19 November 2012: The UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) convened the seventh Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents (Industrial Accidents Convention) from 14-16 November 2012, in Stockholm, Sweden. Parties agreed to align the Convention with the UN Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS), over the next two years.

The GHS was revised in 2010 to include new hazard categories for chemically unstable gases and non-flammable aerosols. Parties also adopted the Convention’s 2013-2014 worlplan, specifying priorities including the implementation of projects to improve industrial safety in the UNECE workplan. According to UNECE, support will also be provided to states in ratifying the Convention’s Protocol on Civil Liability and Compensation for Damage Caused by the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents on Transboundary Waters. [UNECE Press Release] [UNECE COP7 Website]