Environmental performance limit value
Also known as milieuprestatiegrenswaarde
What does "Environmental performance limit value" mean under the IED?
A performance value included in a permit, expressed for specified conditions in terms of certain specific parameters
Defined in / by
- IED (32010L0075), Article 3, point (5a), as inserted by Directive (EU) 2024/1785
Last updated: 14 October 2026.
Limits on resource use, not only on emissions
Environmental performance limit values are new in Directive (EU) 2024/1785. Emission limit values cap what leaves an installation; environmental performance limit values cap how it performs on resources. Environmental performance is defined in Article 3, point (13aa), and covers consumption levels, resource efficiency for materials, water and energy, the reuse of materials and water, and waste generation.
Article 15(4) requires the competent authority to set, for normal operating conditions, binding ranges for environmental performance that are not to be exceeded during one or more periods. For water, the permit sets environmental performance limit values that are not less strict than those binding ranges (Article 15(4)(a)). For waste and resources other than water, the permit uses indicative environmental performance levels instead (Article 15(4)(b)).
For pig and poultry farms, environmental performance limit values sit in the operating rules alongside emission limit values (Article 3, point (12a)), and Article 70f requires that they are not exceeded. For existing industrial installations, Article 3(1) of Directive (EU) 2024/1785 applies Article 15(4) within four years of BAT conclusions published after 1 July 2026 for the installation's main activity.
Questions and answers
What is the difference between an emission limit value and an environmental performance limit value?
An emission limit value caps the mass, concentration or level of an emission. An environmental performance limit value caps performance on resources such as water, under Article 15(4).
When do environmental performance limit values apply to an existing installation?
Under Article 3(1) of Directive (EU) 2024/1785, within four years of the publication of BAT conclusions published after 1 July 2026 that relate to the installation's main activity.
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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