EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
2009 - 2014
Committee on Petitions
30.4.2014
NOTICE TO MEMBERS
Subject:
1.
Petition 1377/2010 by M.P. (Polish), on behalf of the citizens’ pressure group
‘Terra’, bearing 2413 signatures, on industrial pollution in the town of
Szczecinek, north-west Poland
Summary of petition
The petitioner complains about the serious air, soil and water pollution in the town of
Szczecinek, north-west Poland, caused by the firm of Kronospan, a major producer of woodbased panel board products. The petitioner states that this pollution comprises particular
emissions of highly toxic substances such as nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, formaldehyde,
isobutanol, isopropanol, glycol, hydrocarbons and particulates, and that the groundwater and
soil are polluted with ammonia and nickel. The petitioner also points out that the firm in
question is located very close to two Natura 2000 areas, Jeziora Szczecineckie (PLH320009)
and Dorzecze Parsęty (PLH320007). Since the competent Polish authorities have still not
taken effective action, the petitioner calls on the European Parliament to take the matter up
with a view to halting pollution by this firm.
2.
Admissibility
Declared admissible on 14 February 2011. Information requested from Commission under
Rule 202(6).
3.
Commission reply, received on 10 June 2011.
Combustion installations with a rated thermal input exceeding 50 MW as well as installations
for the incineration of municipal waste (household waste and similar commercial, industrial
and institutional wastes) with a capacity exceeding 3 tonnes per hour fall within the scope of
Directive 2008/1/EC concerning integrated pollution prevention and control (hereinafter: the
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IPPC Directive see point 5.2 of Annex I)1.
The IPPC Directive requires installations falling within its scope to operate in accordance
with permits including emission limit values based on best available techniques (BAT),
designed to prevent and, where that is not practicable, generally to reduce emissions and the
impact to the environment as a whole. The prevention or reduction of emissions to air, water
and soil should, therefore, be dealt with in the environmental permits issued in accordance
with the IPPC Directive.
The Commission has adopted a number of BAT reference documents (BREFs) covering the
activities that fall within the scope of the IPPC Directive, that are to be taken into account by
the competent authorities when establishing BAT-based emission limit values, equivalent
parameters or technical measures for such installations. A BREF on large combustion plants
was adopted in July 20062 and on waste incineration in August 20063.
Moreover, such installations have to comply with the emission limit values and other
requirements of Directive 2001/80/EC on the limitation of emissions of certain pollutants into
the air from large combustion plants4 (hereinafter: the LCP Directive) and Directive
2000/76/EC on the incineration of waste5 (hereinafter: the WI Directive), respectively.
The Commission has also checked compliance with the air quality limit values set by
Directive 2008/50/EC on ambient air quality and cleaner air for Europe. The zone 'Powiat
szczecinecki' was exceeding the daily PM10 limit value in 2009. Consequently, the
Commission initiated an infringement procedure against Poland for the failure to apply this
limit value over several years in several zones and agglomerations. Given that compliance has
still not yet been reached inter alia in that zone, a reasoned opinion was sent to Poland in
September 2010 and the response to that is currently being analysed.
The Commission will request information from the Polish authorities to assess how the
provisions of the IPPC, LCP and WI Directives are implemented with regard to the specific
installation concerned. It will also seek information with regard to the possible link to the
health of the citizens in the area.
The Commission will continue to follow up the air quality infringement case.
4.
Commission reply (REV), received on 17 February 2012.
The Commission contacted the Polish authorities and received a reply on 11 July 2011.
The Polish authorities inform the Commission of the following:- Ongoing activities :
Three companies are operating on the premises at ul. Waryńskiego 1, Szczecinek:
1
OJ L 24, 29.7.2008, p.8.
http://eippcb.jrc.ec.europa.eu/reference/BREF/lcp_bref_0706.pdf
3
http://eippcb.jrc.ec.europa.eu/reference/BREF/wi_bref_0806.pdf
4
OJ L 309, 27.11.2011, p. 1.
5
OJ L 332, 28.12.2000, p. 91.
2
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- Kronospan Chemical Szczecinek Spółka z o.o.: a manufacturer of basic chemicals, falling
within the scope of point 4.1 of Annex I to the IPPC Directive. It holds an integrated permit
granted on 30 October 2007, last amended on 24 February 2011;
- Kronospan Polska Spółka z o.o.: a manufacturer of particle board, which does not perform any
activities referred to in Annex I to the IPPC Directive, but holds permits under administrative
decisions;
- Kronospan Szczecinek Spółka z o.o.: a manufacturer of wood-based boards, wood panels,
lamination paper, water-soluble paints and lacquers. According to the reply from the Polish
authorities, the capacity thresholds for the activities referred to in points 1.1, 5.2 and 6.7 of
Annex I to the IPCC Directive have not been exceeded in connection with the operation of fuel
combustion installations, waste incineration plants and the use of organic solvents in surface
treatment. However, the Commission is of the view that all combustion processes should be
added together for the purpose of calculating the capacity thresholds and will ask for clarification
from the Polish authorities.
One of the plants on this site meets the definition of a waste co-incineration plant as set out in
Directive 2000/76/EC on waste incineration and it holds the required permits for the discharge of
gases and dusts into the air and a permit for waste recovery (R1). Since the Commission has not
received clear information on monitoring, it will ask for information on emission limit values, on
monitoring requirements and, if available, on the monitoring results.
