(1)

The communication of 11 December 2019 entitled ‘The European Green Deal’ constitutes Europe’s strategy to ensure, by 2050, a climate-neutral, clean and circular economy, optimising resource use, reuse and management, minimising pollution while recognising the need for deeply transformative policies as well as the need to protect the health and well-being of citizens from environment-related risks and impacts. It also aims to ensure that such transition is just and inclusive, leaving no one behind. The Union is also committed to the Paris Agreement (4), the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals as well as to its involvement in the World Health Organization. The Union’s Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability of October 2020 and the Zero Pollution Action Plan adopted in May 2021 specifically address pollution aspects of the European Green Deal. In parallel, the New Industrial Strategy for Europe further emphasises the potential role of transformative technologies. Other particularly relevant policies related to the revision of Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (5) include the European Climate law (6), ‘Fit for 55’ package, the Methane Strategy and the Glasgow methane pledge, the Climate Adaptation Strategy, the Biodiversity Strategy, the Farm to Fork strategy, the Soil Strategy and the Sustainable Products Initiative. In addition, as part of the EU response to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, REPowerEU proposes a Joint European Action to support the diversification of energy supplies, accelerate the transition to renewable energy and improve energy efficiency.

(2)

The Commission announced in the European Green Deal a revision of Union measures to address pollution from large industrial installations, including a review of the sectoral scope of the legislation and how to make it fully consistent with climate, energy and circular economy policies. In addition, the Zero Pollution Action Plan, the Circular Economy Action Plan and the Farm to Fork Strategy also call for the improvement of resource efficiency and reuse while reducing pollutant emissions at source, including sources not currently within the scope of Directive 2010/75/EU. Addressing pollution from certain agro-industrial activities, while promoting sustainable agricultural practices that have multiple co-benefits for the environmental and climate objectives of the European Green Deal, requires their inclusion within the scope of that Directive.

(3)

The Union’s extractive industry is key to achieving the objectives of the European Green Deal and the industrial strategy of the Union, including any updates to that strategy. Metals are of strategic importance for the digital and green transition, the energy, materials and circular economy transformation as well as for the strengthening of the Union’s economic resilience and autonomy. In order to achieve those objectives, sustainable domestic capacities and supply need to be further developed, especially in light of the growing global demand, the vulnerability of supply chains and geopolitical tensions. This requires effective, tailored and harmonised measures to ensure that the best available techniques are established and employed, thus applying processes that are both the most efficient and have the lowest possible impacts on human health and the environment. The governance mechanisms of Directive 2010/75/EU, which closely associate industry experts with the development of consensual and tailored environmental requirements, will support the sustainable growth of those activities in the Union. The development and availability of commonly agreed standards will level the Union’s playing field while ensuring a high level of protection of human health and the environment. It is therefore appropriate to include those activities within the scope of Directive 2010/75/EU, without prejudice to the Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 of the European Parliament and of the Council (7). The Industrial Emissions Directive will support industry in the Union in developing projects and facilitate sustainable and consensual growth of the mining activities in the Union in line with the 2030 benchmarks of the Critical Raw Materials Act. The Industrial Emissions Directive will help in meeting the targets for the streamlined permit granting process of the Critical Raw Materials Act by supporting Member States as regards the setting of operating permit conditions and the rapid granting of permits.

(4)

This amending act should clarify that olfactory pollution should be taken into account when defining best available techniques (‘BAT’) and granting or reviewing permits.

(5)

The potential aggravation of the impact of industrial discharges on the state of water bodies due to variations of water flow dynamics should be explicitly taken into account as part of the granting and reviewing of permits.

(6)

Rearing of livestock causes the release of significant pollutant emissions into the air and water. To reduce those emissions, including ammonia, methane, nitrates and greenhouse gas and thereby improve air, water and soil quality, it is necessary to lower the threshold above which pig and poultry installations are included within the scope of Directive 2010/75/EU. Therefore, the Commission should assess, and report to the European Parliament and the Council on the need for Union action to comprehensively address the emissions from the rearing of livestock, in particular cattle, taking into account the range of instruments available and the specificities of the sector. In parallel, the Commission should also assess and report to the European Parliament and the Council, based on evidence, on the need for Union action to achieve the objective of global environmental protection with regard to products placed on the internal market through the prevention and control of emissions from livestock farming, in a manner consistent with the international obligations of the Union.

(7)

BAT requirements relevant to the type of installations take into consideration the nature, size, stocking density and complexity of those installations, including the specificities of rearing systems, and the range of environmental impacts they may have. The proportionality requirements in BATs aim to incentivise farmers to make the necessary transition towards increasingly environmentally-friendly agricultural practices.

(8)

Rearing of pigs in installations operating under organic production regimes or with low stocking density should be exempted from the scope of Directive 2010/75/EU, since they contribute positively to preserving landscapes, forest fire prevention and protecting biological diversity and habitats. The exemption should cover installations with pasture-based rearing of pigs with a low stocking density, where the animals are reared outside for a significant amount of time in a year, particularly during daytime, and where weather and safety conditions ensure the welfare of the animals, or where the animals are seasonally reared outside. The area used for calculating the stocking density should be the area used for grazing by the animals in the installation or for growing fodder or forage used to feed the animals in the installation.

