High demands force Govt to monitor mercury imports

…“limited” amounts to be made available

Restrictions will soon be placed on large amounts of mercury imported to Guyana, as the Natural Resources Ministry has embarked on a process to monitor the movement of the substance, owing to the numerous hazardous effects and health risks.

Natural Resources Minister, Raphael Trotman on Thursday indicated that the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Pesticide Toxic Chemical Control Board would have played an integral role in the development of a framework and official document that will be signed in a week’s time.
With this Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), stakeholders will have to present valid reasons for importing mercury, as well as gain the permission of all the entities.
Mercury, which is also known as quicksilver, is extremely toxic as is any compound derived from it. Inhalation of its vapour will result in harmful effects on the nervous, digestive and immune systems, lungs and kidneys, and may be fatal. The product is used primarily in the mining sector.
As such, Trotman insisted that the product cannot be imported without valid reasons. In some cases, persons have desired to have thousands of kilograms of the substance shipped or transported to Guyana.
“It really says that you just can’t import mercury into Guyana. You have to have the permissions of the three entities. They are working in collaboration with each other…We’re monitoring what is stocked in hand. We’re going to ensure that there is a limited amount at all times and not an open invitation process,” he said.
The Minister opined that this move will impact the sector. There are also views that some of the imported mercury is carried across the borders to other countries.
“How is it going to affect the sector? I think it will in a positive way. We’re seeing requests for importation. Last year, I refused to give permission for 30,000 kilograms of mercury to be imported from Mexico. I wondered what would one want with 30,000 kilograms of mercury. That’s one importer. There are multiple importers. We have business to believe that some of it is moved across borders,” Trotman explained.
Last February, Trotman had revealed that even as Government tries to mitigate the harmful effects of mercury on the environment, some villages are, in fact, complicit in the use of mercury and the destruction it causes.
Trotman made this revelation during the Minamata Convention – a stakeholder session set up to develop strategies for eradicating mercury use. According to the Minister, villagers and Toshaos in some mercury-scarred villages are facilitating the miners responsible.
The Minamata Convention on Mercury is an international treaty designed to protect human health and the environment from anthropogenic emissions and releases of mercury and mercury compounds.
Meanwhile, Trotman had also spoken of a model mercury-free operation; a project that could be taken on through the provision of mining blocks. He noted that a number of blocks could be distributed to the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) for this purpose.
In 2018, the discovery of high levels of mercury in the Guyana Gold Board (GGB) laboratory in Georgetown had led to Trinidad-based Kaizen Environmental Services being contracted to conduct an independent investigation on the effect of the emission. In the case of mining personnel, a reading showing levels of 0-6 micrograms per litre is considered safe while 7-10 is high and above 11 is dangerous.