minamata convention on mercury minamata convention on mercury the minamata convention on mercury is an international treaty designed to protect human health and the environment from anthropogenic emissions and releases of mercury and mercury compounds. the convention was a result of three years of meeting and negotiating, after which the text of the convention was approved by delegates representing close to 140 countries on 19 january 2013 in geneva and adopted and signed later that year on 10 october 2013 at a diplomatic conference held in kumamoto, japan. the convention is named after the japanese city minamata. this naming is of symbolic importance as the city went through a devastating incident of mercury poisoning. it is expected that over the next few decades, this international agreement will enhance the reduction of mercury pollution from the targeted activities responsible for the major release of mercury to the immediate environment. minamata conventionminamata convention on mercurytypeunited nations treatysigned10 october 2013 (2013-10-10)locationkumamoto, japaneffective16 august 2017 (2017-08-16)conditionninety days after the ratification by at least 50 statessignatories128parties140depositarysecretary-general of the united nationslanguagesarabic, chinese, english, french, russian, spanishhttp://www.mercuryconvention.org/ the objective of the minamata convention is to protect the human health and the environment from anthropogenic emissions and releases of mercury and mercury compounds. it contains, in support of this objective, provisions that relate to the entire life cycle of mercury, including controls and reductions across a range of products, processes and industries where mercury is used, released or emitted. the treaty also addresses the direct mining of mercury, its export and import, its safe storage and its disposal once as waste. pinpointing populations at risk, boosting medical care and better training of health-care professionals in identifying and treating mercury-related effects will also result from implementing the convention. the minamata convention provides controls over a myriad of products containing mercury, the manufacture, import and export of which will be altogether prohibited by 2020, except where countries have requested an exemption for an initial 5-year period. these products include certain types of batteries, compact fluorescent lamps, relays, soaps and cosmetics, thermometers, and blood pressure devices. dental fillings which use mercury amalgam are also regulated under the convention, and their use must be phased down through a number of measures. background on mercury mercury is a naturally occurring element. it can be released to the environment from natural sources – such as weathering of mercury-containing rocks, forest fires, volcanic eruptions or geothermal activities – but also from human activities. an estimated 5500-8900 tons of mercury is currently emitted and re-emitted each year to the atmosphere, with much of the re-emitted mercury considered to be related to human activity, as are the direct releases. due to its unique properties, mercury has been used in various products and processes for hundreds of years. currently, it is mostly utilised in industrial processes that produce chloride (pvc) production, and polyurethane elastomers. it is extensively used to extract gold from ore in artisanal and small-scale gold mining. it is contained in products such as some electrical switches (including thermostats), relays, measuring and control equipment, energy-efficient fluorescent light bulbs, some types of batteries and dental amalgam. it is also used in laboratories, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, including in vaccines as a preservative, paints, and jewelry. mercury is also released unintentionally from some industrial processes, such as coal-fired power and heat generation, cement production, mining and other metallurgic activities such as non-ferrous metals production, as well as from incineration of many types of waste. the single largest source of human-made mercury emissions is the artisanal and small-scale gold mining sector, which is responsible for the release of as much as 1,000 tonnes of mercury to the atmosphere every year. history of the negotiations mercury and mercury compounds have long been known to be toxic to human health and the environment. large-scale public health crises due to mercury poisoning, such as minamata disease and niigata minamata disease, drew attention to the issue. in 1972, delegates to the stockholm conference on the human environment witnessed japanese junior high school student shinobu sakamoto, disabled as the result of methylmercury poisoning in utero. the united nations environment programme (un environment, previously unep) was established shortly thereafter. un environment has been actively engaged in bringing the science of mercury poisoning to policy implementation. in 2001, the executive director of un environment was invited by its governing council to undertake a global assessment of mercury and its compounds, including the chemistry and health effects, sources, long-range transport, as well as prevention and control technologies relating to mercury. in 2003, the governing council considered this assessment and found that there was sufficient evidence of significant global adverse impacts from mercury and its compounds to warrant further international action to reduce the risks to human health and the environment from their release to the environment. governments were urged to adopt goals for the reduction of mercury emissions and releases and un environment initiated technical assistance and capacity-building activities to meet these goals. a mercury programme to address the concerns posed by mercury was established and further strengthened by governments in 2005 and 2007 with the unep global mercury partnership. in 2007, the governing council concluded that the options of enhanced voluntary measures and new or existing international legal instruments should be reviewed and assessed in order to make progress in addressing the mercury issue. in february 2009, the governing council of unep decided to develop a global legally binding instrument on mercury. an intergovernmental negotiating committee (inc) was promptly established, through which countries negotiated and developed the text of the convention. other stakeholders, including intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations also participated in the