Resources

The Minamata Convention on Mercury prohibits the manufacture, import, and export of listed mercury-added products, including batteries, switches, certain lamps, cosmetics and measuring devices, with limited exemptions. It also requires Parties to phase down the use of dental amalgam.

The Minamata Convention on Mercury requires parties to phase down the use of dental fillings containing mercury, called dental amalgam. It restricts its use in vulnerable populations, including children and pregnant women.

Explore Insights, Resources and Intersessional Work gathered in the Minamata Convention on Mercury Topic: Dental amalgam.

The Department of Health, Ministry of Public Health and Department of Pollution Control, Ministry of Environment have initiated a project to minimize the use of dental amalgam and enhance Thailand's capacity for environmentally management under the Minamata Convention on Mercury.

The Zero Mercury Working Group Newsletter is published monthly since November 2019.

Presentations made at the webinar on Managing mercury waste from dental amalgam and medical measuring devices, organised by UNEP on 9 December 2024.

Dental amalgam has been used as a restorative material to address dental caries and is one of the  contributors to mercury consumption across the globe. The Minamata Convention on Mercury is a global treaty that aims to protect human health and the environment from anthropogenic emissions and releases of mercury and mercury compounds.

[ French ] Les amalgames dentaires communément appelés plombage contiennent du mercure, un composé très toxique pour les hommes et pour l'environnement. Les organismes au niveau global (OMS et le Fonds pour l'environnement UN Environment Program) préconisent sa réduction voire son élimination. Découvrez pourquoi à travers cette vidéo.

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The Global Mercury Partnership and its two areas of work on mercury in products and waste management, in cooperation with the World Health Organization, organized an online webinar on 18 December 2023.

Reinforcing the health sector’s commitment to the implementation of the Minamata Convention on Mercury: The showcase of GEF-UNEP-WHO projects on mercury-added products

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World Health Organization (WHO) and the Secretariat of the Minamata Convention jointly conducted an online survey on the measures taken to phase down the use of dental amalgam. The preliminary results are now available as an Appendix to the Information Document UNEP/MC/COP.5/INF/30/Rev.1

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Materiales didácticos

Background Document of the “Accelerate implementation of dental amalgam provisions and strengthen country capacities in the environmental sound management of associated wastes under the Minamata Convention” GEF7 Phasing Down Dental Amalgam project.

This WHO oral health briefing note series focuses on prevention and treatment of dental caries (tooth decay) with mercury-free products and minimal interventions. Dental caries is a major public health problem globally as the disease affects all age groups, with an onset in early childhood and continued increase over the life course.

Despite advances in modern dentistry, untreated dental caries in permanent teeth was reported as one the most prevalent conditions assessed in the 2019 Global Burden of Disease study. The restorative model for managing dental caries was developed in the 1900s, with dental amalgam as one of the restorative materials.

The World Health Organization website provides information on oral health through Overview, Causes and Symptoms and Responses. It also links to more information on the subject through Fact sheets, Databases and tools, Resolutions and decisions and Technical work.

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Background: Indiscriminate disposal of hospital wastes including mercury/amalgam wastes pose a serious threat to life and environment. There is a growing concern about biomedical waste (BMW) management among health care workers, however there are limited reports on BMW management by dental personnel in developing countries.

This publication was developed to guide health ministries4 in planning measures to implement the health-related articles of the Minamata Convention and to protect public health from exposure to mercury. It will guide health ministries to plan not only obligatory measures under the Convention but voluntary measures as well.

What are Mercury-added Products? The Minamata Convention on Mercury defines a mercury-added product as a “product or product component that contains mercury or a mercury compound that was intentionally added.”

Presentation given by Arturo Gavilan Garcia on Survey on Harmonized System Initiative of the Global Mercury Partnership given at the Global Mercury Partnership side event during the Second Conference of Parties (COP2) of the Minamata Convention

Mercury in dental amalgam is a hidden source of global mercury pollution, resulting from the illegal diversion of dental mercury into the artisanal and small-scale gold mining sector, to crematoria emissions from the deceased and sewage sludge that is sold to farmers.

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This report presents a range of measures already taken by some countries in pursuit of their objectives to phase down or entirely eliminate the use of dental amalgam. It is intended that these examples may inspire and instruct other countries’ efforts to implement this provision of the Minamata Convention.