英字新聞

The Yomiuri Shimbun October 12, 2013
U.N. Minamata convention must lead to world free of mercury poisoning
水俣条約採択　「脱水銀」へ日本の教訓生かせ（10月11日付・読売社説）

By learning important and serious lessons from Minamata disease, considered a historic example of a tragedy caused by environmental pollution, efforts must be made to effectively stem mercury contamination from spreading worldwide.
　公害の原点である水俣病を教訓に、世界的な水銀汚染の広がりを食い止めねばならない。

The Minamata Convention on Mercury of the United Nations was adopted Thursday in an international council in Kumamoto, with delegates from about 140 countries and territories participating. The name Minamata was used for the landmark treaty at the initiative of the Japanese government.
　「水銀に関する水俣条約」が、約１４０の国・地域が参加した熊本市での国際会議で採択された。日本政府の提案で、条約名に「水俣」が用いられた。

The U.N. Environment Program, which sponsored the conference, aims to have the pact take effect from 2016. The treaty bans in principle the manufacturing, export and import of products containing mercury, starting from 2020.
会議を主催した国連環境計画は２０１６年の発効を目指す。
　水銀含有製品の製造や輸出入を２０年以降、原則として禁止する。

When a coal-fired thermal power plant is newly built that emits mercury in the process of combustion for power generation, the plant operator will be obliged under the treaty to introduce the best possible technology available to curb mercury emissions into the environment. The pact also includes such regulations as banning development of new mercury mines.
燃焼時に水銀を排出する石炭火力発電所を新設する際には、排出抑制装置を導入する。新規の水銀鉱山の開発を禁じる――。条約はこうした内容を盛り込んだ。

This is definitely a major step forward for the realization of a “world free of mercury.”
　「脱水銀」へ大きな一歩だ。

Mercury has been used broadly in the production of goods familiar in our daily lives, such as batteries, thermometers and fluorescent lamps.
　水銀は、電池や体温計、蛍光灯など身近な製品に使われてきた。

Japanese manufacturers have addressed the task of regulating the use of mercury ahead of many other countries, but there has been little progress on curbing the use of mercury in emerging and developing countries.
日本のメーカーは、いち早く水銀の使用規制に取り組んだが、新興国・途上国では進んでいない。

When discharged into the atmosphere, sea and rivers, mercury accumulates in living creatures’ bodies. Those who eat large quantities of mercury-contaminated fish and shellfish are in danger of developing poisoning symptoms like those of Minamata disease.
　水銀が大気中や海、河川に排出されると、生物内に蓄積される。汚染された魚介類などを人間が大量に食べると、水俣病のような中毒症状を引き起こす。

China the largest emitter

The quantity of mercury being emitted into the atmosphere due to industrial activities and other causes is estimated at about 2,000 tons a year worldwide.
　産業活動などで大気中へ排出される水銀は、年約２０００トンに上る。

It is a matter of urgency to cut back on mercury emissions to prevent health hazards that are a menace across national borders.
国境を超えた健康被害を防ぐには、排出削減が急務である。

Topping the list of mercury emissions by industry are small-scale gold mines, many of which are in developing countries. They consume mercury in the process of extracting gold from ores.
　最も大量に排出しているのは、途上国に多い小規模の金採掘現場だ。鉱石から金を取り出すために水銀が使われている。

Mercury is indispensable for people who earn their living through gold-mining operations. In light of this, the international treaty falls short of prohibiting the use of mercury for mining purposes, calling instead for efforts to reduce its use.
　金採掘で生計を立てる人々にとって、水銀は欠かせない。条約でも、採掘での使用については、禁止でなく、削減にとどまった。

How can support be given to developing nations that can hardly afford to fund projects for environmental conservation? This problem must be addressed if the Minamata convention is to be made truly effective and viable.
　環境対策にまで手が回らない途上国をどう支援していくのか。条約を実効性あるものにするには、避けて通れない課題である。

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has expressed the Japanese government’s intention to earmark a total of $2 billion (about \200 billion) in aid to developing nations’ environmental measures projects in three years from 2014.
　安倍首相は、途上国の環境対策費として、１４年からの３年間で２０億ドル（約２０００億円）の支援を表明した。

It is of great significance that Japan, aiming to prevent a recurrence of the tragedy of the widespread damage from Minamata disease that resulted from delays in responding to the problem, is now contributing to preventing mercury contamination around the world.
対応の遅れが被害拡大を招いた水俣病の悲劇を繰り返さないため、日本が世界の水銀汚染防止に貢献する意義は大きい。

Countermeasures against thermal power generation using coal containing mercury are also a key issue. In particular, China, which is the world’s largest discharger of mercury, must proactively tackle the challenge of phasing out mercury emissions.
　水銀を含む石炭による火力発電の対策も重要だ。特に、世界一の水銀排出国の中国には、積極的な取り組みが求められる。

An outbreak of Minamata disease has been confirmed in watershed regions of some river systems in China. China appears poised to ratify the convention, seemingly with the aim of obtaining technological support from industrially advanced countries to reduce mercury emissions.
　中国では河川流域で水俣病の発生も確認されている。今回、中国が条約を批准する見通しなのは、先進国から排出削減の技術支援を得る狙いもあるのだろう。

In the wake of the treaty’s adoption, Japan must take measures to respond to the fact that mercury has been recycled domestically from used products, mainly those produced abroad, for export to other Asian countries and elsewhere.
　条約採択により、日本も対応を迫られる。国内では使用済みの海外製品などから水銀がリサイクルされ、アジア諸国などに輸出されている。

When the pact takes effect, however, it will be required to store the mercury domestically.
だが、条約発効後は国内保管が必要となる。

Taking this into account, building a system to safely manage spent mercury is certain to become a pressing task.
安全な管理体制の構築が欠かせない。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 11, 2013)
（2013年10月11日01時38分 読売新聞）