NEWS RELEASE

Ref: 850-069/06

Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers
Fredericton, New Brunswick - June 7-9, 1998

RESOLUTION 23-2

RESOLUTION CONCERNING MERCURY AND ITS IMPACTS ON THE ENVIRONMENT

      WHEREAS, mercury is a persistent bioaccumulative toxin that poses a serious health risk to humans, undermines the productivity and safety of fisheries, and diminishes the economic benefits of tourism in the region; and

      WHEREAS, mercury is a transboundary air pollutant that, like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, calls for coordinated regional, national and international efforts to minimize contamination to the environment; and

      WHEREAS, the New England states and Eastern Canadian provinces recognize the opportunity to reduce the release of mercury from human activity through cooperative activity between the two regions; and

      WHEREAS, the Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers Committee on the Environment convened a successful workshop in Portland, Maine, to share information and prepare recommendations for specific actions that the provinces and states can undertake to ensure significant progress is realized in the release of mercury from human activity, into the ecosystem; and

      NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT, the New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers call upon their respective federal governments and the Commission for Environmental Cooperation to move forward without further delay to develop and implement national and continental measures for the virtual elimination of discharges of mercury from human activity, into the environment; and

      BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT, the New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers adopt the proposed action plan that includes 45 recommendations addressing:

• the establishment of a Regional Mercury Task Force to coordinate the implementation of the Mercury Action Plan;
• mercury emissions reduction targets for identified sources, such as municipal solid waste combustors, medical waste incinerators, sludge incinerators, utility and non-utility boilers, industrial and area sources;
• source reduction and safe waste management, including recycling;
• outreach and education, especially for high-risk populations;
• research, analysis, and strategic monitoring, to further identify and quantify sources of mercury deposition, and to monitor deposition patterns and develop meaningful environmental indicators to measure and track progress;
• mercury stockpile management; and

      BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Committee on the Environment take immediate action to appoint the Mercury Task Force by June 30, 1998.

      BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT, the Committee on the Environment, working with the Secretariats, report on progress taken on the implementation of the Mercury Action Plan at the next annual meeting of the Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers.

Adopted at The 23rd Annual Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers, June 7-9, 1998.

_____________________________ Premier Camille Thériault New Brunswick Co-Chair

_____________________________ Governor Jeanne Shaheen New Hampshire Co-Chair

Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat (CICS)

webmaster@scics.x400.gc.ca