sub-regional workshop on the implementation of the convention on the transboundary effects of...
TRANSCRIPT
Sub-regional Workshop on the Implementation of the
Convention on the Transboundary Effects of
Industrial Accidents
Erevan, Armenia, 13-15 March 2003
The “Seveso II” Directive – the European Union’s tool for implementing the Industrial
Accidents Convention
A long history of major accidents ...A long history of major accidents ...
1974: Flixborough, United Kingdom1976: Seveso, Italy1982: Original « Seveso Directive » adopted1984: Bhopal, India1986: Basel, Switzerland9 Dec 1996: « Seveso II Directive » adopted3 Feb 1999: « Seveso II » must be applied in
the Member States of the European Union30 Jan 2000: Baia Mare, Romania15 May 2000: Enschede, Netherlands21 Sep 2001: Toulouse, France
Control of products
Nuclear Safety
Seveso Directives
Chemical Plant Safety
Control of processes
Industrial Risk Management
Overview
General Comparison
UN/ECE Convention International law binding for the
Parties, i.e. those UN/ECE member countries that• ratify• accept• approve or• accede to
the Convention
SEVESO II European law binding for the 15
Member States of the European Union
binding for the EEA countries (Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein)EEA = Treaty on the European Economic Area
Ratification/Implementation of the UN/ECE Convention in the EU requires ...
within the sphere of competence of the Community according to the EC Treaty: Community legislation = Seveso II Directive (96/82/EC)
outside the sphere of competence of the Community: national legislation in each Member State
Procedures for Ratification/Implementati
on Approval on behalf of the
Community decided by Council of Environment Ministers on 23 March 1998
Deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations on 24 April 1998
Ratification by each Member State (so far Luxembourg, Spain, Greece, Germany, Austria, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Italy and United Kingdom)
Consistency of “Seveso II” with the UN/ECE
ConventionBoth instruments aim at the prevention of major industrial accidents
involving dangerous substances limitation of the consequences of such
accidents on man and the environmentIn the case of transboundary effects:
Co-operation between UN/ECE countries and/or EU Member States before, during and after an accident
ScopeUN/ECE Convention
applies mainly tofixed industrial installations
also covers emergency response to land-based transport accidents
industrial accident must be capable of causing transboundary effects
SEVESO II
applies exclusively to fixed industrial establishments• an establishment
can consist of one or more installations
• an installation is a technical unit within an establishment
Accident PreventionUN/ECE Convention
Adoption of legislative provisions or guidelines
Identification of hazardous activities (licensing system)
Risk Analysis / Risk Assessment
Education and Training “Managerial structures
and practices” Monitoring / Auditing /
Inspections
SEVESO IIFor all
establishments: General obligations Notification Major-Accident
Prevention PolicyIn addition, only forupper tier
establishments: Safety Management
System Safety Report
Limitation of consequencesUN/ECE Convention
Decision-making on siting
Emergency Preparedness• on-site contingency
plans - Operator• (joint) off-site
contingency plans - Local Authorities
Information to public
SEVESO II Land-use planning
Emergency Planning• Internal - Operator• External - Local
Authorities
Information on safetymeasures to the public
Co-operation before, during and after an
accident “before”• notification of hazardous activities• exchange of technology / technical assistance• co-operation in research and development
“during”• mutual assistance / co-ordination of response
“after ”• industrial accident notification systems• exchange of information on ‘lessons learned’
Government
Transpositioninto national laws,regulations and
administrative provisions
Operators Authorities
Practical applicationand enforcement of
laws, regulations andadministrative provisions
"Implementation" ?
What means ...
Role of theEuropean Commission
is the “Guardian of the EC Treaty” does not apply SEVESO II directly supports and controls transposition
of SEVESO II into national laws and their application
reports to Council and European Parliament on implementation
Committee of Competent Authorities (CCA) meets twice each year
Major-Accident Hazards Bureau (MAHB) MoU between the Commission and the
Joint Research Centre (JRC) in 1994 established within IPSC at JRC in
Ispra, Italy has four main tasks:
• Major-Accident Reporting System (MARS)
• Seveso Plant Information Retrieval System (SPIRS)
• Community Documentation Centre on Industrial Risks (CDCIR)
• scientific and administrative support for Technical Working Groups (TWG’s)
Guidance documents availablefrom MAHB (http://mahbsrv.jrc.it)
Guidance on the preparation of a Safety Report to the requirements of the Seveso II Directive
Guidance concerning information to the public
Guidelines on a Major Accident Prevention Policy and Safety Management System
Guidance on Land-use Planning Explanations and Guidelines for the
application of Article 9 (6) of the Seveso II Directive on harmonised criteria for dispensations
Guidance on Inspections
Instruments supporting implementation
Seveso Plants Information Retrieval System (SPIRS)• European map of Seveso plants• also contains a risk assessment tool
Mutual Joint Visits Programme (MJV) in the field of inspections• “experts visit experts”• 3-4 visits per year of different
Member States in a rotation system
Amendment of Seveso II “Baia Mare” - inclusion of certain mining
activities, including tailings management facilities
“Enschede” - better definition of explosive and pyrotechnic substances, decrease of qualifying quantities
“Toulouse” - replacement of the two current entries on ammonium nitrate by 4 new categories, with new qualifying quantities
Extension of list of carcinogens in Annex I, Part 1, along with new qualifying quantities
Lower qualifying quantities for substances dangerous to the aquatic environment (Annex I, Part 2)
State of play Proposal adopted by Commission on 10
December 2001 (COM(2001) 624 final) European Parliament adopts opinion in
1st reading on 3 July 2002 Commission adopts Amended Proposal
on 26 September 2002 (COM(2002) 540 final)
Council adopts Common Position on 20 February 2003
To come: 2nd reading in European Parliament
Summary (1) Community legislation (Seveso II)
has been adopted on 9 December 1996
Transposed by all Member States Applied as from 3 February 1999 UN/ECE Convention approved on
behalf of the Community Instrument of approval deposited
on 24 April 1998 Ratification of UN/ECE Convention
still underway in 5 Member States
Summary (2)Adoption and implementation of Seveso II - type legislation is necessary in order to
fulfil obligations arising from the UN/ECE Convention
join the European Union (EU)
Contact details:Jürgen WettigEuropean CommissionEnvironment Directorate-GeneralUnit ENV.B.4 (Civil Protection and
Environmental AccidentsB-1049 BrusselsTel/Fax: (+32-2)
296.91.49/299.03.14E-mail: [email protected]://europa.eu.int/comm/
environment/seveso/index.htm