European Parliament resolution on the Community strategy concerning mercury (2005/2050(INI))
Date: 2006-11-30
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: dangerous substance, environmental protection, export restriction, food safety, mercury, pollution control measures, public health, waste management

C 291 E/128

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

30.11.2006

Tuesday, 14 March 2006

31. Calls for particular account to be taken of problems in border areas affected by large subsidy
shortfalls;

32. Recommends that its own relevant Committees carefully evaluate the Commission's follow-up to this
resolution;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, and the national

33.
parliaments of the Member States.

P6_TA(2006)0078

Community strategy concerning mercury

European Parliament resolution on the Community strategy concerning mercury (2005/2050(INI))

The European Parliament,

— having regard to the communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament

on the Community Strategy concerning mercury (COM(2005)0020),

— having regard to Parcom Decision 90/3 on Reducing Atmospheric Emissions from Existing Chlor-Alkali

Plants,

— having regard to Rule 45 of its Rules of Procedure,

— having regard to the report of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

(A6-0044/2006),

A. whereas mercury and its compounds are highly toxic to humans living in different ecosystems and to

plant and animal wildlife,

B. whereas mercury is persistent and can change in the environment into methylmercury, the most toxic
form, which readily passes both the placental barrier and the blood-brain barrier and may cause damage
to the developing brain,

C. whereas mercury that is correctly stored and isolated, presenting no potential risk as there is no evapora-
tion, should nevertheless be stored on secure sites that are continuously monitored and where interven-
tion can take place quickly if necessary,

D. whereas mercury contamination is a widespread, persistent and diffuse problem, transported across inter-
national boundaries far from its sources, contaminating both the European and global food supplies;
whereas the Community Strategy on mercury proposed by the Commission is an important contribution
to tackling this global threat, but further binding measures need to be taken at international and EU
level in order to protect human health and the environment,

E. whereas the Commission stated in its Extended Impact Assessment that the magnitude of the adverse
health impacts from mercury is unknown, so more information on health costs are needed; whereas,
however, further studies should not lead to delays in the Community Strategy,

30.11.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 291 E/129

Tuesday, 14 March 2006

F. whereas mercury and its compounds are listed as a priority hazardous substance under Directive
2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a frame-
work for Community action in the field of water policy (1) (the Water Framework Directive); whereas the
Commission was required, under Article 16(8) of that Directive as amended, to make a proposal for the
cessation or phasing-out of discharges, emissions and losses of priority hazardous substances by
December 2003, but has still not made such a proposal,

G. whereas the EU is the world's largest mercury exporter, and whereas an EU export ban would make a

significant contribution to curbing trade and diminishing global supplies of mercury,

H. whereas 12 000 tonnes of mercury in the EU mercury-cell chlor-alkali industry — the biggest holding
of mercury in the EU — is destined for decommissioning pursuant to Parcom Decision 90/3; whereas
the EU needs to act urgently to phase out the exports of this surplus mercury in order to avoid environ-
mental damage in third countries, in particular because EU mercury exports encourage the continued
and highly polluting use of mercury in gold mining, and whereas all of this surplus mercury needs to be
stored safely in the EU to avoid further environmental damage,

I. whereas mercury has been mined in Almadén, Spain, for centuries, and whereas the closure of these
mines has to be accompanied by economic and social restructuring measures for the area concerned,

J. whereas it is urgent to establish a place where safe storage of surplus mercury from all over Europe

could be secured,

K. whereas the main source of mercury release is coal burning, and whereas emissions from large combus-
tion plants are regulated through Community legislation (Council Directive 96/61/EC of 24 September
1996 on integrated pollution prevention and control (2) (the IPPC Directive) and Directive 2001/80/EC
of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2001 on the limitation of emissions of
certain pollutants into the air from large combustion plants (3)),

L. whereas mercury in dental amalgam represents the second largest stock of mercury in society; whereas
the largest source of mercury exposure for most people in developed countries is inhalation of mercury
from dental amalgam; whereas exposure to mercury from dental amalgam needs to be looked at above
all from a health perspective; whereas emissions from crematoria will be a significant source of mercury
pollution for many years to come, unless abatement techniques that can considerably reduce these emis-
sions are put into place very soon,

