Programme of the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the field of civil protection and related areas - Hoofdinhoud

COUNCIL OF Brussels, 1 July 2009

THE EUROPEAN UNION

11514/09

PROCIV 105

NOTE from : Presidency to : Working Party on Civil Protection Subject : Programme of the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the European Union in

the field of civil protection and related areas

Delegations will find annexed the programme of the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the

European Union in the field of civil protection and related areas.

ANNEX

PROGRAMME OF THE SWEDISH PRESIDENCY OF THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION IN THE FIELD OF

CIVIL PROTECTION AND RELATED AREAS

DISASTER PREVENTION – AN INTEGRATED APPROACH TO STRENGTHENING THE EUROPEAN DISASTER RESPONSE CAPACITY

The Swedish Presidency's vision is of a strong and effective Europe, where the focus is on the common responsibility to meet today's and tomorrow's challenges, including preparedness to manage crises. The coming six months will be characterised by both change and renewal. The newly elected European Parliament will begin its work, and a new Commission will be appointed. The conditions for cooperation will change if the Treaty of Lisbon enters into force.

Two of the main challenges which the Swedish Presidency will deal with are the financial crisis and combating climate change. The EU must emerge from the economic crisis in a stronger position and must continue to take responsibility for the climate threat.

Moreover the Union must continue to develop towards a more secure and open Europe. Joint efforts are necessary and the Swedish Presidency aims to develop cooperation in the field of justice and home affairs via the Stockholm Programme.

The work in the field of civil protection provides an important contribution to the effort to combat climate change, by protecting citizens and the environment. The number and the severity of natural and man-made disasters calls for measures to be taken at all levels of society.

Regional cooperation contributes to reinforcing the security and protection of people and the environment both inside the EU and in our neighbouring countries. Civil protection is a strand of various regional initiatives contributing to social and political stability and supporting efforts to adapt to climate change. The objective of these initiatives is to strengthen disaster management capacities at local, regional and national levels, by establishing effective cooperation between Member States, the EU and partner countries.

The EU’s capacity to manage crises and disasters has improved in recent years, but there is a need to develop this cooperation even further. In the area of civil protection the three Presidencies acknowledged the need for the European Union to improve its capacity for effective response to crisis and emergency situations both within the EU and beyond its borders. The 18-month programme states that EU should enhance and coordinate its contributions to prevention, preparedness and response (including recovery) activities under an integrated all-hazards approach encompassing all relevant instruments. The Commission communication on reinforcing the European Union's disaster response capacity will therefore be duly followed up as will its communication on a Community approach on the prevention of natural and man-made disasters. Moreover, the Swedish Presidency will strive to enhance security against nuclear, biological, radiological and chemical (CBRN) threats and risks.

Priorities of the Swedish Presidency in the Working Party on Civil Protection (PROCIV )

Disaster prevention

Recent years have seen a significant increase in the number of disasters, natural as well as man made, causing loss of life, destruction of the environment and cultural heritage, damage to property and destruction of economic and social infrastructure. Action needs to be taken first of all to prevent disasters from happening, and then when they do happen to limit their effects. Climate change poses significant challenges in the area of prevention. By developing the necessary tools for identifying, assessing and reducing risks, the effects will be mitigated and societal resilience increased.

Today Member States have in varying degrees developed policies to prevent disasters. There are a number of EU sector-specific initiatives covering prevention, such as the Directive on floods and the Directive on industrial accidents (Seveso Directive). There is however a need to strengthen preventive measures at all levels of society: local, regional, national and EU.

The Council conclusions of June 2008 requested the Commission to present proposals regarding disaster prevention within the EU and emphasised that reinforcement of the Union's disaster response capacity should be achieved through a balanced approach guided by two principles: national responsibility and EU solidarity. Furthermore the European Parliament has asked the Commission to take the work on prevention forward. While the prevention of disasters is primarily a national responsibility, there is still a need for a horizontal approach covering different aspects of prevention. Action at EU level should complement national action and focus on areas where a common approach is more effective than separate national strategies.

The Commission communication on a Community approach on the prevention of natural and manmade disasters (COM(2009) 82 i), adopted on 23 February 2009, contributes to the development of a consistent and effective European policy for disaster management. Developing a horizontal EU strategy for the prevention of natural and man-made disasters implies an added value of coordinating and supporting cooperation between Member States at EU level. Such a strategy should be built on Member States’ experiences and bring together the different policies, instruments and services available both at EU level and at national level.

In order to promote a safer and more resilient Europe different ways of inducing Member States to enhance their work on prevention need to be encouraged. The spreading of best practices, lessons learnt exercises and training activities could be important instruments, as could guidelines for risk mapping, including risk assessments and response plans.

The Swedish Presidency's primary objective is to take work forward by adopting Council conclusions on the development of an EU strategy for the prevention of natural and man-made disasters.

