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NATO AASTP-1 Document Information:
Title
MANUAL OF NATO SAFETY PRINCIPLES FOR THE STORAGE OF MILITARY AMMUNITION AND EXPLOSIVES
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Publication Date:
Aug 1, 1997
Scope:
Purpose and Scope of the Manual
a) The primary object of this Manual is to establish safety principles
to be used as a guide
between host countries and NATO forces in the development of mutually
agreeable regulations for the
layout of ammunition storage depots and for the storage of
conventional ammunition and explosives
therein. These principles are intended also to form the basis of
national regulations as far as
possible.
b) The Manual is intended to serve as a guide for authorities who are
engaged in the planning and
construction of ammunition storage depots of a capacity of not less
than 500 kg of Net Explosives
Quantity (NEQ) per storage site and for those who are responsible for
the safe storage of
ammunition. It also gives principles and criteria for other related
matters such as design
environment criteria, etc. The Manual does not authorize the use of
the principles and criteria
without consent of the host countries.
c) NEQ per storage site of less than 500 kg are given special
treatment (see subparagraph
1.4.1.1.b)).
d) It is impracticable to prescribe distances which would be safe
distances in the true sense, i.e.
which would guarantee absolute immunity from propagation, damage or
injury. An attempt has
therefore been made in the recommendations in this Manual to allow for
the probability of an
accident and how serious the resulting damage or injury would be. The
separation distances
(quantity distances) between a potential explosion site and an exposed
site recommended in this
Manual therefore represent a compromise deemed tolerable by AC/258
between absolute safety and
practical considerations including costs and operational requirements.
The risk deemed tolerable depends upon many factors, some of which are
objective, such as the
quantity of explosives involved, the nature of the explosives, the
packaging of dangerous items,
their distribution within premises or in the open air, distance, the
nature of the terrain and its
contours, etc. Other factors are subjective to what extent are damage
and injuries resulting from
an explosive accident tolerable? For example, how many deaths, how
many serious injuries, how many
buildings destroyed or damaged and other costs are tolerable? It is
therefore clearly essential to
have a good knowledge of the nature of the main hazard, namely blast
or projections or fire, as
well as the foreseeable development of the accident: instantaneous,
progressive, sporadic etc.
Consideration of these factors will yield the concept of hazard
divisions, the net explosives
quantity and the mutual influence of potential explosion site and
exposed site. Quantity-distances
are proposed in each case in the form of tables. These quantity
distances imply a degree of harm or
damage which is difficult to quantify but which most NATO nations
regard as tolerable.
There may be occasions when cogent economic or operational
considerations, usually of a temporary
nature, warrant the acceptance of a significantly greater risk to life
and property. The granting
of waivers or relaxations in such cases is outside the scope of this
Manual. Nevertheless, it is
stressed that a detailed assessment of the risks involved must be made
by a competent agency before
the appropriate authorities grant such dispensations. Conversely,
authorities which might find
unacceptable the risks deemed "tolerable" in this Manual can always
reduce the risks by using
suitable protective devices and or by increasing the recommended
distances. However, this will be
possible only with a higher operating cost.
e) Under certain circumstances operational requirements demand a
degree of relaxation from the
guidelines given in Parts I-III of the Manual. This applies mainly to
basic load holding areas,
field storage and missile installations. In the same way, problems
connected with airfields used
only by military aircraft and those relating to transfer of ammunition
in naval ports call for
specific measures. The principles to be followed in preparing flexible
but consistent safety
guidelines in those cases will be found in Part IV of the Manual.
f) A Manual of this type cannot provide the answers to all problems
which arise. In circumstances
where the answer is not provided the problem should be submitted to
the Secretary of the "NATO
Group of Experts on the Safety Aspects of Transportation and Storage
of Military Ammunition and
Explosives (AC/258)".
g) The users of this Manual are invited to communicate with the
Secretary of the "NATO Group of
Experts on the Safety Aspects of Transportation and Storage of
Military Ammunition and Explosives
(AC/258)", when an accidental explosion has been thoroughly analysed,
or trials have been staged,
so that the validity of the quantity-distance tables can be verified.
For details of accident
reports required: see Part I, Chapter 8.
h) Since this Manual is a guide rather than a set of mandatory
regulations the words "must",
"should" "may/can" and "is/are" are used in the following sense:
MUST - Indicates a technical requirement which is vital for the safety
of a depot and the avoidance
of a catastrophe.
SHOULD - Indicates a safety requirement which is important but not
essential.
MAY/CAN - Indicates optional courses of action and possibilities.
IS/ARE - Indicates a fact or a valid technique.
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