(9)

The Union has a responsibility to continue playing a leading role in global climate action, including by meeting the objective of a climate-neutral Union at the latest by 2050 in line with the Paris Agreement. Addressing on a global level methane emissions from livestock would contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. That reduction is urgently needed if the world is to keep the increase in global average temperature to well below 2 oC above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1,5 oC above pre-industrial levels.

(10)

The Farm to Fork (F2F) Strategy has set out a commitment to promote the global transition to sustainable food systems in standard-setting bodies and lead the work on international sustainability standards. The Union will continue striving to promote international standards in the relevant international bodies and encourage the production of agri-food products complying with high safety and sustainability standards. In addition, as stated in the Commission report ‘Application of EU health and environmental standards to imported agricultural and agri-food products’, ambitious health, environmental and other sustainability standards and objectives contribute to achieving legitimate objectives in relation to global concerns, and are also in line with the One Health approach. The Union will continue its efforts at multilateral level to reach a global consensus on the need for action and internationally agreed standards.

(11)

The Union should also take the lead in international cooperation to create an open and fair multilateral system whereby sustainable trade acts as a key enabler of the green transition. In line with the review of the Union’s Trade and Sustainable Development policy and the Commission’s Communication ‘The power of trade partnerships: together for green and just economic growth’, it is essential to engage with partners in a cooperative process to foster international environmental governance and compliance with international environmental standards.

(12)

In order to prevent the artificial splitting of farms, which could result in the reduction of the livestock unit (‘LSU’) capacity of the farm to a level below the thresholds established in Annex Ia for the application of this Directive, Member States should adopt measures to ensure that if two or more installations are located close to each other and if their operator is the same or if the installations are under the control of operators who are engaged in an economic or legal relationship, the competent authority can consider those installations to be a single unit for the purpose of calculating the livestock capacity. The threshold for mixed farming should not be used to circumvent the threshold relating to each individual livestock.

(13)

A significant increase in the number of large-scale installations for the production of batteries for electric vehicles will likely take place within the Union up to and after 2030, increasing the Union’s share of the global battery production. Several of the activities in the batteries value chain are already regulated by Directive 2010/75/EU and batteries are regulated as products by Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 of the European Parliament and of the Council (8). However, it is still necessary to include in the scope of the Directive 2010/75/EU large installations manufacturing batteries, to ensure that they are also covered by the requirements set out in Directive 2010/75/EU. The inclusion of large installations manufacturing batteries, as opposed to installations that only assemble batteries, in the scope of Directive 2010/75/EU will improve in a holistic way the sustainability of batteries and minimise their impact on the environment throughout their life cycle. This will contribute to growth in batteries manufacturing which is more sustainable.

(14)

With a view to further strengthening public access to environmental information, it is necessary to clarify that permits for installations granted pursuant to Directive 2010/75/EU are to be made available to the public on the internet, free of charge and without restricting access to registered users, while ensuring that confidential business information is safeguarded.

(15)

Member States should develop electronic permitting systems that reduce the administrative burden for operators and competent authorities, enhance public access to information and facilitate public participation in permitting procedures. The Commission should support Member States in developing electronic permitting by organising the exchange of information between Member States and providing guidance on best practices.

(16)

The impact of pollution, including when caused by incidents or accidents, can extend beyond the territory of a Member State. In such cases, without prejudice to Directive 2012/18/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (9), limiting the consequences for human health and the environment of incidents or accidents and preventing further possible incidents or accidents requires prompt exchange of information and close coordination between the competent authorities of the Member States which are or could be affected by such events. Therefore, in the event of any incident or accident significantly affecting the environment or human health in another Member State, exchange of information and transboundary and multidisciplinary cooperation between the affected Member States should be fostered to limit the consequences for the environment and human health and to prevent further possible incidents or accidents.

(17)

Member States should also adopt compliance assurance measures to promote, monitor and enforce compliance with obligations placed on natural or legal persons under Directive 2010/75/EU. As part of compliance assurance measures, Member States should ensure that national authorities in charge of the implementation and enforcement of this Directive have a sufficient number of qualified staff and sufficient financial, technical and technological resources for the effective performance of their functions related to the implementation of this Directive.

(18)

Also as part of compliance assurance measures, competent authorities should be able to suspend the operation of an installation where a continued breach of the permit conditions and the non-implementation of the findings of the inspection report pose a danger to human health or risk causing a significant adverse effect upon the environment, in order to remove that danger.

(19)

In the event of pollution affecting drinking water resources, including transboundary resources, or affecting waste water infrastructure, the competent authority should inform the drinking water and waste water operators affected of the measures taken to prevent or remedy the damage caused by that pollution to human health or the environment.

(20)

The evaluation of Directive 2010/75/EU concluded that there is a need to strengthen the links between that Directive and Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council (10) to better address the risks of the use of chemicals in installations within the scope of Directive 2010/75/EU. In order to develop synergies between the work carried out by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) on chemicals and the preparation of BAT reference documents under Directive 2010/75/EU, the ECHA should be given a formal role in such preparation of BAT reference documents.