Workshop on disaster prevention

The Swedish Presidency, in cooperation with the European Commission, is organising a workshop on disaster prevention in Stockholm from 27 to 29 July 2009. The workshop will be hosted by the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB).

The aim of the workshop is to take forward the policy debate following the European Commission's presentation of its communication on a European Community approach on the prevention of natural and man-made disasters referred to above.

Another goal of the workshop is to identify how Member States can contribute to providing EU added value to disaster prevention activities. The conference will to this end contribute to:

• promoting a safer and more resilient Europe by developing the contours of a common methodological framework, including guidelines and best practices, for disaster prevention and risk management;

• presenting good examples from the Member States about disaster prevention strategies;

• promoting continued cooperation between agencies, organisations and networks in the

Member States of the European Union, to enhance common knowledge about disaster prevention and risk management;

• formulating areas of common ground on which the work on disaster prevention can be taken forward in the Council.

The discussions should identify objectives and priority areas for intervention. Further discussion within the European Union on the identification of policies, methods and, tools are expected to pave the way for a Community strategy for the prevention of natural and man-made disasters.

Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Security (CBRN)

Instances of the accidental spread of CBRN-substances occur regularly, however major incidents with CBRN materials are still rare. It is clear that no public authority can afford to ignore this threat given its potentially highly significant consequences in terms of human life, and its economic effects. There is a need to enhance our capacity to prevent, detect and respond to major CBRN incidents, including possible terrorist attacks, and this is and should continuously be a key priority for the European Union.

It is primarily the responsibility of Member States to protect the population against CBRN incidents, and many Member States are relatively well-prepared to deal with this threat. At EU level, the JHA Council conclusions of 6 December 2007 provide the most recent overview of ongoing activities in countering the CBRN threat.

The Commission communication (COM(2009) 273 i) on strengthening Chemical, Biological,

Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) Security in the European Union and the proposed EU CBRN

Action Plan, presented in June 2009 will serve as the basis for discussions during the Swedish

Presidency.

Member States and third countries facing CBRN disasters that overwhelm their national response capability can, at any time, activate the Community civil protection mechanism for immediate access to the pool of civil protection and medical assistance available in Member States. The Swedish Presidency supports the Commission's intention to streamline the different strands of work under the Community civil protection mechanism by launching an EU CBRN Resilience Programme, bringing together the various civil protection activities included in the EU CBRN Action Plan and ensuring a consolidated contribution to the overall implementation of this Action Plan.

The Swedish Presidency would like to emphasise the importance of the implementation of an efficient European strategy to prevent, detect, respond to and recover from larger CBRN incidents. The EU CBRN Action Plan focuses on three main areas of action: ensuring that unauthorised access to CBRN materials of concern is as difficult as possible (prevention); having the capability to detect CBRN materials (detection); and being able to efficiently respond to CBRN incidents and recover from them as quickly as possible (preparedness and response).

In addition, a number of horizontal actions have been included which cut across these areas and the different types of materials.

The Swedish Presidency aims to adopt Council conclusion on the CBRN communication and to approve the EU CBRN Action Plan.

Other issues related to civil protection

Critical infrastructure

The question of critical infrastructure will be addressed through different initiatives during the

Swedish Presidency, including the Stockholm Programme. Within the Working Party on

Telecommunications and the Information Society, the Swedish Presidency will continue the work in this field aiming at Council conclusions on critical information infrastructure protection.

The Member States are currently implementing the Directive on critical infrastructure; in the autumn the Commission will launch the pilot system for the Critical Infrastructure Warning Information Network (CIWIN). During the Swedish Presidency the Council will follow up various ongoing critical infrastructure initiatives.

Crisis and coordination arrangements and exercise (CCA and CCAEX09)

In the context of the emergency and crisis coordination arrangements in Brussels (CCA), the

Presidency, with the support of the Council Secretariat, the Commission, former Presidencies and selected experts, will run a fourth CCA exercise (CCAEX09). The exercise will take place between 25 and 30 September, concluding at the regular meeting of Coreper 2 on 30 September. The exercise will be followed by a workshop organised on 28 October, back to back with the informal debriefing meeting for the Member States on CCAEX09, on the CCA as such and ways to improve the arrangements to make them more useful. Contact person Sara Lönberg, sara.lonberg@foreign.ministry.se ; tel. +46 8 405 8180

Reinforcing the European Union's capacity to prevent and respond to disasters

The Presidency will continue to take work forward with a view to improving horizontal coordination between the Council, the Commission and the Member States at all levels. In line with the work of previous Presidencies, a Presidency report on reinforcing the European Union's capacity to prevent and respond to disasters will summarise progress achieved over the past year and point to areas where steps could be taken in the coming year. Contact person Erik Windmar, erik.windmar@primeminister.ministry.se ; tel. +46 8 405 4282

The Stockholm Programme

The Presidency’s ambition is to adopt a new strategic work programme for the entire policy area of justice and home affairs. The programme, which will be the third in a series, is to specify the framework and the focus of EU cooperation in the period 2010–2014 in areas such as police, border and customs issues, legal matters and asylum, migration and visa policy. The vision underlying the work on the Stockholm Programme is of a more secure and open Europe, where the rights of individuals are safeguarded, A citizens’ Europe.

