Paper Title
State and Chemical Industries: Strengthening Regulations?

Abstract
On 21 September 2001, the explosion that occurred in a stockpile of 300 tonnes of ammonium nitrate occurred in hangar 221 of the AZF Grande-Paroisse plant in Toulouse (France). The explosion officially killed 31 people (22 of whom were on the chemical site), injured thousands, damaged or destroyed 27,000 buildings. This industrial disaster is one of the most serious in France, affecting buildings several kilometres from the site of the explosion. This text aims to show how the French State relies on environmental groups to impose risk management guidelines on companies in the chemical sector. Keywords - Industrial Hazards, Industrial Accident, Environment, Protests