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Glossary termPublished inIED 2.0

Environmental quality standard

Also known as milieukwaliteitsnorm

What does "Environmental quality standard" mean under the IED?

The set of requirements which must be fulfilled at a given time by a given environment or particular part thereof, as set out in Union law

Defined in / by

Last updated: 14 October 2026.

A floor that BAT alone may not reach

Environmental quality standards come from outside the IED: the definition points to requirements set out in Union law. Inside the IED they work as a floor that best available techniques alone may not reach. Article 18 provides that where an environmental quality standard requires stricter conditions than those achievable by the use of the best available techniques, additional measures shall be included in the permit.

Two other provisions lean on the same idea. Article 15(5) bars a derogation from the BAT-AELs where it could put at risk compliance with environmental quality standards. Article 21(5) lists the need to comply with an environmental quality standard referred to in Article 18 among the cases in which permit conditions must be reconsidered.

The practical effect is that the state of the local environment can set tighter conditions for an installation than the sector-wide BAT conclusions do. Two installations using the same techniques can end up with different permits because they discharge into different air or water. The definition has not changed since 2010.

Questions and answers

Can an environmental quality standard make permit conditions stricter than BAT?

Yes. Article 18 requires additional measures in the permit where an environmental quality standard requires stricter conditions than those achievable by the use of the best available techniques.

Does the IED itself set environmental quality standards?

No. The definition refers to requirements set out in Union law. The IED uses them in Articles 15(5), 18 and 21(5).

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