Industrial Emissions in Europe:
Zero Pollution by 2050

DG Environment

Dangerous emissions

Industry and livestock farming play a key role in producing goods and food. But large industrial installations and intensive livestock farming can pollute the air, water and soil, damaging our health and the environment.

They are responsible for emitting pollutants, such as:

  • Fine particulate matter that can enter our lungs and bloodstream causing illness and death (PM2.5)
  • Gasses which threaten plant life, human life, and biodiversity (Nitrogen oxides, or NOx)
  • Sulphur oxides (SO2), heavy metals, ammonia and other substances (NMVOC) that are harmful to crops, wildlife and humans
  • Greenhouse gases which cause climate change and reduce air quality
  • Nitrates and other substances that affect the quality of water and soil

These are amongst the pollutants that have the most significant impacts on human health and the environment.

Sources of emissions

Energy industries
5%

Waste industries
20%

Animal rearing and food processing
46%

Heavy industry and manufacturing
27%

Other activities
2%

The IED, protecting human health and the environment

The Industrial Emissions Directive (IED) aims to prevent industrial pollution from harming human health and our environment.

Companies must use the best available techniques (BAT) for preventing or minimising emissions and environmental impacts from their activities.

The directive already covers over 30,000 large industrial plants and over 20,000 intensive livestock farms

By 2017, these rules had reduced air pollution from the concerned installations by up to 75%.

However, pollution from these sources still causes damage to public health and the environment, amounting to many billions of euros and hundreds of thousands of premature deaths every year.

This is why, from 2024, the EU is bringing in a stronger IED, giving more rights to citizens, covering more industrial and agricultural activities, promoting more efficient use of resources and encouraging innovation. This revision looks far into the future.

Putting people first

For the first time, EU environmental law establishes the right for people to seek compensation for damages to their health caused by illegal pollution.

Governments must now always consider human health protection when implementing rules on emissions.

Public information, participation and access to justice have been improved, in line with the Aarhus Convention.

All permits and important environmental data must be made publicly available online on the European Industrial Emissions Portal.

Authorities will have more powers to suspend installations that do not follow the rules and demand bigger fines from offenders.

Promoting innovation and transformation

The IED 2.0 will spur innovation, reward frontrunners, help level the playing field on the EU market, and increase long-term investment certainty for industry.

The directive promotes and facilitates investments in innovative and transformative techniques by:

  • Allowing frontrunners to benefit from new permitting flexibilities to test and deploy more environmentally effective emerging techniques and to transform their installations
  • Establishing an Innovation Centre for Industrial Transformation & Emissions (INCITE) to speed up the deployment of technically and economically viable new techniques

IED norms are highly recognised by investors and help improve public acceptance of projects, such as metals mining and giga-battery factories.

Companies must develop transformation plans describing the path of their installations towards decarbonisation, zero pollution, and circular economy.

Tighter rules on emissions

Permits will enforce more efficiency - less wasted energy and water - and less use of toxic chemicals.

Companies must now use the best techniques and reduce their emissions by as much as technically possible.

Who do these rules apply to?

IED 2.0 applies to Europe’s largest emitters: industrial plants and intensive pig and poultry farms.

The new rules will now apply to mining and battery gigafactories. They will also increase the coverage of pig and poultry farms, amounting to 30% of the largest pig and poultry farms in the EU. These farms are responsible for around 30% of overall EU ammonia emissions.

The farms that are covered by the IED 2.0 will benefit from a lighter permitting regime, with additional support available from the Common Agricultural Policy to help with compliance costs.

The new rules include the adoption of best available techniques for waste landfills.

When will the new rules apply?

  • The new rules will gradually be put in place between now and 2030
  • Determination of new best available techniques will start in 2024
  • Industrial operators will have four years to implement these techniques, starting from 2028
  • The rules will become applicable to farmers starting in 2030

The IED 2.0 will...

Reduce emissions of key air pollutants by up to 40% by 2050

  • Guide the industrial investments needed to transform Europe's economy to be cleaner, carbon neutral, circular and competitive
  • Help the EU become less dependent on imported raw materials
  • Allow environmental norms to be defined in collaboration with industry, farmers, governments and NGOs
  • Streamline and simplify permits across the EU and harmonise compliance checks
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