Proposal for a Council Directive amending Directive 88/609/EEC on the limitation of emissions of certain pollutants into the air from large combustion plants (98/C 300/04) (Text with EEA relevance) COM(1998) 415 final - 98/0225(SYN)

(Submitted by the Commission on 31 August 1998)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 130s(1) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee,

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 189c of the Treaty, in cooperation with the European Parliament,

(1) Whereas the fifth environmental action programme (1) sets as an objective 'no exceedance ever of critical loads and levels` of certain acidifying pollutants such as sulphur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx), and in terms of air quality the objective is that 'all people should be effectively protected against recognised health risks from air pollution`;

(2) Whereas Council Directive 88/609/EEC (2) on the limitation of emissions of certain pollutants into the air from large combustion plants, as amended by Directive 94/66/EC (3) and last amended by the Act of Accession of Austria, Finland and Sweden, contributed to the reduction and control of atmospheric emissions from large combution plants;

(3) Whereas the Commission has recently published a communication on a Community strategy to combat acidification (4); whereas the revision of Directive 88/609/EEC was identified as being an integral component of that strategy;

(4) Whereas, in accordance with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality as set out in Article 3b of the Treaty, the objective of reducing acidifying emissions from large combustion plants cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States acting individually and unconcerted action offers no guarantee of achieving the desired objective; whereas, in view of the need to reduce acidifying emissions across the Community, it is more effective to take action at the level of the Community; whereas this Directive confines itself to minimum requirements for new combustion plants;

(5) Whereas Council Directive 96/61/EC (5) sets out an integrated approach to pollution prevention and control in which all the aspects of an installation's environmental performance are considered in an integrated manner; whereas combustion installations with a rated thermal input exceeding 50 MW are included within the scope of that Directive;

(6) Whereas compliance with the emission limit values laid down by Directive 88/609/EEC, as amended by this Directive, should be regarded as a necessary but not sufficient condition for compliance with the requirements of Directive 96/61/EC regarding the use of best available techniques; whereas such compliance may involve more stringent emission limit values, emission limit values for other substances and other media, and other appropriate conditions;

(7) Whereas industrial experience in the implementation of techniques for the reduction of polluting emissions from large combustion plants has been acquired over a period of 15 years;

(8) Whereas installations for the production of electricity represent an important part of the large combustion plant sector;

(9) Whereas European Parliament and Council Directive 96/92/EC of 19 December 1996 concerning common rules for the internal market in electricity (6) must be transposed by 19 February 1999; whereas this is likely to have the effect of distributing new production capacity among new arrivals in the sector;

(10) Whereas the Community is committed to a reduction of carbon dioxide emissions; whereas the combined production of heat and electricity represents a valuable opportunity for significantly improving overall efficiency in fuel use;

(11) Whereas significant increase in the use of natural gas for producing electricity is already under way and is likely to continue, in particular through the use of gas turbines;

(12) Whereas Council Resolution of 24 February 1997 on a Community strategy for waste management (7) emphasises the need for promoting waste recovery and states that appropriate emission standards should apply to the operation of facilities in which waste is incinerated in order to ensure a high level of protection for the environment;

(13) Whereas industrial experience has been gained concerning techniques and equipments for the measurement of the principal pollutants emitted by large combustion plants; whereas the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) has undertaken work with the aim of providing a framework securing comparable measurement results within the Community and guaranteeing a high level of quality of such measurements;

(14) Whereas there is a need to improve knowledge concerning the emission of the principal pollutants from large combustion plants; whereas, in order to be genuinely representative of the level of pollution of an installation, such information should also be associated with knowledge concerning its energy consumption;

(15) Whereas Directive 88/609/EEC should therefore be amended accordingly,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

Article 1

Directive 88/609/EEC is hereby amended as follows:

1. Article 2 is amended as follows:

(a) in point 4, the words 'by processes especially designed for this purpose` are deleted;

(b) in point 6, the words 'with the exception of domestic refuse and toxic or dangerous waste` are replaced by the words 'with the exception of waste covered by Council Directives 89/369/EEC (*), 89/429/EEC (**) and 94/67/EC (***).

(*) OJ L 163, 14.6.1989, p. 32.

(**) OJ L 203, 15.7.1989, p. 50.

(***) OJ L 365, 31.12.1994, p. 34.`

(c) Point 7 is amended as follows:

(i) the following indents are added to the third paragraph:

'- any technical apparatus used in the propulsion of a vehicle, ship or aircraft,

- gas turbines used on an offshore platform.`

(ii) In the fourth paragraph, the words 'or by gas turbines, irrespective of the fuel used` are deleted.

