Civil Protection

News archive

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

2010

5/11/2010: The EU Civil Protection Mechanism has been activated following the request for assistance received from the Haitian Government
The European Commission is coordinating actions with the Participating States to the Mechanism through the Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC). An EU Civil Protection Coordination Team may also be deployed on the ground in the days to come, depending on the evolution of the situation.
29/10/2010: The Mission of the EU CP team deployed in Hungary has been completed
EU CP experts returned home. The findings of the EU CP Team were presented to Hungarian authorities, which included short and longer-term suggestions to further enhance the remedial and recovery plan of the Hungarian government. A possible follow-up expert mission may take place in 2011.; Action Plan - Main Recommendations - More here
26/10/2010: Towards improving EU disaster response:
A step towards faster and more efficient EU response to disasters was made when the European Commission presented proposals to reinforce the Union's capacity to act on civil protection and humanitarian assistance. The aim is to improve the disaster response of the European Union, both within and outside of its borders.; More here - See also dedicated page
25/10/2010: The Mission of the EU CP team deployed in Hungary has been completed
EU CP experts returned home. The findings of the EU CP Team were presented to Hungarian authorities, which included short and longer-term suggestions to further enhance the remedial and recovery plan of the Hungarian government. A possible follow-up expert mission may take place in 2011.; More here
20/08/2010: Monsoon floods in Pakistan:
The EU Civil Protection Mechanism was activated on the 6 August responding to the request for assistance from Pakistan's government to the international community. The MIC deployed a liaison officer to Pakistan on 11 August, who has been fully integrated into the ECHO team.; More here
03/08/2010: Portugal Forest fires:
The forest fires situation in Portugal is now calmer. The Italian planes, part of the European assistance through the European Civil Protection Mechanism, left Portugal on the 31 July and have safely arrived home.; More here
04/06/2010: Open calls for tender:
A call for tender on the "Organisation of a European exchange of experts in civil protection" will close on 11 June – More here.

Interested parties can apply until 6 July to "design, plan, conduct and evaluate exercises for civil protection modules and technical assistance and support teams"; More here
4/06/2010: Haiti earthquake – European civil protection assistance

An overview of the EU civil protection effort following the earthquake in Haiti in January.; Read more…
16/03/2010: The 2010 call for proposals for a Preparatory Action on an EU rapid response capability is published in the Official Journal of the European Union (2010/C 64) on 16 March 2010. Deadline for the proposals submission is 15 April 2010. An Info Day will be organised on 26 March 2010.; Read more…
1/03/2010: Haiti earthquake – European civil protection assistance

The European Civil Protection Mechanism is participating in the international relief effort following the earthquake in Haiti. A third civil protection expert team arrived in Haiti today.; Read more…
19/12/2009: The call for projects on prevention and preparedness 2010 is published in the Official Journal of the European Union C 311 on 19/12/ 2009. Deadline for the proposals submission is 31 March 2010.; Read more…
07/12/2009: Information Day 2010: On 12 January 2010, the Directorate-General for Environment of the European Commission (Civil Protection Units) will hold an Information Day in Brussels (Belgium) on "Civil Protection Work Programme 2010".; Read more…

