Proposal for a Council Decision relating to a proposal for an amendment to Annex I to the UNECE Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents
Date: 2006-09-13
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU relations, UNO, dangerous substance, environmental risk prevention, frontier region, industrial hazard, international convention, safety standard

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, le 13.9.2006 
COM(2006) 493 final 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

relating to a proposal for an amendment to Annex I to the UNECE Convention on the 
Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents 

(presented by the Commission) 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

The European Community and its Member States are Parties to the UNECE Convention on 
the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents1. The Convention applies to the prevention 
of,  preparedness  for  and  response  to  industrial  accidents  at  sites  where  hazardous  activities 
take place capable of causing transboundary effects. The Seveso II Directive2 is considered as 
the  legal  and  technical  instrument  to  fulfill  the  obligations  of  the  European  Community 
arising  out  of  the  Convention.  Annex  I  to  the  Convention  and  to  the  Seveso  II  Directive 
contain  categories  and  named  hazardous  substances  for  the  purpose  of  defining  hazardous 
activities respectively establishments.  

A Working Group on the Development of the Convention, mandated by the Conference of the 
Parties  in  2004,  reviewed  Annex  I  to  the  Convention  in  the  light  of  corresponding  legal 
requirements of the Seveso II Directive as amended in 2003 following the major accidents in 
Baia Mare, Enschede and Toulouse.  

The Working Group has finalised after its second meeting in March 2006 a proposal for the 
amendment of Annex I to the Convention. The draft text adjusts successfully the contents of 
Annex  I  to  the  Seveso  II  Directive  and  largely  diminishes  the  existing  differences.  The 
document presented for adoption has been discussed during several meetings of the Working 
Group  on  the  development  of  the  Convention.  EU  Member  States'  experts  and  the 
Commission participated in the discussions. The proposal has been endorsed by the Bureau of 
the Convention at its 9th meeting on 22-23 May 2006.  

The reviewed Annex I is to be adopted by the Conference of the Parties to the Convention. Its 
fourth meeting will take place in Rome on 15-17 November 2006. In accordance with Article 
26 paragraph 4 of the Convention, any amendment to Annex I enters into force twelve months 
after  its  communication  to  the  Parties  by  the  Executive  Secretary  upon  its  adoption  at  the 
Conference of the Parties by a nine-tenth majority of the Parties, unless at least sixteen Parties 
have notified objections. 

During the meeting the Community should support the adoption of the reviewed Annex I. 

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2 

Council  decision  on  the  conclusion  by  the  European  Community  of  the  CONVENTION  ON  THE 
TRANSBOUNDARY  EFFECTS  OF  INDUSTRIAL  ACCIDENTS,  OJ  L  326/5  of  3.12.1998, 
http://www.unece.org/env/teia/welcome.htm 
Seveso II Directive 96/82/EC amended by Directive 2003/105/EC of the European Parliament and of 
the Council of 16 December 2003 amending Council Directive 96/82/EC., OJ L 10 of 14.01.1997; OJ 
L345, 31.12.2003 

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Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

relating to a proposal for an amendment to Annex I to the UNECE Convention on the 
Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 
175(1), in conjunction with the second subparagraph of Article 300(2),  

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

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The Community is a Party to the UNECE Convention on the Transboundary Effects of 
Industrial Accidents3 (hereinafter referred to as "the Convention"). 

Annex  I  to  the  Convention  contains  categories  and  named  hazardous  substances  for 
the purpose of defining hazardous activities. 

In  accordance  with  Article  26  paragraph  4  of  the  Convention  any  amendment  to 
Annex I enters into force twelve months after its communication to the Parties by the 
Executive Secretary upon its adoption at the Conference of the Parties by a nine-tenth 
majority of the Parties, unless at least sixteen Parties have notified objections. 

The text of the proposal for an amendment to Annex I was agreed within the Working 
Group  on  the  Development  of  the  Convention,  endorsed  by  the  Bureau  of  the 
Convention and will be subject to adoption at the next Conference of the Parties. 

At  the  Conference  of  the  Parties,  the  Community  and  the  Member  States  should 
cooperate  closely  to  ensure  that  any  amendments  to  Annex  I  are  compatible  with 
Community law in force. 

The amendment to Annex I would diminish differences with Community legislation, 
which has arisen mainly from Directive 2003/105/EC of the European Parliament and 
of  the  Council  of  16  December  2003  amending  Council  Directive  96/82/EC  on  the 
control of major-accident hazards involving dangerous substances4 

Council decision of 23 March 1998 concerning the conclusion by the Community of the Convention on 
the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents (98/685/EC), OJ L 326/1 of 3.12.1998 

OJ L 345, 31.12.2003, p.97 

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(7) 

The  reservation  introduced  by  the  Community  at  the  time  of  ratification  of  the 
Convention  should  be  updated  because  it  will  become  partly  obsolete  further  to  the 
proposed amendment. 

(8) 

The amendment to Annex I to the Convention should be approved. 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:  

Article 1 

At  the  fourth  Conference  of  the  Parties  to  the  UNECE  Convention  on  the  Transboundary 
Effects of Industrial Accidents, the Commission shall support the adoption of the amendment 
to Annex I to the Convention containing categories and named hazardous substances for the 
purpose of defining hazardous activities. 

Article 2 

The  President  of  the  Council  is  hereby  authorised  to  designate  the  person(s)  empowered, 
subject to the adoption of the amendment to Annex I to the Convention, to withdraw on behalf 
of the Community the reservations contained in Annex I to Council Decision 98/685/EC and 
replace them with the reservation appearing in the Annex hereto. 

Done at Brussels 

For the Council 
The President 

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ANNEX  

RESERVATION 

The  Member  States  of  the  European  Community,  in  their  mutual  relations,  will  apply  the 
Convention  in  accordance  with  the  Community's  internal  rules.  The  Community  therefore 
reserves the right as concerns the threshold quantities mentioned in Annex I, Part I, Nos 4, 5 
and 6 to the Convention, to apply threshold quantities of 100 tonnes for bromine (very toxic 
substance), 5 000 tonnes for methanol (toxic substance) an 2000 tonnes for oxygen (oxidising 
substance). 

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