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For the purposes of this Convention:
a) “Artisanal and small-scale gold mining” means gold mining conducted by individual miners or small enterprises with limited capital investment and production;
b) “Best available techniques” means those techniques that are the most effective to prevent and, where that is not practicable, to reduce emissions and releases of mercury to air, water and land and the impact of such emissions and releases on the environment as a whole, taking into account economic and technical considerations for a given Party or a given facility within the territory of that Party. In this context: (i) “Best” means most effective in achieving a high general level of protection of the environment as a whole;
(ii) “Available” techniques means, in respect of a given Party and a given facility within the territory of that Party, those techniques developed on a scale that allows implementation in a relevant industrial sector under economically and technically viable conditions, taking into consideration the costs and benefits, whether or not those techniques are used or developed within the territory of that Party, provided that they are accessible to the operator of the facility as determined by that Party; and
(iii) “Techniques” means technologies used, operational practices and the ways in which installations are designed, built, maintained, operated and decommissioned;
(i) “Best” means most effective in achieving a high general level of protection of the environment as a whole;
(ii) “Available” techniques means, in respect of a given Party and a given facility within the territory of that Party, those techniques developed on a scale that allows implementation in a relevant industrial sector under economically and technically viable conditions, taking into consideration the costs and benefits, whether or not those techniques are used or developed within the territory of that Party, provided that they are accessible to the operator of the facility as determined by that Party; and
(iii) “Techniques” means technologies used, operational practices and the ways in which installations are designed, built, maintained, operated and decommissioned;
c) “Best environmental practices” means the application of the most appropriate combination of environmental control measures and strategies;
d) “Mercury” means elemental mercury (Hg(0), CAS No. 7439-97-6);
e) “Mercury compound” means any substance consisting of atoms of mercury and one or more atoms of other chemical elements that can be separated into different components only by chemical reactions;
f) “Mercury-added product” means a product or product component that contains mercury or a mercury compound that was intentionally added;
g) “Party” means a State or regional economic integration organization that has consented to be bound by this Convention and for which the Convention is in force;
h) “Parties present and voting” means Parties present and casting an affirmative or negative vote at a meeting of the Parties;
i) “Primary mercury mining” means mining in which the principal material sought is mercury;
j) “Regional economic integration organization” means an organization constituted by sovereign States of a given region to which its member States have transferred competence in respect of matters governed by this Convention and which has been duly authorized, in accordance with its internal procedures, to sign, ratify, accept, approve or accede to this Convention; and
k) “Use allowed” means any use by a Party of mercury or mercury compounds consistent with this Convention, including, but not limited to, uses consistent with Articles 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7.