(21)

The Commission should encourage participation in the forum for exchange of information by stakeholders and representatives of civil society including NGOs involved in promotion of the protection of human health or the environment. The Commission should ensure that the European Environment Agency participates in the exchange of information, where the exchange of information would benefit from the expertise of the Agency. Given the extension of scope and the increasing workload of the forum for exchange and the technical working group, the Commission should commit adequate resources and adopt the changes necessary, including by amending Commission Implementing Decision 2012/119/EU (11), to ensure the functioning of the forum and the technical working group.

(22)

In order to facilitate the exchange of information supporting the determination of emission levels and environmental performance levels associated with best available techniques, while maintaining the integrity of confidential business information, the procedures for the handling of information qualifying as confidential business information or commercially sensitive information, including conditions in relation to anonymisation for certain categories of stakeholders, and information collected from the industry in the context of the exchange of information organised by the Commission for the purpose of drafting, reviewing or updating BAT reference documents should be specified. It should be ensured that individuals participating in the exchange of information do not share information qualifying as confidential business information or commercially sensitive information with any representative of undertakings or trade associations having an economic interest in the industrial activities concerned and related markets. Such exchange of information is without prejudice to Union competition law, in particular Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

(23)

This Directive does not create any obligations to disclose to the public confidential business information additional to those already laid down in Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (12) and Directive (EU) 2016/943 of the European Parliament and of the Council (13).

(24)

To ensure the protection of human health and the environment as a whole, synergies and coordination with other relevant Union environmental legislation are necessary, at all stages of implementation of Directive 2010/75/EU. Therefore, all relevant competent authorities with a responsibility regarding compliance with relevant Union environmental legislation should be duly consulted before the granting of a permit under that Directive.

(25)

With a view to continuously improving the environmental performance and safety of installations, including by preventing waste generation, optimising resource use and water reuse, and preventing or reducing risks associated with the use of hazardous substances, operators of installations should establish and implement an environmental management system (EMS) in accordance with this Directive and relevant BAT conclusions, and should make relevant parts available to the public. Prior to making available the relevant parts of their EMS to the public, the operators should have the possibility of redacting or excluding confidential business information. Such possibility should apply in a restrictive way, taking into account, for the particular case, the public interest served by disclosure. The EMS should also cover the management of risks related to the use of hazardous substances and an analysis of the possible substitution of hazardous substances by safer alternatives.

(26)

In order to ensure that the EMS is in line with the requirements of Directive 2010/75/EU, the EMS should be reviewed by the operator and audited by an external auditor contracted by the operator. The auditor should be either a conformity assessment body accredited in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 765/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council (14), as required under ISO 17021, or any natural or legal person which has obtained a licence as an environmental verifier in accordance with Article 2(20) of Regulation (EC) No 1221/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council (15).

(27)

In order to support decarbonisation, resource efficiency and a circular economy, the BAT conclusions should include binding environmental performance levels associated with BAT, and indicative environmental performance levels associated with emerging techniques, for individual processes that have similar characteristics, such as energy carriers, raw materials, production units and final products, and a high degree of homogeneity across the Union, in cases where the data made available in the exchange of information supporting the determination of BAT are sufficiently robust. The BAT conclusions should also include indicative benchmarks for other cases to be included by operators in their EMS, in cases where environmental performance is highly dependent on specific circumstances of the processes. The environmental performance levels associated with BAT and the benchmarks could include consumption levels, resource efficiency levels and reuse levels covering materials, water and energy resources, and waste and other levels obtained under specified reference conditions. Environmental performance levels and benchmarks should be established taking account of the resources needed for the transformation of installations that aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as well as demand-driven variations of resource needs for specific products, such as variations of water consumption. The competent authority should set in the permit, binding ranges for environmental performance as laid down in BAT conclusions, as well as binding environmental performance limit values concerning water and indicative environmental performance levels concerning waste and resources other than water, which are not environmentally less strict than the binding ranges, provided that the lower performing end of the mandatory range is ensured. The operator should include the benchmarks in the EMS.

(28)

It is necessary to specify further the conditions under which the competent authority, when setting emission limit values applicable to pollutant releases to water in a permit granted under Directive 2010/75/EU, can take account of the downstream treatment processes in a waste water treatment plant. The emission limit values should be specified in a manner ensuring that such releases do not lead to an increased load of pollutants in receiving waters or impede the capacity or potential to recover resources from the waste water treatment stream when compared to a situation where the installation applies BAT and meets emission levels associated with the best available techniques for direct releases.

(29)

