{"id":"F2021L01393","name":"Recycling and Waste Reduction (Mandatory Product Stewardship—Mercury-added Products) Rules 2021","slug":"recycling-and-waste-reduction-mandatory-product-stewardship-mercury-added-products-rules-2021","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":441032,"registerId":"F2021L01393-fast-fetch-1775956462628","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-12","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Recycling and Waste Reduction (Mandatory Product Stewardship—Mercury-added Products) Rules 2021","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\nmeta-generator: Aspose.Words for .NET 22.10.0\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\n![Commonwealth Coat of Arms of Australia](image.001.jpeg)\n\n \n\nRecycling and Waste Reduction (Mandatory Product Stewardship—Mercury‑added Products) Rules 2021\n\nI, Sussan Ley, Minister for the Environment, make the following rules.\n\nDated 23 September 2021\n\nSussan Ley\n\nMinister for the Environment\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\nPart 1—Preliminary\n\n1 Name\n\n2 Commencement\n\n3 Authority\n\n4 Definitions\n\nPart 2—Prohibition on manufacture, import and export of mercury‑added products and incorporation of mercury‑added products\n\n5 Constitutional connection\n\n6 Absolute prohibition on manufacture, import and export of mercury‑added products\n\n7 Absolute prohibition on incorporation of mercury‑added products into assembled products\n\nPart 1—Preliminary\n\n \n\n1  Name\n\n  This instrument is the Recycling and Waste Reduction (Mandatory Product Stewardship—Mercury‑added Products) Rules 2021.\n\n2  Commencement\n\n (1) Each provision of this instrument specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.\n\n \n\n- Commencement information\n- Column 1 Column 2 Column 3\n- Provisions Commencement Date/Details\n- 1. The whole of this instrument The later of:(a) the day after this instrument is registered; and(b) the day the Minamata Convention on Mercury, done at Minamata on 10 October 2013, comes into force for Australia.However, the provisions do not commence at all if the event mentioned in paragraph (b) does not occur.The Minister must announce, by notifiable instrument, the day the Convention comes into force for Australia. 7 March 2022(F2022N00032)(paragraph (b) applies)\n\n\nNote: This table relates only to the provisions of this instrument as originally made. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this instrument.\n\n (2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this instrument. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this instrument.\n\n3  Authority\n\n  This instrument is made under the Recycling and Waste Reduction Act 2020.\n\n4  Definitions\n\n  In this instrument:\n\nAct means the Recycling and Waste Reduction Act 2020.\n\nassembled product has the same meaning as in the Minamata Convention.\n\nmercury‑added products means the products listed in Part 1 of Annex A to the Minamata Convention that contain mercury, but does not include:\n\n (a) products essential for civil protection and military uses; or\n\n (b) products for research, calibration of instrumentation, or for use as reference standards; or\n\n (c) if no feasible mercury‑free alternative for replacement is available—the following:\n\n (i) switches and relays;\n\n (ii) cold cathode fluorescent lamps and external electrode fluorescent lamps for electronic displays;\n\n (iii) measuring devices; or\n\n (d) products used in traditional or religious practices; or\n\n (e) vaccines containing thiomersal as preservatives.\n\nMinamata Convention means the Minamata Convention on Mercury done at Minamata on 10 October 2013, as in force for Australia from time to time.\n\nNote: The Convention could in 2021 be viewed in the Australian Treaties Library on the AustLII website (http://www.austlii.edu.au).\n\nPart 2—Prohibition on manufacture, import and export of mercury‑added products and incorporation of mercury‑added products\n\n \n\n5  Constitutional connection\n\n (1) This instrument is made for the purposes of Part 5 of Chapter 3 of the Act and is made in accordance with paragraph 94(1)(c) of the Act.\n\n (2) The Minamata Convention is identified as the agreement referred to in paragraph 94(1)(c) of the Act.\n\n6  Absolute prohibition on manufacture, import and export of mercury‑added products\n\n (1) For the purposes of subsection 92(1) of the Act, a person must not:\n\n (a) manufacture a mercury‑added product in Australia; or\n\n (b) import a mercury‑added product into Australia; or\n\n (c) export a mercury‑added product.\n\n (2) Subsection (1) does not apply to the extent that the manufacture, import or export is prohibited under:\n\n (a) the Agricultural and Veterinary Chemicals (Administration) Regulations 1995; or\n\n (b) the Therapeutic Goods Regulations 1990.\n\n (3) Subsection (1) does not apply to the import of mercury‑added products that are covered by an exemption that is:\n\n (a) registered for Australia under Article 6 of the Minamata Convention; and\n\n (b) in effect.\n\n7  Absolute prohibition on incorporation of mercury‑added products into assembled products\n\n (1) For the purposes of subsection 92(1) of the Act, a person must not incorporate a mercury‑added product into an assembled product.