Civil protection, CBRN and critical infrastructure will be addressed in the programme. A presentation will be given in the PROCIV meeting on 7 July to give Member States an opportunity to comment on the Commission communication “An area of freedom, security and justice serving the citizen”(COM (2009) 262 i) unveiled on 10 June 2009.

Security research

Civil protection and related issues are included in the initiatives of the security research programme in the context of the seventh Framework Research Programme. Sweden will organise a conference on security research in relation to the Framework Programme on 29 and 30 September 2009. www.sec09.se

Back to back with the EU conference there will be a Euro-Atlantic Stakeholders Conference which will focus on establishing links between Europe, the US and Canada within the framework of security research . www.easc09.se

Annex 1

TIMETABLE OF EVENTS AND MEETINGS DURING THE SWEDISH PRESIDENCY OF THE COUNCIL OF THE EU

JULY 2009

7 and 8 July : PROCIV

7 July: (after PROCIV): Kick-off at the Permanent Representation of

Sweden to the European Union

27-29 July: Workshop on Disaster Prevention in Stockholm

SEPTEMBER 2009

15 and 16 September: PROCIV

25-30 September: CCAEX09

29 and 30 September: Security research conference in Stockholm; www.src09.se

OCTOBER 2009

1 and 2 October: Euro-Atlantic Stakeholders Conference on security research www.easc09.se

13 and 14 October: PROCIV

28 October: Workshop on CCA in Brussels

NOVEMBER 2009

3 and 4 November: PROCIV

11, 12, 18 and 25 November: Poss. Coreper 2

25 and 26 November: Civil Protection Forum in Brussels

30 November and 1 December: JHA Council. Adoption of Council conclusions on disaster prevention and on CBRN

DECEMBER 2009

10 and 11 December: Meeting of Directors-General for Civil Protection in Göteborg

15 December: PROCIV

Annex 2 SWEDISH PRESIDENCY TEAM MEMBERS:

Helena Lindberg Kristina Sundholm Director General Chair of WG PROCIV Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency Permanent Representation of

Kungsgatan 53 Sweden to the European Union

Stockholm Address: Square de Meeüs 30

Office: 010 240 4145 BE-1000 Brussels

Mobile: 073-026 11 45 Office: +32 (0)2 289 5676

Mobile: +32 (0)475700337 helena.lindberg@msbmyndigheten.se kristina.sundholm@foreign.ministry.se

Karin Måwe Petronella Norell

Chair of WG PROCIV (CBRN) National Delegate to WG PROCIV Permanent Representation of Ministry of Defence

Sweden to the European Union Department for

Address: Crisis Preparedness square de Meeüs 30 SE-103 33 Stockholm

BE-1000 Brussels Office: +46 (0)8-4053426

Office: +32 (0)2 289 5707 Mobile:+46 (0)70 215 0779

Mobile: +32 (0)4738 44180

karin.mawe@foreign.ministry.se petronella.norell@defence.ministry.se

Anne Lindquist Anderberg Pia Övelius National Delegate to WG PROCIV (CBRN) Senior Advisor, civil protecion

Ministry of Defence Ministry of Defence

Department for Department for

Crisis Preparedness Crisis Preparedness

SE-103 33 Stockholm SE-103 33 Stockholm

Office: +46 (0)8-4051787 Office: +46 (0)8-4053151

Mobile: +46 (0)702379708 Mobile: +46 (0)76 13 59 621

anne.lindquist-anderberg@defence.ministry.se pia.ovelius@defence.ministry.se

Linda Ericson Paulina Lundqvist Responsible for EPCIP/CIWIN Assistant, civil protection

Ministry of Defence Permanent Representation of

Department for Sweden to the European Union

Crisis Preparedness Address:

SE-103 33 Stockholm Square de Meeûs 30

Office: +46 (0)8-4051361 BE-1000 Brussels

Mobile: +46 (0)702363985 Office: +32 2 289 58 33

Mobile: +32 47 75 52 191

linda.ericson@defence.ministry.se paulina.lundqvist@foreign.ministry.se

Åke Svensson Janet Edwards Responsible for the Prevention workshop in Responsible for the Prevention workshop

Stockholm in Stockholm

Swedish Civil Swedish Civil

Contingencies Agency Contingencies Agency

Risk and Vulnerability Risk and Vulnerability

Reduction Department Reduction Department

SE-65181 Karlstad SE-65181 Karlstad

Office: +46 (0) 10-240 5287 Office:+46 (0) 10-240 5108

Mobile: +46 (0 )70-656 3621 Mobile:+46 (0 )70-686 1022

ake.svensson@msbmyndigheten.se janet.edwards@msbmyndigheten.se

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