Sumario: 5 August 2008, Brussels - Frequently asked questions about the European Union's Community Civil Protection Mechanism (CCPM) and the Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC)
1. What is the Community Civil Protection Mechanism?
The Community Civil Protection Mechanism (CCPM) is an instrument that heightens Community cooperation in cases of national emergency and in situations where there is an imminent threat of a major emergency. It was first established in 2001.
Any country in the world affected by a disaster can ask for the support of the CCPM. The Mechanism may be activated, for example, if the country in question is overwhelmed by the scale of the disaster and requests assistance. By pooling the civil protection capabilities of the participating states, the Mechanism can ensure better protection of people, the natural and cultural environment, and property.
Background reading can be found here: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/civil/prote/mechanism.htm
2. Why cooperate?
The aim of Community cooperation in the field of civil protection is to improve the protection of people, their environment, property and cultural heritage in the event of major natural or man-made disasters occurring either within or outside the European Union.
The international role played by European countries in the provision of civil protection assistance is growing. This can be seen in recent disasters, such as the South Asia tsunami in 2004, the hurricane in the United States and the Pakistan earthquake in 2005, the Indonesia earthquake and the crisis in Lebanon in 2006, and the forest fires in Greece in 2007.
Over time, the EU institutions and EU Member States have come to rely more and more on cooperation in the provision of civil protection assistance in order to be as effective as possible at the site of a disaster. There is clear added value in working together. Cooperation allows the pooling of resources and maximises the combined European effort on site.
The management of natural and man-made disasters is a clear example of the value of action at Community level, where the responsibility of the national authorities of the affected country for dealing directly with disasters remains unchallenged but is facilitated and assisted by a concerted collective effort.
For more information: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/civil/prote/cp01_en.htm
3. Which countries participate in the Community Mechanism?
There are 30 countries participating in the Community Civil Protection Mechanism: they are the 27 current Member States of the European Union, plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
For more information: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/civil/prote/cp10_en.htm
4. How does the civil protection mechanism operate?
The Community Civil Protection Mechanism comprises the Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) and a programme of training and simulation exercises which facilitate both adequate preparedness and effective response to disasters at Community level.
The Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) is the operational "heart" of the Mechanism. It is operated by the European Commission's Directorate-General for Environment and is accessible 24 hours a day giving countries access to a platform, a "one-stop-shop" of civil protection resources that are available in the participating states. Any country within or outside the Union that is affected by a major disaster can appeal for assistance via the MIC. It acts as a communication hub at headquarters
level between participating states, the affected country and the experts who are dispatched to the field. It also provides useful and updated information on the actual status of an ongoing emergency. Last but not least, the MIC performs a coordinating role by matching the offers of assistance from participating states to the needs of the disaster-stricken country.
For more information: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/civil/prote/mic.htm
A training programme has been set up to improve the coordination of civil protection assistance by ensuring compatibility and complementarity between teams from participating states. It also enhances the skills of experts involved in civil protection assistance through best practice. This programme involves training courses, the organisation of joint exercises and a system for the exchange of experts from participating states.
For more information:
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/civil/prote/activities.htm
and http://ec.europa.eu/environment/civil/prote/exercises.htm
5. Where has the Civil Protection Mechanism intervened this year?
On 17 May a team of experts was sent to China to help coordinate expert and material assistance from Member States. The Chinese authorities made an official request for assistance following the massive earthquake that struck south-western China on 12 May, and help was offered by Austria, Germany, Italy, Sweden and Malta.
Other 2008 expert operations include an intervention in Burma during a strong tropical cyclone that caused the worst natural disaster in the country's recorded history. Expert teams were also sent to Bolivia and Ecuador earlier in the year where relief was provided for the thousands of homes ravaged by floods. The MIC team helped coordinate the response to the disaster, assisted with logistical management, helped to evaluate the damage caused by the floods and provided technical expertise in
updating emergency plans.
6. What else do I need to know about the MIC?
The MIC control centre is located at the Directorate General responsible for the environment, at Avenue Beaulieu, 5, B-1049 in Brussels, Belgium and is run by a specialist group of approximately 30 individuals.
The working staff is made up of a mixture of European Commission civil servants and seconded experts detached from national civil protection organisations, ensuring a constant and timely flow of communication between participating components of the mechanism.
7. What are the budgetary arrangements of the MIC and how is this money spent?
During the seven-year period (2007-2013) the centre operates under a budget of €189.8 million amounting to around €28 million each year. €20 million of this annual sum is reserved for operations inside the EU with the remaining €8 million reserved for actions in non Member States.
Most of these funds are spent on the training programme, simulation exercises, subsidising projects, mission expenses for experts during emergencies and the general day-to-day running of the MIC. Under certain conditions, there is also a budget for the co-financing of transportation costs.
8. What is the role of experts?
When required, the MIC also deploys civil protection experts who have been seconded by participating states, mainly to operations outside the European Union. These experts have been trained by their national authorities and have also received training from the European Commission. Their tasks are set out in a brief that is specific to each new emergency. Their principal role is to act as a link or liaison between the civil protection assistance from the participating states, the MIC and the
recipient country. They are, in effect, the MIC's "eyes and ears" in the field. In certain situations, the MIC also deploys specialised experts. In 2006, for example, this involved sending volcano experts to Indonesia when the Merapi volcano erupted and dispatching bioremediation experts to an oil spill in the Philippines.
9. What is the role of the MIC in relation to forest fires?
The Mechanism can be activated for any kind of disaster, including forest fires, which overwhelms the capacity of any country.
Last summer the MIC received a total of 12 requests for assistance for forest fires, leading to a three-month period of continuous activation. Greece, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Italy, Albania and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (fYRoM) all activated the Mechanism.
Other Member States, and those countries suffering forest fires themselves, offered assistance on a voluntary basis in the form of water bombing aircraft (Canadairs), helicopters, fire fighting equipment and personnel.
10. How is the European Union preparing for this year's forest fire season?
After last year's forest fires, the MIC organised a 'lessons learned' meeting with Member States and has now put in place a short-term strategy to prepare for this year.
This has involved identifying and removing technical obstacles to the provision of mutual assistance, in particular with regard to interoperability issues.
A number of forest fire experts from the Member States have also been selected and trained and are available for dispatch if required to help improve coordination.
The tools available for monitoring forest fires have also been improved with the help of the Commission's Joint Research Centre which should improve the exchange of information between the MIC and the Member States.
Thanks to additional money made available by the Budgetary Authority, arrangements are being made for extra aircraft availability for the 2009 summer season.
11. Who pays for the assistance?
According to the implementing rules of the Mechanism, the state requesting assistance bears the costs of assistance provided by the participating states.
However, the participating state providing assistance may, depending on the nature of the emergency and the extent of any damage, offer its assistance entirely or partially free of charge.
In practice, the majority of participating states offer assistance free of charge as a gesture of solidarity.
It should be noted that details cannot be provided about offers from specific countries during emergencies.
12. Where can I find more information about European civil protection?
The European Commission's website for civil protection contains other information on the Mechanism and on the emergencies for which it has been activated. This website can be found at: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/civil/
To contact a European Commission Delegation, please follow this link:
http://ec.europa.eu/comm/external_relations/delegations/intro/web.htm
For the EU's foreign policy on the particular country, please visit:
http://ec.europa.eu/comm/external_relations/index.htm
The European Union may also be providing humanitarian aid and/or development aid in the affected country.
Information for the Press on Humanitarian aid may be accessed from here:
http://ec.europa.eu/echo/index_en.htm
Information for the Press on Development aid may be accessed from here:
http://ec.europa.eu/development/body/press-forum/home.html
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