Republic of Latvia Cabinet Regulation No. 341 Adopted 20 June 2017

Regulations Regarding the Types and Procedures for the Organising of Civil Protection and Disaster Management Exercises

Issued pursuant to
Section 19, Paragraph four of the Civil Protection
and Disaster Management Law

1. This Regulation prescribes the types and procedures for the organisation of civil protection and disaster management exercises.

2. This Regulation shall not be applied to exercises of the Ministry of Defence and the National Armed Forces, organised in accordance with the approved exercise process methodology of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, including exercises covered by the competence of the National Armed Forces, which is related to the consequence management of marine oil and hazardous substances pollution and to the sea transport emergency operations.

3. Civil protection and disaster management exercises (hereinafter - the exercises) are divided according to:

3.1. levels:

3.1.1. a local level exercise in which the preparedness for a local disaster is tested;

3.1.2. a regional level exercise in which the preparedness for a regional disaster is tested;

3.1.3. a national level exercise in which the preparedness for a national disaster is tested;

3.1.4. an international level exercise in which the co-ordination and co-operation in disaster management of the exercise participants from several countries are tested;

3.2. type and objectives of the process:

3.2.1. a theoretical exercise - an exercise in the form of discussions to test the theoretical knowledge, the potential for co-operation among the involved exercise participants and also to evaluate their ability to assess the situation and take decisions;

3.2.2. a practical exercise - an exercise involving a threat simulation, involvement of the staff and equipment to test co-ordinated actions of the involved exercise participants in the fulfilment of tasks of the civil protection system;

3.2.3. a full-scale exercise - an exercise which combines both theoretical and practical parts of the exercise.

4. The exercises shall be planned and organised by State and local government authorities and also legal persons allowed to also organise interinstitutional exercises, involving representatives of other State and local government authorities and legal persons.

5. An international exercise shall be organised in accordance with the programmes of the relevant international organisations and in compliance with the procedures for organising the exercises referred to in this Regulation, unless this is in conflict with the requirements and procedures laid down by international organisations.

6. State and local government authorities and also legal persons shall participate in an international exercise upon an invitation.

7. National level or regional level exercises shall be organised at least once every four years.

8. National and regional level exercises shall be conducted by the exercise commander appointed by an order of the Prime Minister.

9. A local level exercise shall be managed by the head of a State or local government authority or a legal person, or by the exercise commander appointed by an order thereof.

10. The exercise commander has the right to involve representatives of State and local government authorities or legal persons in the exercise planning group and also to appoint the head of the exercise planning group.

11. The exercise commander shall have the following tasks:

11.1. to invite exercise participants to an exercise;

11.2. to organise and manage exercise planning meetings;

11.3. to set up an exercise planning group;

11.4. to organise introduction of exercise participants to the safety requirements during the exercise;

11.5. to manage the exercise process.

12. The head of an exercise planning group shall be responsible for carrying out the tasks of the exercise planning group.

13. The tasks of an exercise planning group shall be as follows:

13.1. to draw up an exercise programme (Annex 1) taking into account the potential threats and the measures laid down in the civil protection plans or actions in case of a disaster;

13.2. to draw up an exercise preparation and procedure plan (Annex 2) on the basis of the exercise programme;

13.3. to draw up guidelines for the notification of the public and to include therein the time for providing information, the information to be provided to the public regarding the exercise and indication of the person responsible for the provision of information;

13.4. to plan security measures for the exercise process;

13.5. to prepare a report on exercise;

13.6. to draw up recommendations for the elimination of deficiencies discovered during the exercise and for the improvement of civil protection measures, and to draw up an exercise evaluation (Annex 3).

14. In order to ensure the preparation and process of the exercise and to draw up the respective exercise documentation, the exercise commander shall organise the following planning meetings:

14.1. the initial planning meeting to define the exercise objectives, tasks and to assign the exercise planning group to draw up an exercise programme;

14.2. the main planning meeting to co-ordinate the measures necessary for the preparation and process of the exercise and to assign the planning group to draw up an exercise preparation and procedure plan;

14.3. the final planning meeting to co-ordinate the exercise preparation and procedure plan in co-operation with the members of the exercise planning group and the invited representatives of the exercise participants.

