Users of highly hazardous materials in Macau must have a qualified safety officer and even a substitute, lawmaker-cum-restaurateur Andrew Chan Chak Mo, who heads the Legislative Assembly’s (AL) 2nd Standing Committee, told reporters yesterday.
Chan made the remarks after chairing a closed-door meeting of the committee, which is reviewing in detail the latest version of a government-initiated bill regulating the use of hazardous materials, the outline of which was passed by a plenary session in November.
Secretary for Security Wong Sio Chak and Fire Services Bureau (CB) Commissioner Leong Iok Sam attended yesterday’s two-hour meeting via video link because of the government’s tightened COVID-19 prevention and control measures.
According to the bill, highly hazardous material users are defined as those who operate the large-scale storage of large quantities of highly hazardous materials, such as oil and liquefied petroleum gas storage areas.
According to the bill, the safety officer must normally reside in Macau for a continuous period of time.
Chan noted that the government has the right to object to the choice of safety officer if it considers that he or she is not qualified, and that his or her substitute should also be approved by the government.
Asked by the media about the qualifications a safety officer needs, Chan quoted the government as saying that there is no requirement for them to have an academic degree, but it would depend on their professional experience, adding that relevant details about the qualifications of the safety officer would be stipulated by an administrative regulation (by-law) to be issued after the bill has been passed by lawmakers.
Chan noted that the government has not yet provided a detailed explanation for what kind of professional qualification the safety officer and his or her substitute should have.
Chan quoted the government as saying that highly hazardous materials storage areas might become a possible target for terrorist attacks. As such, senior managers of these sites must set up specific measures to prevent “serious accidents” and submit an annual safety report to the government.
Chan also said that the government answered some of the questions raised by the committee’s members during yesterday’s meeting, adding that his committee will continue to address the remaining questions with government officials today.
Lawmaker-cum-restaurateur Andrew Chan Chak Mo (left), who chairs the legislature’s 2nd Standing Committee, talks to reporters after yesterday’s closed-door meeting by the committee which is reviewing the government’s hazardous materials bill, while the committee’s secretary, Lam Lon Wai, looks on. Photo: Ginnie Liang
