The present Ordinance implements the Environment Protection Act of 29 May 2008 and transposes the Directive 2012/18/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012 on the control of major-accident hazards involving dangerous substances, amending and subsequently repealing Council Directive 96/82/EC. Article 1 of the Ordinance establishes that this Ordinance is intended to protect humans, animals and the environment from serious damage caused by accidents. In particular, the Ordinance regulates the: a) precaution against accidents; b) management of accidents; c) organization and implementation. The text consists of 36 articles divided into 7 chapters as follows: General provisions (I); Precaution against major accidents (II); Managing major accidents (III); Special provisions for businesses (IV); Organization and implementation (V); Penalties (VI); Transitional and final provisions (VII). Four Annexes are enclosed.