COMAH/Seveso Compliance

Hazards from dangerous substances

The Seveso III Directive (2012/18/EU) has been implemented in the EU to limit risks related to the storage and handling of hazardous chemicals. The directive has been implemented in the UK by the Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH) Regulations 2015. The latter regulations will remain in force in the UK after Brexit.

The aim of Seveso III/COMAH Regulations is to both prevent major accidents involving dangerous substances in the workplace and to limit the consequences of such accidents to people and the environment. There are legally binding requirements on all establishments affected by the regulation. To prevent hazards, they have a Major Accident Prevention Policy (MAPP) supported by a process safety management system (SMS) to prevent, control and mitigate the effects of major accidents. If they have enough dangerous substances present, an establishment is also required to draw up a safety report and emergency plans, the latter to mitigate the effects of a major accident.

Your Benefits

  • Prevention of major accidents involving dangerous substances
  • Development of an emergency plan according to COMAH and Seveso
  • Preparation and implementation of a Major Accidents Prevention Policy (MAPP)
  • Drafting of a Safety Report

Our Approach

From our extensive experience in the process industry, we have wealth knowledge about the storage, processing and handling of potentially hazardous (toxic, ecotoxic, flammable and explosive) substances. Our following service portfolio for hazardous substances reflects our comprehensive approach to safety:
Safety Reports
  • Compilation of all or part of the safety report based on the requirements of the national/local regulator
  • Identification of potential major accidents, e.g. through Process Hazard Analysis
  • Risk assessment, through consequence modeling (use of PHAST, EFFECTS etc.), fault tree analysis, Layer of Protection Analysis (LOPA ) etc. This includes Occupied Building Risk Assessment (OBRA), environmental risk assessment, and cyber security assessment if required.
  • Formal review after 5 years according to requirements
Process Safety Management System (SMS)
  • Assistance with development of a Major Accident Prevention Policy (MAPP)
  • Development of a Process SMSs to support the MAPP.
  • Process SMS training
  • SMS auditing and review
Emergency planning
  • Assistance with the development of on-site plans, including identification of suitable mitigation measures based on consequence modelling
Other services
  • Accident and near miss investigation
  • Related assessments, for example, safety-related systems in accordance with IEC 61511, HAZOP, fire and explosion (DSEAR ), chemical reaction hazard assessments

Why DEKRA?

  • We have expertise and methods (including the proprietary software Phast© and EFFECTS©) for assessing both the likely frequency and consequences of major accidents.
  • We can develop bespoke methods for modelling novel hazards, such as dispersions from cooling and reacting pools.
  • We can help establishments optimize their response to major hazard legislation through a knowledge of regulatory requirements; for example, by safety report gap analysis and review.
  • We can help establishments carry out supporting assessments such as occupied buildings, LOPAs, fire and explosion etc. through our extensive assessment portfolio.
  • We can help identify cyber security gaps that could increase the risk of suffering a major accident due to unauthorized access to automated control systems.