Legal base: Article 137, to implement improvements of the working environment to protect workers’ health and safety.
HSE.
This proposal was presented by the EC under the Irish Presidency in January 2004 and following negotiations, was adopted in February 2006. It came into force on 27 April 2006 when it was published in the Official Journal.
Like the previous Noise, Vibration and Electromagnetic Fields Directives, it contains provisions on risk assessment, control of exposure, health surveillance and information, instruction and training. The Directive is based on the limit values incorporated in the guidelines issued by the International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP).
Member States have until 27 April 2010 to transpose the Directive and implement its requirements. HSE expects to undertake a formal consultation by autumn 2009. The European Commission, following an open competition, commissioned the UK’s Health Protection Agency (HPA) to produce a non-binding guide to good practice to facilitate the implementation of this Directive. The HPA have completed their work and we anticipate that the guide will be published in the third or fourth quarter of 2009.
