Port of Rotterdam positive about recommendations of Dutch Safety Board
The Port of Rotterdam Authority and Deltalinqs are positive about the recommendations which the Dutch Safety Board has made following the incidents at Odfjell Terminals Rotterdam. Rightly so, the Board states that companies are primarily responsible for their own safety, it emphasises the supply chain responsibility of the chemical industries and argues in favour of a system of integrated regional permit issuing, supervision and enforcement with the possibility of the state secretary intervening, if necessary, said in the company's press release.
Deltalinqs and the Port Authority believe it is a good thing that the Dutch Safety Board carried out a thorough investigation into the safety of Odfjell Terminals Rotterdam over the past few years. Both organisations subscribe to the report’s conclusions and recommendations.
Firstly, Deltalinqs and the Port Authority agree that companies themselves are responsible for the safety conditions on their business premises. The second recommendation concerns the theme of supply chain responsibility. Both parties endorse the importance of this and believe that the business community and the trade associations in particular need to flesh this out in more detail. Parties must provide greater transparency regarding responsibilities in the supply chain.
The recommendations on transparency and BRZO (Major Accidents Risks Decree) supervision and enforcement tie in with the principle that the public has a right to clear information on the safety of businesses in their vicinity and that businesses have a right to clear supervision and enforcement. The latter can best be achieved with a BRZO-RUD (Regional Implementation Service), in which not only the environmental department, but also the safety region or fire service and the Social Affairs and Employment Inspectorate have a place and work together proactively. By combining this with the possibility of intervention by the state secretary for Infrastructure and the Environment, we will get the best of both worlds.
Hans Smits, Chief Executive of the Port of Rotterdam Authority: “The inspection services must know exactly what the companies are up to. They should be established in the region, so that they are really up to date on what’s going on. They must be able to carry out unannounced, joint inspections in the region and have the authority to take all relevant decisions. By at the same time giving the state secretary the authority to issue a designation order, he or she can intervene at any moment. This authority can easily be embodied in a covenant.”
Steven Lak, President of Deltalinqs: “Rotterdam’s business community wants to lead the way when it comes to safety. At ‘Deltalinqs University’, companies share knowledge and experience. This means that we can learn from each other how to improve and companies which perform less well or do not work with others on the safety culture in our port area will come under pressure. This pressure is a good thing. It also helps, if we regularly share the experience and findings of the inspections with each other.”
