Minimising the number of major accidents and minimising the consequences of those that do occur is a high priority for HSE and for the chemical industry in Great Britain. There are comprehensive legal duties on companies to manage the risks to people and the environment with specific requirements to produce and test on and off-site emergency plans and to provide information to those liable to be affected by an accident. Local communities should be involved in these issues and in the development of solutions to problems that arise. Clarity of information - alerting and the correct response to the alert - is critical, since in the early stages of an accident which may rapidly go off site, there is unlikely to be specialised help available. In this paper I have described, briefly, an incident, its cause and consequences and the action subsequently taken in a larger political context to address the concerns raised by the local community and to encourage their involvement. The process, which has involved a dialogue and co-operation between industry, the emergency services, local authorities and the COMAH regulator has not been rapid but there have been benefits for those involved.
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