Brussels, 04/05/2004 (Agence Europe) - Last week, the Commission adopted a decision aimed at improving controls on the transfer of explosives between Member States. The text sets out arrangements for controls, in accordance with the 1993 directive (93/15/EEC), by harmonising information to be provided and the procedures to be followed when a company wishes to transfer explosives between Member States. These new provisions should make it easier to trace explosives and to check that their movement has been approved by national authorities.
Dating back to 1993, the EU legislation in this area lays down the essential safety requirements for explosives in the EU and sets out how the movement of explosives between Member States should be supervised. Until now, however, there was no single document that set out all the information required for such transfers and which could act as proof that a particular transfer had been authorised by the authorities of a Member State. That document has now been adopted. The amount of information required depends on the security risk involved including details of the companies or organisations involved, the type of explosives, an itinerary for the transfer and authorisations by all Member States over whose territory the explosives will move. In a press release, the Commission states: "Thanks to this measure, it should be easier to trace explosives as they move from the manufacturer to the user".