Vietnam: How to review facilities trading flammable and explosive chemicals in residential areas for ensuring the fire safety requirements?
- From 2023, how to strengthen coordination to review facilities trading and storing flammable and explosive chemicals in residential areas, ensuring the safety requirements for fire prevention and fighting and rescue in Vietnam?
- What are the 04 requirements satisfied by facilities engaged in production, commerce, use, storage and transportation of flammable and explosive chemicals in Vietnam?
- What is a residential area at high risk of fire and explosion in Vietnam?
Specifically, on April 12, 2023, the Vietnam Ministry of Industry and Trade issued Decision 899/QD-BCT in 2023 on the plan for implementing Directive 01/CT-TTg in 2023 on strengthening fire prevention and fighting in the new situation.
According to the Vietnam Ministry of Industry and Trade, the issuance of this plan aims to strictly implement the Prime Minister's Directive No. 01/CT-TTg dated January 03, 2023 on strengthening fire prevention and fighting in the new situation; clear determination of specific objectives for units in organizing the implementation.
From 2023, how to strengthen coordination to review facilities trading and storing flammable and explosive chemicals in residential areas, ensuring the safety requirements for fire prevention and fighting and rescue in Vietnam?
The implementation of the Plan issued together with Decision 899/QD-BCT 2023 in 2023 and the following years is:
- The Ministry of Industry and Trade shall strengthen coordination with the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities to review facilities trading and storing flammable and explosive chemicals in residential areas or places where many people gather in order to make relocation plans and ensure the safety requirements for fire prevention and fighting and rescue (as assigned by the Prime Minister in Decision 630/QD-TTg in 2020).
- At the same time, the Department of Chemicals shall take charge of, and coordinate with the Department of Safety Techniques and Industrial Environment, the Legal Department, and relevant units to implement in 2023 and the following years.
What are the 04 requirements satisfied by facilities engaged in production, commerce, use, storage and transportation of flammable and explosive chemicals in Vietnam?
Any facility that produces, trades, uses or stores flammable and explosive chemicals satisfying the labeling criteria corresponding to any of the pictograms GHS01, GHS02, GHS03, GHS04 (hereinafter referred to as “flammable and explosive chemicals”) must comply with the requirements specified in Section 8 of the National Technical Regulation QCVN 05A:2020/BCT as follows:
- Requirements for arranging and placing chemicals
+ Warehouses of flammable and explosive chemicals must be isolated from fire and heat sources.
+ The minimum safe distance from a flammable chemical storage area to a source of heat or ignition is specified in the table below:
From storage area to another area | Minimum safe distance (m) |
Area for storage of flammable liquids inside closed containers | 3 |
Area for storage of flammable liquids being decanted and stirred | 8 |
Facilities having flammable and explosive chemicals may maintain a greater safety distance depending on heat generation risk assessment and fire incident precautions.
+ Flammable and explosive chemicals must not be stored together with oxygen, oxygen-release substances, hazardous and incompatible chemicals, substances subject to different fire extinguishing requirements or substances capable of triggering hazardous reaction in the case of contact or fire.
+ Equipment and pipes containing flammable or explosive chemicals must not be placed near heat sources. In the case of exposure to direct sunlight, measures should be adopted to reduce heat (coating reflective paint or spraying water, etc.);
- Requirements concerning electric power systems and air ventilation systems
+ An electric power system in areas where flammable and explosive chemicals exist must satisfy the following requirements:
++ Power tools, electrical equipment and lighting equipment must be fire and explosion safe and the explosion-proof level of which must be relevant to the environment of flammable or explosive vapor or gas;
++ Power cables must not be laid in the same underground trench or location where pipes conveying flammable and explosive vapors, gases and liquids exist;
++ Circuit breakers and outlets must be located outside areas where flammable or explosive chemicals exist;
+ Air ventilation systems of warehouses of flammable and explosive chemicals must provide adequate ventilation in such a way that the chemical vapor concentration is less than 10% of the lower explosive limit either by natural or mechanical means;
- Requirements concerning equipment, tools and containers
+ Machinery and equipment in areas where flammable chemicals exist must satisfy fire safety requirements under TCVN 3255: 1986. Technical measures should be taken to ensure that tools working in areas where flammable and explosive chemicals exist do not produce any friction or impact spark.
+ Electrical tools and equipment, and lifting equipment installed and used inside warehouses must be fire and explosion proof.
++ Lifting equipment and forklifts must satisfy applicable fire safety standards. Repair, refueling and charging are prohibited in chemical warehouses and factories producing and using chemicals.
++ Tools used to open flammable and explosive chemical containers must be made of materials that do not produce any friction or impact spark or technical measures should be taken to avoid producing friction or impact sparks.
+ Containers of flammable and explosive liquids must maintain the prescribed filling factor depending on the physico-chemical properties of such liquids; large containers must be equipped with an one-way relief valve or flame failure device with an explosion-proof flange; the explosion-proof flange must be made of non-flammable and explosive materials; the end of a pipe conveying flammable and explosive chemicals to a container must be close to the edge or to the bottom; Pressure vessels must have overpressure relief valves.
Containers must be inspected at least once a month. The inspection record must be retained until the next inspection and presented to the competent authority upon request.
+ Flammable and explosive containers which are exposed to sunlight must be made of light-blocking materials or covered with light-blocking materials. Glass doors of warehouses must be painted to block light or use frosted glass;
What is a residential area at high risk of fire and explosion in Vietnam?
Pursuant to Article 6 of Circular 149/2020/TT-BCA, a residential area at high risk of fire and explosion is a residential area mentioned in Clause 1 Article 6 of Decree No. 136/2020/ND-CP and meeting any of the following criteria:
- A handicraft village engaging in manufacturing and/or trade of goods posing fire or explosion hazard is located inside the residential area.
- At least 20% of total households in the residential area engage in manufacturing and/or trade of goods/chemicals posing fire or explosion hazard.
- A facility for processing, producing and/or preserving petroleum and petroleum products, gas and/or chemicals posing fire or explosion hazard; a terminal for petroleum and petroleum products, a terminal for gas and/or chemicals posing fire or explosion hazard; or a filling station is located inside the residential area.
What are the fire safety requirements for residential areas in Vietnam?
- Pursuant to Clause 2, Article 6 of Decree 136/2020/ND-CP, residential areas in Vietnam must satisfy the following fire safety requirements:
- Regulations on fire prevention and fighting and use of electricity, fire, flammable materials and explosives are provided in accordance with technical regulations and standards on fire prevention and fighting or regulations of the Ministry of Public Security;
- There are sufficient and quality traffic system, water supply for firefighting, fire spread preventing solutions and, fire prevention and fighting equipment in accordance with technical regulations and standards on fire prevention and fighting or regulations of the Ministry of Public Security;
- There is a firefighting plan approved by the competent authority.
- There are a neighborhood having received training in fire prevention and fighting operation and on-site combat-ready firefighters.
In addition, Chairpersons of commune-level People’s Committees must organize and maintain compliance with the fire safety requirements throughout the existence of the residential areas.
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