2009

25/11/2009: European Civil Protection survey
The first-ever Eurobarometer survey on Civil Protection shows widespread support among EU citizens for EU action on disaster prevention, preparedness and response. Europeans are most concerned about the risk of flooding (45%), violent storms (40%) and industrial accidents (29%). Europeans are also in favour of assisting countries outside the EU when disaster strikes. But the survey reveals that level of personal preparedness is low, with only one-fifth of respondents having made arrangements to prepare for disaster themselves.; For a full report, a summary and country-level fact sheets go here.
16/10/2009: Programme on Civil protection cooperation for the candidate countries and potential candidates
A Service procurement notice on the Programme on civil protection cooperation for the candidate countries and potential candidates was published in the Official Journal on 8 October (EuropeAid/128936/C/SER/MULTI).
The two year-long Programme with the maximum budget of €4.000.000 will aim to bring the beneficiaries closer to the Community civil protection mechanism and to contribute to the development of their civil protection capacities. 3 contracts are foreseen for this programme, each covering a different yet related group of activities, and corresponding to 1 of 3 lots: 1) training and exchanges of experts; 2) exercises; and 3) workshops.
Deadline for receipt of applications is 18 November 2009 (24:00 CET).; The procurement notice can be found at the EC's Tenders Electronic Daily (TED) here.
01/10/2009: Community Civil Protection Mechanism welcomes new member
Croatia has joined the European Community Civil Protection Mechanism as the 31st participating state. As a participating state it will have access to the Community Emergency Communication and Information System (CECIS) to see requests and offers of assistance in real time. In addition, Croatia can avail itself of transport pooling and co-financing. The Community Mechanism works closely with other EU membership candidate countries. The participation of candidate countries in the Community programmes is an important element of their pre-accession strategy.
25/08/2009: Programme on civil protection cooperation for the candidate countries and potential candidates
An "Individual service contract forecast on the Programme on civil protection cooperation for the candidate countries and potential candidates" was published in the Official Journal on 11 August (EuropeAid/128936/C/SER/MULTI).
The two year-long Programme will aim to bring the beneficiaries closer to the Community civil protection mechanism and to contribute to the development of their civil protection capacities and cover the following groups of activities: (i) trainings and exchanges of experts; (ii) exercises; and (iii) workshops on various topics. It is envisaged that a tender with 2 to 3 lots will be published with a total budget of EUR 4 million. The intended timing of publication of the procurement notice is September 2009.; The forecast notice can be found at the EC's Tenders Electronic Daily (TED) here.
19 June 2009: The 2009 Call for Proposals for Full Scale Exercises has been published in Official Journal C139 of 19 June 2009 with deadline for submission of proposals the 20 August 2009; Read more…
25-26/11/2009: 3rd Civil Protection Forum: The 3rd Civil Protection Forum will be held in Brussels on 25-26 November 2009. More information will be provided on this website on a regular basis.; Read more…
3 June 2009: The 2009 call for proposals for a Preparatory Action on an EU rapid response capability is published in the Official Journal of the European Union (2009/C 123) on 3rd June 2009. Deadline for the proposals submission is 7 August 2009.; Read more…
07/05/2009: Seveso II: The Commission has launched a second study linked to the review of the Seveso II Directive. The aim of the study is to provide the Commission with key findings and lessons learned from the implementation of the main requirements imposed on public authorities.; Read more…
17/04/09: AGEE 8: The 8th meeting of the Advisory Group on Environmental Emergencies (AGEE8), co-organised by the European Commission's Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) and the Joint UNEP/OCHA Environment Unit (JEU) will be held in Brussels on 6-8 May 2009.; Read more...
Information Day 2009:: On 4 May 2009, the Directorate-General for Environment of the European Commission (Civil Protection Unit) will hold an Information Day in Brussels (Belgium) on the 2009 calls under the Preparatory Action on an EU rapid response capability.; Read more...
11/03/09: The 2009 call for proposals for cooperation projects on prevention and preparedness is published in the Official Journal of the European Communities (2009/C 57) on 11 March 2009. Deadline for the proposals submission is 18 May 2009.; Read more...
23/02/09: The European Commission has adopted today a Communication on a Community approach on the prevention of natural and man-made disasters COM(2009)82. Proposed action at Community level focuses on areas where a common approach is more effective than separate national approaches, such as developing knowledge, linking actors and policies, and improving the performance of existing Community disaster prevention instruments; Read Communication COM(2009)82
Read Impact Assessment
Read Summary Impact Assessment
Read Press release
16/01/09: Information Day 2009: On 5 February 2009, the Directorate-General for Environment of the European Commission (Civil Protection Unit) will hold an Information Day in Brussels (Belgium) on "How to prepare proposals/tenders for Civil Protection in 2009".; Read more...

