The first meeting to review and assess measures to address the issue of global mercury was held by the ad-hoc Open Ended Working Group (OEWG) from November 12 to 16, 2007 at the UN ESCAP facilities in Bangkok, Thailand. The OEWG was setup by the Governing Council (GC) of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), after it was recognised that “current efforts to reduce risks from mercury are not sufficient to address the global challenges posed by mercury” and that “further long-term international action is required”.

Members of the OEWG include governments and stakeholder representatives, who gathered to assess options for enhanced voluntary measures and new or existing legal instruments to reduce risks from mercury.

Mercury is a significant health problem. Exposure to mercury disrupts the developing brain, causing deficits in language skills, memory, attention, motor skills and visual abilities. Methylmercury, mercury’s most toxic form, bio-accumulates up the food chain and is now present in the world’s fish and seafood at levels that cause significant harm.

In preparation for the meeting the EEB/Zero Mercury Working Group organised an NGO meeting on global mercury strategies. The NGO meeting was attended by 25 NGOs from 18 countries from around the world. Based on the Study on the different options, for UNEP, it was agreed at the meeting that NGOs favour a protocol to the Stockholm Convention or a new free standing treaty, as preferred mercury control measures.

Stephan Boese attended the meeting on behalf of the Health & Environment Alliance and the International Society of Doctors for the Environment. HEAL members can read the report here.

The second OEWG meeting is scheduled to take place from 6 to 10 October, 2008 in Nairobi, Kenya.

The NGO press release from the OEWG meeting can be found here.

Coverage of the first ad-hoc OEWG meeting can be found on the Earth Negotiations Bulletin website.