Council Directive 84/360/EEC of 28 June 1984 on the combating of air pollution from industrial plants
Modified by
  • Council Directiveof 23 December 1991standardizing and rationalizing reports on the implementation of certain Directives relating to the environment(91/692/EEC), 31991L0692, December 31, 1991
  • Directive 2008/1/EC of the European Parliament and of the Councilof 15 January 2008concerning integrated pollution prevention and control(Codified version)(Text with EEA relevance), 32008L0001, January 29, 2008
Council Directiveof 28 June 1984on the combating of air pollution from industrial plants(84/360/EEC) THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Articles 100 and 235 thereof,Having regard to the proposal from the CommissionOJ No C 139, 27. 5. 1983, p. 5.,Having regard to the opinion of the European ParliamentOJ No C 342, 19. 12. 1983, p. 160.,Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social CommitteeOJ No C 23, 30. 1. 1984, p. 27.,Whereas the 1973OJ No C 112, 20. 12. 1973, p. 1., 1977OJ No C 139, 13. 6. 1977, p. 1. and 1983OJ No C 46, 17. 2. 1983. p. 1. action programmes of the European Communities on the environment stress the importance of the prevention and reduction of air pollution;Whereas the 1973 and 1977 action programmes in particular provide not only for the objective evaluation of the risks to human health and to the environment from air pollution but also for the formulation of quality objectives and the setting of quality standards, especially for a number of air pollutants regarded as the most hazardous;Whereas the Council has already adopted several Directives under these programmes;Whereas, moreover, under Decision 81/462/EECOJ No L 171, 27. 6. 1981, p. 11. the Community is a party to the Convention on long-range transboundary air pollution;Whereas the 1983 action programme, the general guidelines of which have been approved by the Council of the European Communities and by the representatives of the Member States meeting within the Council, envisages that the Commission will continue its efforts to establish air quality standards and that where appropriate emission standards for certain types of source should be laid down;Whereas all the Member States have laws, regulations and administrative provisions concerning the combating of air pollution from stationary industrial plants; whereas several Member States are in the process of amending the existing provisions;Whereas the disparities between the provisions concerning the combating of air pollution from industrial installations currently in force, or in the process of amendment, in the different Member States are liable to create unequal conditions of competition and thus have a direct effect on the functioning of the common market; whereas, therefore, approximation of the law in this field is required, as provided for by Article 100 of the Treaty;Whereas one of the essential tasks of the Community is to promote throughout the Community a harmonious development of economic activities and a continuous and balanced expansion, tasks which are inconceivable in the absence of a campaign to combat pollution and nuisances or of an improvement in the quality of life and in the protection of the environment;Whereas the Community should and must help increase the effectiveness of action undertaken by the Member States to combat air pollution from stationary industrial plants;Whereas in order to achieve this end certain principles aiming at the implementation of a series of measures and procedures designed to prevent and reduce air pollution from industrial plants within the Community should be introduced;Whereas the Community's endeavours to introduce these principles can be only gradual, bearing in mind the complexity of the situations and the fundamental principles on which the various national policies are based;Whereas initially a general framework should be introduced to permit the Member States to adapt, where necessary, their existing rules to the principles adopted at Community level; whereas the Member States should therefore introduce a system of prior authorization for the operation and substantial alteration of stationary industrial plants which can cause air pollution;Whereas, moreover, the competent national authorities cannot grant such authorization unless a number of conditions have been fulfilled, including the requirements that all appropriate preventive measures are taken, and that the operation of the plant does not result in a significant level of air pollution;Whereas it should be possible to apply special provisions in particularly polluted areas and in areas in need of special protection;Whereas the rules applicable to the authorization procedures and to the determination of emissions must satisfy certain requirements;Whereas in certain situations the competent authorities must explore the need to impose further requirements, which, however, must not result in excessive costs for the undertaking concerned;Whereas the provisions taken pursuant to this Directive are to be applied gradually to existing plants, taking due account of technical factors and the economic effects;Whereas provision must be made for cooperation between the Member States themselves and with the Commission to facilitate implementation of the measures designed to prevent and to reduce air pollution and to develop preventive technology,HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
Article 1The purpose of this Directive is to provide for further measures and procedures designed to prevent or reduce air pollution from industrial plants within the Community, particularly those belonging to the categories set out in Annex I.
