidic - picks up carbon dioxide on its way down and becomes carbonic acid or something like that ?? But very weak anyway, certainly nothing like as low a ph as 5, I wouldn't have thought. Of course, there is genuine acid rain, created by pollution in the atmosphere, but I would have thought that if it was reaching anywhere near 5, every piece of exposed metal would be rotting away every 2 years, and that there were serious and more pressing problems with the legislation regarding reducing and removing atmospheric emmissions from factories.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not against doing away with dangerous manufacturing processes and materials, which are injurious to both people, and the planet in general, but there are degrees to which it's practical, and levels of risk, and I really honestly believe that lead in solder is such a low risk issue - particularly in view of the fact that additional legislation has been put in place to deal with that risk - that the problems its removal is causing to the electronics manufacturing and repair industries, far outweigh any short or long term advantages.
It seems to me that the words " horse ", " stable door " and " bolted " should be applied. If there is an issue with lead from solder getting into the eco system, then it's already happened / happening, and landfills that are full of junked electronics, need digging back up to remove that problem. If end of life electronic equipment is now going to be properly recycled under control of law, then there is no need to replace a valid, mature, and above all reliable technology, with one that has disastrous potential ...
Arfa