New regulation for companies that use hazardous substances will enter into force on 1 June 2015. The aim of this legislation is to prevent major accidents. The new rules implement a European directive on the major-accident hazards of certain industrial activities (Seveso III) in a decree. The decree is known in the Netherlands as the Brzo 2015. This new decree will replace the existing Brzo 1999. The most significant change is the new hazardous substances classification. This may lead to a situation where a company has to comply with the new hazardous substances rules as of 1 June 2015, even though it has no such obligations under the current regulatory regime.

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