2008

01/12/08: Civil Protection: EU coordinates evacuation of injured European citizens in Mumbai terror attacks. (IP/08/1873); Read more...
14/10/08: Publication of second Call for proposals 2008 - Civil Protection Simulation Exercises (2008/C 261/07).; Read more...
02/10/08: Call for proposals for Pilot project to steep up cooperation between Member States on combating forest fires is published in the Official Journal of the European Communities (2008/C 251) on 03 October 2008. Deadline for the proposals submission is 21 November 2008.; Read more…
04/08/08: Information day "How to prepare a proposal for a Pilot Project on combating forest fires"
Directorate-General for Environment of the European Commission (Civil Protection Unit) will hold an Information Day in Brussels on "How to prepare a proposal", following the Call for Proposals to be issued soon on a Pilot Project to step up cooperation between Member states on combating forest fires.; Read more
18/06/08: GMES tender in the field of emergency management.
DG ENTR has published a call for tender to support the implementation of an operational GMES service in the field of emergency management. The tender will focus on establishing the necessary interfaces between the users and the GMES service providers to ensure that the Earth observation-based information will be provided in accordance with the technical specifications and quality standards that allow service integration into the user’s operational workflow.; Further information can be found here.
03/06/08: Preparatory Action on an EU rapid reponse capability.
Call for proposals for a preparatory action on an EU rapid response capability published in the Official Journal of the European Communities (2008/C 135) on 3 June 2008. Deadline for the proposals submission is 22 August 2008.; Read more
21/05/08: More Eu assistance on its way to China; The MIC is working several participating states to provide some 7500 large tents and other assistance such as an advanced medical post and blankets.; Read more
16/05/08: Civil Protection: European assistance prepares to leave for China; The Community Civil Protection Mechanism will be sending a team of experts to China on 17 May to help coordinate expert and material assistance from Member States. The Chinese authorities made an official request for assistance following the massive earthquake that struck south-western China on 12 May.; Read more
14/05/08: Mechanism activated for Myanmar Burma; A MIC expert team was deployed to Myanmar Burma following the devastating effect of cyclone Nargis. Some Member States have also sent assistance.
16-18/05/08: Cross-border flood simulation exercise "EU-ALBIS 2008"
The European Commission is co-financing a simulation exercise organised by Germany and the Czech Republic that simulates the cross-border floods that occurred along the river Elbe in the 2002 and 2006.; Visit the exercise website
05/05/08: Information day "How to prepare a proposal under the preparatory action on an EU rapid response capability".
Directorate-General for Environment of the European Commission (Civil Protection Unit) will hold an Information Day in Brussels on "How to prepare a proposal", following the Call for Proposals to be issued under the preparatory action on an EU rapid response capability.; Read more
16-19/04/08: EU FIRE 5 Exercise, Sardinia; Five Member States – France, Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain - and the European Commission's disaster Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) are involved in a large-scale simulation exercise in Sardinia that runs from 16 to 19 April. The exercise, SARDINIA 2008, forms part of a larger pilot project co-financed by the European Commission, which aims at developing the notion of a rapid European intervention force for disasters. This exercise is being held within the context of the Community Civil Protection Mechanism.; Read more - Read press release
14/04/08: Stakeholders meeting on Disaster Prevention; The European Commission is holding a broad public consultation process in the run-up to the presentation of a Communication on the development of a new EU initiative on disaster prevention, expected by the end of 2008.; Read more - Read more on stakeholder disaster prevention
17/03/08: EU and Ukraine discuss further cooperation in civil protection; Stavros Dimas, Commissioner for Environment met Volodymyr Shandra, the Ukrainian Minister for Emergency Services today to discuss further cooperation between the EU and Ukraine on disaster response.; Read more
11/03/08: Floods in Ecuador - EU sends MIC expert team to assist; The MIC has sent an expert team to Guayaquil, Ecuador to help the Ecuadorian Civil Defence and the United Nations deal with the floods that have ravaged the country for the past 13 weeks. The MIC team will help coordinate the response to the disaster, assist with logistical management, evaluate the damage caused by the floods and provide technical expertise in updating emergency plans.; Read Press Release
11/03/2008: The call for proposals for preparedness and prevention projects has been published in the Official Journal of the European Communities (2008/C 65/06) on 11 March 2008. Deadline for the proposals submission is 30 April 2008.; Read more
05/03/2008: A coordinated and stronger EU disaster response at home & abroad
The European Commission has adopted a communication on Reinforcing the EU's disaster Response capacity, COM(2008)130. The Communication proposes that the EU strengthens its abilities to provide civil protection and humanitarian assistance. It also contains an annex on forest fires.; Read Communication COM(2008)130; Read Press Release (all languages); Visit President Barroso's page on the Communication
4 March 2008: Publication of Call for proposals 2008 - Civil Protection Simulation Exercises (2008/C 59/07); Read more
24-26 February 2008: Seminar on Strengthening Cooperation with Candidate Countries and Western Balkan Countries in the field of Civil Protection, Bled, Slovenia; Read more
15/02/2008: Launch of a revision of the Seveso II Directive (96/82/EC)
The main purpose of this study is to provide the Commission with key findings and lessons learnt from the implementation of the main requirements imposed on operators, focussing in particular on those relating to major accident prevention policy, safety reports and internal emergency plans. The Commission encourages industry, authorities and other stakeholders to complete the questionnaire until 28 March 2008.; Read more
24/01/2008: Adoption of implementation rules for modules
COMMISSION DECISION of 20 December 2007 amending Decision 2004/277/EC, Euratom as regards rules for the implementation of Council Decision 2007/779/EC, Euratom establishing a Community civil protection mechanism; Read more
14/01/2008: INFORMATION DAY of the Civil Protection Financial Instrument in Brussels; Read more
14/01/2008: The European Commission awards funding to new civil protection simulation exercises and projects …; Read more
07/01/2008: EU makes substantial contribution to UN's relief effort in Kyrgyzstan following an earthquake of magnitude 5.6 which truck an area to the south of the country on New Year's Day …; Read more

