On October 3, Michigan became the ninth state in the country to ban the sale of mercury thermometers.

Sponsored by Rep. Jack Minore (D-Flint), the law, Public Act 578 of 2002, will ban the sale of mercury thermometers beginning January 1, 2003. Environmentalists are hoping the addition of Michigan will help bolster the chances of a federal ban passing in Congress before the end of the year.

In 2000, mercury from fever thermometers alone accounted for 17 tons or 10% of mercury in the municipal solid waste stream. Jeff Gearhart of the Ecology Center stated, "It's great that Michigan has finally taken leadership to phase out of the use of mercury-containing products like thermometers. However, much work still needs to be done to phase out other uses and recover mercury already in products like autos and appliances."

Mercury attacks the central nervous system and can cause tremors, impaired vision and hearing, developmental deficits during fetal development, attention deficit and developmental delays during childhood. Fetuses and children under age 6 are especially vulnerable to the deleterious effects of mercury.

James Clift, MEC Policy Director, stressed the importance of continued efforts. "We need to build on this accomplishment. Future generations should not have to worry about mercury contaminated-fish consumption advisories for all 11,000 inland lakes in Michigan," Clift said.