Brussels, 06/08/2002 (Agence Europe) - The EU Council decided on 2 August by written procedure, to not accept all the amendments adopted by the EP in its second reading on the draft directive on minimum health and safety rules of workers exposes to the risks of noise, and has therefore decided to go to conciliation.
The Council reached a political agreement on a common position with regard to the directive by unanimity and on the basis of a Presidency compromise during its session on 11 June 2001 in Luxembourg (see EUROPE 11-12 June 2001 p 11). The Council has established strict rules on noise emissions and has set an 87-decibel limit in all sectors. This involves the second directive after the Commission's initial 1993 proposal fell through in 1999 and which brought together in the same instrument four kinds of physical agents: noise; mechanical vibrations, optical radiation, electromagnetic fields and waves.