M. whereas substituting mercury in measuring and control equipment for consumer and professional use is

an effective way of addressing inevitable emissions from their use and disposal,

N. whereas mercury contamination from household waste is an increasing problem, and whereas compul-
sory separate collection and treatment schemes for all mercury-containing products circulating in society
need to be put in place,

O. whereas exposure to methylmercury mostly occurs via diet, and whereas it collects and gets concentrated
especially in the aquatic food chain, making sensitive population groups and populations with a high
intake of fish and seafood particularly vulnerable,

P. whereas exposure to mercury of sensitive population groups (infants, children, pregnant women and
women of childbearing age) needs to be minimised; whereas the effectiveness of such minimisation
needs to be effectively monitored; whereas the population as a whole, and in particular sensitive groups,
need to be informed and educated about, and alerted to, the potential risks of foodstuffs that are
contaminated with mercury and its compounds,

(1) OJ L 327, 22.12.2000, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 257, 10.10.1996, p. 26.
(3) OJ L 309, 27.11.2001, p. 1.

C 291 E/130

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

30.11.2006

Tuesday, 14 March 2006

Q. whereas furthermore the relevance to health of such sources of mercury as amalgam, vaccines containing

mercury and disinfectants must be independently investigated,

R. whereas the EU should work towards global actions to substantially reduce mercury supply and demand,
and to control all trade in it; whereas the EU should take legally binding action at Community level in
order to provide vital credibility for action at international level,

S. whereas, when reviewing the strategy in 2010, measurements in soil, air and water must have been

made, must be publicly available, and must be taken into consideration,

T. whereas the uptake of mercury depends to some extent on the bioaccessibility occurring in different

ecosystems at local level,

1. Welcomes the Commission communication on a ‘Community Strategy concerning Mercury’ and
emphasises the overall approach taken with the objectives to reduce and eventually phase out emissions,
supply and demand of mercury at European level as well as to manage the surpluses of mercury and to
protect against exposure;

2.
Stresses, in this context, the importance of the EU continuing its efforts at international level, such as
through the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument, with a view to reducing substantially
emissions and uses of mercury on a global scale, given that alternatives exist, while at the same time
phasing out primary production and preventing surpluses re-entering the market;

3. Underlines the need for the Community Strategy to be followed by specific measures and legislative
acts as soon as practicably possible;

4. Underlines, considering the above, and in particular the significant amounts of mercury surpluses
arising from the decommissioning of mercury cells in chlor-alkali plants, the significance of a pro-active
Commission proposal to phase out the export of metallic mercury and its compounds from the Community
and asks the Commission to propose an EU mercury export ban to take effect as soon as practicably
possibly and at the latest by 2010;

5. Calls on the Commission to propose before March 2008 measures to track imports and exports of
mercury and its compounds within the Member States as well as to and from the Community, to be in
place before the export ban;

6. Calls on the Commission to consider an extension of the current prohibition on the export of mercury-
containing soaps, provided for in Regulation (EC) No 304/2003 of the European Parliament and of the
Council of 28 January 2003 concerning the export and import of dangerous chemicals (1), to other
mercury-containing products, which are, or soon will be, subject to use and marketing restrictions within
the EU;

7. Asks the Commission to come forward with proposals for legally binding measures to ensure that all
mercury coming from the chlor-alkali industry is not put back into circulation and is safely stored, in secure
sites, continuously monitored and located where active intervention can take place immediately if necessary;

8. Asks the Commission, in addition to the above, to ensure that the following elements are included in
the relevant instrument regarding the storage of surplus metallic mercury: minimum safety standards,
regular and transparent reporting, advance planning and projections, penalties and sanctions;

9. Calls on the Commission to raise public awareness, by holding information campaigns, as regards the
health risks, the risks of exposure, and the environmental problems that mercury can cause;

10. Underlines, furthermore, the importance of applying the polluter-pays principle, in particular as far as
storage of surplus mercury is concerned; stresses that the industry sectors responsible for the production of
mercury should contribute to the financing of the safe storage of surplus mercury;

(1) OJ L 63, 6.3.2003, p. 1.