2007

14/12/2007: European Commission and United Nations to deploy a joint expert team to South Korea following oil spill …; Read more
01/12/2007: Adoption of Council Decision 2007/779/EC, Euratom establishing a Community Civil Protection Mechanism (recast) …; Read more
22-23/11/2007 Civil Protection Forum: Together in the face of disaster, Brussels: With some 600 delegates from the EU elsewhere, the 2nd Civil Protection forum created an ideal backdrop for all types of actors involved in European disaster prevention, preparedness and response to exchange idea, share best practice and network. Proceedings and recordings of all the sessions are now online …; Read more
18/11/2007: Oil pollution in the Black Sea – European Commission responds
The European Commission has responded to a request for assistance from Ukraine through its Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC), which is the office responsible for civil protection and marine pollution actions. Ukraine requires expertise to assist its own authorities in evaluating the environmental impact of the oil pollution in the Kerch Strait …; Read more - Read expert's report

14/09/2007

Commission Decision of 8 August 2007 laying down rules for the implementation of the provisions on transport in Council Decision 2007/162/EC, Euratom establishing a Civil Protection Financial Instrument… Read more

27/08/2007

Greek fires: Commission reiterates its sadness and welcomes European solidarity… Read more (IP/07/1257)

26/08/2007

Greek fires: Commission reiterates its sadness and welcomes European solidarity… Read more (IP/07/1254)

26/08/2007

Europe steps up efforts to combat forest fires in Greece… Read more (IP/07/1253)

25/08/2007

Greek forest fires: further assistance on its way… Read more (IP/07/1251)

14/08/2007

SEVESO II
The European Commission today published a report on member states' progress in implementing the 'Seveso II' Directive on the control of major-accident hazards involving dangerous substances. The report summarises the information provided by EU-25 Member States for the 2003-2005 period… Read more

31/07/2007

Dimas welcomes Barnier idea on a rapid reaction force on forest fires… Read more (IP/07/1200)

31/07/2007

European Union helps former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to tackle forest fires… Read more (IP/07/1198)

24/07/2007

Natural disasters: update on EU civil protection activities… Read more (IP/07/1166)

19/07/2007

EU helps Greece to tackle forest fires… Read more (IP/07/1143)

28/06/2007

European Union responds swiftly to combat forest fires in Greece
Early in the evening of 27 June 2007, Greece requested civil protection assistance from its European partners. The request triggered a rapid reaction from the European Commission's Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC)… Read more

26/06/2007

Seminar on Early Warning SystemsThe European Commission and the Portuguese Presidency are co-organising a seminar between 15 and 18 July 2007 on Early warning systems, with special emphasis on tsunami warning systems for the Mediterranean and the Atlantic. See seminar website:

12/06/2007

Recast of Council Decision establishing the Community Civil Protection Mechanism
Council adopts the recast of the Council Decision 2001/792/EC, Euratom establishing a Community Mechanism to facilitate reinforced cooperation in civil protection assistance interventions. Click here for provisional text of recast.

