Scientific Facts on
Mercury
Mercury Links
- Factual links
Some of the websites providing reliable scientific information on Mercury :
- Other Views
See also our page containing sites linking to this Digest
1. Factual links
1.1 Some Q&As and FAQs on mercury
- The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) provides extensive information on mercury:
www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/chemicals/chem_profiles/mercury/
- The International Food Information Council (IFICF) provides Q&As about mercury in the environment and food :
www.ific.org/publications/qa/mercuryqa.cfm - ToxFAQs on mercury by the American Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR):
www.atsdr.cdc.gov/cabs/mercury/ - Q&As on mercury in fish from the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA):
www.foodstandards.gov.uk/multimedia/faq/mercuryfish/
1.2 More information for the non-specialist
- The EXTOXNET site briefly explains sources of mercury contamination of food and indicates safe levels of mercury established for different environments by institutions in the United States:
http://extoxnet.orst.edu/faqs/foodcon/mercury - Environment Canada addresses mercury extensively at its "mercury and the environment" website (in English and French):
www.ec.gc.ca/mercury/ - A European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) precautionary advice to vulnerable groups to mercury:
www.efsa.europa.eu/en/press_room/press_release/2004/258.html - The Food Standards Australia New Zealand (Food Standards Australia New Zealand) assesses the risk of mercury exposure through fish:
www.foodstandards.gov.au/newsroom/factsheets/factsheets2004/mercuryinfishfurther2394.cfm - The Seafood Network Information Center (SeafoodNIC) addresses mercury contamination of seafood:
http://seafood.ucdavis.edu/Pubs/mercury.htm - The International Development Research Centre (IDRC) investigates mercury contamination in the Amazon:
Investigating the Health Effects of Low-level Exposure to Methyl Mercury - The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) addresses the issue of mercury in vaccines:
www.cdc.gov/od/science/iso/thimerosal.htm - The Australia A to Z of Materials website (AZoM) extensively covers health and environmental aspects of mercury:
www.azom.com/details.asp?ArticleID=2091
1.3 Some mercury news sites
- The Environmental Health Perspective journal of the US National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) provides "Environews" on mercury:
www.ehponline.org/topic/mercury.html - Environment Canada highlights new reports about mercury and new mercury management tools/initiatives (in English and French):
www.ec.gc.ca/MERCURY/EN/wn.cfm
1.4 Some policy-related websites
- The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) focuses on mercury through its "mercury programme" (the source of our summaries):
www.chem.unep.ch/mercury/default.htm - The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) recommend new dietary intake limits for mercury:
www.who.int/mediacentre/notes/2003/np20/en/ - The US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) mercury site with FAQs, fact sheets, reports and legislation on mercury:
www.epa.gov/mercury/ - The DG Environment of the European Commission strategy on mercury, including reports on decommissioned chlor-alkali plants:
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/chemicals/mercury/index.htm - The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) revised consumer advisory on methylmercury in fish:
www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/admehg3g.html - The Mercury Policy Project (MPP) news on mercury-related policies:
www.mercurypolicy.org/ - A US Public Health Service report "Dental Amalgam: A Scientific Review and Recommended Public Health Service Strategy for Research, Education and Regulation:
www.health.gov/environment/amalgam1/ct.htm
1.5 "What can I do?" websites
- Environment Canada outlines steps we can take to protect ourselves and the environment from mercury exposure (in English and French) and releases:
www.ec.gc.ca/MERCURY/EN/do.cfm - The World Resources Institute (wri) provides alternatives for small-scale mercury mining:
http://pubs.wri.org/pubs_content_text.cfm?ContentID=1151
2. Other Views
Links in this section have been selected as examples of other views on Mercury. This list of links is only a sample and it is not suggested that it is complete nor that it is fully representative of all the existing views. GreenFacts asbl takes no position concerning the views expressed in these linked documents.
2.1 Is the UNEP report a consensus one?
Most scientists globally agree with the conclusions of the Executive summary of the Global Mercury Assessment
2.2 Other institutions having reached similar conclusions:
- The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe guidelines for mercury in the air (2000):
- The UK Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COT) updates its conclusions on a survey of mercury in fish and shellfish (2004):
