30. 11. 87 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 319/29 
Opinion on the draft Council Decision amending Decision 74/325/EEC to extend the 
responsabilities of the Advisory Committee on safety, hygiene and health protection at work 
to include health protection against the dangers arising from ionizing radiations (!) 
(87/C 319/10) 
On 24 April 1987 the Council of the European Communities decided to consult the Economic 
and Social Committee, under Article 198 of the Treaty establishing the European Economic 
Community and Article 170 of the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Community, on 
the abovementioned draft Council Decision. 
The Section for Energy, Nuclear Questions and Research, which was responsible for preparing 
the Committee's work on the subject, adopted its Opinion on 10 July 1987. The rapporteur 
was Mr Preben Nielsen. 
At its 248th plenary session, meeting of 23 September 1987, the Economic and Social 
Committee adopted the following Opinion unanimously: 
1. The Committee welcomes the Commission's 
initiative in coming forward with this timely proposal. 
It demonstrates yet again the now widely-felt determi­
nation to fill, albeit belatedly, certain gaps in Com­
munity legislation — gaps to which attention was 
drawn by a major nuclear accident. Moreover, it is 
consistent with the commitment made by the Com­
mission shortly after the aforementioned accident at 
Chernobyl, to carry out a thorough review of health 
protection in the nuclear field and to assess the extent 
to which the relevant chapter of the Euratom Treaty 
— Chapter III — is being implemented. This proposal 
for a Council Decision represents one of the results of 
this assessment. 
2. The Committee can only but support a Decision 
aimed at facilitating cooperation between the trades 
unions, employers' organizations and national adminis­
trations in the preparation and implementation of 
actions and new legislation in the field of safety, hygiene 
and health protection at work. 
3. The Committee considers the proposal for a 
Decision to be particularly timely on account of the 
increasing use of ionizing radiations in industry and 
services. 
(!) OJ No C 111, 25. 4. 1987, p. 6. 
Done at Brussels, 23 September 1987. 
Alfons MARGOT 4. In supporting the Commission's initiative, the 
Committee assumes that the proposed and hoped-for 
involvement of the Advisory Committee in efforts to 
protect workers' health against dangers from ionizing 
radiations should not detract from but rather comp­
lement the Economic and Social Committee's own 
responsibility in this field, as laid down by the Euratom 
Treaty. 
5. The Committee therefore supports the proposal 
to amend the 1974 Decision setting up an Advisory 
Committee on safety, hygiene and health protection at 
work, so as to include radiation protection within the 
terms of reference of the said Committee, subject to 
the addition of one specific provision concerning that 
body's reporting procedures, as set out in Article 3 of 
the 1974 Decision. 
6. The Committee would ask that in addition to 
receiving an annual report on the Advisory Committee's 
activities as already provided for in Article 3, provision 
be made for the Committee to be forwarded, in future, 
copies of the Advisory Committee's Opinions on all 
matters in the field of ionizing radiations. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee