Children in the Philippines face health problems
There are currently 115 million children with ages from five to 17 years old who work in hazardous occupations worldwide, the United Nations International Labor Organization estimates. Among them, about a million children work in the mining industry. Hundreds of maybe even thousands of them live in the Philippines. Recently, the Center for Investigative Reporting, in collaboration with the […]
Signatories of the Minamata Convention [infographic]
A document that means “the beginning of the end of mercury as a threat to human health and the environment”. These were the words chosen by the executive director of the UN Environment Programme, Achim Steiner, to describe the Minamata Convention, recently signed by more than 90 countries. These nations vowed to ban several mercury products until 2020 and are planning the […]
92 Countries sign anti-mercury treaty
Japan hosted, earlier this month, the subscription ceremony of a groundbreaking global treaty to reduce mercury pollution. The Minamata Convention, signed by 92 countries, spells “the beginning of the end of mercury as a threat to human health and the environment”, said Achim Steiner, executive director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the site All Africa reports. Now that the […]
Philippines launches project against the dangerous use of mercury in small-scalle mining
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (Unido) teamed up with the Philippine government to fight for the elimination of mercury use in artisanal and small-scale mining in the country. The project is entitled “Improve the Health and Environment of Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining [ASGM] Communities in the Philippines by Reducing Mercury Emission”. The main […]
Pra river in Ghana can become chemically contaminated if the government doesn’t act against illegal mining
Ghana’s government is determined to fight the scourge of illegal mining in the country, especially its scientifically proven consequences to the health of the people that live near the mining areas, announced the vice-president. But what can they really do to stop this disaster? According to Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, “the issue of illegal mining is not just […]