Providing a high level of protection of human health and the environment as a whole requires, inter alia, the establishment in permits of emission limit values at a level that ensures compliance with the applicable emission levels associated with the best available techniques set out in the BAT conclusions. Emission levels associated with the best available techniques (BAT-AELs) are usually expressed as ranges, rather than as single values, to reflect the differences within a given type of installation that result in variations in the environmental performances achieved when applying BAT. For example, a given BAT will not deliver the same performance for different installations, some BATs might not be suitable for use in certain installations, or a combination of BATs could be more effective for some pollutants or environmental media than others. The achievement of a high level of protection of human health and the environment as a whole has been jeopardised by the practice of setting emission limit values at the laxest end of the range of emission levels associated with the best available techniques, without considering the potential of a given installation to achieve lower emission levels through the application of best available techniques. Such practice discourages frontrunners from implementing more effective techniques, and hinders the achievement of a level playing field which ensures a high level of protection of human health and the environment. In order for the emissions to be decreased, the competent authority should set emission limit values at the strictest achievable level for the specific installation, taking into account the entire range of the BAT AELs as well as cross-media effects. The emission limit values should be based on an assessment by the operator analysing the feasibility of meeting the strictest end of the BAT AEL range and aiming at the best environmental performance possible for the specific installations; unless the operator demonstrates that applying best available techniques as described in the BAT conclusions only allows the installation concerned to meet less strict emission limit values. In order to support the setting of emission limit values in permits and the adoption of general binding rules, BAT conclusions should contain information on the circumstances allowing the achievement of lower emissions levels within the range of BAT-AELs set for categories of installations having similar characteristics. When setting emission limit values within the range of the BAT AELs, the derogation procedure should not be applicable.

(30)

BAT conclusions should identify emerging techniques and best available techniques that industrial operators can implement to transform installations to be consistent with the Union’s objective of a sustainable, clean, circular and climate-neutral economy. Competent authorities should be allowed to grant industrial operators sufficient time to implement deep industrial transformation requiring substantial investment via BATs or emerging techniques which involve a major change in design or technology, or to replace an existing installation, as described in the BAT conclusions and laid down in a transformation plan.

(31)

In recent years exceptional crisis situations have affected the Union and its Member States, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. Those crises have suddenly and directly affected the supply of energy and of societally-critical resources, materials or equipment, leading to severe shortages and disruption to which it is necessary to react swiftly. Where crises require such reaction, it could be necessary to set emission limit values and environmental performance limit values that are less strict than the levels in the BAT conclusions, in order to maintain energy production or the production of other equipment of critical importance or to allow the continuity of the operations of critical installations. The need to set less strict emission limit values or environmental performance limit values is to be balanced with the need to protect the environment and human health as well as to ensure the level playing field and the integrity of the internal market. Consequently, less strict limits may be set only as a last resort, when all measures resulting in less pollution have been exhausted. The competent authority should ensure that no significant pollution is caused due to emissions from the installation. In order to supervise the impact on the environment and public health, the emissions should be monitored. In order to ensure there is a level playing field and protect the internal market, the Commission should be able to provide strict guidance regarding the exceptional crisis situations and their circumstances that could be taken into account. The Commission should verify that such derogations granted by the Member States are justified and formulate objections where it concludes that a derogation is not justified, in which case the Member State should revise the derogation without delay.

(32)

Member States should be able to choose to exempt certain combustion units or units emitting carbon dioxide listed in Annex I to Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (16) from requirements on energy efficiency in the permit conditions.

(33)

With a view to preventing or minimising the emission of pollutants by installations within the scope of Directive 2010/75/EU and to levelling the playing field across the Union, the conditions under which derogations from emissions limit values can be granted should be better framed through general principles, including a requirement for their regular reassessment, in order to ensure that the implementation of such derogations throughout the Union is more harmonised. Moreover, derogations from emission limit values should not be granted where they could put at risk compliance with environmental quality standards.

(34)

The evaluation of Directive 2010/75/EU concluded that there was some disparity in compliance assessment approaches for installations covered by Chapter II of that Directive. In order to achieve a high level of protection of the environment as a whole, ensure a consistent implementation of Union law and a level playing field throughout the Union, while minimising the administrative burden on businesses and public authorities, the Commission should set common rules for assessing compliance with emission limit values and validation of measured levels for both air and water emissions based on best available techniques. Those compliance assessment rules should take precedence over the rules set out in Chapters III and IV on assessment of compliance with emission limit values contained in Annexes V and VI to Directive 2010/75/EU.

(35)

Environmental quality standards should be understood to refer to all the requirements set out in Union law, such as Union legislation on air and water, which must be fulfilled at a given time by a given environment or particular part thereof. Therefore, it is appropriate to clarify that, when granting a permit to an installation, competent authorities should not only set out conditions to ensure compliance of the installation’s operations with the use of the BAT conclusions, but should also, where appropriate with a view to reducing the specific contribution of the installation to the pollution occurring in the relevant area, and taking into consideration the concentration of the pollutants concerned in the receiving environment, include specific additional conditions in the permit that are stricter than those set in relevant BAT conclusions, so as to ensure the installation’s compliance with environmental quality standards. Such conditions could consist in setting stricter emission limit values, pollutant emission load limits or limiting the operation or capacity of the installation.

(36)

Permit conditions should be regularly reviewed and, where necessary, updated by the competent authority to ensure compliance with relevant legislation. Such reviews or updates should also take place where it is necessary for the installation to comply with an environmental quality standard, including in the case of a new or revised environmental quality standard or where the status of the receiving environment requires a revision of the permit, in order to achieve compliance with plans and programmes set under Union legislation, such as the river basin management plans under Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (17).

