More businesses must report environmental data
This European Regulation has passed: start preparing your business
This is a European Regulation. It has been adopted in Europe. Often a transition period of 1 or 2 years applies, but the rules are set. You should adapt your business.
For whom?
The new rules apply to large industrial companies and certain other businesses that may cause harm to the environment. For example:
- companies that already must submit a PRTR report
- certain combustion plants with a capacity of 20 MW or more
- mining companies and companies that extract oil or gas
- companies involved in opencast mining and stone extraction, covering an area of 25 hectares or more
- waste water purification plants serving a population equivalent of 100,000 or more
- aquaculture companies with a production capacity of more than 500 tonnes per year
- certain shipyards with a capacity of ships of 100 metres in length
- companies producing hydrogen through the electrolysis of water on an industrial scale
Whether you are required to report environmental data annually depends on your activities, the size or capacity of your installation, and the volume of emissions or waste.
Annex I of the European Industrial Emissions Portal Regulation (IEPR) lists all activities and the corresponding capacity thresholds. Article 6 of the IEPR sets out the conditions for the reporting obligation.
What changes?
More businesses will have to report environmental data. The European rules for the PRTR report will be replaced by new rules of the Industrial Emissions Portal Regulation (IEPR). Does your (large scale) industrial business potentially pollute the environment? If so, you may have to report environmental data.
Do you already have to submit a PRTR report? If so, you will be subject to the new IEPR rules. Even if you are not yet required to submit a PRTR report, you may soon be obliged to report environmental data.
Report more environmental data
Under the new IEPR rules, you must provide information about your business. It depends on your activities, if you will need to report on, amongst others:
- emissions of certain pollutants into the air, water, and soil
- waste that your business transports to another location
- pollutants in waste water that your business discharges to another location
- water consumption
- energy consumption
- use of relevant raw materials
- production and operating hours
Report by industrial installation
The new rules make a clearer distinction between different industrial installations. Does your company have multiple installations? If so, you must specify to which installation certain data relates.
This makes it clearer which installations emit pollutants and how much water, energy, and raw materials they use.
The environmental data will be published in the European Industrial Emissions Portal. This portal replaces the European PRTR register.
When?
This IEPR will take effect on 1 January 2028. The first report under the new rules will cover the reporting year 2027. You will report this data in 2028.
For the reporting year 2026, you will still report according to the current PRTR rules.