U.S. supports the EU's call for mercury use treaty

In another sign of the shift in environment policy the Obama Administration has brought to the U.S., a deputy secretary of state told world environmental leaders at a meeting in Kenya that the U.S. would support the European Union's call for an international treaty banning mercury.

Mercury is known to cause damage to the nervous system in humans as well as other health problems. The U.N. estimates that nearly 6,000 tons of the substance is released into the environment worldwide each year.

Many countries support making the treaty non-legally binding, which would make the regulations voluntary; however, the U.S. has now taken the position that the treaty should be legally binding, meaning that the countries that sign it would be required to abide by its regulations.

For more information, check out this story from Reuters.