15. For the purpose of ensuring the process of the exercise, the exercise commander, on the basis of the recommendations of exercise participants, shall invite:

15.1. controllers who activate the situation description (exercise scenario) previously planned in exercise and provide the exercise participants with information regarding the events provided for in the exercise scenario (injection), as well as they control the conformity with the safety requirements during exercise;

15.2. evaluators who evaluate the process of the exercise and who submit the exercise evaluation to the head of the exercise planning group on the observations made and deficiencies discovered, including recommendations for the elimination of the discovered deficiencies and for the improvement of exercise.

16. Observers may be invited to the exercises to observe the exercise process.

17. The exercise commander shall send the harmonised and approved exercise programme to the exercise participants not later than 30 days prior to the start of the exercise.

18. The exercise planning group shall draw up the exercise results in the form of a report. The aforementioned report shall be comprised of a summary of the process of the exercise, conclusions and recommendations. The exercise evaluation summarising the information provided by the exercise evaluators shall be appended to the exercise report.

19. Within 30 days after the end of the exercise, an exercise report signed by the exercise commander shall be submitted to State and local government authorities and also legal persons that participated in the exercise.

20. Costs for the preparation and provision of a national level, regional level and also international level exercises shall be included in a joint request of a ministry, upon preparing and examining the draft State budget for the recurrent year.

21. Cabinet Regulation No. 772 of 22 September 2008, Regulations Regarding the Types and Organising Procedures of Civil Protection Exercises (Latvijas Vēstnesis, 2008, No. 150, 2009, No. 69), is repealed.

Prime Minister Māris Kučinskis

Minister for the Interior Rihards Kozlovskis

 

Annex 1
Cabinet Regulation No. 341
20 June 2017

	APPROVED BY
	(position of the exercise commander)
	(given name, surname and signature)
	(date)

Exercise Programme

1. Types, Objectives and Tasks of the Exercise

1.1.	Type of the exercise
1.2.	Objectives of the exercise
1.3.	Tasks of the exercise

2. Exercise Scenario

3. Authorities, legal persons and organisations involved in the exercise

No.	Type of the exercise	Resources to be involved in the exercise

4. Exercise Location and Time

4.1.	Exercise location
4.2.	Exercise date and time

5. Procedures for Informing of the Public

5.1.	Objective for informing the public
5.2.	Measures for informing the public
5.3.	Tasks of the exercise
5.4.	Information provision time
5.5.	Person in charge of the provision of information

6. Financial Resources Necessary for the Exercise Preparation and Process

6.1. Financial resources for exercise preparation

No.	Exercise preparation measures (human resources, equipment, ancillary means)	Required financial resources (in euros)	Financial resources source

6.2. Financial resources for exercise process

No.	Exercise preparation measures (human resources, equipment, ancillary means)	Required financial resources (in euros)	Financial resources source

Head of the exercise planning group
		(given name, surname)		(signature)

Notes.

1. For theoretical exercises, the column "Resources to be involved in the exercise" of Table of Section 3, and Section 5 "Procedures for Informing the Public" need not be completed.

2. The details of the document "date" and "signature" shall not be completed if the electronic document has been drawn up in accordance with the laws and regulations regarding the drawing up of electronic documents.

Minister for the Interior Rihards Kozlovskis

 

Annex 2
Cabinet Regulation No. 341
20 June 2017

	APPROVED BY
	(position of the exercise commander)
	(given name, surname and signature)
	(date)

Exercise Preparation and Procedure Plan

1. Development of Exercise Scenario

Time and date for providing the exercise introduction	Event (introduction) number	Description of the exercise introduction	Form of providing the introduction	Information provided to	Notes on the expected action of exercise participants (briefly)	Task of the exercise

2. Instructions for the Exercise Safety Measures

No.	Safety measures	Responsible person

Head of the exercise planning group
		(given name, surname)		(signature)

Minister for the Interior Rihards Kozlovskis

 

Annex 3
Cabinet Regulation No. 341
20 June 2017

Exercise Evaluation

No.	Observations and deficiencies	Recommendations and measures to be taken	Responsible person

(date)		(given name, surname)		(signature)

Minister for the Interior Rihards Kozlovskis

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