Limitation of emissions of certain pollutants into the air from medium combustion plants
The Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety adopted the report by Andrzej GRZYB (EPP, PL) on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the limitation of emissions of certain pollutants into the air from medium combustion plants
The committee recommended that the position of the European Parliament adopted in first reading following the ordinary legislative procedure should amend the commission proposal as follows:
Scope: the Directive laid down rules to monitor emissions of carbon monoxide also.
The Directive should apply to combinations formed by two or more combustion plants having a total rated thermal input equal to or greater than 1 MW and less than 50 MW, unless the combination is a combustion plant covered by Chapter III of Directive 2010/75/EU on industrial emissions.
If more than one individual combustion plant with a rated thermal input of less than 1 MW were installed on a single site in a load-sharing arrangement, such combination should be considered as a single combustion plant for the purposes of the Directive.
Exclusions: Members considered that the Directive should not apply, inter alia, to:
- combustion plants covered by Directive 97/68/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to measures against the emission of gaseous and particulate pollutants from internal combustion engines to be installed in non-road mobile machinery
- on-farm combustion plants with a total rated thermal input not exceeding 5 MW, which are exclusively using unprocessed poultry manure;
- combustion plants in which the gaseous products of combustion are used for the direct heating, drying or any other treatment of objects or materials, or direct gas-fired heating used to heat indoor spaces for the improvement of workplace conditions;
- gas turbines and gas and diesel engines used on offshore platforms;
- facilities for the conversion of hydrogen sulphide into sulphur;
- reactors used in the chemical industry;
- coke battery furnaces.
The Directive should not apply to research or development activities or testing activities relating to medium combustion plants.
Overseas territories: the emission limit values set out in Annex II should not apply to medium combustion plants located in the Canary Islands, French Overseas Departments, and the archipelagos of Madeira and Azores. Member States should set emission limit values for those plants in order to reduce their emissions to air and the potential risks to human health and the environment.
Registration: no new medium combustion plant must be operated without a permit or registration.
Furthermore, none of the following should be operated without a permit or registration:
- as of 1 January 2020 an existing medium combustion plant with a rated thermal input above 15 MW;
- as of 1 January 2022 an existing medium combustion plant with a rated thermal input above 5 MW and less than or equal to 15 MW;
- as of 1 January 2025 an existing medium combustion plant with a rated thermal input of 5 MW .
Competent authorities should hold a publicly accessible register of medium combustion plants.
Emission limit values: Member States may exempt medium combustion plants which were part of an installation covered by Chapter II of Directive 2010/75/EU from compliance with the emission limit values set out in Annex II.
Emissions into air of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and dust should not exceed the emission limit values set out in Part 1 of Annex II:
- from 1 January 2020 (instead of 2025) from an existing medium combustion plant with a rated thermal input above 15 MW;
- from 1 January 2022 from an existing medium combustion plant with a rated thermal input above 5 MW and less than or equal to 15 MW;
- from 1 January 2027 (instead of from 2030) from an existing medium combustion plant with a rated thermal input of 5 MW or less.
Member States may exempt existing medium combustion plants being part of small isolated systems and micro isolated systems from compliance with the emission limit values set out in Part 1 of Annex II for up to five years, but no later than 2030.
In zones not complying with EU air quality limit values laid down in Directive 2008/50/EC, Member States shall assess the need to apply, for individual medium combustion plants in those zones, stricter emission limit values.
Energy efficiency: the report wanted Member States to take measures to promote increased energy efficiency of medium combustion plants.
By 31 December 2016, the Commission should assess the minimum energy efficiency standards for medium combustion plants in line with best available techniques. The Commission should report the results of that assessment to the European Parliament.
Audits: when audits and inspections were already in place to check compliance with other Union legislation controlling emissions, Member States might make use of those audits and inspections to check compliance with the Directive.
Review: Members stated that with such long time spans, it was important to regularly review the Directive in light of new technology developments.
The Commission should review the emission limit values for new medium combustion plants by 31 December 2025 with the exception of NOx emission limit values which should be reviewed by 31 December 2021. The emission limit values for new and existing medium combustion plants should be reviewed by 31 December 2030. Thereafter, reviews would take place every ten years.