iMBRA Nitromethane Update- 11.11.2015
Fellow Racers,
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An organisation we wanted to get some information to you all about the use of nitromethane.
As you will be aware within the EU there are restrictions on the use of explosives precursors. We have tried to review these regulations to provide a summary of its use and our stance on its use in Offshore, Hydro and Endurance racing.
In Summary:
Any member of the general public can purchase Nitromethane if the concentration is 30% w/w or lower.
Each country (Member State) can put in place a licensing regime and anybody can apply for a license.
Each country will have a slightly different system but the idea is that everybody wanting to hold a Nitro license must explain why they want/need to purchase and use Nitro. If you do not have a valid reason and cannot prove what you need the Nitro for you will not be granted a license. The licensing authority will check your identity and, for example, in the UK there is an inspection of where the Nitro will be stored to make sure it is secure and cannot be stolen. If you hold a license you can use as much Nitro as you like. There is no restriction on the amount you can use. Some countries may ask you to specify how much Nitro you will be buying so that they can keep a record.
A license granted in one country will be recognised by any other country within the EU.
Rather than a country using a licensing system they can opt to use a registration system instead. This system is not as highly regulated as the licensing system and therefore the amount of Nitro you can purchase is restricted. The registration system allows you to use Nitro above the 30% w/w level but you cannot use more than 40% w/w.
The full EU Regulations can be viewed in various different languages by following the link below:
European Regualtions
At present there is no accurate method of testing the percentage ratio of Nitro and therefore we DO NOT intend to implement any restrictions at the iMBRA World Championships in Haarlem 2016. It will be the responsibility of each individual to comply with their countries regulations.
If an accurate method of testing becomes available in the future we will look again at the practicalities of implementing a Nitro rule.
Due to the complexity of the regulations we understand that you may have further questions, and we will attempt to answer them as best we can, however we hope this helps.
The iMBRA Committee
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