Best available techniques

The formulation Best Available Techniques (BAT, English best available techniques = BAT) refers to a European Technology clause , which is also used internationally (eg Environment Program of the United Nations). The term essentially corresponds to the concept of the state of the art (SdT) traditionally used in Germany .

The legal term BAT is stipulated by the so-called Industrial Emissions Directive (Directive 2010/75 / EU, also “IED”) on the integrated prevention and reduction of environmental pollution in the national law of the member states. Its predecessors ( IVU Directive 96/61 / EC or 2008/1 / EC) defined the term in 1996. The term “best available technology” had previously been used in Directive 84/360 / EEC from 1984 but without further defining it; However, Directive 84/360 / EC did not yet follow the BAT / BAT approach: It only required the best available technology "provided that the implementation of such measures does not result in disproportionately high costs". This approach is known by the English acronym BATNEEC = Best available techniques not entailing excessive costs. Furthermore, the BAT concept has been used since 1992 within the framework of the OSPAR Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic.

According to the industrial emissions directive, the most environmentally relevant industrial plants in the European Union must be approved on the basis of the best available technologies. Older (existing) plants have also had to be operated on the basis of BAT since October 30, 2007.

definition

According to Article 3 No. 10 of the Industrial Emissions Directive, the expression “ best available techniques ” means “the most efficient and most advanced level of development of the activities and corresponding operating methods that make special techniques appear practically suitable to serve as a basis for the emission limit values in order to reduce emissions in and impact on to avoid the entire environment in general or, if this is not possible, to reduce it;

• 'Techniques' means both the technology used and the way in which the installation is designed, built, maintained, operated and decommissioned;
• 'Available' means the techniques which have been developed on a scale which, taking into account the cost / benefit ratio, enables them to be used under economically and technically feasible conditions in the industrial sector concerned, regardless of whether these techniques are used or manufactured within the Member State concerned provided that they are accessible to the operator on reasonable terms;
• 'Best' the techniques that are most effective in achieving a generally high level of protection for the environment as a whole. "

The definition of BAT requires the technology to be developed on a scale that enables industry-specific implementation.

Categories of industrial activities

Annex I of the Industrial Emissions Directive defines industrial sectors and areas of activity for which BAT should be applied. Only the categories without sub-items are listed below:

1. Energy industry
2. Manufacture and processing of metals
3. Mineral processing industry
4. Chemical industry
5. Waste treatment
6. Other industries

Identify the best available techniques

The operation of a plant in accordance with the BAT is to ensure the lowest possible consumption and emission levels at reasonable cost and thus aims at the actual goal of the Industrial Emissions Directive, namely an integrated prevention and reduction of environmental pollution (IPPC).

The specific consumption and emission levels to be achieved in the individual categories of industrial activities are determined by technical working groups (TWG) in the so-called “Seville process” and in detailed documentation, the so-called BREFs (Order Available Technique Reference Documents, German: BVT-Merkblätter).

As the techniques are constantly evolving, the BREFs are updated regularly. In addition to these so-called vertical BREFs, which relate to certain sectors and types of installation, there are also horizontal BREFs, which affect several sectors and types of installation, such as BREFs for installation monitoring.

Since the Industrial Emissions Directive came into force on January 7, 2013, the BAT reference documents and the emission ranges mentioned therein associated with the best available techniques have become binding. Permitting authorities must ensure, within 4 years of the publication of BAT conclusions , that the plants concerned comply with the emission levels associated with BAT. Since the adoption of the Industrial Emissions Directive, the emission ranges with regard to their measurement methods, boundary conditions and application restrictions have therefore been described more precisely in the BAT conclusions than in the first BREFs.

See also

• European Union environmental policy

Web links

• Download the BVT information sheets (English / German)
• Creation of BAT fact sheets, so-called Seville process
• Consideration of BVT leaflets in German pollution control law (PDF; 433 kB)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Mark Seibel: Differentiation of the "recognized rules of technology" from the "state of the art" ( memento of the original from November 23, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. NJW 2013, 3000 
2. ↑ Directive 84/360 / EEC (PDF; 542 kB) of the Council of June 28, 1984 on combating air pollution from industrial plants.
3. ↑ Steve Sorrell: THE MEANING OF BATNEEC: Interpreting excessive costs in UK industrial pollution regulation . In: Science & Technology Policy Research, University of Sussex (Ed.): Electronic Working Paper Series . tape 61 , February 2001 ( [1] [PDF]).
4. ↑ Implementation decision of the Commission 2012/119 / EU (PDF; 1.68 MB) of February 10, 2012 with guidelines for the collection of data as well as for the preparation of the BAT reference documents and the corresponding quality assurance measures according to Directive 2010/75 / EU of the European Parliament and Council on industrial emissions.
5. ↑ Karsten Keller: Consideration of BVT leaflets in German pollution control law. ( Memento of the original from February 22, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 433 kB) - p. 3 on the content and structure of BREFs. 
6. ↑ Christian Tebert / ÖKOPOL: BVT conclusions presentation (PDF, 547 kB), Düsseldorf, June 6, 2013.