For the last day of #MinamataCOP4 and to end off this series, we’re going to focus on an important topic: waste management.

Mercury is a hazardous waste. When products containing mercury are thrown away, the mercury doesn’t disappear, it finds its way into the environment – like the air we breathe or the water we drink. That’s a problem, both for the environment and human health. Mercury waste must be managed in an environmentally sound manner in line with the #BaselConvention and the #MinamataConvention.

Much of the conversation this week was around setting thresholds. Is there a ‘red light’ concentration level at which mercury is unquestionably a hazard to the environment and health? How do you set that threshold and for what types of waste - mining tailings? Broken mercury-containing products? How do you manage that threshold, particularly when mercury is used in informal settings, like #ASGM, or relies on consumer awareness of waste management, like throwing away #CFLs? How effective would this threshold even be if countries don’t have the capacity to manage waste like this at a national level? It’s a complex issue and the debate around this continues.

In the final hours of COP4, things started to heat up. Certain countries blocked a key deliverable on the effectiveness evaluation, particularly amendments to mercury-added products and waste thresholds. This is largely a matter of science. Science is supposed to be neutral, unbiased evidence that unites countries to mobilise on global challenges. But geopolitics often gets in the way, much like it has in the climate negotiations too, and it can bring progress to a halt.

This is the reality of our times – we are disunified. Whether it’s war in Ukraine, debate over climate science, or tension in the mercury negotiations, disunity is the problem we need to overcome. None of the problems of the world can be solved until we recognise our common humanity, our fundamental oneness, and unfortunately, we still have a long way to go. Plenary closed at 5:20am, Saturday.

For more on today’s coverage: https://enb.iisd.org/Minamata-Convention-Mercury-COP4-2/25Mar22

#MakeMercuryHistory #unityindiversity #unity #onassignment #stories #livingfiercely