(37)

Parties to the Aarhus Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters, at their seventh Meeting session, endorsed the Convention’s Compliance Committee’s findings in case ACCC/C/2014/121, according to which, by putting in place a legal framework that does not envisage any possibility for public participation in relation to reconsiderations and updates under Article 21(3), (4) and (5)(b) and (c) of Directive 2010/75/EU, the European Union fails to comply with Article 6(10) of the Convention. Those findings have been endorsed by the Union and its Member States, and, with a view to reaching full compliance with the Aarhus Convention, it is necessary to specify that the members of the public concerned should be given early and effective opportunities to participate in the granting or updating of permit conditions set by the competent authority also when permit conditions are reconsidered following the publication of decisions on BAT conclusions relating to the main activity of the installation when developments in the best available techniques allow for the significant reduction of emissions, when operational safety requires other techniques to be used and where it is necessary to comply with a new or revised environmental quality standard.

(38)

As clarified by the case-law of the Court of Justice (18), Member States may not restrict a legal right to challenge a decision of a public authority to those members of the public concerned who have intervened in the preceding administrative procedure to adopt such decision. As also clarified by the case-law of the Court of Justice (19), effective access to justice in environmental matters and effective remedies require inter alia that members of the public concerned should have the right to ask the court or a competent independent and impartial body to order interim measures to prevent a given instance of pollution, including, where necessary, through the temporary suspension of the disputed permit. Therefore, it should be specified that legal standing should not be made conditional on the role that the member of the public concerned played during a participatory phase of the decision-making procedures, especially with regard to the granting of permits and site closures, under this Directive. In addition, any review procedure should be fair, equitable, timely and not prohibitively expensive, and provide for adequate and effective remedies, including injunctive relief as appropriate. In relation to livestock-rearing farms, a suspension of operations should be strictly without prejudice to the continuation of activities that are necessary for the welfare of the livestock.

(39)

Transboundary cooperation should take place prior to the granting of permits where more than one Member State could be affected by the operation of an installation, and should include prior information and consultation of the members of the public concerned and competent authorities in the other Member States which could be affected.

(40)

The evaluation of Directive 2010/75/EU found that, even if it is intended to foster the transformation of European industry, it is not dynamic enough and does not sufficiently support the deployment of innovative processes and technologies, including those that are essential for the twin green and digital transition and the achievement of the objectives of the European Climate Law. Without prescribing the use of any technique or specific technology, it is therefore appropriate to facilitate the testing and deployment of emerging techniques with improved environmental performance, to facilitate cooperation with researchers and industries in publicly funded research projects subject to the conditions provided for in the relevant European and national funding instruments, as well as to set up a dedicated centre to support innovation by collecting and analysing information on emerging techniques, relevant to activities within the scope of that Directive, including the rearing of poultry and pigs, and to characterise their level of development from research to deployment using the technology readiness level (‘TRL’) scale and assess the level of the environmental performance of those techniques, while taking into account any potential limitation with regard to the availability of data and its robustness. This will also inform the exchange of information on drawing up, reviewing and updating BAT reference documents. Emerging techniques to be analysed by the centre should be at least at the level of TRL 6-7, namely technology demonstrated in relevant environment (industrially relevant environment in the case of key enabling technologies) or system prototype demonstration in operation environment.

(41)

Achieving Union objectives regarding a clean, circular and climate-neutral economy by 2050 calls for a deep transformation of the Union economy. Consistently with the 8th Environmental Action Programme, operators of installations covered by Directive 2010/75/EU should therefore be required to include transformation plans in their environmental management systems. Such transformation plans will also complement the Corporate Sustainability Reporting requirements under Directive 2013/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (20) by providing a means for implementation of those requirements at installation level. The first priority should be the transformation of energy-intensive activities listed in Annex I. Therefore, the operators of energy-intensive installations should produce transformation plans by 30 June 2030. Operators of installations carrying out other activities listed in Annex I should be required to produce transformation plans as part of the permit reconsideration and update following the publication of decisions on BAT conclusions published after 1 January 2030. Operators should be allowed to produce a single transformation plan covering all installations under their control in a Member State and, where elements of the transformation plans have already been developed in other documents and are compliant with the requirements of Directive 2010/75/EU, operators should be allowed to include in the transformation plan a reference to the relevant documents. Whilst the transformation plans should remain indicative documents prepared under the responsibility of the operators, the conformity assessment body or the environmental verifier contracted by the operators as part of their environmental management systems should check that they contain the minimum information required pursuant to a delegated act to be adopted by the Commission, and the operators should make the transformation plans public.

(42)

Digital tools such as digitalised management systems might help to quantitatively and qualitatively assess and manage pollution-related risks, and help operators in the transformation of their installations.

(43)

Further clarity is needed regarding the criteria to assess whether the cleaned gases or liquids resulting from the gasification and pyrolysis of waste are sufficiently purified to such an extent that they are no longer waste prior to their incineration.

(44)

In light of the high number of rearing installations that should be included within the scope of Directive 2010/75/EU, and the relative simplicity of the processes and emissions patterns of such installations, it is appropriate to set out specific administrative procedures for issuing permits and for the operation of the relevant activities which are adapted to the sector, without prejudice to requirements related to public information and participation, monitoring and compliance. This would allow the adoption of general binding rules at national level and the registration of farms instead of issuing individual permits to farms. Member States should ensure that general binding rules and registration procedures secure a high level of environmental protection equivalent to that achievable with individual permit conditions.

