Mercury News

• January 2009: EPA published its final guidance for implementing the January 2001 Methylmercury Water Quality Criteria. This document provides technical guidance to states and authorized tribes on how they may want to use the fish tissue-based recommended water quality criterion for methylmercury in surface water protection programs (e.g., TMDLs, NPDES permitting).
Fact sheet | Final Guidance Document

• December 2008: EPA is initiating a phase out effort for mercury-containig thermometers in industrial and laboratory settings. The Agency is phasing out the use of these devices in its own laboratories and is reviewing standards and methods that may require the use of mercury-filled thermometers in order to bring about the opportunity for the use of alternatives.   Read more.

• November 2008: EPA Encourages the Use of Mercury-Free Alternatives. EPA has posted a Risk Based Prioritization (RPB) document for mercury (PDF) (7 pp., 67KB, about PDF) under EPA's Chemical Assessment and Management Program (ChAMP). This preliminary assessment describes uses of elemental mercury in a number of products and concludes that switches, relays, button cell batteries, non-fever thermometers, and measuring devices such as thermostats do not have to contain mercury. Based on this assessment, EPA determined that mercury in these products poses a “high priority, special concern.” The Agency plans to take prompt regulatory and voluntary action to encourage the use of mercury-free alternatives and reduce the use of mercury in products.

• November 2008: EPA has also developed a searchable database of information from various sources to help identify consumer and commercial products that contain mercury and their possible non-mercury alternatives. EPA encourages people to use non-mercury alternatives whenever possible as an important way to prevent exposure to mercury, including exposure due to breakage.

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