The Foreign Relations Committee conducted a discussion on the Minamata Convention on Mercury and its related bills. Alverd Chankselian, the head of the Waste and Chemical Substances Management Department of the Ministry of Environment and Agriculture, presented the matter for consideration. The aim of the convention is to safeguard human health and the environment from the release and discharge of mercury and its compounds caused by human activity.

"In order to achieve this goal, the Convention calls on the relevant parties to adopt and implement regulatory and political measures, which provide for control over the use and supply of mercury and its compounds”, - the speaker stated.

According to him, the main articles of the convention aim to protect human health and the environment from anthropogenic emissions and leakage of mercury and its compounds. The convention also includes an important article that provides for financial, technical, and technological assistance to developing and transitioning economies.

As the speaker noted, the convention has led to changes being included in the Environmental Protection Code, Administrative Offenses Code, and Criminal Code. The main articles of the convention refer to the primary extraction of mercury, control of spills containing mercury and its compounds, control, and reduction of its leakage into water and soil, and limitation of the use of mercury during artisanal gold mining, among others.

During the meeting, Alverd Chankselian informed the Foreign Relations Committee that the primary extraction of mercury will be penalized with a fine ranging from 2,000 to 4,000 GEL, along with confiscation of the object of the offense. Additionally, the use of mercury or a mercury compound during gold extraction or processing will result in a fine of 3,000 to 5,000 GEL, as per the amendments made to the Environmental Protection Code, Administrative Offenses Code, and Criminal Code in accordance with the Minamata Convention on Mercury.

The Foreign Relations Committee endorsed the Minamata Convention on Mercury.

Today, a new Deputy Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee was elected.

According to the decision of the Committee, Mariam Lashkhi will take the position of the First Deputy Chair.

At the meeting, the Committee members supported the amendments to the resolution of the Parliament of Georgia on Friendship Groups of the Parliament of Georgia and Permanent Delegations.