(45)

Innovative techniques coming onto the market are expected to increasingly reduce both emissions of pollutants and of greenhouse gases from installations within the scope of both Directive 2003/87/EC and Directive 2010/75/EU. Whilst this will allow further synergies to be created between those Directives, it could affect their operation, including on the carbon market. Directive 2003/87/EC contains in this regard a provision to review the effectiveness of synergies with Directive 2010/75/EU, and which calls for environmental and climate relevant permits to be coordinated to ensure efficient and speedier execution of measures needed to comply with Union climate and energy objectives. In order to take into account the dynamics of innovation in this regard and the review referred to in Article 8 of Directive 2003/87/EC, the Commission should submit a report reviewing the implementation of Directive 2010/75/EU to the European Parliament and to the Council by 2028 and every five years thereafter.

(46)

Building on the simplification of reporting carried out under Directive 2010/75/EU, the Commission should continue to streamline how information is made available to it by Member States pursuant to that directive with other relevant requirements of Union law, and in particular Regulation (EU) 2024/1244 of the European Parliament and of the Council (21). The information reported should allow a meaningful review of implementation and results achieved regarding emissions and other forms of pollution, emission limit values, the application of BAT, granting of derogations and status of operation of installations. To that end, the Commission should update by 5 August 2026 the implementing decision setting out the type, format and frequency for the reporting of information by the Member States.

(47)

In order to ensure that Directive 2010/75/EU continues to meet its objectives to prevent or reduce emissions of pollutants and achieve a high level of protection of human health and the environment, operating rules for activities relating to rearing of pigs and poultry should be established, taking into account the specificity of each sector of activity. Implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission to establish uniform conditions. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council (22). It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level.

(48)

The Commission should review the need to control emissions from onshore and offshore exploration and production of mineral oil and gas, taking into account the existing Union legislative framework, including Regulation (EU) 2024/1787 of the European Parliament and of the Council (23) and Directive 2013/30/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (24), the need to control emissions from the on-site treatment and extraction of non-energy industrial minerals used in industry other than for construction, as well as the need to control emissions from the on-site treatment and extraction of ores which are newly carried out in the Union, and the need to revise the activity threshold in Annex I for the production of hydrogen by electrolysis of water.

(49)

In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of Directive 2010/75/EU, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission as regards the establishment of (i) a standardised methodology for assessing the disproportionality between the costs of implementation of the BAT conclusions and the potential environmental benefits in accordance with Article 15(4) taking into consideration methods such as the ‘Value of Statistical Life’ (VSL) or the ‘Value of Life Year’ (VOLY) methods, if appropriate; (ii) a standardised methodology for undertaking the assessment referred to in Article 15(6); (iii) the measuring method for assessing compliance with emission limit values set out in the permit with regard to emissions to air and water; (iv) the detailed arrangements necessary for the establishment and functioning of the innovation centre for industrial transformation and emissions; (v) the format to be used for transformation plans; and (vi) which information from the EMS is relevant for publication, which should include information at least on environmental performance indicators and objectives, as well as on the progress towards the environmental objectives. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011.

(50)

In order to ensure the effective implementation and enforcement of the obligations set out in Directive 2010/75/EU, it is necessary to specify the minimum content of effective, proportionate and dissuasive penalties. Disparities in penalties regimes, the fact that imposed penalties are deemed in many cases too low to truly have a deterrent effect on illegal behaviours, and the lack of uniform implementation across Member States, undermine the level playing field on industrial emissions throughout the Union.

(51)

Member States should lay down rules on penalties applicable to infringements of national provisions adopted pursuant to this Directive and should ensure that they are implemented. Member States may lay down rules for administrative as well as criminal penalties. In any case, the imposition of criminal and administrative penalties should not lead to a breach of the right not to be tried or punished twice in criminal proceedings for the same criminal offence (ne bis in idem principle) as interpreted by the Court of Justice. For the most serious infringements committed by a legal person, such as those of a high level of gravity due to their nature, extent and repetition, or where those infringements pose a significant risk to human health or the environment, Member States should ensure that their national system of penalties includes fines whose maximum amount should be at least 3 % of the annual Union turnover of the operator in the financial year preceding the year in which the fine is imposed. For those infringements, without prejudice to the obligations of Member States under Directive 2008/99/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (25), Member States may also or alternatively adopt criminal penalties, provided that they are effective, proportionate and dissuasive.

(52)

Where damage to human health has occurred as a result of an infringement of national measures adopted pursuant to Directive 2010/75/EU, Member States should ensure that the individuals affected are able to claim and obtain compensation for that damage from the relevant natural or legal persons. Such rules on compensation contribute to the pursuit of the objectives of preserving, protecting and improving the quality of the environment and the protection of human health as laid down in Article 191 TFEU. They also underpin the right to life, integrity of the person and health care laid down in Article 2, 3 and 35 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the right to an effective remedy as laid down in Article 47 of the Charter. Moreover, Directive 2004/35/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (26) does not give private parties a right of compensation as a consequence of environmental damage or of an imminent threat of such damage.

(53)

It is therefore appropriate for Directive 2010/75/EU to address the right for compensation for damages suffered by individuals and to ensure that individuals can defend their rights against damages to health caused by infringements of Directive 2010/75/EU and thereby ensure a more efficient enforcement of that Directive. Procedures relating to claims for compensation should be designed and applied in such a way that they do not render the exercise of the right to compensation for damage impossible or excessively difficult.

