Partners

Partners

COORDINATOR

Federal Public Service Interior – National Crisis Center (Belgium)

The Belgian National Crisis Centre was established in 1988 and is undergoing a major evolution in terms of its international organisation missions. A National Crisis Centre that is in touch with the existing situations in our society ensures efficient coordination of risk and crisis management. Due to its constant evolution, the Crisis Centre, together with its partners, monitors the safety and security of everybody 24/7.

The actions, achievements and projects of the National Crisis Centre are in line with the risk management cycle for a global security approach. The cycle contains different key elements:

Organising – Coordinating: Essential partners are integrated in the National Crisis Centre to continue strengthening safety and security. In 2018, three new services were created to meet new challenges. One of those services is the CBRNe Expertise Centre.The CBRNe Expertise Centre is a multidisciplinary national platform created within the National Crisis Centre’s Emergency Planning Service where experts on CBRNe matters collaborate in an integrated environment to:

  • be prepared for CBRNe emergency situations,
  • support crisis management in the event of real CBRNe emergency situations and aftercare,
  • ensure integration/coordination between the safety and security aspects of CBRNe emergency situations. 

Identifying – Analysing: In order to prevent as much as possible crises from occurring or in order to minimize their impact on our society, it is essential to know the risks that can lead to such situations. Those risks need to be inventoried and mapped.

Preventing – Protecting: The National Crisis Centre is able to fully ensure the protection of VIPs, persons, institutions and major events under threat, as well as crisis management on a daily basis. The Crisis Centre sees to the implementation, evaluation and improvement of various legal frameworks in this field. It also aims at developing the resilience of our society, by raising awareness of the risks.

Anticipating – Preparing: The National Crisis Centre continues the operationalization of emergency plans by developing tools that are easily deployable in the event of an emergency situation.

Ensuring – Managing: The National Crisis Centre ensures that the authorities and the population are continuously informed via its 24/7 operating service. To meet the needs of its partners and the population, the National Crisis Centre is developing modern and unique technological tools that facilitate management and crisis communication, such as the BE-Alert system which alerts the population and the safety portal ICMS.

PARTNERS

Defense CBRN Centre Vught (The Netherlands)

Mission DCBRNC

The mission of the DCBRNC is to be the organization in The Netherlands that provides CBRN-expertise, -education & -training and -advise to national and international, civilian and military security partners in order to react mono- and multi-disciplined before, during and after CBRN-incidents

CBRN knowledge, expertise and training at one unique location

The focus of the  Defense CBRN Centre (DCBRNC) is to  provide education, training and support in the CBRN domain for military personnel and first responders.

The DCBRNC is unique in Europe and the multi-disciplinary team of military and civil personnel assures a high level of CBRN-knowledge, -education and –training. This is available for national and international organizations involved in the response to CBRN incidents to meet their specific needs and improve their individual performance, but also the cooperative response of all involved units through multi-disciplinary training.

National Training Centre CBRN

The need for joint training is one of the key objectives of the National Training Centre. During the development of the Centre the CBRN-threat was analysed and a number of settings were selected for being the most likely location where a CBRN incident could occur. These settings include a chemical laboratory, hospital, super market, restaurant, railway yard, illegal drugs laboratory and a complete subway station.

Using these settings the different phases (prevention, response, and recovery) of handling CBRN incidents can be trained in Vught using a wide range of different scenario’s from leaking barrels during transport to illegal production of drugs, and from international terrorism to everyday incidents in and around homes.

Federal Police (Belgium)

The Federal Police is under the authority of the Minister of the Interior for its management and for the execution of administrative police missions. It reports to the Minister of Justice with respect to its judicial police missions, without prejudice to the judicial authorities’ own powers. It carries out specialised and supralocal administrative and judicial police operations, and supports both Local and Federal Police services and units.

To carry out its missions, the Federal Police, which has some 13,500 staff members, including some 3,300 non-operational employees responsible for administrative and logistical tasks, is headed by a General Commissioner – First Chief Commissioner Marc De Mesmaeker – and is divided into three general directorates: two operational general directorates – the General Directorate of Judicial Police (DGJ) and the General Directorate of Administrative Police (DGA).

The Directorate of Dog Support (DACH), which is part of DGA, consists of two pillars. The operational pillar sends specialised dog teams to the field at the request of the judicial authorities and the Local or Federal Police services. The training pillar trains all Federal Police dogs and dog handlers. It also provides support to the Local Police to train patrol dogs and dog handlers. The Federal Police has about eighty specialised dog teams. Half of those teams work for DACH and the rest for other directorates, including the Special Units, the Railway Police and the Maritime and River Police.

