Mercury is still used in small-scale mining to extract gold from ore in more than 70 countries, despite it contaminating rivers and soils, and being toxic to humans. At the sixth Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury (COP6), held in November 2025, members agreed to support alternative livelihoods for small-scale miners. This is a great step — next, they must fund these pledges.
Nature 649, 289 (2026)
doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-025-04121-1
Competing Interests The authors declare no competing interests.
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