(d) The following points are added:

'11. "biomass" means: any whole or part of vegetable matter which can be used for the purpose of recovering its energy content. Wood wastes and vegetable matter wastes are also considered as biomass provided that they do not fall within the scope of Council Directives 89/369/EEC, 89/429/EEC and 94/67/EC;

12. "gas turbine" means: any rotating machine which converts thermal energy into mechanical work, consisting mainly of a compressor, a thermal device in which fuel is oxidised in order to heat the working fluid, and a turbine.`

2. In Article 3, paragraph 4 is deleted.

3. In Article 4, paragraph 2 is deleted.

4. In Article 5, the following sentence is added to point 1:

'This provision does not apply to new plants for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000`.

5. Article 7 is replaced by the following:

'Article 7

In new plants for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000 the competent authorities shall ensure that there is provision for the combined generation of heat and electricity where this is technically and economically feasible. To this end, the Member States shall ensure that operators examine the possibilities of locating the installations on sites with a heat requirement`.

6. Article 8 is amended as follows:

(a) Paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

'1. Member States shall ensure that provision is made in the licences referred to in Article 4(1) for procedures relating to malfunction or breakdown of the abatement equipment. In case of a breakdown the competent authority shall in particular require the operator to reduce or close down operations if a return to normal operation is not achieved within 24 hours, or to operate the plant using low polluting fuels. In any case the competent authority shall be notified within 48 hours. In no circumstances shall the cumulative duration of unabated operation in any one year period exceed 120 hours except in cases where, in the judgment of the competent authority, there is an overriding need to maintain energy supplies`.

(b) Paragraph 2 is deleted.

(c) In paragraph 3, the words 'a short period` are replaced by the words 'a period not exceeding 10 days`.

(d) In paragraph 4, the words 'this Article` are replaced by the words 'paragraph 3`.

7. In Article 9(3), the first subparagraph is replaced by the following:

'As an alternative to paragraph 2, the following emission limit values for sulphur dioxide averaged over all new plants within the refinery and irrespective of the fuel combination used may be applied:

(a) for plants for which a licence is granted before 1 January 2000: 1 000 mg/Nm³,

(b) for plants for which a licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000: 450 mg/Nm³`.

8. In Article 13, paragraphs 2 and 3 are deleted.

9. In Article 15, the following paragraph 4 shall be added:

'4 For new plants for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000, the emission limit values shall be regarded as complied with if:

- no validated daily average value exceeds the relevant figures set out in Annexes III to VII,

- no validated hourly average value exceeds 200 % of the relevant figures set out in Annexes III to VII.

The "validated average values" are determined as set out in Annex IX, Part A, paragraph 6`.

10. In Article 16, paragraph 3 is deleted.

11. Annexes III to IX are amended as set out in the Annex to this Directive.

Article 2

Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by 31 December 2000 at the latest. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.

When Member States adopt those provisions, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made.

Article 3

This Directive shall enter into force on the 20th day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

Article 4

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

(1) OJ C 138, 17.5.1993, p. 1.

(2) OJ L 336, 7.12.1988, p. 1.

(3) OJ L 337, 24.12.1994, p. 83.

(4) COM(97) 88 final.

(5) OJ L 257, 10.10.1996, p. 26.

(6) OJ L 27, 30.1.1997, p. 20.

(7) OJ C 76, 11.3.1997, p. 1.

ANNEX

1. The following Annex shall be added to Annex III:

'SO2 emission limit values expressed in mg/Nm³ (O2 content 6 %) to be applied by new plants for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000.

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2. The following shall be added to Annex IV:

'SO2 emission limit values expressed in mg/Nm³ (O2 content 3 %) to be applied by new plants for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000.

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3. The following shall be added to Annex V:

'SO2 emission limit values expressed in mg/Nm³ (O2 content 3 %) to be applied by new plants for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000.

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4. The following is added to Annex VI:

'Solid fuels

NOx emission limit values expressed in mg/Nm³ (O2 content 6 %) to be applied by new plants for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000.

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Liquid fuels

NOx emission limit values expressed in mg/Nm³ (O2 content 3 %) to be applied by new plants (with the exception of gas turbines) for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000

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gaseous fuels

NOx emission limit values expressed in mg/Nm³ (O2 content 3 %) to be applied by new plants (with the exception of gas turbines) for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000

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Gas turbines

NOx emission limit values expressed in mg/Nm³ (O2 content 15 %) to be applied by a single gas turbine unit for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000. The following limit values apply only above 70 % load.

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Note 1: Natural gas is naturally occuring methane with not more than 20 % (by volume) of inerts and other constituents.

Note 2: 75 mg/Nm³ in following cases:

- gas turbine used in a combined heat and power system,

- gas turbine driving compressor for public gas grid supply.

