Brussels, 07/01/2013 (Agence Europe) - Preventing environmental exposure to mercury could save the European Union €8-9 billion per year by protecting children's brain development, according to an online scientific journal, Environmental Health, on Monday 7 January. Given the findings of this study entitled “Economic benefits of methylmercury exposure control in Europe: Monetary value of neurotoxicity prevention”, the civil society organisation, Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL), which has fought since 2006 for stringent control of exposure to mercury in the environment, is calling on the EU to make an active contribution towards concluding a legally binding international treaty on control of mercury pollution. It will make its appeal at the meeting of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), in Geneva on 13 January. The most worrying aspect of human exposure to mercury is the effect of maternal levels on the foetus' brain as it develops in the womb. The evidence that methylmercury (MeHg), formed in the environment from inorganic mercury, is a neurotoxicant (harmful to the brain), is well documented. Professor Philippe Grandjean, one of the study authors, explained how the estimate was developed: “If we convert the effects of MeHg on developing brains into IQ points then the benefits of controlling MeHg pollution equates to 700,000 points per year and monetary benefits of €8,000 to €9,000 million per year for the whole of the EU”.
The new calculations were made possible by data gathered from a recent EU bio-monitoring project. The study reveals that levels of mercury found in hair samples taken in 17 European countries showed one third to be above the 0.58 µg/g hair level shown to be safe in the most recent scientific studies. This suggests that 1.8 million of the 5.4 million babies born in European countries each year are affected by unsafe maternal mercury levels. “These disturbing findings make a strong, legally binding treaty to control mercury pollution absolutely imperative”, comments Genon Jensen, HEAL Executive Director. In Europe, the main way adults are exposed to mercury is through the consumption of certain fish such as tuna and swordfish in which mercury accumulates. The heavy metal, which is a by-product of industrial processes, such as coal combustion, is emitted into the air before contaminating rivers and seawater. Prenatal exposure to mercury is particularly worrying as small quantities of methylmercury can have an irreversible, harmful effect on the developing brains of children. (AN/transl.jl)