The Minamata Convention on Mercury obliges Parties to the convention to manage mercury waste in an environmentally sound manner taking into account the guidelines developed under the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, and in accordance with requirements that the Conference of the Parties adopts after the Convention enters into force. Historically, most waste that contains some mercury has been handled as hazardous waste.
Under the Minamata Convention, mercury wastes are substances or objects:
- Consisting of mercury or mercury compounds
- Containing mercury or mercury compounds
- Contaminated with mercury or mercury compounds
This assessment describes the current mercury waste management practices in these countries, and provides a basis for understanding the size and nature of the gap between current practices and the environmentally sound mercury waste management envisioned in the Minamata Convention. The central finding is clear: The gap between the provisions of the Minamata Convention and the current mercury waste management practices is wide.