30.11.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 291 E/131

11. Calls on the Commission to ensure at the same time that no European primary mercury enters the
European and/or global market;

Tuesday, 14 March 2006

12. Underlines that the main source of emissions of mercury is the burning of coal, and asks the Commis-
sion to introduce under the IPPC Directive or in a separate legislative instrument, as soon as possible, and at
the very least, emission limit values for mercury from all relevant activities, and in particular from both
large and small-scale coal combustion processes;

13. Calls on the Commission to ensure in the short term strict implementation of the IPPC Directive,
bearing in mind that the mercury-cell process in the chlor-alkali industry is not identified as a Best Available
Technique;

14. Calls on the Commission to take necessary measures and propose, in the short term, national mass
emission limits as well as local air quality limits for mercury under relevant existing or separate legislative
instruments;

15. Calls on the Commission to take action to implement Parcom Decision 90/3 so as to phase out the
use of mercury-cell chlor-alkali plants as soon as practicable, with the objective that they should be phased
out completely by 2010;

16. Asks the Commission to take further measures, in the short term, to control mercury emissions from
crematoria, given that this is an increasing and worrisome source of emissions;

17. Asks the Commission to come forward by the end of 2007 with a proposal to restrict the use of
mercury in dental amalgam and urges the Commission at the same time to take measures ensuring that the
Community requirements regarding treatment of dental waste are properly applied, and to investigate
whether additional measures are needed to ensure that amalgam does not enter the waste stream;

18. Asks the Commission to restrict the marketing and use of mercury in all measuring and control equip-
ment for both consumer and professional uses (especially in households, healthcare facilities, schools and
scientific and research institutions), but allowing for some exemptions only where adequate alternatives are
not yet available; such exemptions should also apply to the rare cases of maintenance of traditional barom-
eters, museum collections and industrial heritage; furthermore, a small number of professional companies in
the EU produce traditional measuring instrumentation using small quantities of mercury and this use should
continue to be permitted in carefully controlled and licensed environments;

19. Asks the Commission to take measures, in the short term, to ensure that all products (not only elec-
trical and electronic) containing mercury and currently circulating in society are collected separately and
safely treated;

20. Calls upon the Commission to address the use of mercury in the manufacture of vaccines, as also
mentioned in the Council conclusions of 24 June 2005, and to evaluate this with a view to achieving a
restriction of such use and a total ban, when appropriate and safe alternatives exist, and to support research
into viable options for the future delivery of thiomersal-free multi-dose vaccines in developing countries;

21. Calls upon the Commission to ensure that priority is given and appropriate funds are allocated for
mercury research via the 7th RTD Framework Programme and other appropriate funding mechanisms;

22. Calls upon the Commission to ensure that all remaining uses of mercury, not covered by the presented
strategy, shall be subject to substitution by safe alternatives where feasible, under the proposed REACH
Regulation, once it is adopted;

23. Underlines the importance of pursuing measures against exposure and improving understanding, and
acknowledges the importance of public awareness, communication and education, mainly concerning the
health risks from exposure to mercury; stresses the need for access to environmental information in line
with the Aarhus Convention;

C 291 E/132

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

30.11.2006

Tuesday, 14 March 2006

24. Calls upon the Commission to investigate options for making the reporting of Member States'
mercury dietary intake data for vulnerable groups to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) mandatory,
and to request the Scientific Committee on Health and Environmental Risks to carry out a mercury risk
assessment for vulnerable groups;

25. Calls on the Commission, in the same context, to assign priority to financing communication with
vulnerable population groups concerning the damaging impact of mercury and to share good practices;

26. Calls upon the Commission to conduct an overall Health Impact Assessment to investigate the health
costs from mercury contamination, including the reduced intellectual capacity of European children arising
from mercury exposure;

27. Calls upon the Commission to fulfil, as soon as possible, its obligation under the Water Framework
Directive which required it to propose, already by December 2003, adequate emission controls and quality
standards to phase out discharges, emissions and losses of mercury and its compounds into the aquatic
environment;

28. Welcomes the Commission's proposal to investigate further specific dietary intakes of different types
of fish and seafood among vulnerable subpopulations, and considers it as one of the most pressing actions
to ensure that exposure of vulnerable subpopulations is reduced to below internationally accepted standards
for safe levels of methylmercury;

