WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2423/97 by Jyrki OTILA to the Commission. Reducing the risk of fires caused by welding
Date: 1997-07-11
Institutions: European Parliament, OTILA
Subjects: European standard, environmental risk prevention, fire protection, metalworking, occupational health, occupational safety, safety standard, working conditions

17. 3. 98

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 82/73

(98/C 82/123)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2423/97

by Jyrki Otila (PPE) to the Commission

(11 July 1997)

Subject: Reducing the risk of fires caused by welding

Fires caused by sparks from welding in connection with building improvements and car and machine repairs are
a common problem. Especially since the fire at Du¤sseldorf Airport, in which lives were lost, and which was
started by sparks from welding, attention has been concentrated on the insufficient clarity and incoherence of
safety provisions in the EU(cid:146)s various Member States. These observations were included in the final report of the
research group set up by the land of North Rhine-Westphalia to look into the Du¤sseldorf fire. The report has, we
understand, also been sent for information to the Commission(cid:146)s DG III B2 unit dealing with fire safety issues, but
there is no sign of any effort to change or supplement the standards at EU level for the prevention of fires caused
by welding.

EU  standards  do  not  currently  contain  sufficiently  precise  provisions  for  minimising  the  possible  fire  risk  in
connection  with  welding.  However,  new  technology  would  permit  clear  improvements  in  standards  for
extinguishing  potential  fires.  One  example  is  equipping  welding  machinery  with  inbuilt  extinguishing
equipment.

In  the  light  of  the  above,  what  measures  does  the  Commission  propose  to  take  to  improve  the  clarity  and
adequacy of national standards aimed at preventing welding fires, and how will the Commission clarify the EU
standards as regards the prevention of fires connected with welding?

Answer given by Mr Flynn on behalf of the Commission

(6 October 1997)

The Framework Directive 89/391/EEC (1) on the introduction of measures to encourage improvements in the
safety and health of workers at work obliges the employer to evaluate the risks to the safety and health of the
workers in his undertaking or establishment.

Subsequent  to  this  evaluation  the  employer  must,  in  accordance  with  the  general  principles  of  prevention
mentioned in the Directive, implement measures to avoid the risks, combat the risks at source, adapt to technical
progress and replace the dangerous by the non-dangerous or the less dangerous. Naturally this procedure also
applies to any welding work that the employer may require workers to perform in his undertaking.

When the work is carried out on a construction site, the individual Directive 92/57/EEC on the minimum safety
and  health  requirements  at  temporary  or  mobile  construction  sites (2)  requires  that  these  arrangements  be
supplemented by a safety plan designed, among other things, to ensure proper coordination of the activities of the
various undertakings employed on the site.

The  Commission  would  emphasise  that,  in  accordance  with  Article  118a,  paragraph  1,  of  the  EC  Treaty,
competence for promoting improvements in the working environment lies first and foremost with the Member
States themselves. This principle is reflected in paragraph 3 of the same Article, which provides that Member
States may adopt at national level measures that are more stringent than the minimum requirements adopted by
the Directives.

Consequently,  as  things  stand  at  present  the  Commission  has  no  plans  to  propose  any  measures  specifically
covering the occupational risks related to welding.

(1)  OJ L 183, 29.6.1989.
(2)  OJ L 245, 26.8.1992.