This IMEAP project by IndyACT, an environmental NGO based in Lebanon, describes the extensive awareness-raising activities undertaken by the organisation to facilitate the rapid ratification of the Minamata Convention on Mercury. IndyACT held civil society workshops, engaged with high level government officials and generated extensive media activities to promote ratification of the Mercury Treaty. In addition, IndyACT compiled a country situation report that describes the current mercury situation in Lebanon, including a list of traded materials that contain mercury, industrial sources, discussion of the hazards of mercury for human health, and the steps needed to phase-out mercury and comply with the Mercury Treaty. IndyACT raised awareness among government representatives and the public about the ongoing use of mercury in the Lebanese medical and paramedical sectors, especially the use of dental amalgam and the poor disposal practices of mercury waste from the medical sector via unlicensed incineration.