\n\n (2) Subsection (1) does not apply to the extent that the incorporation is prohibited under the Therapeutic Goods Regulations 1990.\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Rules implement prohibitions aligned with the Minamata Convention and mirror the Convention’s listed products and permitted exemptions. They do not expand scope beyond the Convention’s list; instead they adopt the Convention’s Annex A categories (s 4) and attach narrow domestic carve‑outs where other Australian regulations govern activities (s 6(2), s 7(2)). Commencement is conditional on the Convention coming into force for Australia (s 2) and the instrument identifies the Convention as the enabling agreement (s 5)."},"complexity_factors":["Commencement depends on an external treaty entry‑into‑force and a ministerial notifiable instrument (s 2), creating a conditional start date tied to international processes.","Absolute prohibitions are concise but cover multiple acts (manufacture, import, export, incorporation) and thus impose direct compliance obligations on businesses and assemblers (s 6(1), s 7(1)).","Multiple, narrowly‑drawn exceptions increase interpretive complexity: product‑type exclusions in the definition of mercury‑added products (civil/military, research, religious, vaccines) (s 4); regulatory carve‑outs where other regulations already prohibit activities (s 6(2), s 7(2)); and treaty‑registered exemptions for imports under Article 6 of the Minamata Convention (s 6(3)).","Cross‑reference to other Commonwealth instruments and domestic regulations (Recycling and Waste Reduction Act 2020 authority at s 3; Agricultural and Veterinary Chemicals (Administration) Regulations 1995; Therapeutic Goods Regulations 1990) requires coordination across regulatory regimes.","The instrument delegates minimal administrative discretion within its text, but relies on external administrative processes (ministerial announcement, treaty exemption registrations) to operationalise scope and timing (s 2, s 6(3)).","The definition of mercury‑added products is tied to an external annex (Part 1 of Annex A to the Minamata Convention) so parties must consult the treaty text as it applies for Australia (s 4).","Statutory references to enforcement provisions of the parent Act (subsection 92(1) of the Act referenced in ss 6–7 and the constitutional connection in s 5) indicate linkage to broader enforcement and legal frameworks, affecting compliance risk assessment."],"plain_english_summary":"These Rules ban manufacturing, importing, exporting and incorporating into assembled products any listed mercury‑added products in Australia, subject to narrow statutory and treaty-linked exemptions. They take effect only once the Minamata Convention on Mercury is in force for Australia. The Rules primarily affect manufacturers, importers, exporters and assemblers of mercury‑containing items by imposing clear prohibitions and limited pathways for authorised exceptions."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation maintains its original narrow scope. It was designed specifically to implement Australia's Minamata Convention obligations regarding mercury-added products, and it does exactly that without expanding into broader product stewardship or waste management areas."},"complexity_factors":["Short instrument: only 7 sections across 2 Parts","Minimal defined terms: only 4 definitions in section 4, with heavy reliance on external treaty definitions ('as in the Minamata Convention')","Simple conditional structure: straightforward prohibitions with explicit exception lists rather than nested logic","Limited cross-referencing: references to parent Act (Recycling and Waste Reduction Act 2020) and two other regulatory schemes (Agricultural and Veterinary Chemicals, Therapeutic Goods), but no complex internal cross-references","Clear commencement mechanism: single conditional trigger based on treaty entry into force for Australia"],"plain_english_summary":"This law bans making, importing, exporting or using products containing mercury in Australia, while allowing narrow exceptions (e.g., certain military, scientific, traditional uses, specified medical/vaccine products, and items with no mercury-free alternative). It affects manufacturers, importers, exporters and others in the supply chain, and implements Australia’s obligations under the Minamata Convention to protect health and the environment from mercury pollution."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/recycling-and-waste-reduction-mandatory-product-stewardship-mercury-added-products-rules-2021","history":"/api/acts/recycling-and-waste-reduction-mandatory-product-stewardship-mercury-added-products-rules-2021/history","analysis":"/api/acts/recycling-and-waste-reduction-mandatory-product-stewardship-mercury-added-products-rules-2021/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/recycling-and-waste-reduction-mandatory-product-stewardship-mercury-added-products-rules-2021/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/recycling-and-waste-reduction-mandatory-product-stewardship-mercury-added-products-rules-2021/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/recycling-and-waste-reduction-mandatory-product-stewardship-mercury-added-products-rules-2021/documents"}}