With the Twelfth Ordinance on the Implementation of the Federal Pollution Control Act, which came into force on 3.5.2000, the Hazardous Incidents Ordinance in the version of 20 September 1991 was reformulated. The reason for this new version was the need to implement Council Directive 96/82/EC of 9 December 1996 on the control of major accident hazards (Seveso II Directive) in German law.