Following the Brussels attacks of March 2016, the Directorate of Dog Support certifies the TATP (triacetone triperoxide) detection dogs owned by private security firms. Also in this field, DACH has become a true centre of expertise and certification.

International Centre for Chemical Safety and Security (Poland)

The International Centre for Chemical Safety and Security (ICCSS) was established in October 2012 as an independent non-profit organization, based in Warsaw, Poland. The ICCSS supports the development of national and international networks of chemical and environmental safety and security officers from national agencies, international organizations, industries, and civil society.

The ICCSS combines the efforts, technical resources and expertise of industry associations, international organizations, national agencies and NGOs. It is a multi-stakeholder forum for sharing knowledge and best practices, and for promoting public-private enterprises and modern management, in all areas of chemical activity, with an emphasis on industry, transportation of chemicals, academic studies, scientific research, laboratory work.

The ICCSS has conducted in 2017 and continues in 2018 a series of initiatives/activities with the international community to develop chemical and environmental safety and security and to reduce chemical threats. The ICCSS concentrates on practical activities and cooperation, including training and exercises, with an emphasis on Table Top Exercises (based on the ICCSS methodology), crisis management, and promoting chemical and environmental safety and security nationally, regionally and worldwide. A leading feature of the ICCSS is a broad cooperation with the national and international agencies through whole-society approach and public-private partnerships.

All ICCSS programs are based on five core principles: sustainability, continuity, public-private partnership, multi-stakeholder participation, and modern management.

In April 2018 the ICCSS has received a grant from the US Government to develop and implement an international program of chemical safety and security in Jordan and the region of the Middle East. The program provides, inter alia, for testing and enhancing national crisis management against chemical threats and disasters, conduct of trainings and TTX. The program has been implemented in the cooperation with the EU and other national and international partners.

University of Lodz (Poland)

The University of Lodz is one of the leading institutions of higher education in Poland. It was established in 1945 as a successor of educational institutions active in Lodz in earlier times. The University of Lodz is a fully accredited, state-owned, traditional university. It is one of 18 institutions of its type in Poland.

The 13 faculties of the University provide programmes in 70 fields of study and 182 specializations. In addition, the University offers doctoral programmes, more than 70 postgraduate curricula including an MBA programme, and programmes financed by the ESF. The 40,000 students that attend classes at different faculties of the University are taught by 2,200 academic teachers, 580 of whom bear the highest academic rank. Almost all of University Faculties at the latest evaluation have got the A note from the Polish Ministry of Science which means a very high level of scientific activity and potential.

The Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection of the University of Lodz is the largest biological faculty in Poland. It has the greatest potential among the faculties of biological science in Poland. Conducting extensive research, didactic and social activities, the faculty has received “Category A” for the high standard of academic practice. It conducts basic, methodological and applied research in all fields of biology.

The Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection has modern laboratory equipment able to analysis various CBRN threats as well as to train to this type of analysis. At the Faculty there are Biosafety Laboratories at Level 2 (BSL-2) which are suitable for work involving agents of moderate potential hazard to personnel and the environment. The laboratory personnel has had specific training in handling pathogenic agents and is directed by scientists with advanced training. Additionally, the Faculty has modern and very specialist equipment at its disposal to perform genetic, immunological and biochemical analytic methods such as REAL-TIME PCR, Bioluminometry, DNA sequencing, flow cytometry, mass spectrometry, gas and liquid chromatography, confocal microscopy, MALDI TOF/TOF etc.

The Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection has experience in working with cooperation with large number of Military and Law Enforcements Institutions representing CBRN aspects. Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection has signed the formal bilateral agreement for large scale cooperation with Military Institute of Chemistry and Radiometry as well as Police Training Centre in Legionowo. The experts from this faculty provide expertise for public entities such as the Prosecutor’s Office, courts, environmental protection public departments or health services.

Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial (Spain)

INTA is a Public Research Establishment which belongs to the Spanish Ministry of Defence; a Non-Profit Organisation specialized in the fields of Security & Defence; Aeronautics; Space, Terrestrial and Maritime systems. Its main technological centre is located in Torrejón de Ardoz, near Madrid, but there are other centres in other regions. INTA’s staff is comprised of over 1,500 individuals (a thousand of them are dedicated to R+D activities). 