12/06/2007

Council Conclusions on coordination Council adopts conclusions on enhancing the coordination capacity of the Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) within the community civil protection mechanism. Click here for Council Conclusions.

12/06/2007

Council Conclusions on CBRN-related incidents Council adopts conclusions on preparedness for decontamination of casualties following CBRN-incidents. Click here for Council Conclusions.

06/06/2007

Major disaster simulation exercise tests the response capabilities of eight EU countries
A large-scale multi-disaster simulation exercise, EULUX 2007, kicks off today in Luxembourg till 9 June. The exercise will test the disaster-response capabilities of 8 European countries following a series of simulated incidents which will make necessary international assistance through the Community mechanism for civil protection. EULUX 2007is organised by Luxembourg together with Belgium, France, and Germany and is being held with the support of the European Commission, which manages the Community civil protection mechanism. The exercise will also involve civil protection teams or experts from Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland and Portugal. The Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC), the Commission's body for dealing with such disasters, will facilitate the co-ordination of the international teams as it would do in a real emergency. The European Commission will finance 75% of the eligible costs of the exercise … See exercise website

10/05/2007

European civil protection cooperation extended to Ukraine
The European Commission and Ukraine have today agreed to cooperate more closely on civil protection matters. The arrangement aims at improving the relations between the civil protection operational centres of the European Commission and Ukraine to manage natural and manmade disasters. The new arrangement is a significant step forward in disaster prevention and preparedness. It coincides with the 21st anniversary of the fateful Chernobyl accident … Read more

28/04/2007

Call for proposals
Prevention and other actions; simulation exercises … Read more

27/04/2007

The EU supports successful operation against oil pollution in the North Sea
With the help of EU funds seven aircraft belonging to six countries flew over the English Channel and the southern part of the North Sea searching for oil pollution 24 hours a day … Read more

29/03/2007

New publications
Watch this video on civil protection in Europe.
Download civil protection posters in English, French or German.

05/03/2007

Full-scale simulation exercise in Luxembourg
Luxembourg will be the stage for a full-scale simulation exercise in civil protection this June. Expert teams from seven other European countries will join the Luxembourgish teams following a spate of unknown explosions that cause havoc and prompt a request for international assistance. See exercise website

05/03/2007

Civil Protection Financial Instrument
The Council adopted a decision establishing an instrument for the financing of Community action in the field of civil protection for the 2007-2013 period. Click here for Council Decision

05/03/2007

Bolivia floods
The European Commission's Monitoring and Information Centre, which facilitates the co-ordination of civil protection assistance to disaster-stricken countries, has deployed a team of experts seconded by Member States to Bolivia. The team co-ordinator is supporting the UNICEF office in La Paz. UNICEF is co-ordinating international assistance in water and sanitation. Two technical experts were deployed to the Beni and Pando departments where they are supporting international efforts in terms of emergency preparedness, water measurement and communication. The civil protection experts are also working in close collaboration with the European Commission's delegation in La Paz.

05/03/2007

Civil protection forum
The European Commission is working on organising a second Civil Protection Forum. This conference aims to bring together some 500 people involved or interested in civil protection. The forum will provide participants with a platform for the exchange ideas and an opportunity to meet other people sharing the same interest or profession. This event has been scheduled for 22-23 November 2007, in Brussels.

20/02/2007

INFORMATION DAY on "How to prepare proposals under the new Civil Protection Financial Instrument", Brussels, 14 March 2007 Read More

01/02/2007

Action programme Call for proposals 2006. Click here for a summary of the most important applicable financial and administrative provisions.

