Hazardous and toxic substances

Hazardous Chemicals (HAZCHEM)

The Civil Contingencies Secretariat provides links to government and non-government sources on a wide variety of emergencies and crises that can affect the UK, plus emergency planning guidance and government information.

The National Chemical Emergency Centre  (NCEC) plays a key role in national arrangements for responding to chemical incidents. It provides a 24-hour national advice service to the public emergency services on dealing with chemical incidents and is a central part of the Chemical Industries Associations CHEMSAFE  scheme.

Emergency Action Codes (commonly called Hazchem Codes) are designed to assist the emergency services in the first few minutes of dealing with a hazardous goods distribution incident. Further information on Emergency Action Codes is available from The National Chemical Emergency Centre.