Royal Decree 840/2015, of September 21, approving measures to control the risks inherent in major accidents involving dangerous substances.
Published in: «BOE» No. 251, of October 20, 2015, pages 97531 to 97567 (37 pages).
Section: I. General provisions
Department: Ministry of the Presidency
Reference: BOE-A-2015-11268
PDF of the provision: http://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2015/10/20/pdfs/BOE-A-2015-11268.pdf
Article 2. Scope of application.
- The provisions of this royal decree shall apply to establishments as defined in article 3.
- These provisions shall not apply to:
a) Establishments, facilities, or storage areas belonging to the Armed Forces and the Security Forces and Corps;
b) Hazards created by ionizing radiation originating from substances;
c) The transport of dangerous goods by road, rail, inland waterway, maritime or air transport, and directly related intermediate temporary storage; as well as loading and unloading activities and transfer to and from other modes of transport destined for docks, wharves, railway logistics facilities, or railway terminals outside the establishments covered by this royal decree;
d) The transport of dangerous substances by pipelines, including pumping stations, located outside the establishments referred to in this royal decree;
e) Mineral exploitation in mines, quarries, and by drilling; specifically, exploration, extraction, and processing activities thereof;
f) Offshore exploration and exploitation of minerals, including hydrocarbons;
g) Gas storage in offshore underground sites, both in those specifically dedicated to storage and in those where exploration and extraction activities of minerals, including hydrocarbons, are also carried out;
h) Waste landfills, including underground storage thereof.
- Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding paragraph, letters e) and h), the following shall be covered by the scope of this royal decree:
a) Operational facilities for the disposal of mining waste, including tailings dams and ponds containing dangerous substances;
b) Underground land storage of gas in natural strata, aquifers, salt cavities, and disused mines, as well as thermal and chemical treatment activities and storage linked to these operations involving dangerous substances;
c) Temporary storage of metallic mercury considered waste referred to in Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 1102/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2008 on the banning of metallic mercury exports and certain mercury compounds and mixtures and the safe storage of metallic mercury.
- Establishments where explosives, pyrotechnic material, or ammunition are processed, handled, or stored, regulated respectively by the Explosives Regulation, approved by Royal Decree 230/1998, of February 16, and by the Regulation of Pyrotechnic Articles and Ammunition, approved by Royal Decree 563/2010, of May 7, shall be governed by their specific regulations, except for:
a) External emergency planning, which shall be governed by the provisions of Article 13.
b) Land use planning, which shall be governed by the provisions of Article 14.
c) Information to affected public, which shall be governed by the provisions of Article 15.2.a).
d) Consultation and public participation in the execution projects of works near establishments referred to in Article 16.1.c), which shall be subject to the provisions of Article 16.
e) Prompt notification of accidents, which shall be subject to the provisions of Article 17.1.
For this purpose, the Government Delegations in the autonomous communities where such establishments are located and the corresponding competent bodies of the autonomous communities shall provide all necessary information to ensure the adequate fulfillment of the functions and powers attributed to them.
Categories of danger according to Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008.
Threshold quantities
(in tons)
of dangerous substances
referred to in Article 3, paragraph 10,
for the purpose of application of the
Lower-tier Requirements
Upper-tier Requirements
Section «H» – HEALTH HAZARDS
H1 Acute Toxicity – Category 1, all exposure routes.
5
20
H2 Acute Toxicity
– Category 2, all exposure routes
– Category 3, inhalation exposure route (see note 7).
50
200
H3 Specific Target Organ Toxicity (STOT) – Single Exposure
STOT SE Category 1.
50
200
Section «P» – PHYSICAL HAZARDS
P1a Explosives (see note 8)
– Unstable explosives or
– Explosives of divisions 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.5, or 1.6, or
– Substances or mixtures having explosive properties according to method A.14 of Regulation (EC) No 440/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008, (see note 9) and not belonging to the hazard classes «organic peroxides» or «substances or mixtures which in contact with water emit flammable gases».
10
50
P1b Explosives (see note 8)
Explosives of division 1.4 (see note 10).
50
200
P2 Flammable Gases
Flammable gases of categories 1 or 2.
10
50
P3a Flammable Aerosols
«Inflammable» aerosols of categories 1 or 2, containing flammable gases of categories 1 or 2 or flammable liquids of category 1.
150 (net)
500 (net)
P3b Flammable Aerosols
«Inflammable» aerosols of categories 1 or 2, not containing flammable gases of categories 1 or 2 or flammable liquids of category 1.
5,000 (net)
50,000 (net)
P4 Oxidizing Gases
Oxidizing gases of category 1.
50
200
P5a Flammable Liquids
– Flammable liquids of category 1, or
– Flammable liquids of categories 2 or 3 maintained at a temperature above their boiling point, or
– Other liquids with a flash point ≤ 60 °C maintained at a temperature above their boiling point (see note 11).
10
50
P5b Flammable Liquids
– Flammable liquids of categories 2 or 3 when particular process conditions, such as high pressure or temperature, may create risks of major accidents, or
– Other liquids with a flash point ≤ 60 °C when particular process conditions, such as high pressure or temperature, may create risks of major accidents (see note 11).
50
200
P5c Flammable Liquids
Flammable liquids of categories 2 or 3 not covered in P5a and P5b.
5,000
50,000
P6a Substances and Mixtures Which in Contact with Water, Emit Flammable Gases and Organic Peroxides
Substances and mixtures that spontaneously react of types A or B or organic peroxides of types A or B.
10
50
P6b Substances and Mixtures Which in Contact with Water, Emit Flammable Gases and Organic Peroxides
Substances and mixtures that spontaneously react of types C, D, E, or F or organic peroxides of types C, D, E, or F.
50
200
P7 Pyrophoric Liquids and Solids
Pyrophoric liquids of category 1
Pyrophoric solids of category 1.
50
200
P8 Combustible Liquids and Solids
Combustible liquids of categories 1, 2, or 3, or
Combustible solids of categories 1, 2, or 3.
50
200
Section «E» – ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS
E1 Hazardous to the aquatic environment in acute 1 or chronic 1 categories.
100
200
E2 Hazardous to the aquatic environment in chronic 2 category.
200
500
Section «O» – OTHER HAZARDS
O1 Substances or mixtures with hazard statement EUH014.
100
500
O2 Substances and mixtures which in contact with water, emit flammable gases of category 1.
100
500
O3 Substances or mixtures with hazard statement EUH029.
50
200