end mercury pollution

Protect our families. Reduce mercury pollution.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and Department of Health now lists every inland body of water in the state under a fish consumption advisory as a result of mercury pollution. It is estimated that every year 5,000 to 9,000 children born in the state suffer impaired cognitive development and limited memory as a result of mercury exposure. As long as mercury persists in our environment, the health of our families is at stake.

Mercury pollution comes from an array of sources; successfully lowering the amount of this toxin in our environment requires reducing emissions from coal-fired power plants, properly recycling thermostats, lighting, and electronic waste, and eliminating the unnecessary use of mercury in products.

After a significant victory in 2008 that will cut mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants by 90 percent, Clean Wisconsin continued its work to reduce mercury in 2009 by taking on other sources of this dangerous toxin. We worked with state legislators to enact the Mercury Products Bill, a law that bans the sale of all unnecessary products that contain mercury. We also successfully advocated for the Electronic Waste Law, which requires electronics producers to offer convenient sites for recycling electronic waste like old computers, cell phones, and printers, products that contain numerous toxic substances, including mercury.

As long as our waters remain polluted with mercury and fish remain unsafe to eat, Clean Wisconsin will continue to look for new ways to reduce the amount of mercury entering our water and air.