Article 2For the purposes of this Directive:1."Air pollution" means the introduction by man, directly or indirectly, of substances or energy into the air resulting in deleterious effects of such a nature as to endanger human health, harm living resources and ecosystems and material property and impair or interfere with amenities and other legitimate uses of the environment.2."Plant" means any establishment or other stationary plant used for industrial or public utility purposes which is likely to cause air pollution.3."Existing plant" means a plant in operation before 1 July 1987 or built or authorized before that date.4."Air quality limit values" means the concentration of polluting substances in the air during a specified period which is not to be exceeded.5."Emission limit values" means the concentration and/or mass of polluting substances in emissions from plants during a specified period which is not to be exceeded.
Article 31.Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the operation of plants belonging to the categories listed in Annex I requires prior authorization by the competent authorities. The necessity to meet the requirements prescribed for such authorization must be taken into account at the plant's design stage.2.Authorization is also required in the case of substantial alteration of all plants which belong to the categories listed in Annex I or which, as a result of the alteration, will fall within those categories.3.Member States may require other categories of plants to be subject to authorization or, where national legislation so provides, prior notification.
Article 4Without prejudice to the requirements laid down by national and Community provisions with a purpose other than that of this Directive, an authorization may be issued only when the competent authority is satisfied that:1.all appropriate preventive measures against air pollution have been taken, including the application of the best available technology, provided that the application of such measures does not entail excessive costs;2.the use of plant will not cause significant air pollution particularly from the emission of substances referred to in Annex 11;3.none of the emission limit values applicable will be exceeded;4.all the air quality limit values applicable will be taken into account.
Article 5Member States may:define particularly polluted areas for which emission limit values more stringent than those referred to in Article 4 may be fixed,define areas to be specially protected for which air quality limit values and emission limit values more stringent than those referred to in Article 4 may be fixed,decide that, within the abovementioned areas, specified categories of plants set out in Annex 1 may not be built or operated unless special conditions are complied with.
Article 6Applications for authorization shall include a description of the plant containing the necessary information for the purposes of the decision whether to grant authorization in accordance with Articles 3 and 4.
Article 7Subject to the provisions regarding commercial secrecy, Member States shall exchange information among themselves and with the Commission regarding their experience and knowledge of measures for prevention and reduction of air pollution, as well as technical processes and equipment and air quality and emission limit values.
Article 81.The Council, acting unanimously on a proposal from the Commission, shall if necessary fix emission limit values based on the best available technology not entailing excessive costs, and taking into account the nature, quantities and harmfulness of the emissions concerned.2.The Council, acting unanimously on a proposal from the Commission, shall stipulate suitable measurement and assessment techniques and methods.
Article 91.Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that applications for authorization and the decisions of the competent authorities are made available to the public concerned in accordance with procedures provided for in the national law.2.Paragraph 1 shall apply without prejudice to specific national or Community provisions concerning the assessment of the environmental effects of public and private projects and subject to observance of the provisions regarding commercial secrecy.
Article 10The Member States shall make available to the other Member States concerned, as a basis for all necessary consultation within the framework of their bilateral relations, the same information as is furnished to their own nationals.
Article 11Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that emissions from plants are determined for the purpose of monitoring compliance with the obligations referred to in Article 4. The determination methods must be approved by the competent authorities.
Article 12The Member States shall follow developments as regards the best available technology and the environmental situation.in the light of this examination they shall, if necessary, impose appropriate conditions on plants authorized in accordance with this Directive, on the basis both of those developments and of the desirability of avoiding excessive costs for the plants in question, having regard in particular to the economic situation of the plants belonging to the category concerned.
