Public information about major accident hazards: legal requirements and practical implementation

Abstract

Following a number of chemical accidents, in 1982 the Council of the Euro pean Communities issued a directive, commonly known as the "Seveso direc tive", on major accident hazards of certain industrial activities. Among other requirements, the legislator provides for the dissemination of information about safety measures and emergency behaviour to members of the public liable to be affected by a major accident. The paper deals with the multi-faceted prob lems involved in the effective communication of such information. It starts with a brief account of the European Communities' main bodies and opera tions ; then it focuses on the Seveso directive and its implementation in the member states. Subsequently it discusses the directive's requirements for pub lic information within the general scope of risk communication, drawing also on some empirical research studies. Finally, it describes in some detail a pilot study on risk information needs carried out in Italy in 1989.

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