2006

22/12/2006

Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament, to the European Economic and Social Committee and to the Committee of the Regions on Cooperation in the field of accidental or deliberate marine pollution after 2007… other languages

11/12/2006

Council reaches political agreement on a draft decision aimed at establishing an instrument for the financing of Community action in the field of civil protection … Click here (see p.13)

17/10/2006

European civil protection volcanic emergency simulation exercise kicks off today in Naples, Italy
The EU's Civil Protection Mechanism is part-financing a civil protection exercise called "Somma Vesuvio Mesimex", which is taking place in Naples from 17 to 23 October. Volcanologist and civil protection experts from five EU Member States (Portugal, France, Spain, Sweden and Italy) are taking part in this simulation exercise. In addition, approximately 1 800 Italian volunteers will play the role of evacuees… Read more (in Italian) (in English)

20/09/2006

On 11 October 2006 the European Parliament and the European Commission will hold a half-day seminar commemorating 30 years from the Seveso accident… Read more

18/09/2006

European civil protection in the face of a terrorist attack - simulation exercise kicks off today in Denmark and Sweden … Read more. Visit exercise webpage

05/09/2006

EU assistance still involved in Lebanon pollution clean-up … Read more

04/09/2006

Natural disasters discussed at European Parliament. Commission makes declaration... Read more

09/08/2006

EU helps Spain to tackle forest fires... Read more

28/07/2006

Commission activates civil protection mechanism to help Lebanon cope with major oil spill... Read more

28/07/2006

Launch of the Call for Proposals for pilot projects on cross border cooperation in the fight against natural disasters... Read more

25/07/2006

Commissioner Dimas visits Larnaca, Cyprus... Read more

23/07/2006

On 4 July 2006 an INFORMATION DAY was held in Brussels on how to prepare a proposal for the Call for Proposals for pilot projects on civil protection cross border cooperation in the fight against natural disasters... Read more

22/07/2006

EU mobilising civil protection assistance for Lebanon and Cyprus... Read more

20/06/2006

Publication of call for tender to design, organise, promote, manage, monitor and evaluate the system of exchange of experts in civil protection for an eighteen months period over 2007-2008 … Read more / Go to tenders page

19/06/2006

International simulation exercise
EU DANEX 2006 is a full scale emergency simulation exercise with the participation of eight European countries, taking place in Denmark and Sweden between 18 - 22 September 2006. The exercise, organised in co-operation with the European Commission, is organised by Denmark ... See project website

27/05/2006

Indonesia requests international assistance following a powerful earthquake that hit Yogyakarta ... Read more

23/05/2006

Publication of call for tender for planning, conducting and evaluation of Civil Protection Community Mechanism training courses ... Read more

19/05/2006

Floods emergencies in central and eastern Europe closed today … Read more

19/05/2006

The 2006 Call for Proposals of Civil Protection Action Programme is now open for submission of proposals for Community co-funding ... Read more

19/05/2006

The 2006 Call for Proposals in the field of Community cooperation against accidental or deliberate marine pollution is now open for submission of proposals for Community co-funding … Read more

12/05/2006

Publication of call for tender for the scripting, planning, conduction and evaluation of civil protection community mechanism exercise… Read more

12/05/2006

Publication of call for tender for the scripting, planning, conduction and evaluation of civil protection community mechanism exercise… Read more

25/04/2006

Floods - Bulgaria requests assistance through the civil protection mechanism after being overwhelmed by floodwaters. Romania receives assistance … Read more

21/04/2006

Floods - Romania requests assistance through the Community mechanism for civil protection … Read more

10/04/2006

Hungary receives European assistance to fight floodwaters … Read more

07/04/2006

Hungary requests assistance through Mechanism to help combat floodwaters Read more

05/04/2006

Proposed priority thematic areas for actions in 2006

in the framework for cooperation in the field of accidental or deliberate marine pollution … Read more

04/04/2006

European assistance arrives in flood-stricken Slovakia within hours

Slovakia requested help in the face of floods on Monday 3 April, through the European Community mechanism for civil protection. It immediately obtained a comprehensive picture of the resources available throughout the EU. In a matter of hours, it received 150 000 sand bags from Austria, Germany and Poland.

Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Romania and Hungary are also being hit by floods. Altogether, over 10 000 Europeans have been evacuated as a result. Several EU Member States are prepared to deliver high-capacity pumps through the Mechanism.

The Czech Republic has asked the Commission's 24/7 disaster monitoring and information centre (MIC) for satellite pictures... Read more

03/04/2006

Flood-stricken Slovakia requests today assistance through the Community Mechanism for civil protection

25/03/2006

Proposed priority thematic areas for actions in 2006

in the framework of the Community action programme in the field of civil protection … Read more

20/03/2006

Listen to Commissioner Dimas' speech at an EP joint hearing on "Natural disasters: how should Europe respond?".