Article 13In the light of an examination of developments as regards the best available technology and the environmental situation, the Member States shall implement policies and strategies, including appropriate measures, for the gradual adaptation of existing plants belonging to the categories given in Annex I to the best available technology, taking into account in particular:the plant's technical characteristics,its rate of utilization and length of its remaining life,the nature and volume of polluting emissions from it,the desirability of not entailing excessive costs for the plant concerned, having regard in particular to the economic situation of undertakings belonging to the category in question.
Article 14Member States may, in order to protect public health and the environment, adopt provisions stricter than those provided for in this Directive.
Article 15The Directive does not apply to industrial plants serving national defence purposes.
Article 15aAt intervals of three years the Member States shall send information to the Commission on the implementation of this Directive, in the form of a sectoral report which shall also cover other pertinent Community Directives. This report shall be drawn up on the basis of a questionnaire or outline drafted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 6 of Directive 91/692/EECOJ No L 377, 31. 12. 1991, p. 48.. The questionnaire or outline shall be sent to the Member States six months before the start of the period covered by the report. The report shall be sent to the Commission within nine months of the end of the three-year period covered by it.The first report shall cover the period from 1994 to 1996 inclusive.The Commission shall publish a Community report on the implementation of the Directive within nine months of receiving the reports from the Member States.
Article 161.Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive not later than 30 June 1987.2.Member States shall communicate to the Commission the texts of the provisions of national law which they adopt in the field governed by this Directive.
Article 17This Directive is addressed to the Member States.
nullANNEX ICATEGORIES OF PLANTSThe thresholds given in this Annex refer to production capacities.(covered by Article 3)1.Energy industry1.1.Coke ovens1.2.Oil refineries (excluding undertakings manufacturing only lubricants from crude oil)1.3.Coal gasification and liquefaction plants1.4.Thermal power stations (excluding nuclear power stations) and other combustion installations with a nominal heat output of more than 50 MW.2.Production and processing of metals2.1.Roasting and sintering plants with a capacity of more than 1000 tonnes of metal ore per year2.2.Integrated plants for the production of pig iron and crude steel2.3.Ferrous metal foundries having melting installations with a total capacity of over 5 tonnes2.4.Plants for the production and melting of non-ferrous metals having installations with a total capacity of over 1 tonne for heavy metals or 0,5 tonne for light metals.3.Manufacture of non-metallic mineral products3.1.Plants for the production of cement and rotary kiln lime production3.2.Plants for the production and processing of asbestos and manufacture of asbestos-based products3.3.Plants for the manufacture of glass fibre or mineral fibre3.4.Plants for the production of glass (ordinary and special) with a capacity of more than 5000 tonnes per year3.5.Plants for the manufacture of coarse ceramics notably refractory bricks, stoneware pipes, facing and floor bricks and roof tiles.4.Chemical industry4.1.Chemical plants for the production of olefins, derivatives of olefins, monomers and polymers4.2.Chemical plants for the manufacture of other organic intermediate products4.3.Plants for the manufacture of basic inorganic chemicals.5.Waste disposal5.1.Plants for the disposal of toxic and dangerous waste by incineration5.2.Plants for the treatment by incineration of other solid and liquid waste.6.Other industriesPlants for the manufacture of paper pulp by chemical methods with a production capacity of 25000 tonnes or more per year.ANNEX IILIST OF MOST IMPORTANT POLLUTING SUBSTANCES(within the meaning of Article 4 (2))1.Sulphur dioxide and other sulphur compounds2.Oxides of nitrogen and other nitrogen compounds3.Carbon monoxide4.Organic compounds, in particular hydrocarbons (except methane)5.Heavy metals and their compounds6.Dust; asbestos (suspended particulates and fibres), glass and mineral fibres7.Chlorine and its compounds8.Fluorine and its compounds