LIFE MERSADE Project

Participating partners: Minas de Almadén y Arrayanes, S.A. (MAYASA) – (Project coordinator), National Center for Metallurgical Research (CENIM-CSIC), and the University of Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM).

Total budget: €4,299,375.00, with a contribution from the LIFE Programme of €2,103,745.00.

Main objective: The design, construction, and validation of safe technical solutions for the storage of metallic mercury, within the context of the European Mercury Strategy and the future ban on mercury exports from the European Union.

The project addressed the issue of surplus mercury generated by European industry through the development of a prototype safe storage facility, backed by the extensive historical expertise of the Almadén mining district in handling and managing this metal. Within this framework, MERSADE defined and validated technical procedures for the packaging, transport, control, and environmental monitoring of metallic mercury, ensuring high levels of safety for human health and the environment.

Additionally, the project investigated and validated mercury stabilization and solidification techniques, converting it into a more stable chemical form (mercury sulfide, HgS) and incorporating it into solid matrices suitable for permanent storage, aiming to minimize the risks associated with long-term storage.

Among the project’s key results are the development of two prototype storage systems—one temporary for metallic mercury and another permanent following its stabilization—, the definition of safety criteria applicable to mercury storage facilities across the European Union, and the generation of technical and operational methodologies replicable in other contexts and sites.