Regulation (EU) 2017/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2017 on mercury, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1102/2008 (Text with EEA relevance. )
Modified by
- Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/2526of 23 September 2022amending Regulation (EU) 2017/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the temporary storage of mercury waste in liquid form(Text with EEA relevance), 32022R2526, December 22, 2022
- Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2049of 14 July 2023amending Regulation (EU) 2017/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards mercury-added products subject to manufacturing, import and export prohibitions(Text with EEA relevance), 32023R2049, September 26, 2023
- Regulation (EU) 2024/1849 of the European Parliament and of the Councilof 13 June 2024amending Regulation (EU) 2017/852 on mercury as regards dental amalgam and other mercury-added products subject to export, import and manufacturing restrictions(Text with EEA relevance), 32024R1849, July 10, 2024
(1) "mercury" means metallic mercury (Hg, CAS RN 7439-97-6); (2) "mercury compound" means any substance consisting of atoms of mercury and one or more atoms of other chemical elements that can be separated into different components only by chemical reactions; (3) "mixture" means a mixture or solution composed of two or more substances; (4) "mercury-added product" means a product or product component that contains mercury or a mercury compound that was intentionally added; (5) "mercury waste" means metallic mercury that qualifies as waste as defined in point (1) of Article 3 of Directive 2008/98/EC; (6) "export" means any of the following: (a) the permanent or temporary export of mercury, mercury compounds, mixtures of mercury and mercury-added products meeting the conditions of Article 28(2) TFEU; (b) the re-export of mercury, mercury compounds, mixtures of mercury and mercury-added products not meeting the conditions of Article 28(2) TFEU which are placed under a customs procedure other than the external Union transit procedure for movement of goods through the customs territory of the Union;
(7) "import" means the physical introduction into the customs territory of the Union of mercury, mercury compounds, mixtures of mercury and mercury-added products that are placed under a customs procedure other than the external Union transit procedure for movement of goods through the customs territory of the Union; (8) "disposal" means disposal as defined in point (19) of Article 3 of Directive 2008/98/EC; (9) "primary mercury mining" means mining in which the principal material sought is mercury; (10) "conversion" means the chemical transformation of the physical state of mercury from a liquid state to mercury sulfide or a comparable chemical compound that is equally or more stable and equally or less soluble in water and that presents no greater environmental or health hazard than mercury sulfide; (11) "placing on the market" means supplying or making available, whether in return for payment or free of charge, to a third party. Import shall be deemed to be placing on the market.
(a) the exporting country is a Party to the Convention and the exported mercury is not from primary mercury mining that is prohibited under Article 3(3) and (4) of the Convention; or (b) the exporting country not being a Party to the Convention has provided certification that the mercury is not from primary mercury mining.
(a) products that are essential for civil protection and military uses; (b) products for research, for calibration of instrumentation, or for use as a reference standard.
(a) equipment which is necessary for the protection of the essential interests of the security of Member States, including arms, munitions and war material intended for specifically military purposes; (b) equipment designed to be sent into space; (c) technical improvements made to or the redesign of mercury-added products that were being manufactured prior to 1 January 2018 provided that such improvements or redesign lead to less mercury being used in those products.
(a) a technical description of the product or process concerned; (b) an assessment of its environmental and health benefits and risks; (c) evidence demonstrating the absence of technically practicable mercury-free alternatives providing significant environmental or health benefits; (d) a detailed explanation of the manner in which the process is to be operated or the product is to be manufactured, used and disposed of as waste after use, in order to ensure a high level of protection of the environment and of human health.
(a) amalgam separators put into service from 1 January 2018 provide a retention level of at least 95 % of amalgam particles;(b) from 1 January 2021 , all amalgam separators in use provide the retention level specified in point (a).
(a) the chlor-alkali industry; (b) the cleaning of natural gas; (c) non-ferrous mining and smelting operations; (d) extraction from cinnabar ore in the Union.
(a) data on the total amount of mercury waste stored in each of their installations; (b) data on the total amount of mercury waste sent to individual facilities undertaking the temporary storage, the conversion and, if applicable, solidification of mercury waste, or the permanent storage of mercury waste that underwent conversion and, if applicable, solidification; (c) the location and contact details of each facility referred to in point (b); (d) a copy of the certificate provided by the operator of the facility undertaking the temporary storage of mercury waste, in accordance with Article 14(1); (e) a copy of the certificate provided by the operator of the facility undertaking the conversion and, if applicable, the solidification of mercury waste, in accordance with Article 14(2); (f) a copy of the certificate provided by the operator of the facility undertaking the permanent storage of mercury waste that underwent conversion and, if applicable, solidification, in accordance with Article 14(3).
