United States supports new multilateral convention to limit mercury discharges.

• Jurisdiction: Derecho Internacional
• Author: Crook, John R.
• Date: 01 April 2013

In January 2013, the United States joined over 140 other countries in adopting the Minamata Convention on Mercury, (1) a multilateral convention aimed at limiting releases of mercury, a highly toxic heavy metal, into the environment. (2) According to a UN press release:

Over 140 governments meeting at a United Nations forum in Geneva have agreed to a global, legally-binding treaty to address mercury, a notorious heavy metal with significant health and environmental effects. The Minamata Convention on Mercury--named after a city in Japan where serious health damage occurred as a result of mercury pollution in the mid-20th century--provides controls and reductions across a range of products, processes and industries where mercury is used, released or emitted. These range from medical equipment such as thermometers and energy-saving light bulbs to the mining, cement and coal-fired power sectors, according to a news release issued today by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), which convened the negotiations. The treaty, which has been four years in negotiation and which will be open for signature at a special meeting in Japan in October, also addresses the direct mining of mercury, export and import of the metal and safe storage of waste mercury. Pinpointing populations at risk, boosting medical care and better training of health care professionals in identifying and treating mercury-related effects will also form part of the new agreement. UNEP noted that mercury and its various compounds have a range of serious health impacts, including brain and neurological damage especially among the young. Others include kidney damage and damage to the digestive system. Victims can suffer memory loss and language impairment alongside many other well-documented problems. Among the provisions of the treaty, governments have agreed...