In response to the increasing interest of countries to develop mercury emissions inventories and the subsequent
high demand of guidance and training on this topic, UNEP and UNITAR decided to collaborate on developing an online
training platform: MercuryLearn. The main component is the UNEP Toolkit for Identification and Quantification of Mercury Releases.
This initiative has been funded by the European Commission and the government of Switzerland.
Objectives of MercuryLearn
Promote dissemination and enhance the usability of the UNEP Toolkit as a standard methodology to prepare national mercury emissions and releases inventories.
Increase interest by stakeholders and countries on preparing mercury inventories.
Provide a platform for experts to exchange information and experiences in preparing inventories.
Ensure consistency of inventory-development by using the UNEP toolkit as the standard method.
Features of MercuryLearn
Online training modules on how to develop inventories.
Online forums and expert support for more in-depth assistance regarding elaborated inventory trainings and discussions.
Document posting.
Repository of documents and other resources.
Links to other related websites.
International context
The “Minamata Convention on Mercury” was adopted in Kumamoto, Japan, on 10 October 2013. The Convention aims to control the use and releases of mercury.
The objective of the Convention is to protect the human health and the environment from anthropogenic emissions and releases of mercury and mercury compounds.
The Convention has 128 signatories and has been ratified by 75 countries.