(54)

The impact of Directive 2010/75/EU on the procedural autonomy of the Member States should be limited to what is necessary to ensure the objectives of protection of human health through a safe environment pursued by it and should not affect other national procedural rules establishing the right to seek compensation for infringements of that Directive. Such national rules should, however, not hamper the effective functioning of the mechanism for seeking compensation required by Directive 2010/75/EU.

(55)

Directive 2010/75/EU has been implemented in a divergent manner across the Member States concerning the coverage of installations for the manufacturing of ceramic products by firing, because the wording of the definition of this activity allowed Member States to decide whether to apply both or only one of the two criteria on production capacity and kiln capacity. With a view to ensuring a more consistent implementation of that Directive and securing a level playing field throughout the Union, such installations should be included within the scope of that Directive whenever one of those two criteria is met.

(56)

When setting emission limit values for polluting substances, the competent authority should consider all substances, including substances of emerging concern, which may be emitted from the concerned installation and may have a significant impact on the environment or human health. In doing so, the hazard characteristics, quantity and nature of the substances emitted and their potential to pollute any environmental media should be considered. The BAT conclusions, where relevant, are the reference point for selecting the substances for which emission limit values are to be set, although the competent authority may decide to select additional substances. Currently, individual polluting substances are listed in a non-exhaustive way in Annex II to Directive 2010/75/EU which is not compatible with the holistic approach of that Directive and does not reflect the need for competent authorities to take into account all relevant polluting substances, including those of emerging concern. The non-exhaustive list of polluting substances should therefore be deleted. Instead, reference should be made to the list of pollutants in Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 166/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council (27).

(57)

Although landfills are included within the scope of Directive 2010/75/EU, no BAT conclusions exist for landfills since that activity falls within the scope of Council Directive 1999/31/EC (28) and the requirements of the latter Directive are deemed to constitute BAT. Due to the technical developments and innovation that have taken place since the adoption of Directive 1999/31/EC, more effective techniques for protecting human health and the environment are now available. The adoption of BAT conclusions under Directive 2010/75/EU would allow addressing the key environmental issues related to the operation of waste landfills, including significant emissions of methane. Directive 1999/31/EC should therefore allow for the adoption of BAT conclusions on landfills under Directive 2010/75/EU.

(58)

Since the objectives of this Directive, namely to ensure a high level of environmental protection and the improvement of environmental quality, cannot be sufficiently achieved by Member States but can rather, by reason of the transboundary nature of pollution from industrial activities, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Directive does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.

(59)

In accordance with the principle of proportionality, it is necessary and appropriate for the achievement of the basic objective of ensuring a high level of environmental protection and the improvement of environmental quality to lay down rules on integrated prevention and control of pollution arising from industrial activities and livestock rearing activities. This Directive does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve the objectives pursued, in accordance with Article 5(4) of the Treaty on European Union.

(60)

In accordance with the Joint Political Declaration of 28 September 2011 of Member States and the Commission on explanatory documents (29), Member States have undertaken to accompany, in justified cases, the notification of their transposition measures with one or more documents explaining the relationship between the components of a directive and the corresponding parts of national transposition instruments. With regard to this Directive, the legislator considers the transmission of such documents to be justified,

(61)

Combustion plants that are part of small isolated systems, may, due to their geographical location and lack of interconnection to the mainland grid of Member States or the grid of another Member State, face special challenges requiring more time to comply with the emission limit values. The Member States concerned should establish a plan for compliance covering combustion plants being part of a small isolated system that sets out the measures to ensure compliance with the emission limit values at the latest by 31 December 2029. The plan should describe the measures to ensure compliance with this Directive, and measures to minimise the magnitude and duration of the pollutant emissions during the period covered by the plan and include information on demand management measures and possibilities for cleaner fuel switching possibilities or cleaner alternatives such as the deployment of renewables and interconnection with the mainland grids or the grid of another Member State. Member States concerned should communicate their Compliance Plan to the Commission. Member States should update the plan in case the Commission raises objections. Member States concerned should report annually on progress towards compliance.

(62)

In order to give the Member States, competent authorities and installations time to comply with the new provisions, and also to give the Commission time to adopt new BAT conclusions that take the new provisions into account, transitional provisions should be prescribed. To ensure legal certainty there is a need to have a fixed date by when the provisions should be complied with at the absolute latest. With regard to the Seville process and the number of BAT reference documents that need to be reviewed, this date should be set to 12 years for existing activities and 10 years for new activities. This does not prevent BAT conclusions to be adopted and implemented earlier, which is expected for most activities covered by this directive. Existing installations should comply with the provisions in Directive 2010/75/EU in the version in force on 3 August 2024, until there are new BAT conclusions or there is a permit update.

(63)

Directives 2010/75/EU and 1999/31/EC should therefore be amended accordingly,

(1)

the title is replaced by the following:

‘Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 on industrial and livestock rearing emissions (integrated pollution prevention and control)’

(2)

in Article 1, the second paragraph is replaced by the following:

‘It also lays down rules designed to prevent or, where that is not practicable, to continuously reduce emissions into air, water and land, to prevent the generation of waste, improve resource efficiency, and to promote the circular economy and decarbonisation, in order to achieve a high level of protection of human health and the environment taken as a whole.’

