On the night of Tuesday 28 and Wednesday 29 November, the European Parliament, the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU and the Commission reached a political agreement on the proposed revision of the Industrial Emissions Directive (Directive 2010/75/EU, known as the ‘IED’ Directive) to strengthen the scope of the main instrument regulating pollution from large industrial installations in the EU, and on the corollary proposal for a regulation on the ‘Emissions Portal’ (see EUROPE 12926/2).
This provisional agreement was reached at the end of 7 hours of inter-institutional negotiations (trilogue), which had saved the most sensitive issue for last - the proposed inclusion of more intensive livestock farms in the future directive (see EUROPE 13269/11).
“We are setting stronger rules to tackle pollution at source, while at the same time improving the reporting and monitoring of emissions. The new rules will set pollution limits at more effective levels and provide clear guidance to industry on the right investments to reduce their emissions effectively”, commented Spain’s Minister for Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera, on behalf of the EU Council, noting the EU’s ‘Zero Toxic Pollution’ ambition for 2050.
Radan Kanev (EPP, Bulgarian), chief negotiator for the European Parliament, said he was satisfied with the result achieved, “including significantly reducing emissions without creating further red tape for industries and farmers and as well as the level of penalties for non-complying companies”.
Scope. The directive will cover large agricultural installations, with livestock unit (LU) thresholds lowered to 350 LU for pigs, 280 LU for poultry (300 for laying hens) and 380 LU for mixed farms. The new rules will be applied gradually, starting with the largest farms in 2030.
Large battery production facilities will also be covered, as well as mining activities, i.e. the extraction and processing of minerals produced on an industrial scale but not used for the energy transition (non-energy ores), such as iron, copper, gold, nickel and platinum.
Cattle farms will be excluded, as requested by the European Parliament (see EUROPE 13220/4).
The Commission will re-examine, by 31 December 2026, the appropriateness of including these and a reciprocity clause to ensure that producers outside the EU comply with requirements similar to EU rules when exporting to the EU.
Emission limit values. Emission levels for each pollutant must be as strict as possible. The agreement introduces the concept of environmental performance limit values that establish emission ranges and that must be set by the competent authorities in the installation and operating permits.
For waste, resource efficiency, energy efficiency and the use of raw materials, these targets will fall within this range.
These performance ranges will be indicative for emerging techniques in order to encourage innovation.
In the case of water, the competent authorities will have to set binding performance targets.
Digital operating licence. In the interests of efficiency and cutting red tape, Member States will be required to introduce an e-licence system by 2035.
Penalties/compensation for victims of pollution. Member States will be required to establish effective, proportionate and dissuasive sanctions against those who breach the requirements of the Directive. These penalties will have to take account of the seriousness and duration of the offence, its recurrence, and the people and environment it affects. They will include administrative fines and, for the most serious infringements, fines of at least 3% of the operator’s annual EU turnover.
EU countries will also have to ensure that individuals have the right to claim compensation in the event of damage to their health as a result of a breach of the national rules transposing the directive.
Revision clause. The Commission will review and evaluate the implementation of the directive in 2028, and every 5 years thereafter. This assessment will have to take account of emerging techniques and the need to adopt new pollution prevention measures or minimum emission limit requirements at EU level.
Industrial emissions portal. This tool for transparency of information accessible to citizens will replace the current European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (E-PRTR). It will include data on the use of water, energy and key raw materials by the facilities concerned in order to monitor progress towards a circular and resource-efficient economy.
A general revision clause will make it possible to assess the activities and pollutants covered by the regulation, as well as the thresholds applicable in Annexes I (activities requiring reporting above the thresholds set) and II (pollutants that must be reported above the thresholds set).
The co-legislators have added dicofol and two types of PFAS, the chemical forever pollutants - perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and its salts and perfluorohexane-1-sulfonic acid (PFOS) - to the substances listed in Annex II. By 2026, the Commission will have to publish a revision of Annex II and provide guidance on the methodology for measuring these substances.
The Emissions Portal regulation will come into force in 2028 to give EU countries time to adapt to the new rules.
The political agreement still has to be confirmed by Parliament and the EU Council. Once adopted, the directive will be published in the Official Journal of the EU and will come into force 20 days later. Member States will have 22 months to transpose it into national law. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)