11 July 2016

Mercury originating from the natural daily erosion of amalgam fillings in teeth is now the biggest source of mercury entering the urban waste water.

Overall, this accounts to about 50% of the total mercury in the urban wastewater of Stockholm and consequently also 50% of the total mercury content in the city’s sludge and discharge of wastewater. Mercury from the daily erosion of amalgam in teeth is by far the single biggest source of mercury in the urban wastewater in Sweden. The same trend can be expected in many other Member States.

The European Commission’s current proposal on the Mercury Regulation is the perfect opportunity to impose a ban on the use of dental amalgam since better alternatives exist. Mercury separators at dental care clinics just take care of a smaller part of the mercury leakage into the environment.

Banning the use of dental amalgam will in a few decades significantly reduce the amount of mercury entering our wastewater treatment plants and will result in many tonnes less mercury in the European waters, less mercury in biota in water organisms and higher quality sludge as a an important source of nutrients in a true circular economy.

We want a date to be set for implementing the ban on using dental amalgam, since very good alternatives to dental amalgam exist and the ban has already been imposed in several Member States.

It will also save water plant operators and therefore consumers €120 million annually if the ban is imposed.

EurEau believes it is time to take long-term action on the continuous flow of mercury from dental amalgam to wastewater treatment plants and further into the circular flow of water and nutrients by introducing an end-date on the use of dental amalgam now.

The European Parliament and the Council of the EU have the opportunity to improve the European Commission proposal. On Tuesday we hope to see ambitious ENVI Committee MEPs’ positions during the debate that will consider the Rapporteur’s report on the Mercury Regulation.

With 85% of respondents in the public consultation favouring a ban we can definitely assert that the public is behind this. Act!

Carla

Water Matters. EU matters.