(3)

in Article 2, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

(4)

Article 3 is amended as follows:

(5)

in Article 4(1), the second subparagraph is replaced by the following:

‘By way of derogation from the first subparagraph, Member States may set a procedure for the registration of installations covered only by Chapter V or Chapter VIa.’

(6)

in Article 5, the following paragraph is added:

(7)

Articles 7 and 8 are replaced by the following:

(*3)  Directive 2004/35/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 on environmental liability with regard to the prevention and remedying of environmental damage (OJ L 143, 30.4.2004, p. 56).’;"

(8)

in Article 9, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:

(9)

in Article 11, point (f) is amended as follows:

;

(10)

in Article 11, the following points are inserted:

;

(11)

in Article 12, paragraph 1, points (b), (c) and (f) are replaced by the following:

;

(12)

Article 13 is amended as follows:

(13)

Article 14 is amended as follows:

(14)

the following article is inserted:

(*4)  Directive (EU) 2024/1785 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 April 2024 amending Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on industrial emissions (integrated pollution prevention and control) and Council Directive 1999/31/EC on the landfill of waste (OJ L, 2024/1785, 15.7.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2024/1785/oj).’;"

(15)

Article 15 is replaced by the following:

(16)

the following Article is inserted:

(17)

in Article 16, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:

(18)

in Article 16, the following paragraph is added:

(19)

in Article 16, the following paragraph is added:

(20)

Article 18 is replaced by the following:

(21)

in Article 20, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

(22)

in Article 21(3), first subparagraph, point (a) is replaced by the following:

;

(23)

in Article 21(5), point (c) is replaced by the following:

;

(24)

in Article 21(5), the following point is added:

;

(25)

in Article 23(4), the fifth subparagraph is replaced by the following:

‘The Commission shall adopt and, where appropriate, regularly update guidance on the criteria for the appraisal of environmental risks.’

(26)

Article 24 is amended as follows:

(27)

in Article 25(1), the following subparagraphs are added:

‘Standing in the review procedure shall not be conditional on the role that the member of the public concerned played during a participatory phase of the decision-making procedures under this Directive.

The review procedure shall be fair, equitable, timely and not prohibitively expensive, and shall provide for adequate and effective remedies, including injunctive relief as appropriate.’

(28)

in Article 26, paragraphs 1 and 2 are replaced by the following:

(29)

the following heading is inserted after Article 26:

‘CHAPTER IIA

ENABLING AND PROMOTING INNOVATION’

(30)

Article 27 is replaced by the following:

(31)

the following articles are inserted:

(32)

in Article 30, paragraph 5 is replaced by the following:

(33)

in Article 30(6), the third subparagraph is replaced by the following:

‘Member States shall inform the Commission immediately of any derogation granted under the first subparagraph, including the reasons justifying the derogation and the conditions imposed.’

(34)

the following article is inserted:

(35)

in Article 42(1), the second subparagraph is replaced by the following:

‘This Chapter shall not apply to gasification or pyrolysis plants, if the gases or liquids resulting from such thermal treatment of waste are treated prior to their incineration to such an extent that:

(36)

in Article 48, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

(37)

in Article 63, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:

(38)

in Article 70, paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:

(39)

the following heading is inserted after Article 70:

‘CHAPTER VIA

SPECIAL PROVISIONS FOR REARING POULTRY AND PIGS’

(40)

the following articles are inserted after the heading ‘Chapter VIa’:

(41)

in Article 72, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:

(42)

in Article 73(1), the first and the second subparagraphs are replaced by the following:

‘By 30 June 2028 and every 5 years thereafter, the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a report reviewing the implementation of this Directive. The report shall include information on activities for which BAT conclusions have or have not been adopted pursuant to Article 13(5) of this Directive, take into account the dynamics of innovation, including emerging techniques, the need for further pollution prevention measures and the review referred to in Article 8 of Directive 2003/87/EC.

That report shall include an assessment of the need for Union action through the establishment or updating of Union-wide minimum requirements for emission limit values and for rules on monitoring and compliance for activities within the scope of the BAT conclusions adopted during the previous five-year period, on the basis of the following criteria:

(43)

Article 73 is amended as follows:

(44)

Article 74 is replaced by the following:

(45)

Article 75 is replaced by the following:

(46)

Article 76 is replaced by the following:

(47)

Articles 77 and 78 are deleted;

(48)

Article 79 is replaced by the following:

(*5)  Directive 2008/99/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 November 2008 on the protection of the environment through criminal law (OJ L 328, 6.12.2008, p. 28).’;"

(49)

the following article is inserted:

(50)

Annex I is amended in accordance with Annex I to this Directive;

(51)

Annex Ia as set out in Annex II to this Directive is inserted;

(52)

Annex II is replaced by the text set out in Annex III to this Directive;

(53)

Annex III is amended in accordance with Annex IV to this Directive;

(54)

Annex IV is amended in accordance with Annex V to this Directive;

(55)

Annex V is amended in accordance with Annex VI to this Directive;

(56)

Annex VI is amended in accordance with Annex VII to this Directive.