Almost forty environmental, consumer, and human rights groups from African nations spanning the continent – west, east, north, south, and central – have signed the Abuja Declaration for Mercury-Free Dentistry for Africa.
The Abuja Declaration boldly declares, “Africa shall be the 1st continent to phase out amalgam.” This declaration grew out of the West African Summit on Phasing Out Amalgam, held in Abuja, Nigeria in May 2014, a summit sponsored by the World Alliance for Mercury-Free Dentistry.
Public health and environmental groups exposed the high concentration of mercury vapor in dental clinics and schools in the country in its study titled What’s Up in the Air? Mercury Vapor Levels in Dental Institutions.
Environmental justice group BAN Toxics and dentist Dr. Lillian Ebuen measured the level of concentration of mercury in five dental schools and supply stores in some regions of the country, including CAR.
Using the Lumex RA-915+ Mercury Vapor Analyzer, it was found out that mercury concentration values varied from 967ng/m3 to a high of 35,617ng/m3—the majority of which were at levels beyond recommended reference standards such as the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) action level of 1,000 ng/m3. Some areas posted a concentration of >10,000 ng/m3, which is considered as the evacuation alert level by the US EPA. Continue reading
A new global legally binding treaty on mercury, signed today in Minamata, Japan, means “dental amalgam is neither appropriate nor practical in the 21st century,” said Charlie Brown, president, World Alliance for Mercury-Free Dentistry. “Mercury fillings – amalgam is 50% mercury – has no future, on any continent.”
The treaty gives special attention to amalgam. It both mandates that each nation phase down amalgam use, and prescribes what steps should be taken. Countries must do at least two of these phase down steps, which include: Continue reading
“This is the beginning of the end of dental amalgam globally,” said Michael T. Bender, director of the Mercury Policy Project, a US-based NGO, who is attending the mercury treaty talks. “We applaud the leadership role the US played in jump-starting support for a phase down in 2011 along with the concrete steps of the Nordic countries, Switzerland and Japan in phasing out amalgam.” Continue reading
World Alliance for Mercury-Free Dentistry 