For gas turbines not falling into either of the above categories, but having an efficiency greater than 35 %, determined at ISO base load conditions, the ELV shall be 50*ç/35 where ç is the gas turbine efficiency expressed as a percentage (and determined at ISO base load conditions).

Note 3: This emission limit value only applies to gas turbine firing light and middle distillates`.

5. The following is added to Annex VII:

'Solid fuels

Dust emission limit values expressed in mg/Nm³ (O2 content 6 %) to be applied by new plants for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000.

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Liquid fuels

Dust emission limit values expressed in mg/Nm³ (O2 content 3 %) to be applied by new plants for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000.

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Gaseous fuels

Dust emission limit values expressed in mg/Nm³ (O2 content 3 %) to be applied by new plants for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000.

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6. The following is added to Annex VIII:

'For new plants for which the licence is granted on or after 1 January 2000.

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7. Annex IX is amended as follows:

(a) Part A is amended as follows:

(i) In the title, the words 'from new plants` are replaced by the words 'from combustion plants`.

(ii) Paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

'1. Until 1 January 2000 concentrations of SO2 dust, NOx shall be measured continuously in the case of new plants with a rated thermal input of more than 300 MW. However, monitoring of SO2 and dust may be confined to discontinuous measurements or other appropriate determination procedures in cases where such measurements or procedures, which must be verified and approved by the competent authorities, may be used to obtain concentration.

In the case of plants not covered by the first subparagraph, the competent authorities may require continuous measurements of those three pollutants to be carried out where considered necessary. Where continuous measurements are not required, discontinuous measurements or appropriate determination procedures as approved by the competent authorities shall be used regularly to evaluate the quantity of the abovementioned substances present in the emissions.

From 1 January 2000 competent authorities shall require continuous measurements of concentrations of SO2, NOx and dust from each combustion plant which falls into one of the following categories:

- new combustion plant with a rated thermal input of 100 MW or more,

- other combustion plant with a rated thermal input of 300 MW or more.

By the way of derogation from the third subparagraph, continuous measurements shall not be required in the following cases:

- for combustion plants with a life span less than 10 000 operational hours,

- for SO2 and dust from gas turbines firing natural gas or light and middle distillates.

Where continuous measurements are not required, discontinuous measurements shall be required at least each six months. As an alternative, appropriate determination procedures, which must be verified and approved by the competent authorities, may be used to evaluate the quantity of the abovementioned pollutants present in the emissions. Such procedures shall use relevant CEN standards as soon as they are available`.

(iii) Paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:

'4. The continuous measurements carried out in compliance with paragraph 1 shall include the relevant process operation parameters such as oxygen content, temperature, pressure. The continuous measurement of the water vapour content of the exhaust gases shall not be necessary, provided that the sampled exhaust gas is dried before the emissions are analysed.

Representative measurements, i.e. sampling and analysis, of relevant pollutants and process parameters as well as reference measurement methods to calibrate automated measurement systems shall be carried out in accordance with CEN standards. Until the CEN standards are drawn up, national standards shall apply.

Continuous measuring systems shall be subject to control by means of parallel measurements with the reference methods at least every one year`.

(iv) The following paragraphs 5 and 6 are added:

'5. The value of the 95 % confidence intervals determined at the emission limit values shall not exceed the following percentages of the emission limit value:

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6. The validated hourly and daily average values shall be determined within the effective operating time (excluding start-up and shut-off periods), from the measured valid hourly average values after having subtracted the value of the confidence interval specified above.

Any day in which more than three-hourly average values are invalid due to malfunction or maintenance of the continuous measurement system shall be invalidated. If more than 10 days over a year are invalidated for such situations the competent authority shall require the operator to take adequate measures to improve the reliability of the continuous monitoring system`.

(b) Part B is amended as follows:

(i) In the title, the word 'new plants` are to be replaced by the words 'combustion plants`.

(ii) The words 'Until 2003` are added at the beginning of the first paragraph.

(iii) The following paragraphs are added:

'Member States shall establish, starting in 2003 and for each subsequent year, an inventory of SO2 and NOx emissions from all combustion plants with a rated thermal input of 50 MW or more. The competent authority shall obtain for each plant operated under the control of one operator at a given location the following data:

- the total annual emissions of SO2, NOx and dust (as total suspended particles),

- the total number amount of energy input, related to the net calorific value, broken down in terms of the five categories of fuel: biomass, other solid fuels, liquid fuels, natural gas, other gases.

A summary of the results of this inventory shall be communicated to the Commission every three years within 12 months from the end of the three-year period considered. The yearly plant-by-plant data shall be made available to the Commission on request`.

(c) Part C is amended as follows:

(i) In paragraph 1, the words 'until and including 2003` are inserted after 'and for each subsequent year`.

(ii) In paragraph 2, the second subparagraph is deleted.