The European Union and seven of its member states (Bulgaria, Denmark, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Romania, and Sweden) ratified the Minamata Convention on Mercury, thereby providing the last of the 50 ratifications needed to trigger its entry into force.  The Minamata Convention will now come into force in 90 days, on 16 August 2017.

The World Alliance for Mercury-Free Dentistry salutes the work of the nations, the government officials, the United Nations Environment Programme, and the NGO leaders whose work led to this great achievement: the first major convention on toxins in the 21st century!

The World Alliance for Mercury-Free Dentistry, in association with the African Center for Environmental Health and the Asian Center for Environmental Health, organized a conference of environmental leaders working to phase out dental amalgam use.  The conference was held in San Francisco, California, United States on 19 November 2016.  Continue reading →

UNEP and the World Alliance for Mercury-Free Dentistry urge governments around the world to phase down dental amalgam use at a side event during INC7 in Dead Sea, Jordan.

UNEP and World Alliance jointly organized the side event, entitled “Implementing Successful Strategies to Phase Down Amalgam Use,” to highlight effective steps governments can take to move toward mercury-free dentistry. Speakers highlighted World Alliances Mercury-Free Dentistry initiatives in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Continue reading →

Dental amalgam is a tooth filling material that is approximately 50% mercury, a highly polluting neurotoxin.  Today, countries around the world are phasing out the use of amalgam … and phasing up the use of mercury-free alternatives.

The World Alliance for Mercury-Free Dentistry is pleased to work with governments and organizations to phase down amalgam use in every region. Learn about progress toward mercury-free dentistry in the posts below.  If you need assistance in your region, please contact us.

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 →