The Minamata Convention on Mercury prohibits the manufacture, import, and export of listed mercury-added products, including batteries, switches, certain lamps, cosmetics and measuring devices, with limited exemptions. It also requires Parties to phase down the use of dental amalgam.
The COP, in decision MC-6/4, encouraged Parties without national legislation or other measures, or otherwise facing challenges in implementing their obligations regarding mercury-added cosmetics, to inform the secretariat and to consider the application of Article 14 (Capacity building, technical assistance and technology transfer and/or 15 (Implementation and Compliance Committee) to their situation. Information is to be submitted to the Secretariat by email. The Executive Secretary sent a letter to invite Parties and stakeholders to submit information by 30 June 2026.
Intersessional work and Submissions for COP-5
Review of and amendments to annexes A and B
Annexes A and B to the Convention provide for measures to be taken on mercury-added products and manufacturing processes in which mercury or mercury compounds is used.
Amendment of Annex A adopted at COP-4 in 2022
The Conference of the Parties (COP) decided, in its decision MC-4/3, to amend part I of Annex A to the Convention by adding the following mercury-added products, so that the manufacture, import and export of those products not be allowed after 2025:
Compact fluorescent lamps with an integrated ballast (CFL.i) for general lighting purposes that are ≤ 30 watts with a mercury content not exceeding 5 mg per lamp burner
Cold cathode fluorescent lamps (CCFL) and external electrode fluorescent lamps (EEFL) of all lengths for electronic displays, not included in the current listing
Strain gauges to be used in plethysmographs;
Melt pressure transducers, melt pressure transmitters and melt pressure sensors except those installed in large-scale equipment or those used for high precision measurement, where no suitable mercury-free alternative is available
Mercury vacuum pumps
Tire balancers and wheel weights
Photographic film and paper
Propellant for satellites and spacecraft.
COP-4 also agreed to amend part II of Annex A by adding the following provisions for dental amalgam;
In addition, Parties shall:
(i) Exclude or not allow, by taking measures as appropriate, the use of mercury in bulk form by dental practitioners;
(ii) Exclude or not allow, by taking measures as appropriate, or recommend against the use of dental amalgam for the dental treatment of deciduous teeth, of patients under 15 years and of pregnant and breastfeeding women, except when considered necessary by the dental practitioner based on the needs of the patient.
The entry into force date set in paragraph 3 (c) of Article 27 of the Convention will be 28 September 2023.
Review and amendment to be considered at COP-5
The COP-4 also decided to consider at its 5th meeting the phase-out dates in Part I of Annex A for the following categories:
Button zinc silver oxide batteries with a mercury content < 2% and button zinc air batteries with a mercury content < 2%
Very high accuracy capacitance and loss measurement bridges and high frequency radio frequency switches and relays in monitoring and control instruments with a maximum mercury content of 20 mg per bridge switch or relay [except those used for research and development purposes]
Linear fluorescent lamps (LFLs) for general lighting purposes:
(a) Halophosphate phosphor ≤ 40 watts with a mercury content not exceeding 10 mg per lamp
(b) Halophosphate phosphor > 40 watts.
Linear fluorescent lamps (LFLs) for general lighting purposes:
(a) Triband phosphor < 60 watts with a mercury content not exceeding 5 mg/lamp
The COP also decided to further consider adding the production of polyurethane using mercury-containing catalysts to part I of Annex B at its 5th meeting, and requested the secretariat to compile information on the availability and technical and economic feasibility of mercury-free alternatives of the production of polyurethane using mercury-containing catalysts for submission to its 5th meeting.
Parties are invited to submit any information on these products and processes that will support the consideration by COP-5 by 31 December 2022.
Furthermore, the COP requested the secretariat to prepare a short report on the technical and economic feasibility of mercury-free alternatives for the two processes (vinyl chloride monomer and sodium or potassium methylate or ethylate) listed in Part II of Annex B that refer to the COP establishing such feasibility. Part II of Annex B to the Convention requires Parties not to allow the use of mercury five years after the COP has established that mercury-free processes have become technically and economically feasible.
Parties are invited to submit information on the availability and feasibility of non-mercury alternatives to these processes by 31 December 2022.
The Secretariat hired a consultant to collect technical information that would support the COP-5 deliberation on Annexes A and B. The consultant’s report is available here. This information was used in the development of document UNEP/MC/COP.5/INF/5.
Intersessional work and Submissions for COP-4
Review of annexes A and B
COP3 decided to establish an ad hoc group of experts on the review of annexes A and B to the Convention, to prepare a document in which it will enrich and organize the information on the uses of mercury and on non-mercury alternatives referred to in the submissions from the Parties.
1. Information on the uses of mercury and on non-mercury alternatives
Parties were invited to submit information on the uses of mercury and on non-mercury alternatives as set out in (a) and (b) below by 31 March 2020.
(a) Information on mercury-added products and on the availability, technical and economic feasibility, and environmental and health risks and benefits of non-mercury alternatives to mercury-added products, pursuant to paragraph 4 of Article 4 of the Convention;
(b) Information on processes that use mercury or mercury compounds and, on the availability, technical and economic feasibility and environmental and health risks and benefits of mercury-free alternatives to manufacturing processes in which mercury or mercury compounds are used, pursuant to paragraph 4 of Article 5.
The following submissions have been received. Submissions received by 15 April are also be posted below. Further submissions were received by July 31 (see point 3 below). As agreed by the ad hoc group of experts, parties were recommended to use the available templates (here) for further submissions.
Non-parties and others were invited to provide further information on the use of mercury and on non-mercury alternatives referred to in the submissions by the Parties by 30 April 2020. The following submissions were received by 15 May. Further submissions were received by July 31 (see point 3 below). As agreed by the ad hoc group of experts, bon-parties and others were recommended to use the available templates (here) for further submissions.
Parties that notified the Secretariat at the time of their becoming a Party to the Convention that they would implement various measures or strategies to address products listed in part I of Annex A to the Convention are to report on the measures or strategies they have implemented, including a quantification of the reductions achieved by 30 June 2020. The following submission was received.
Parties were invited to nominate members of the ad hoc group of experts through the Bureau members by 31 March 2020. The list of nominated members is available here.
The group had its first on-line meeting on 7 May. The group decided to receive submissions of information from Parties, non-parties and other stakeholders until 31 July 2020. The group will continue to discuss further plans including the invitation of observers at the next on-line meeting.
At its second on-line meeting on 3 June, the group decided to hold separate group-calls on different categories of products and processes, covering all categories included in Annexes A and B. The group will discuss details on how to arrange these group-calls at the next meeting. Observers will be invited to respective group-calls, and the secretariat will reach out to selected observers.
At its third on-line meeting on 1 July, the group discussed about the schedule of work including arrangements of separate group-calls. The group will meet again in mid-July to further discuss about the detailed schedule of work.
Online information sessions were held on 7 July 2020 to present the progress of the intersessional work including review of Annexes A and B and to call for submission of information. The presentation from the Secretariat and recorded video of the session are available here.
4. Outcome of the work of the group of experts (30 April 2021)
The following report summarizes the outcome of the work of the ad hoc group of experts on review of Annexes A and B.
The submitted and supplemented information, organized in a tabular format indicating the sources of information, is presented in the following compilation documents. As of 30 April 2021, by which the report on the work of the group was due, some additional information on mercury-added products, particularly on lamps, was still to be provided by experts or to be incorporated into the documents. The group further worked to organize such additional information into the compilation document by 30 June 2021, which is to be made available to the Conference of the Parties as an information document. (Updated on 24 August 2021)
