The Omani government has set up a working team to conduct a comprehensive survey about the uses of mercury and the products containing mercury now in circulation in the country, the English newspaper Oman Daily Observer reported Saturday.
The team formed by the Omani Ministry of Environment and Climate Affairs consists of staff from various state departments and private organizations concerned with the management of chemical substances, the report said.
It will make a complete inventory of commercial and industrial establishments dealing with mercury and will also inventory the amounts being circulated with a view to limiting the use of the chemical substance.
The team's work comes as part of ways of merging with international efforts working towards the drafting of an official or unofficial document to limit the uses of mercury or find alternatives to the chemical substance, which is considered one of the most toxic heavy metals.
Products that are direct sources of mercury include thermometers, toothpaste, electrical appliances and electrical lights, batteries, fertilizers, anti-septic ointments, skin whitening creams. Large fish like tuna also contain quantities of mercury, which can also be inhaled from the air or absorbed by the skin.
Once it enters the body, mercury can cause chronic diseases such as neurological disorders, kidney diseases, anemia, pulmonary diseases; disorders to fetus, hemorrhage, genital disorders and heart diseases.