INTA participates in the Framework Programmes since nearly the beginning; during Horizon 2020, 24 projects have been funded with INTA participation, mainly in the domains of Security, Space and Aeronautics. Regarding H2020-Security, INTA is project partner in ENTRAP, EXERTER and MESMERISE (dealing with explosives) and also participates in the proficiency tests of EUROBIOTOX project (as external laboratory). Furthermore, INTA also participates in Biological Defence projects funded by EDA and in other R&D projects funded under the Spanish Ministry of Science. Finally, INTA has representatives in Europe such as Seconded National Experts in the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and the European Space Agency (ESA). The Department of CBRNe Defense from INTA, located in La Marañosa Campus (San Martín de la Vega, Madrid), is now participating in the Bullseye project, dealing with biological and chemical threats.

The Chemical Defense section is divided in two laboratories, LAVEMA and LAEDEQ. The LAVEMA is the Laboratory for the Verification of Chemical Warfare Agents, (CWAs). It is an OPCW designated laboratory and it is accredited under ISO17025. Its main activities are related to: analysis of environmental samples spiked with CWAs and related compounds; preparation and evaluation of OPCW Proficiency Tests; training in the analysis of CWAs; and design of scenarios for simulated chemical terrorist attacks. The LAEDEQ is the Laboratory for the Evaluation and Testing of CBRN equipment.  Its main activities are related to: evaluation of portable chemical detectors against CWAs and TICs; reception and evaluation tests on CBRN protective materials (suits, masks, filters, etc.); and evaluation of decontaminants.

The Biological Defence Section has an extensive experience in: detection, identification and characterization of highly pathogenic biological agents from environmental samples; validation of deployable CBRN laboratories (Turkish Army, 2011; Spanish Army, 2013); participation in proficiency tests (NATO-SIBCRA Subgroup exercises, 2005-2007 and 2009-2010; EDA-BFREE, 2015; German FFO-UNSGM RefBio, 2018); sample preparation and shipping for proficiency tests (NATO-SIBCRA Subgroup exercises, 2009); design of scenarios for simulated biological terrorist attacks (Spanish Army, 2013 and 2016); participation in field exercises (Government of Canada-TRACE, 2017; University of Lodz-CBRN Security Manager, 2017-2018); and organization of courses for Army Forces and LEAs (Course of laboratory against CBRN threats, 2012-2014). The section is currently involved in CBRNe projects funded by European Commission as BULLSEYE or by the Spanish Government as OPTONANOSENS “Detection of toxin and pathogenic agents using nanometric optical biosensors for CBN threats”. It also belongs to the Spanish Biological Alert Laboratory Network (RE-LAB) and to the Spanish Interministerial Group for BWC (GRUPABI). It has published 13 scientific articles and contributed with communications in 16 international or national congresses in the last 11 years.

International Security and Emergency Management Institute (Slovak Republic)

The International Security and Emergency Management Institute (ISEMI) is a worldwide non-profit organisation providing publicly beneficial services. It is a professional platform of former or active police and national security officers, military, civil protection and crisis management experts from around the world with necessary security clearance and relevant long-term experience in crime prevention, counter-terrorism and CBRN-E threats, in the fight against organized crime, environmental crime, trafficking in human beings, cybercrime, drugs and weapons smuggling. ISEMI’s wide pool of experts has a diverse expertise: intelligence analysis, defence policy, border protection, critical infrastructure protection, countering hybrid threats, rescue and emergency assistance, health protection and in the field of justice and prosecution. 

ISEMI’s main area of expertise is Counter CBRN Terrorism and Crisis Management. 

ISEMI has been accredited by the National Security Agency to handle classified data at “EU, NATO Secret level”.

Lynx Commando (Slovak Republic)

Lynx Commando, the elite tactical police unit of the Slovak republic, has been founded in 1991 as the Rapid Response Police Unit. In 1997 it has been renamed Lynx Commando. 

The unit’s primary responsibilities are counter-terrorism, apprehension of dangerous criminals, dealing with crisis situations involving CBRN-E, VIP protection and rescue operations. 

Its members are carefully selected during an ardous selection process and undergo extensive firearms, tactical and medical training. Lynx Commando has the country’s foremost specialists in the field of sniping, breaching, diving and rappelling. 

Lynx Commando is capable of deployment in the whole area of the Slovak Republic and if need be, in any member state of the ATLAS Group.