process and contributed through sharing of views, experience and technical expertise. the intergovernmental negotiating committee was chaired by fernando lugris of uruguay and supported by the chemicals and health branch of un environment's economy division. the inc held five sessions to discuss and negotiate a global agreement on mercury: inc 1, 7 to 11 june 2010, in stockholm, sweden inc 2, 24 to 28 january 2011, in chiba, japan inc 3, 31 october to 4 november 2011, in nairobi, kenya inc 4, 27 june to 2 july 2012, in punta del este, uruguay inc 5, 13 to 18 january 2013, in geneva, switzerland on 19 january 2013, after negotiating late into the night, the negotiations concluded with close to 140 governments agreeing to the draft convention text. the convention was adopted and opened for signature for one year on 10 october 2013, at a conference of plenipotentiaries (diplomatic conference) in kumamoto, japan, preceded by a preparatory meeting from 7–8 october 2013. the european union and 86 countries signed the convention on the first day it was opened for signature. a further 5 countries signed the convention on the final day of the diplomatic conference, 11 october 2013. in total, the convention has 128 signatories. fernando lugris, the uruguayan chair delegate, proclaimed, "today in the early hours of 19 january 2013 we have closed a chapter on a journey that has taken four years of often intense but ultimately successful negotiations and opened a new chapter towards a sustainable future. this has been done in the name of vulnerable populations everywhere and represents an opportunity for a healthier and more sustainable century for all peoples." further to the adoption of the convention, the intergovernmental negotiating committee was mandated to meet during the interim period preceding the opening of the first meeting of the conference of the parties to the convention to facilitate its rapid entry into force and effective implementation upon entry into force. two sessions of the inc were held: inc 6, 3 to 7 november 2014, in bangkok, thailand inc 7, 10 to 15 march 2016, in dead sea, jordan discussions covered a number of technical, financial as well as administrative and operational aspects. the convention required to enter into force the deposit of fifty instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession by states or regional economic integration organizations. this fifty-ratification milestone was reached on 18 may 2017, hence the convention entered into force on 16 august 2017. the first meeting of conference of the parties to the minamata convention on mercury (cop1) took place from 24 to 29 september 2017 at the international conference center in geneva. the second meeting of the conference of the parties (cop2) took place from 19 to 23 november 2018 at the international conference center in geneva, switzerland. the third meeting of the conference of the parties (cop3) took place from 25 to 29 november 2019 at the international conference center in geneva, switzerland. at its third meeting, the conference of the parties agreed on a number of action items to effectively implement the minamata convention. after the convention entered into force, the conference of the parties took place yearly for the first three years. from now onward, next conference of the parties (cops) will be convened in every two years. the fourth meeting of the conference of the parties (https://www.mercuryconvention.org/en/meetings/cop4) (cop4) will take place in nusa dua, bali, indonesia from 21 to 25 march 2022. list of signatories and parties as of december 2022, there are 128 signatories to the treaty and 139 parties. participant signature ratification, acceptance (a), approval (aa), accession (a) afghanistan — 2 may 2017 (a) albania 9 october 2014 26 may 2020 algeria — 30 november 2022 (a) angola 11 october 2013 antigua and barbuda — 23 september 2016 (a) argentina 10 october 2013 25 september 2017 armenia 10 october 2013 13 december 2017 australia 10 october 2013 7 december 2021 austria 10 october 2013 12 june 2017 bahamas — 12 february 2020 (a) bahrain — 6 july 2021 (a) bangladesh 10 october 2013 18 april 2023 belarus 23 september 2014 belgium 10 october 2013 26 february 2018 benin 10 october 2013 7 november 2016 bolivia 10 october 2013 26 january 2016 botswana — 3 june 2016 (a) brazil 10 october 2013 8 august 2017 bulgaria 10 october 2013 18 may 2017 burkina faso 10 october 2013 10 april 2017 (a) burundi 14 february 2014 26 march 2021 cambodia 10 october 2013 8 april 2021 cameroon 24 september 2014 10 march 2021 canada 10 october 2013 7 april 2017 central african republic 10 october 2013 31 march 2021 chad 25 september 2014 24 september 2015 chile 10 october 2013 27 august 2018 china 10 october 2013 31 august 2016 colombia 10 october 2013 26 august 2019 comoros 10 october 2013 23 july 2019 congo, republic of the 8 october 2014 6 august 2019 costa rica 10 october 2013 19 january 2017 côte d'ivoire 10 october 2013 1 october 2019 croatia 24 september 2014 25 september 2017 cuba — 30 january 2018 (a) cyprus 24 september 2014 25 february 2020 czech republic 10 october 2013 19 june 2017 denmark 10 october 2013 18 may 2017 djibouti 10 october 2013 23 september 2014 dominican republic 10 october 2013 20 march 2018 ecuador 10 october 2013 29 july 2016 el salvador — 20 june 2017 (a) equatorial guinea — 24 december 2019 (a) estonia — 21 june 2017 (a) eswatini — 21 september 2016 (a) ethiopia 10 october 2013 european union 10 october 2013 18 may 2017 (aa) finland 10 october 2013 1 june 2017 (a) france 10 october 2013 15 june 2017 gabon 30 june 2014 24 september 2014 (a) gambia 10 october 2013 7 november 2016 georgia 10 october 2013 germany 10 october 2013 15 september 2017 ghana 24 september 2014 23 march 2017 greece 10 october 2013 10 june 2020 guatemala 10 october 2013 guinea 25 november 2013 21 october 2014 guinea-bissau 24 september 2014 22 october 2018 guyana 10 october 2013 24 september 2014 honduras 24 september 2014 22 march 2017 hungary 10 october 2013 18 may 2017 iceland — 3 may 2018 (a) india 30 september 2014 18 june 2018 indonesia 10 october 2013 22 september 2017 iran 10 october 2013 16 june 2017 iraq 10 october 2013 16 september 2021 ireland 10 october 2013 18 march 2019 israel 10 october 2013 italy 10 october 2013 5 january 2021 jamaica 10 october 2013 19 july 2017 japan 10 october 2013 2 february 2016 (a) jordan 10 october 2013 12 november 2015 kenya 10 october 2013 kiribati — 28 july 2017 (a) kuwait 10 october 2013 3 december 2015 laos —