WGI Special Session: Seminar on good practices and lessons learned in implementing the UNECE Industrial Accidents Convention

The Convention’s Working Group on Implementation (WGI) organizes a special session for a seminar on good practices and lessons learned in implementing the UNECE Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents. The seminar will be held in Geneva and online on 3-4 February 2022 from 11:00–13:00 and 15:00–17:00 (Central European Time) on both days. It is included in the Convention’s workplan for 2021-2022, adopted by the Conference of the Parties at its 11th meeting in December 2020.

The main objective of the special session is to hold a seminar that promotes good practices and lessons learned in the implementation of the Industrial Accidents Convention in order to help overcome implementation gaps by facilitating the exchange of information among Parties and other countries. National authorities will present on good practices and lessons learned from their countries to a broad audience. The target audience includes national authorities, operators of hazardous installations, partner organizations, scholars and students, within and beyond the UNECE region.

The seminar is organized into six thematic sessions, in recognition of the different sections in the national implementation reports: Identification and notification of hazardous activities; Prevention of industrial accidents; Emergency preparedness, response and mutual assistance; Information to and participation of the public; Decision-making on siting and land-use planning; and Scientific and technical cooperation and exchange of information.  Each thematic session will include: an overview of relevant provisions of the Industrial Accidents Convention, gaps that the WGI identified in the ninth report on the implementation of the Convention 2016–2018; relevant actions contained in decision 2020/2 on strengthening the implementation of the Convention; country presentations on good practices and/or lessons learned in addressing those gaps or on addressing a new and emerging risk under the thematic session; and discussion between the moderator, presenters, secretariat and audience. Members of the WGI who are involved in the respective preparatory group will moderate the thematic sessions.

Further information about the concept for the seminar can be found in the below concept note and draft agenda.

Please click here to register for the Special Session. Kindly register before 27 January 2022. You will find guidance for how to register here (ENG, RUS). Once registered, we will send you more details on how to connect to the event closer to it.

The special session will be held with English, French and Russian interpretation. The lead party for the organization of the special session is the Netherlands; it has been organized with support from the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management of the Netherlands. A preparatory group, comprised of members from the WGI, guided the substantive preparation of the seminar under the leadership of the Netherlands, including the selection of good practices, development of the agenda and above concept note.

Presentations

Welcoming and Seminar Introduction

• Toril Tandberg, Chair of the Bureau of the Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents  Recording ENG 
• Helena Fridh, Chair of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation: Key findings from the ninth report on the implementation of the Convention 2016–2018: Implementation trends and gaps across the UNECE region   Recording ENG
• Joseph Orangias, Consultant, UNECE secretariat to the Industrial Accidents Convention: Review of the Tables of Good Practices, compiled from the national implementation reports from the 8th and 9th reporting rounds Recording ENG

Session 1 – Prevention of industrial accidents

Moderator: Ms. Helena Fridh, Chair of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and member of the preparatory group for the seminar

• Helena Fridh, Chair of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and member of the preparatory group for the seminar:  Overview of the theme of prevention, relevant provisions in the Convention, gaps in implementation and reported good practices  Recording ENG
• Radosław Czapla, National Headquarters of the State Fire Service of Poland: Methodology by Poland in dealing with matters related to the prevention of major industrial accidents   Recording ENG RUS
• Gill Smart, Head of Chemicals and Land Use Planning Policy Team, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Industrial Safety and Cyber Security –Operational Guidance on Cyber Security for Industrial Automation and Control Systems (IACS) and the related cyber security trial inspections
• Paulo Sacadura, Portuguese National Authority for Emergency and Civil Protection: ENPCP – Portugal National Strategy for a Preventive Civil Protection   Recording ENG RUS
• Discussion and questions

Session 2 – Identification and notification of hazardous activities

Moderator: Ms. Sanja Stamenkovic, Member of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and of the preparatory group for the seminar

• Sanja Stamenkovic, Member of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and of the preparatory group for the seminar: Overview of the theme of identification and notification of hazardous activities, relevant provisions in the Convention, gaps in implementation and reported good practices Recording RUS
• Yelyzaveta Rubach, Environmental Affairs Officer, UNECE secretariat to the Industrial Accidents Convention: Guidelines to facilitate the identification of hazardous activities for the purpose of the Convention (location criteria) and the template for the notification of hazardous activities in accordance with article 4 of and annex III to the Convention  Recording RUS
• Gerhard Winkelmann-Oei, German Federal Environment Agency: Identification and notification of tailings management facilities (TMFs) in the Danube River Basin and beyond, using the TMF Methodology  Recording RUS 
• Aleksandr Klobuk, Head of the Department for Supervision of Industrial Safety, Ministry for Emergency Situations of Belarus: Belarus’ notification and consultation process with Lithuania and Latvia on hazardous installations capable of causing transboundary effects, based on the example of a pipeline   Recording ENG RUS
• Discussion and questions

Session 3 – Decision-making on siting and land-use planning

Co-Moderators: Mr. Raphaël Gonzalez, Member of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and of the preparatory group for the seminar; Ms Torill Tandberg, Chair of the Bureau of the Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents

• Raphaël Gonzalez, Member of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and of the preparatory group for the seminar; Torill Tandberg, Chair of the Bureau of the Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents: Overview of the theme of decision-making on siting and land-use planning, relevant provisions in the Convention, gaps in implementation and reported good practices   Recording ENG RUS
• Franziska Hirsch, Secretary of the UNECE Industrial Accidents Convention: UNECE/EIB Information Repository of Good Practices and Lessons Learned in Land-Use Planning and Industrial Safety and UNECE Guidance on land-use planning, the siting of hazardous activities and related safety aspects   Recording ENG RUS
• Raphaël Gonzalez, Federal Office for the Environment FOEN: Guidelines on Coordination between Land-Use Planning and major accidents prevention in Switzerland     Recording ENG RUS
• Gulfiya Shabayeva, Chief specialist of the Department on Industrial Safety Regulation, Kyrgyzstan:  Planning of the development of the Andash ore deposit and transboundary cooperation in Kyrgyzstan Russian Version   Recording ENG RUS
• Discussion and questions

Session 4 – Emergency preparedness, response and mutual assistance

Moderator: Mr. Vitalii Mutaf, Member of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and of the preparatory group for the seminar

• Vitalii Mutaf, Member of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and of the preparatory group for the seminar:  Overview of the theme of emergency preparedness, response and mutual assistance, relevant provisions in the Convention, gaps in implementation and reported good practices   Recording ENG RUS
• Claudia Kamke, Secretary of the Working Group on Implementation and the Joint Expert Group on Water and Industrial Accidents, UNECE Industrial Accidents Convention: Presentation of the UNECE checklist for contingency planning for accidents affecting transboundary waters   Recording ENG RUS
• Ivan Domjan, National Directorate General for Disaster Management, Department for Hazardous Establishments, Hungary and Balázs Bognár, Director, Vas County Disaster Management Directorate, Hungary: Emergency preparedness for a complex response: examples from Hungary for transboundary cooperation exercises   Recording ENG RUS
• Svetlana Stirbu, Danube Logistics SRL, Republic of Moldova: Lessons learned from trilateral table-top and field exercises between the Republic of Moldova, Romania and Ukraine at the International Sea Port Guirgiulesti and their development of a joint/transboundary contingency plan in the Danube Delta   Recording ENG RUS
• Discussion and questions

Session 5 – Scientific and technological cooperation and exchange of information

Moderator: Mr. Raphaël Gonzalez, Member of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and of the preparatory group for the seminar

• Raphaël Gonzalez, Member of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and of the preparatory group for the seminar:  Overview of the theme of scientific and technological cooperation and exchange of information, relevant provisions in the Convention, gaps in implementation and reported good practices   Recording ENG RUS
• Pavel Danihelka, Occupational Safety Research Institute Prague, Czechia: Activities and exchanges taking place within the Czech-German-Polish working group   Recording ENG RUS
• Franzisc Senzaconi, Florin Dragomir and Simona Moraru, General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations, Romania: Practices on implementation of a transboundary joint project within Interreg-IPA Cross-border Cooperation Programme Romania-Serbia   Recording ENG RUS
• Natik Seidakhmedov, Director of State Research Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, State Agency for Safe Work in Industry and Mining Supervision of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, Azerbaijan; and the Secretary of the ICIS: Cooperation and exchange of information on industrial accident prevention, preparedness and response through the Interstate Council for Industrial Safety (ICIS) Russian version     Recording ENG RUS
• Discussion and questions

Session 6 – Information to and participation of the public

Moderator: Ms. Nicolette Bouman, Member of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and Chair of the preparatory group for the seminar

• Nicolette Bouman, Member of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation and Chair of the preparatory group for the seminar:  Overview of the theme on information to and participation of the public, relevant provisions in the Convention, gaps in implementation and reported good practices   Recording ENG RUS
• Rianne Dobbelsteen, Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management of the Netherlands: The Dutch Risicokaart tool–How this tool informs people in neighbouring countries and provides information on hazardous installations that are capable of causing transboundary effects   Recording ENG RUS
• Augusto Serrano and Roberto Valadares, Portuguese Environment Agency, Portugal: Portugal’s Participa web platform–How this platform makes public participation more accessible   Recording ENG RUS
• Claudine De Wever, Department of Environment and Spatial Planning, Region of Flanders, Belgium: Public participation in Flanders-Information to and participation of the public during the environmental permit procedure
• Ivana Selnik, Ministry of the Interior, Croatia: Participation of the public in preparing external emergency plans in Croatia Recording RUS
• Discussion and questions

Conclusions 

Nicolette Bouman, Chair of the preparatory group for the seminar, member of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation: Outcomes of the seminar and ways forward     Recording ENG RUS

Concluding Remarks by Nicolette Bouman, Chair of the preparatory group for the seminar, and Helena Fridh, Chair of the Convention’s Working Group on Implementation  Recording ENG RUS

Conclusions and recommendations from the Working Group on Implementation’s Special Session: Seminar on good practices and lessons learned in implementing the UNECE Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents (Annex to the ECE/CP.TEIA/2022/5) ENG FRE RUS

Evaluation summary of the Working Group of Implementation (WGI) Special Session: Seminar on good practices and lessons learned in implementing the UNECE Industrial Accidents Convention online