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Glossary termPublished inIED 2.0

Emission

Also known as emissie

What does "Emission" mean under the IED?

The direct or indirect release of substances, vibrations, heat or noise from individual or diffuse sources in the installation into air, water or land

Defined in / by

Last updated: 14 October 2026.

Emissions and the permit

Emissions are what the numbers in an IED permit control. An emission limit value caps the mass, concentration or level of an emission, and Article 15(2) bases those values on best available techniques without prescribing the use of any technique or specific technology. The reference values for what a well-run installation achieves are the emission levels associated with the best available techniques, the BAT-AELs, set out in BAT conclusions.

The definition counts direct and indirect releases, and releases from diffuse sources as well as individual ones, provided the source is in the installation. It covers substances, vibrations, heat and noise.

The definition has not changed since 2010. When Directive (EU) 2024/1785 added odours to the definition of pollution, it left the definition of emission as it was, so odour enters the Directive through pollution and not through emission.

Questions and answers

Does an emission have to leave through a stack?

No. The definition covers direct and indirect releases from individual or diffuse sources in the installation into air, water or land.

Is noise an emission under the IED?

Yes. The definition names substances, vibrations, heat and noise.

Regulations

  • Industrial Emissions Directive (IED 2.0)

    The revised Industrial Emissions Directive is Directive (EU) 2024/1785. Member States had to transpose it by 1 July 2026, and none had notified full transposition by 25 September 2026. Operators need an environmental management system by 1 July 2027, and large pig and poultry farms follow from 2030. The Dutch bill is before the Eerste Kamer.

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    Parliament plenary, first reading of Omnibus VIII