Finland is the chosen location for the EU’s first chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear strategic reserve, which will be funded €242 million by the Commission and will be ready by 2026.
The reserve will include personal protective and measuring equipment, pharmaceuticals, and antibodies for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) accidents that could affect first responders and civilians. The materials will be decentralised in secret locations around Finland.
The project will be funded €242 million by the Commission and should be completed by autumn 2026. The first quantities of supplies are scheduled to be available by 2024.
The use of a lot of the medicines and antidotes used in CBRN incidents is rare. But, if needed, the aim is to send the stored material to a disaster or crisis area within 12 hours of the offer of assistance being accepted.
The EU upgraded its Civil Protection Mechanism in 2019 and launched rescEU – which the CBRN reserves in Finland will be part of – to protect citizens from disasters and manage emerging risks.
”Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has confirmed the need to strengthen the EU CBRN preparedness. That’s why the rescEU CBRN reserves will provide the EU with a significant safety pillow enabling a quick and coordinated response at the EU level. I would like to congratulate Finland for being the first Member State to develop a CBRN strategic reserve under rescEU,” Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič said in a press release on Tuesday.
The project will be carried out by the Interior and Social Affairs Ministries together with the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, the National Emergency Supply Agency, and the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority.
(Pekka Vänttinen | EURACTIV.com)
Source: euractiv.com