(a) salt mines that are adapted for the permanent storage of mercury waste that underwent conversion, or deep underground hard rock formations providing a level of safety and confinement equivalent to or higher than that of such salt mines; or (b) above-ground facilities dedicated to and equipped for the permanent storage of mercury waste that underwent conversion and solidification and that provide a level of safety and confinement equivalent to or higher than that of the facilities referred to in point (a).
(a) for each shipment of mercury waste received: (i) the origin and amount of that waste; (ii) the name and contact details of the supplier and the owner of that waste;
(b) for each shipment of mercury waste leaving the facility: (i) the amount of that waste and its mercury content; (ii) the destination and intended disposal operation of that waste; (iii) a copy of the certificate provided by the operator of the facility undertaking the conversion and, if applicable, the solidification of that waste, as referred to in paragraph 2; (iv) a copy of the certificate provided by the operator of the facility undertaking the permanent storage of the mercury waste that underwent conversion and, if applicable, solidification, as referred to in paragraph 3;
(c) the amount of mercury waste stored at the facility at the end of each month.
(a) for each shipment of mercury waste received: (i) the origin and amount of that waste; (ii) the name and contact details of the supplier and the owner of that waste;
(b) for each shipment of mercury waste that underwent conversion and, if applicable, solidification leaving the facility: (i) the amount of that waste and its mercury content; (ii) the destination and intended disposal operation of that waste; (iii) a copy of the certificate provided by the operator of the facility undertaking the permanent storage of that waste, as referred to in paragraph 3;
(c) the amount of mercury waste stored at the facility at the end of each month.
(a) information concerning the implementation of this Regulation; (b) information needed for the fulfilment by the Union of its reporting obligation under Article 21 of the Convention; (c) a summary of the information gathered in accordance with Article 12 of this Regulation; (d) information regarding mercury located in their territories: (i) a list of sites where stocks of more than 50 metric tonnes of mercury other than mercury waste are located as well as the amount of mercury at each site; (ii) a list of sites where more than 50 metric tonnes of mercury waste is accumulated as well as the amount of mercury waste at each site; and
(e) a list of sources supplying more than 10 metric tonnes of mercury per year, where Member States are made aware of such sources; (f) a summary of the information gathered in accordance with paragraph 1a of this Article as well as the information on the amounts of mercury used for specific medical needs as referred to in Article 10(2a); and (g) information on the measures implemented on the basis of the Commission guidance on abatement technologies for emissions of mercury and mercury compounds from crematoria referred to in Article 19(2a), point (a).
(a) the need for the Union to regulate emissions of mercury and mercury compounds from crematoria; (b) the feasibility of a phase out of the use of dental amalgam in the long term, and preferably by 2030, taking into account the national plans referred to in Article 10(3) and whilst fully respecting Member States' competence for the organisation and delivery of health services and medical care; and (c) the environmental benefits and the feasibility of a further alignment of Annex II with relevant Union legislation regulating the placing on the market of mercury-added products.
(a) the implementation and impact of the guidance, developed by the Commission by 31 December 2025 , on abatement technologies for emissions of mercury and mercury compounds from crematoria applied in Member States;(b) the need to maintain the exemption from the prohibition on the use of dental amalgam referred to in Article 10(2a), first subparagraph, taking into account the impact on the health of patients generally and of patients dependent on amalgam fillings, and the need to maintain the derogation for the import and manufacturing of dental amalgam as referred to in Article 10(7), third subparagraph; (c) the developments under the Convention as regards the phase-out of illegal mercury use in cosmetics, taking into account information provided by Parties to the Convention in line with Decision MC-5/5 of the Conference of the Parties on the preparation of a report on cosmetics; (d) the need to phase out remaining mercury uses; (e) the need to expand the list of mercury waste sources set out in Article 11; (f) the need to expand the list of mercury compounds set out in Annex I, by adding, for example, mercuric azanide chloride (HgNH 2 Cl).
