Future strategies for tackling mercury pollution in the artisanal gold mining sector: Making the Minamata Convention work

•The Minamata Convention, an international treaty aimed at tackling global mercury emissions, was ratified in October 2013.•The substantial emissions of mercury that emanate from the artisanal gold mining sector comes under particular focus in the Convention.•Signing of the Minamata Convention is likely to spawn a new wave of interventions aimed at tackling mercury use by artisanal gold miners.•It is essential that future efforts to combat the problem do not repeat previous interventions, which have been largely ineffective.•The paper highlights some essential underpinning facets for a re-orientated approach for tackling mercury emissions from artisanal mining.

The recently ratified Minamata Convention is an international treaty aimed at reducing the trade, use and emissions of mercury. Specific attention is paid in the document to mercury contamination that has accompanied the expansion of artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) in many developing countries. In addressing these articles, the Convention looks to initiate a new wave of policymaking and extension projects in coming years, as signatory countries work to stem emissions from the ASGM sector. If these efforts are to be effective, however, designers must first overcome the barriers and challenges posed by a legacy of failed efforts aimed at educating small-scale prospectors about the environmental and health implications of extensive mercury use and cleaner technologies. In order to do so, a reconceptualisation in approach towards mercury pollution in the sector will be necessary. There are some positive signs that academics and policymakers alike are steadily reaching a new consensus on how to tackle the issue more effectively. A strong case can be made for a ‘humanistic’ understanding of this persistent issue, and it is critical that such new perspectives are carried forward, not only under the Minamata Convention, but more generally.