IPEN warns that the use of mercury in artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) continues to be the leading global source of mercury pollution. To achieve significant reductions in mercury use in ASGM, it will be necessary to amend the Minamata Convention to end the trade in mercury (which is currently permitted) and to establish a 2032 phase-out date for ASGM as an allowable use of mercury.
There is wide agreement that the health and environmental impacts of plastics are a global crisis, but many people still have questions about how to solve the plastics problem.
This FAQs answers many of the most common questions around plastics, explaining the basic building blocks of plastics, plastic chemical additives, and how a Plastics Treaty can address the health and environmental threats from toxic chemicals in plastics and promote reductions in plastic production.
This series of PowerPoint Presentation (in pdf format) is an introduction to the Rotterdam Convention and how it can help speed global lead paint elimination. It explains who can submit a notification, how to go about submitting a notification, and some of the key issues countries wishing to submit a notification need to understand.
It has been estimated that 4.8-12.7 million tonnes of plastics enter the oceans every year. Plastics are made from carbon and chemicals and many of the chemicals can leach out from the plastics -- this means that plastic litter can act as carriers of toxic chemicals to remote regions.
Read our factsheet on the global spread of chemicals from plastics.
The listing of plastic wastes as Y48 in annex II of the Basel Convention includes exemptions for a range of plastics “provided it is destined for recycling in an environmentally sound manner and almost free from contamination and other types of wastes”.
Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS) and its related substances has been used as a toxic (so-called "regrettable") substitute for another PFAS, perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), that was listed under the Stockholm Convention for global restriction in 2009.
Plastics are more than bottles, straws, and bags — more than individual products. The word “plastic” refers to many different materials with different properties that are given to them by their chemical ingredients.
