Equipment containing intact mercury is to be handled as Universal Waste. Universal Waste can be stored for up to a year and should be disposed of through approved waste services; it is not to be discarded with regular waste. Universal waste does not affect generator status.
Mercury that has been released and cleaned up will need to disposed of as Hazardous Waste along with the PPE and materials used to clean the spill. If the spill was into a soil, the soil will need to be treated as waste as well.