Click here for speech [mp3 format]

Click here for the European Parliament's Environment Committee

20/03/2006

Prevention of Chemical accidents

Guidance on the Preparation of a Safety Report to meet the requirements of the Directive 96/82/EC as amended by Directive 2003/105/EC (Seveso II) ... Click here to download pdf format

03/03/2006

Civil protection assistance operation in Algeria closed today

The civil protection assistance operation in Algeria has been closed due to the needs having been fully met ... Read more

17/02/2006

EU and UN cooperate in relief operation to flood-stricken Algeria
Following the heavy rain which fell recently on Tindouf, Algeria, some 12000 families living in refugee camps have lost their mud-brick homes. The European Commission's civil protection Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) received from the United Nations' refugee agency UNHCR a request for assistance to transport 2000 tents from Jordan to Algeria. The Community Mechanism for Civil Protection was activated, which through the MIC aims to provide the best possible response and preparedness when a major emergency situation arises, both inside and outside the EU. Portugal, Italy and France have responded to this request making airlift facilities available. Other offers for assistance are expected shortly. This is the first time that military means have been explicitly requested through the Mechanism for a civilian relief operation, with the Commission and Council cooperating closely in the effective use of the military assets. It is also the first time that the UN requested specific assistance through the Mechanism, demonstrating the EU's commitment to supporting the UN in disaster relief assistance. This action follows a grant amounting to €900,000 of emergency aid by the Commission ... Read more

27/01/2006

Commission proposes to strengthen the EU Civil Protection Mechanism

The European Commission has adopted a series of proposals to improve the response of the EU's Civil Protection Mechanism to natural and manmade disasters. The measures will allow the Commission to better address any shortage of transport and equipment needed at the site of a disaster. Additional measures will contribute to the development of early warning systems, improve coordination and provide logistical support. The Commission has also launched an on-line disaster monitoring alert service called "MIC Daily", designed to monitor emerging and ongoing disasters around the globe. It aims at enhancing awareness and information sharing between national crisis centres to maximise the effectiveness of response.

Read the text of the proposal

Read the press release

27/01/2006

Q&A on European civil protection

2005

12/12/2005

INFORMATION DAY - How to prepare a proposal under the Community actions for civil protection and marine pollution

05/07/2005

Global Evaluation of the Community Action Programme in the field of Civil Protection, the Community Mechanism to facilitate reinforced cooperation in Civil Protection assistance interventions and the marine pollution framework by European Evaluation Consortium (TEEC)

CVIP final report

Annex I (zip file)

Annex II (zip file)

27/06/2005

New European Commission civil protection exercise in Poland

24/05/2005

The 2005 Call for Proposals in the field of Community cooperation as regards civil protection is published and it is open till 31.07.2005

10/05/2005

Joint Workshop on the protection of hazardous installations from intentional adversary acts

22/04/2005

Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions (Text with EEA relevance) - Improving the Community Civil Protection Mechanism

20/04/2005

Proposal for a Council Regulation establishing a Rapid Response and Preparedness Instrument for major emergencies

24/02/2005

Open Consultation on the New Future Instrument Addressing Prevention of, Preparedness for and Response to Disasters

08/02/2005

Stakeholders Meeting: "The New Legal Instrument for Civil Protection"

01/02/2005

Meeting: "Lessons learnt from the Asian Tsunami"

31/01/2005

Information Day "How to prepare a proposal"

2004

10/06/2004

Green Week: Session 24 - Broken up cleaned up

12/05/2004

Activities in the field of disaster prevention

01/04/2004

Final Report to the European Commission - Mid-term evaluation on the implementation of the framework for cooperation in the field of accidental or deliberation marine pollution (pdf~560K)

25/03/2004

Communication: Reinforcing the Civil Protection Capacity of the European Union (COM (2004) 200)

19/04/2004

Final Report to the European Commission - Mid-term evaluation on the implementation of the framework for cooperation in the field of accidental or deliberation marine pollution (pdf~560K)

16/04/2004

Call for Proposals in the field of Community cooperation as regards civil protection

Call for proposals in the field of Community cooperation as regards civil protection - Mechanism Exercises

Call for proposals in the field of the Community Mechanism to facilitate reinforced cooperation in civil protection assistance interventions - Mechanism training

