The United States' decision to snub an international treaty
on mercury pollution at the United National Environment
Programme (UNEP) meeting in February threatens to weaken U.S.
credibility on important environmental issues and further
alienates the United States from its allies, charges a letter
sent to President Bush last week and signed by four leading
congressional Democrats.

"The administration's action once again puts the United
States at odds with some of our closest allies over our refusal
to take effective action on an important international
environmental issue," states the letter signed by democratic
Reps. Henry Waxman (Calif.), Thomas Allen (Maine), Janice
Schakowsky (Ill.) and Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.). "We are
concerned that these actions are weakening the credibility of
the United States on environmental matters, as well as spurring
resentment in the international community over U.S.
unilateralism," it adds.

The letter charges that the Bush administration's refusal
to press for tough international mercury laws is just the latest
example of its growing reputation for "opposing, undermining and
ignoring international health and environmental treaties and
treaty negotiations," including the Kyoto Protocol, the
Framework on Tobacco Control and the Biological Weapons
Convention.

Before the UNEP meeting this month, the European Union and
countries in Latin America and the Caribbean had indicated
support for a binding resolution on mercury, which can be a
neurotoxin for humans who consume mercury that accumulates in
some species of seafood. But according to an internal State
Department document leaked to the media in January, the U.S.
delegation was directed to block any attempts at a mandatory
agreement. "We believe that negotiating a binding convention on
mercury is not the most effective way to approach this issue at
this time," the document said.

Instead of a binding resolution, the U.S. delegation
supported voluntary measures like advising developing countries
on building cleaner-burning power plants and launching public
awareness campaigns on the dangers of eating mercury-tainted
fish. The Democrats' letter charges that such measures, while
positive steps, are "woefully insufficient" to address growing
international concern about mercury pollution.

Faced with reluctance from the U.S., the UNEP Governing
Council ultimately decided to solicit submissions from member UN
countries in hopes of gaining additional ideas about measures to
reduce mercury pollution, including the possibility of
developing a legally binding treaty. The council will consider
the suggestions in 2005.

In a prepared statement on the final UNEP decision on
mercury, the State Department said the United States was pleased
with the outcome, which would focus on assistance to developing
countries and countries with economies in transition. "This
decision will facilitate the efforts of the many countries that
have expressed concern over mercury contamination to take
immediate action to deal with this issue," the State Department
said. "We look forward to continuing to provide strong support
to UNEP over the next several years to pursue these activities."

A State Department official told Greenwire in January that
pursuing a voluntary mercury program within UNEP would allow
countries to gather valuable information to better address the
mercury problem in the future. The program would allow countries
to initiate actions now, rather than waiting for negotiations on
a treaty or a mandatory program. "We have not ruled out some
future convention, but we don't think right now is the time to
start negotiations," the official said (Greenwire, Jan. 28).

Dan Riedinger, a spokesman for the utility industry group
Edison Electric Institute, said UNEP's decision to postpone a
decision on a mercury treaty in order to gather more information
is consistent with a new peer-reviewed study by Electric Power
Research Institute. While mercury emitted from the stacks of
coal-burning power plants has been identified as a major source
of mercury pollution worldwide, the study asserts that between
40 and 70 percent of airborne mercury that falls in the United
States originates in other countries. Riedinger added that U.S.
power plant emissions comprise roughly 1 percent of global
emissions of mercury, and electric power emits about one-third
of manmade mercury in the U.S.