Environmental Omnibus weakens and delays implementation of the Industrial Emissions Directive
On 10 December, the European Commission published a package of proposals for the simplification of administrative burdens in environmental legislation (eighth ‘Omnibus’). The proposals amend a large number of legal acts on waste, industrial emissions and environmental assessments. Proposed measures aim to accelerate environmental assessments in permitting procedures and simplify reporting and environmental management requirements. The proposals include (non-exhaustive list):
- Reduced requirements for environmental management system (‘EMS’) under the Industrial Emissions Directive: the revised IED had introduced a requirement for operators of industrial installations to establish an EMS for each installation. The Omnibus postpones the deadline to implement the EMS from 2027 to 2030 and proposes that industrial installations managed by the same company in one Member State can be covered by the same EMS. The Omnibus also repeals the requirement to include in the EMS a chemical inventory of the hazardous substances present in or emitted from the installation, a chemical risks assessment of the impact of these substances on human health and the environment and an analysis of the possibilities for substituting them with safer alternatives or reducing their use or emissions. Deleting this requirement means weakening the links between the IED and REACH that had been created by the revision in 2024 as the chemical inventory was meant to give ‘special regard’ to SVHCs and substances restricted under REACH. Although the EMS did not have to set reduction targets for hazardous substances, it was a first step towards emission reduction that is now removed.
- Transitional periods for the application of certain new IED requirements: the Omnibus proposes to postpone the application of certain new IED requirements beyond July 2026 to give operators and authorities more time to comply. This concerns, among others, the requirements for Member States to ensure that permits include emission limit values for polluting substances listed in Annex II IEPR and an obligation to assess the need to prevent or reduce emissions of hazardous substances (Art. 14(1)(a) and (ab); or higher monitoring frequencies in groundwater and soil (Art. 16(2)). Their application will be phased in from July 2026 and will become applicable at the latest on 1 September 2036.
- Removal of the SCIP notification: since January 2021, the Waste Framework Directive required suppliers of articles to notify SVHCs in articles to ECHA for inclusion in the SCIP database. The SCIP database aimed to help waste operators and recyclers to better handle products containing hazardous substances. The database had attracted criticisms on its little usefulness for waste management and recycling because of issues related to data quality and usability. Although there is not yet a replacement for the SCIP database, solutions may exist. The requirement for supplier to provide data on SVHCs in articles could be picked up in ESPR delegated acts for specific product groups, which would lead to the inclusion of the data in the Digital Product Passport. Although this could be a better solution for waste operators and consumers, it will still depend on implementation (e.g. level of data aggregation). According to the recently adopted Regulation establishing a common data platform on chemicals, the platform will also include a database of substances of concern in articles, which may replace the SCIP database.
- Clarification of the labelling of hazardous substances in batteries: the revised Batteries Regulation requires that batteries bear a label indicating hazardous substances present in the battery, without further specification of the scope of the substances to be labelled. The Omnibus clarifies that 1) substances on the Candidate List and 2) substances fulfilling SVHC criteria and listed in Annex VI of CLP have to be labelled, if they are present in the battery in a concentration equal or above 0.1% w/w.
The Communication accompanying the legislative proposals also lists future simplification measures to be expected in the coming year and announces a general ambition to ‘stress-test’ ‘the full set of environmental acquis during the 2024-2029 mandate of the Commission’. The Communication reiterates the Commission’s intention to revise the Water Framework Directive in 2026 with a focus on simplification. Regarding the Packaging and Packaging waste Regulation, the Commission will issue a guidance on common issues raised by industry including testing for PFAS in food packaging. The Communication also announces that the Circular Economy Act, expected in Q3 2026 may include ‘larger scale reform of extended producer responsibility scheme’. While it does mention the revision of REACH as a future simplification measures, the Communication does not provide further indications on timeline or content.