29. Calls upon the Commission to ensure that a programme of testing for methylmercury levels and the
cofactors which influence the absorption and/or impact of mercury in fish throughout Europe, including
testing of large predatory fish, is introduced as soon as possible, with a view to consumption recommenda-
tions being issued by EFSA for fish with high levels of mercury, with particular emphasis on guidelines for
vulnerable population groups; considers that such a programme should take into account the special risks
linked to the fact that certain ecosystems transform mercury more readily into bioavailable methylmercury
than others;

30. Calls upon the Commission, in the same context, to ensure that mercury especially in vulnerable
populations is included in the biomonitoring programme originally foreseen in the European Environment
and Health Action Plan 2004-2010 (COM(2004)0416), as called for by Parliament in its resolution thereon
of 23 February 2005 (1);

31. Welcomes the Council's conclusion recognising the environmental and social problems arising from
the closure of the long established mercury mines in Almadén, Spain, as a consequence of the Community
strategy concerning mercury; recommends that adequate compensation measures be undertaken and duly
funded by the Commission in order to allow the area affected by the closure of mercury mines to achieve
viable economic and social alternatives; underlines that consideration should be given to the possibility of
using Almadén for the safe storage of the existing metallic mercury stocks or metallic mercury sub-produced
by industry all over Europe but not mercury-containing articles that have become waste, thus making use of
the infrastructures, local manpower and technological expertise existing there;

Supports measures to ensure rehabilitation and monitoring of the contaminated sites, including closed

32.
mines, industrial sites or storage sites for waste from both, respecting the polluter-pays principle;

33. Welcomes all actions proposed by the Commission at international level and stresses the importance
of the Commission and the Member States supporting and promoting international action, with a view to
reaching an agreement on the implementation of a global legislative instrument on mercury;

Supports strongly initiatives to make mercury subject to the PIC-procedure of the Rotterdam and/or

34.
Basel Convention, in order to increase transparency in mercury trade;

(1) OJ C 304 E, 1.12.2005, p. 264.

30.11.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 291 E/133

Tuesday, 14 March 2006

35. Underlines, further, the importance of the EU cooperating with the main mining countries, Algeria
and Kyrgyzstan, with a view to phasing out the primary mercury entering the world market, by supporting
relevant actions;

Stresses the importance of the EU taking the initiative and organising bilateral meetings with other
36.
regions, such as the G77 and China, in order better to prepare the negotiations scheduled to take place
during the upcoming UNEP Governing Council in 2007;

37. Asks the Commission to explore the possibility of providing technical assistance and know-how to
affected developing countries and countries with economies in transition to eventually phase out uses and
releases of mercury and mercury compounds;

38.

Stresses that, in addition, the use of amalgam in Second- and Third-World countries must be reduced;

39. Asks the Commission, considering the above, to request Member States to report on all of their activ-
ities and projects on mercury involving developing countries, with a view to determining where the needs
are for more efficient use of EU funds;

40. Calls on the Commission to ensure restriction in the use of mercury in gold mining, by promoting at
the same time non-mercury-using viable techniques, and furthermore to come forward with a proposal for a
positive labelling scheme for gold that has been mined without the use of mercury, covering gold processed
both inside and outside the European Union;

41. Reminds the Commission of its own statement that the Medical Devices Expert Group ‘comprises
“stakeholders” to assist the Commission on questions arising from the implementation and practical applica-
tion’ of Council Directive 90/385/EEC of 20 June 1990 on the approximation of the laws of the Member
States relating to active implantable medical devices (1); therefore considers it extremely important, to ensure
full participation of all stakeholders, such as health care professionals, toxicologists and experts in clinical
environmental medicine, patient groups and public health groups in the Medical Devices Expert Group, and
to ensure a balanced representation of the different views;

42.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission.

(1) OJ L 189, 20.7.1990, p. 17.

P6_TA(2006)0079

A European information society for growth and employment

European Parliament resolution on a European information society for growth and employment
(2005/2167(INI))

The European Parliament,

— having regard to the Commission Communication to the Council, the European Parliament, the Euro-
pean Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions entitled ‘i2010 — A European
Information Society for growth and employment’ (COM(2005)0229) and the accompanying Commis-
sion Staff Working Paper on extended impact assessment (SEC(2005)0717),

— having regard to Directive 2002/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002
on a common regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services (Framework
Directive) (1),

(1) OJ L 108, 24.4.2002, p. 33.