The Control of Major Accident Hazards Regulations 2015 (COMAH) are the enforcing regulations within the United Kingdom of the
Seveso III Directive Directive 2012/18/EU or the Seveso-III Directive (full title: ''Directive 2012/18/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012 on the control of major-accident hazards involving dangerous substances, amending and subsequently repe ...
devised in
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
following the
Seveso disaster
Seveso (; lmo, label= Lombard, Séves ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Monza and Brianza, in the Region of Lombardy. The economy of the town has traditionally been based on the furniture industry.
Its name comes from the river o ...
. They are applicable to any establishment storing or otherwise handling large quantities of industrial chemicals of a hazardous nature. Types of establishments include chemical warehousing, chemical production facilities and some distributors.
Details
The principal aim of the regulations is to reduce the risks of potential major accidents, such as the
Flixborough disaster, that are associated with the handling of hazardous substances. The regulations operate on two levels depending on the establishment's status which is divided into two categories,'Lower Tier' and 'Upper Tier', determined by inventory.
Lower tier establishments are required to document a Major Accident Prevention Policy which should be signed off by the managing director. A top tier COMAH establishment is required to produce a full safety report which demonstrates that all necessary measures have been taken to minimise risks posed by the site with regard to the environment and local populations. The penalty for unauthorised storage can be severe and companies unsure of whether the COMAH regulations apply should seek advice from trade associations and local health and safety inspectors.
The Competent Authorities and enforcing agencies in the UK are the
Health and Safety Executive and either the
Environment Agency in England,
Natural Resources Wales
Natural Resources Wales ( cy, Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru) is a Welsh Government sponsored body, which became operational from 1 April 2013, when it took over the management of the natural resources of Wales. It was formed from a merger of the Coun ...
(NRW) in Wales or the
Scottish Environment Protection Agency
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA; gd, Buidheann Dìon Àrainneachd na h-Alba) is Scotland's environmental regulator and national flood forecasting, flood warning and strategic flood risk management authority.[Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...]
.
References
{{Reflist
External links
Health and Safety ExecutiveCOMAH guidance for businesses
on NetRegs.gov.uk
COMAH regulations
on Legislation.gov.uk
Environment AgencyScottish Environment Protection AgencyChemical Warehousing Trade AssociationsWorkSafe Victoria - Major HazardsEmergency Management Portal - online resources for UK emergency managers
1999 in British law
Chemical industry in the United Kingdom
Health and safety in the United Kingdom
Regulation of chemicals in the United Kingdom
Statutory Instruments of the United Kingdom