Mercury (I) chloride (Hg 2 Cl2 , CAS RN 10112-91-1)Mercury (II) oxide (HgO, CAS RN 21908-53-2) Cinnabar ore Mercury sulfide (HgS, CAS RN 1344-48-5)
Mercury (II) sulphate (HgSO 4 , CAS RN 7783-35-9)Mercury (II) nitrate (Hg(NO 3 )2 , CAS RN 10045-94-0)
Mixtures of mercury with other substances, including alloys of mercury, with a mercury concentration of at least 95 % by weight.
| Mercury-added products | Date from which the export, import and manufacturing of the mercury-added products are prohibited |
|---|---|
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
|
(a) from 1 January 2018 : manufacturing processes in which mercury or mercury compounds are used as a catalyst;(b) by way of derogation from point (a), the production of vinyl chloride monomer shall be prohibited from 1 January 2022 ;(c) from 1 January 2022 : manufacturing processes in which mercury is used as an electrode;(d) by way of derogation from point (c), from 11 December 2017 : chlor-alkali production in which mercury is used as an electrode;(e) by way of derogation from point (c), the production of sodium or potassium methylate or ethylate shall be prohibited from 1 January 2028 ;(f) from 1 January 2018 : the production of polyurethane, to the extent not already restricted or prohibited in accordance with entry 62 of Annex XVII to Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006.
(a) no use of mercury from primary mercury mining; (b) reduction of direct and indirect release of mercury and of mercury compounds into air, water and land in terms of per unit production by 50 % by 2020 as compared to 2010; (c) supporting research and development in respect of mercury-free manufacturing processes; and (d) as from 13 June 2017 , the capacity of installations using mercury and mercury compounds for the production of sodium or potassium methylate or ethylate that were in operation before that date shall not be increased and no new installations shall be allowed.
(a) national objectives and reduction targets to eliminate the use of mercury and mercury compounds; (b) actions to eliminate: (i) whole ore amalgamation; (ii) open burning of amalgam or processed amalgam; (iii) burning of amalgam in residential areas; and (iv) cyanide leaching in sediment, ore or tailings to which mercury has been added without first removing the mercury;
(c) steps to facilitate the formalization or regulation of the artisanal and small-scale gold mining and processing sector; (d) baseline estimates of the quantities of mercury used and the practices employed in artisanal and small-scale gold mining and processing within its territory; (e) strategies for promoting the reduction of emissions and releases of, and exposure to, mercury in artisanal and small-scale gold mining and processing, including mercury-free methods; (f) strategies for managing trade and preventing the diversion of mercury and mercury compounds from both foreign and domestic sources to use in artisanal and small-scale gold mining and processing; (g) strategies for involving stakeholders in the implementation and continuing development of the national plan; (h) a public health strategy on the exposure of artisanal and small-scale gold miners and their communities to mercury which shall include, inter alia, the gathering of health data, training for health-care workers and awareness-raising through health facilities; (i) strategies to prevent the exposure of vulnerable populations, particularly children and women of child-bearing age, especially pregnant women, to mercury used in artisanal and small-scale gold mining and processing; (j) strategies for providing information to artisanal and small-scale gold miners and affected communities; and (k) a schedule for the implementation of the national plan.
| Regulation (EC) No 1102/2008 | This Regulation |
|---|---|
| Article 1(1) | Article 3(1) and (2) |
| Article 1(2) | Article 3(3) |
| Article 1(3) | Article 3(4) |
| Article 2 | Article 11 |
| Article 3(1)(a) | Article 13(3)(a) |
| Article 3(1)(b) | Article 13(1) |
| Article 3(1), second subparagraph | Article 13(1), first subparagraph and Article 13(3), third subparagraph |
| Article 3(2) | — |
| Article 4(1) | Article 13(1) |
| Article 4(2) | Article 13(1) |
| Article 4(3) | — |
| Article 5(1) | — |
| Article 5(2) | — |
| Article 5(3) | — |
| Article 6(1)(a) | — |
| Article 6(1)(b) | Article 12(1)(a) |
| Article 6(1)(c) | Article 12(1)(b) and (c) |
| Article 6(2)(a) | Article 12(1)(a) |
| Article 6(2)(b) | Article 12(1)(b) and (c) |
| Article 6(3) | Article 12(1) |
| Article 6(4) | — |
| Article 7 | Article 16 |
| Article 8(1) | — |
| Article 8(2) | — |
| Article 8(3) | — |
| Article 8(4) | — |
| Article 8(5) | — |
| Article 9 | — |