Nigeria set to tackle mercury pollution

As a major global priority, the UNEP Governing Council has targeted reducing methyl mercury accumulation in the global environment. Through the newly adopted Minamata Convention on mercury which came to effect in October 2013, the world recognizes dental amalgam as a major environmental pollutant. The Convention requires each participating nation “to phase down the use […]

As a major global priority, the UNEP Governing Council has targeted reducing methyl mercury accumulation in the global environment.
Through the newly adopted Minamata Convention on mercury which came to effect in October 2013, the world recognizes dental amalgam as a major environmental pollutant. The Convention requires each participating nation “to phase down the use of dental amalgam” and perhaps ultimately phase it out and switch to mercury-free alternatives.
Nigeria being a signatory to that convention named Mercury Treaty (Minamata Convention), has recently announced plans to phase out the use of mercury because of its adverse effect on the environment.
Minister of Environment, Mrs. Lawrencia Mallam while speaking in Abuja at a stakeholder forum on Phasing Down Dental Amalgam tagged, “Nigeria: towards a mercury free dentistry”, said Nigeria is committed to ensuring a mercury free environment by phasing down dental amalgam.
“I am glad to inform you that the federal ministry of environment has put in place strategic national plans for managing issues in Nigeria, among which is the phasing down of dental amalgam,” she said.
“The phase down of dental amalgam is now on high priority of the government of Nigeria since the country is a signatory to Minamata Convention on Mercury and phase down of dental amalgam is a provision in the convention,” she stated.
She said the participation of the federal ministry of environment and many stakeholders in the inter-government negotiation process towards the emergence of the Minamata Convention on mercury is a demonstration of the commitment of Nigeria towards ensuring a mercury free environment.
Mallam added that the Minamata Convention highlights actions to reduce mercury emissions to the air from identified sources, reduce the use of mercury in products and industrial processes, and to address mercury supply and trade.
“The environment and health of our population remain our main concern and we advocated for increased partnership between governments, partners and communities on mercury management in Nigeria with a view to building functional affective public and private partnerships,” she said.
Leslie Adogame, the Executive Director, Sustainable Research and Action for Environmental Development (SRADev Nigeria), noted that mercury is one of the toxic substances of global concern that causes harm to human health, wildlife and ecosystems.
He added that improper disposal of mercury wastes contaminates the environment locally, downstream and globally.
Adogame said the goal of the forum is to facilitate Nigerian stakeholders to work collectively towards a plan of action to phase down the use of dental amalgam in response to ‘the world’s call for action’.
According to Adogame, several NGOs like World Alliance for Mercury-free Dentistry, Health Care Without Harm, Zero Mercury Working Group, IPEN and others, supported the African delegate’s forceful motion and they have continued to demonstrate the realization of the goal at the national and regional levels, but unfortunately our pro-active efforts at national level remain weak so far.
Speaking on the effects of dental amalgam, he said prenatal and infant mercury exposure can cause mental retardation, cerebral palsy, deafness, and blindness. Even in low doses, mercury may affect a child’s development, delaying walking and talking, and causing learning disabilities.
 “In adults, mercury poisoning can adversely affect fertility and blood pressure regulation and can cause memory loss, tremors, vision loss, and numbness of the fingers and toes. A growing body of evidence suggests that exposure to mercury may also lead to heart diseases,” he said.
Despite the danger posed by the dental amalgam to environment and health, it appears that there is limited awareness of effects of mercury in medicines/products in the health sector and to the Nigerian public.
For Michael James, a civil servant, he is hearing about dental amalgam for the first time and knows nothing about it, however he said from the word, one could say it has to do with tooth but doesn’t see how it is related to the environment.
“As far as the dental amalgam has a chemical component, it must have an effect on the environment even though I don’t know about it,” Bola Omotayo said.
According to World Health Organization report, a significant amount of mercury is estimated to be released to the environment from the use of dental amalgam, between 313 and 411 tons of dental mercury is consumed each year, accounting for 10% of global mercury consumption. This makes dental amalgam among the largest consumer uses of mercury in the world.

Ways it gets into the environment
Experts say managing amalgam waste with separators alone is not sufficient to address this whole range of mercury releases from the dental amalgam life cycle. As a result, most dental mercury goes into the environment.
Dental mercury enters the environment through many unsafe pathways and pollutes the environment;
Air – Through cremation, dental clinic emissions, sludge incineration and respiration.
Water – Through dental clinic releases and human waste.
Soil – Through landfills, burials and fertilizer.

Environmental risks  
According to the minister, studies have shown that mercury used in dental sector harms the environment through wastewater from dentists’ offices, improper disposal of mercury amalgam, releases of mercury vapour, cremation of people with mercury in their teeth and fecal excretion from patients with amalgam fillings.
She, however, mentioned that mercury is one of the most poisonous elements of earth, it has long-range transport in the atmosphere, it is persistent in the environment and it has the ability to bioaccumulate in ecosystems and has significant deleterious effect on human health and the environment.
Adogame said after amalgam is in the environment, certain micro organisms can change their elemental mercury into methyl mercury – a highly toxic form that builds up in fish, shellfish and animals that eats fish. Fish and shellfish are the main sources of methyl mercury exposure to humans.
However, alternative materials has been advocated by experts among which are composite, glass ionomer, ceramics, compomer that are non-mercury materials that are safer for the environment.
Dr Kouakou Kouadio Florent, dentist and dental school instructor, Cote d’Ivoire, is quoted in a handbill on dental mercury pollution saying, “If we have access to alternative materials which are getting better each year, it makes sense to subscribe to the principles of minimally impassive dentistry that include aesthetic materials like GIC (Glass ionomer cement), compomer and composite for which the mechanical properties have significantly improved. It is that simple.”
Andogame further upholds that the challenges that confront Nigeria in addressing the issue of dental amalgam (Mercury pollution) is the same with ones in every developing country, which includes lack of knowledge and capacity, lack of fund to purchase equipment of conventional restorative care, lack of electricity and pipe borne water in most private and government hospitals, absence of an efficient national healthcare waste management system for management of amalgam waste.
Dr. A. Ibrahim, Registrar, Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, said a significant opinion considers dental amalgam as unsuitable filling material and recommends its elimination in dentistry. He noted that mercury amalgam is no longer used in Sweden, Germany and Norway. It is also banned in the United State of California.