Health, Safety & the Environment
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| Managing Processes: Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control |
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Cefic supports the new permit procedure for industrial installations introduced by the IPPC (Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control) Directive, to which it is actively contributing. |
The IPPC Directive, voted in 1996 to ensure better protection of the environment, introduced a new, unified permit procedure for industrial installations. This currently applies to new or substantially changed installations but will extend to existing ones from 2007.
The procedure takes into account the overall environmental impact of the plant – not just emissions but also factors such as waste and consumption of energy. Emission limit values are estimated by the permitting authorities with reference to Best Available Techniques (BAT). BAT result from an exchange of information between member states, industry and environmental NGOs and are worked out under the form of a BAT Reference Document (BREF).
The chemical industry is currently involved in the BREF drafting process. Its desire is to see realistic BAT imposed that are fairly implemented at national and local level.
In 2004, as a result of the dialogue between member states and industry, the European Commission approved BREFs on emissions from storage, economics and cross-media issues and large combustion plants. The BREFs on waste, large volume inorganics, organic fine chemicals, specialty inorganic chemicals, polymers and surface treatment using solvents are currently under preparation. A new one, energy efficiency, was started in May 2005.
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