First war experience for EU’s civil protection mechanism

The European Commission is drawing lessons from its first experience using the civil protection mechanism to help relieve the horrors of war this summer.

When fighting broke out in Lebanon in July, the Lebanese authorities asked for European help from the EU emergency relief civil protection mechanism, overseen by the Commission’s environment department.

The mechanism was set up in 2001 and has since dealt mainly with natural disasters like forest fires.

At the end of July Cyprus asked for help dealing with thousands of refugees fleeing Lebanon and stranded on the way home. Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas flew to Nicosia to oversee co-ordination between member states flying planes out of the island.

According to a Commission spokesman, when Dimas arrived some countries were leaving their citizens on Cypriot soil. Other aeroplanes were leaving half empty, with governments concentrating only on getting their own nationals out.

"A week after Dimas went to Cyprus, far more planes were being sent and far more refugees were getting out," said a Commission spokeswoman. "I’m not saying that was all because of his visit, but it did send a very strong political signal."

Just days after mobilising the civil protection mechanism to help refugees in Cyprus, the Commission’s environment department heard a second cry for help from the war in Lebanon.

This time the problem was an oil spill caused by Israeli bombing of a power plant in Jieh on the Mediterranean coast and once again the civil protection mechanism was used.

With Lebanese experts displaced by the fighting, three Danish experts were flown to the site and began training locals to clean up the 15,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil estimated to have been spilt.

The European Satellite System was also launched into action to assess the size of the spill.

But making progress has proved harder in Jieh than in Cyprus. An EU plane arrived to monitor ocean currents and wave patterns affecting the spill, but takeoff was delayed by the need for Israeli approval to fly over the affected area.

The Commission said the oil was now being cleaned up, but until the cessation of hostilities on 14 August help was largely stuck on shore.

Questions also remain over how much of the assistance promised by member states under the civil protection mechanism has actually made it to the spill. Some but not all of the oil clean up equipment requested by Lebanon is thought to have arrived, along with 10,000 pairs of Spanish rubber boots.

Green groups say the environmental damage will be irreversible unless governments honour their promises soon.

"Despite some great efforts and due to the situation, [the response] has been slow," said Paul Horsman of Greenpeace. "More needs to be done and more should be done as we all share a responsibility here."

The European Commission is drawing lessons from its first experience using the civil protection mechanism to help relieve the horrors of war this summer.