In 1968, the Japanese government officially announced that the disease was caused by Chisso Corporation, polluting Minamata Bay with its mercury-contaminated wastewater discharge. The disease was first discovered in Minamata, Kumamoto Prefecture in 1956 (which became the first disease in humans caused by exposure to contaminated plants and animals). Abstract: Neurobehavioural Effects of Developmental Toxicity.Right during its economic miracle in the late 60s – early 70s, Japan faced a terror called The Disaster of Minamata, a large-scale methylmercury poisoning caused by the daily consumption of large quantities of fish and shellfish that were heavily contaminated from Minamata Bay.Article: Mercury Exposure and Health Impacts among Individuals in the Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining Community: A Comprehensive Review.Article: Economic benefits of methyl mercury exposure control in Europe: Monetary value of neurotoxicity prevention.Article: Benefits of Regulating Hazardous Air Pollutants from Coal and Oil-Fired Utilities in the United States.Article: Emission-Limit-Oriented Strategy to Control Atmospheric Mercury Emissions in Coal-Fired Power Plants toward the Implementation of the Minamata Convention.Lead, zinc, copper, and industrial gold roasting and smelting processes.Coal-fired power plants and industrial boilers.The use of mercury in artisanal and small scale gold mining reduced, and, where feasible, eliminatedĪir emission controls required for new plants within five years and within 10 years for existing plants in the following source categories:.Mercury use in the manufacture of PVC and polyurethane significantly reduced.Mercury use in chlor-alkali production phased out.Mercury content of most fluorescent lamps must be below specified levels. Measuring devices (barometers, hygrometers, manometers, thermometers, and blood pressure cuffs).Pesticides and biocides (including biocides in paints, but not vaccines), and topical antiseptics.Batteries (except for two types of button cells often used in watches and hearing aids).Importing country must consent to mercury trade.Mercury produced from mercury mines cannot be used for artisanal and small scale gold mining.Mercury from closing chlor-alkali plants cannot be sold or reused except within the chlor-alkali sector itself.Existing mines to be phased out within 15 years.The forms and guidance for complying with Convention obligations can be found at the Convention website. The Convention entered into force on August 16, 2017. After four years of negotiations, the Minamata Convention on Mercury was adopted and opened for signature at a Diplomatic Conference (Conference of Plenipotentiaries), held in Kumamoto, Japan on October 10 and 11, 2013. In 2009, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) began a negotiating process that resulted in the Minamata Convention on Mercury. Beyond these effects, scientists continue to raise flags about additional health threats posed by mercury exposure. Emerging research also links mercury exposure to cardiovascular disease in adult men. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that every year tens of thousands of American newborns are at risk of impaired motor skills and learning abilities as a result of their mothers' prenatal fish consumption. Mercury pollution is a global problem that needs a global solution. Stopping mercury pollution in the United States isn't enough to protect ourselves and future generations. Methyl mercury then enters the food chain through fish-and the fish we eat comes from all over the world. Third, once mercury enters a waterway, the natural bacteria can absorb it and convert it to a more toxic form: methyl mercury. Mercury released in Asia, for example, can circle the globe and enter American lakes and rivers. Second, airborne mercury, from burning coal for instance, can travel great distances before being deposited in waterways. First, it is actively traded as a global commodity, often for uses like artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) in the developing world, where substantial mercury releases into the environment are routine. Mercury moves around the world in three key ways. Mercury pollution from halfway across the globe can end up in your local lake or the fish at your grocery store, where it poses a serious health hazard, especially for children and pregnant women. Mercury is a potent neurotoxin and a pollutant that knows no borders.
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