CHAPTER II PREVENTION

Article 5Prevention actions

1.To fulfil the prevention objectives and carry out prevention actions, the Commission shall:

(a)take action to improve the knowledge base on disaster risks and facilitate the sharing of knowledge, best practices and information, including among Member States that share common risks;

(b)support and promote Member States' risk assessment and mapping activity through the sharing of good practices, and facilitate access to specific knowledge and expertise on issues of common interest;

(c)establish and regularly update a cross-sectoral overview and map of natural and man-made disaster risks the Union may face, by taking a coherent approach across different policy areas that may address or affect disaster prevention and taking due account of the likely impacts of climate change;

(d)encourage an exchange of good practices on preparing national civil protection systems to cope with the impact of climate change;

(e)promote and support the development and implementation of Member States' risk management activity through the sharing of good practices, and facilitate access to specific knowledge and expertise on issues of common interest;

(f)compile and disseminate the information made available by Member States; organise an exchange of experiences about the assessment of risk management capability; develop, together with the Member States and by 22 December 2014, guidelines on the content, methodology and structure of those assessments; and facilitate the sharing of good practices in prevention and preparedness planning, including through voluntary peer reviews;

(g)report periodically, in accordance with the deadlines set out in point (c) of Article 6, to the European Parliament and to the Council on the progress made in the implementation of Article 6;

(h)promote the use of various Union funds which may support sustainable disaster prevention and encourage the Member States and regions to exploit those funding opportunities;

(i)highlight the importance of risk prevention and support the Member States in awareness-raising, public information and education;

(j)promote prevention measures in the Member States and third countries, referred to in Article 28, through the sharing of good practices, and facilitate access to specific knowledge and expertise on issues of common interest; and

(k)in close consultation with Member States, take additional necessary supporting and complementary prevention action in order to achieve the objective specified in point (a) of Article 3(1).

2.At the request of a Member State, a third country or the United Nations or its agencies, the Commission may deploy an expert team on site to provide advice on prevention measures.

Article 6Risk management

In order to promote an effective and coherent approach to prevention of and preparedness for disasters by sharing non-sensitive information, namely information whose disclosure would not be contrary to the essential interests of Member States' security, and best practices within the Union Mechanism, Member States shall:

(a)

develop risk assessments at national or appropriate sub-national level and make available to the Commission a summary of the relevant elements thereof by 22 December 2015 and every three years thereafter;

(b)

develop and refine their disaster risk management planning at national or appropriate sub-national level;

(c)

make available to the Commission the assessment of their risk management capability at national or appropriate sub-national level every three years following the finalisation of the relevant guidelines as referred to in point (f) of Article 5(1) and whenever there are important changes; and

(d)

participate, on a voluntary basis, in peer reviews on the assessment of risk management capability.