2003

15/11/2003

European Workshop "Prestige Lessons Learnt"

15/09/2003

Final Report: Oil spill mitigation measures and harvesting control of marine farming
Piraeus, 02-05 February 2003

08/08/2003

An Integrated EU Strategy on Prevention, Preparedness and Response to Natural, Man-made and Other Risks: Questionnaire on hazard mapping sent to Member States, Accession Countries and EEA countries (pdf~20K)

08/08/2003

2003 Call for proposals in the field of Community cooperation as regards Civil Protection

08/08/2003

2003 Call for proposals in the field of the Community mechanism to facilitate reinforced cooperation in civil protection assistance interventions - Training courses for civil protection assistance intervention staff

02/07/2003

Major Project on Disaster Medicine 2000-2002 - Final Report and Action Plan

05/02/2003

Consultation of Interested Parties: "Civil Protection : improvement of public awareness and safety in the face of natural and man-made hazards"

04/02/2003

1st Civil Protection Forum - Presentations

24/01/2003

Mid-Term Evaluation of the implementation of the Action Programme in the field of Civil Protection 2000-2004

2002

18/09/2002

Project: Information Exchange with the Candidate Countries (Austria, 2002)

13/09/2002

Community mechanism in the field of Civil Protection 2002 Call for Tender in the field of transportation by air for staff of Community intervention teams. Review of needs and existing markets.

05/08/2002

First European Civil Protection Forum

23/07/2002

Calls for tender relating to the Civil Protection and environmental emergencies European network (PROCIV-NET) CLOSED

04/07/2002

Project Report: The Role of Non-Governmental Organisations' Volunteers in Civil Protection

17/05/2002

Workshop on Effective Handling of Emergency Calls

8-9 March 2002, Rosersberg, Sweden

14/05/2002

Call for Proposals in the field of staff training of Community intervention teams CLOSED

26/03/2002

Calls for Proposals in the field of Community cooperation as regards Civil Protection CLOSED

22/02/2002

Resolution of the Council of 28 January 2002 on reinforcing cooperation in the field of civil protection training

22/02/2002

1-1-2: CGALIES Final Report (Coordination Group on Access to Location Information by Emergency Services) (pdf ~670K)

11/02/2002

New Community Mechanism to facilitate reinforced cooperation in Civil Protection assistance interventions

11/02/2002

Implementation of the Action programme

11/02/2002

Objectives and overview

11/02/2002

Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament - Civil protection - State of preventive alert against possible emergencies COM(2001)0707 final, dated 28.11.2001

11/02/2002

Resolution of the Council and of the representatives of the Governments of the Member States, meeting within the Council of 26 February 2001 on strengthening the capabilities of the European Union in the field of civil protection (Official Journal C 082 , 13/03/2001 P. 1)

11/02/2002

Managing the psycho-social aftermath of collective emergency situations (final report available)

11/02/2002

Full updating of the Marine Pollution site !

11/02/2002

Call for proposals

31/01/2002

New Commission website on Forest Fires: (DE/EN/FR language) /agriculture/fore/fires/index_en.htm

15/01/2002

Single European emergency call number 1-1-2

2001

07/12/2001

RESCDAM Development of Rescue Actions Based on Dam-Break Flood Analysis - June 1999-March 2001 - FINAL REPORT

19/11/2001

Council Decision of 23 October 2001 establishing a Community mechanism to facilitate reinforced cooperation in civil protection assistance interventions (Official Journal L 297, 15.11.2001, p. 7)

5/10/2001

European maritime disaster project

20/09/2001

First report on Forest fires in Southern Europe

01/08/2001

Marine Pollution - Community Information System

01/08/2001

Impact Reference System

01/08/2001

National page - Finland

15/07/2001

Videos received

15/07/2001

Press release of the Justice and Home Affairs Council concerning the Common approach on a Decision establishing a Community mechanism for the coordination of civil protection intervention in the event of emergencies

15/07/2001

Full list of subsidies allocated in the context of the Community Action Programme 1998/1999 in the field of Civil Protection

15/07/2001

Helicopter fire fighting project

15/07/2001

NEDIES web site

15/06/2001

Useful links

30/05/2001

Publications

30/05/2001

Funding opportunities