Transposition of the European Medium Combustion Plant Directive into UK law, which was due to take place in December, has been delayed to the new year. But the deadlines for compliance with the directive, which regulates emissions from plants with a rated thermal input of between 1-50MW, remain the same and will come into force from December 2018.
Legislation is expected to be laid before parliament on 12 December but transposition into UK law is expected to be delayed by about six weeks. The directive regulates emissions of sulphur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen and dust into the air with the aim of reducing the risks to human health associated with them. Medium combustion plants are used for applications such as providing heat or steam for industrial processes and electricity generation, and it is estimated that there are 143,000 such plants in the EU.
The directive fills a regulatory gap at EU level between large combustion plants of over 50MWth input, covered under the Industrial Emissions Directive, and smaller heaters and boilers of under 1MW, which are covered by the Ecodesign Directive.
Emission limits set in the directive will apply from 20 December 2018 for new plants and by 2025 or 2030 for existing plants, depending on their size. Flexibility provisions will apply to district heating plants and biomass to make climate and air quality policies consistent.
The directive allows the regulator to impose stricter controls on emissions in air quality management areas. The Environment Agency has been appointed as the regulator in England.
Additional legislation will control emissions from diesel generators, particularly those that are used for short term grid support.
The EU says the directive has been designed to be affordable for smaller companies, and it is expected to encourage innovation to help EU industry increase its share of the growing market in pollution control technology.
The Combustion Engineering Association is running a series of seminars covering the directive. Details from www.cea.org.uk/events/conferences, +44 (0)17440 625538 or info@cea.org.uk