The Commission has not received clear information on "installations with a total thermal input
from technological sources amounting to 181.4 MW" and "combustion plants (steam generators,
dry rooms) with a total energy input of 32 MW" which are located on the premises of this
company. It will, therefore, ask for clarification from the Polish authorities, in particular
concerning the possible distinction between "normal" and "other" (from technological sources)
combustion.
The fuel combustion process in the company does not fall within the scope of Directive
2001/80/EC, (IPPC Directive) because combustion products from the fuel combustion
installations are directly used in manufacturing processes, particularly for heating, drying or
other treatment of objects or materials. The company holds the required permit for the discharge
of gases and dusts into the air, but no requirements exist in relation to NH3 (ammonia) emissions.
- Inspections :
During the last two years, the Provincial Inspectorate for Environmental Protection in Szczecin
conducted 16 inspections, including comprehensive inspections with measurements at the site of
all companies operating there.
As a result of the inspections conducted in 2010 concerning the integrated permit for Kronospan
Chemical Szczecinek Spółka z o.o., the following infringements were found: 1. measurements of
emissions into the air of some pollutants were not performed; 2. measurements of noise emission
in the environment were not performed. An administrative sanction in the form of a penalty
notice was imposed on a person in charge, and an order was issued for the irregularities found to
be remedied within specified deadlines.
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- Court proceedings :
There have been two court actions against the Kronospan companies. The proceedings in the
Criminal Division concerned a refusal to accept a penalty notice for a failure to notify the
competent authority about the occurrence of an incident (a chimney fire) on 12 September 2010
on the emitter of the drying room of Kronospan Polska Spółka z o.o., and of measures taken to
limit its negative environmental impact. These proceedings ended on 24 May 2011 with the
acquittal of the defendants.
Moreover, an action brought by residents of Szczecinek against Kronospan Szczecinek Spółka
z o.o. for the cessation of emissions is pending in the District Court in Szczecinek, 1st Civil
Division.
- Air quality :
In November 2010, the competent authority opened a third measurement station in Szczecinek an automatic air pollution measurement station at ul. Przemysłowa, which is located within the
impact zone of the Kronospan installation. At this station, ongoing measurements of sulphur
dioxide, nitrogen oxide, particulate matter (PM10) and ammonia are performed. Additionally,
manual measurements of formaldehyde are conducted at this station. Besides, records of
meteorological parameters (air temperature, wind direction and speed, atmospheric pressure and
air humidity) are also kept, making possible a detailed analysis of the reasons for the occurrence,
in particular, of periods of high concentrations of the substances registered at this station. The
results are made available every hour at the following website: www.wios.szczecin.pl.
The first annual air quality assessment at the station at ul. Przemysłowa will be made for the year
2011 (i.e. in the first quarter of 2012).
Based on the official data sent by Poland for 2010, the zone 'Powiat szczecinecki' was exceeding
the daily PM10 limit value also in 2010.
As concerns the bad application of Directive 2008/50/EC on ambient air quality and cleaner
air for Europe, there is an ongoing infringement case against Poland.
According to the additional information received from the petitioner, the competent regional
authority (the Marshal) issued a revised permit for the Kronospan Concern in early 2011, which
grants higher emission ceilings for certain pollutants. In particular, a higher ceiling for particulate
matter has been granted.
Conclusion
As it stands, the Commission is unable to assess fully the situation. Therefore, the Polish
authorities will be contacted again to obtain more details about the revised permits and the
reasons for the increased emission ceilings.
The Commission is currently analysing the reply from the Polish authorities to the Reasoned
Opinion regarding the ongoing infringement case.
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5.
Commission reply (REV II), received on 30 August 2012.
The Commission has contacted the Polish authorities for a second time to ask for further
clarification on the information received on 11 July 2011. In their reply of 30 March 2012, the
Polish authorities said the following.
Unlike Kronospan Chemical Szczecinek Company Ltd., an integrated permit has not been
issued for Kronospan Szczecinek Company Ltd. since with a capacity of 32.4 MW it does not
reach the threshold laid down in point 1.1 of Annex 1 to the IPPC Directive 2008/1/EC1.
Other combustion plants on the site of Kronospan Szczecinek with a total capacity of 181.4
MW, as their combustion products are used directly in manufacturing processes, are excluded
from the LCP directive based on Article. 2(7) of this Directive2. Although the three plants
have different operators, the following technical connection exists between them: 1. Hot
fumes from installations Borman I belonging to Kronospan Szczecinek are used to dry chip
boards manufactured by Kronospan Polska Company Ltd; 2. There is common rain water
drainage network (operated by Kronospan Szczecinek); 3) Kronospan Szczecinek provides
water, electricity and gas for Kronospan Polska.
The reply of the Polish authorities also provides information on the procedure to establish
emission limit values (ELVs) for air pollutants. According to the Polish Environmental Law,
there is no need to include in the permit ELVs for air polluting substances if the amounts of
such substances emitted from all plants requiring an integrated permit do not exceed 10% of
the reference value of the concentration of such substances in ambient air. Based on this rule,
no ELV has been set for carbon monoxide in the permits of the Kronospan companies.
The letter provides data on air monitoring in 2011 from the measuring stations in the vicinity
of Kronospan companies, showing exceedence of the air quality standard for 24-hour
concentration of PM103. Annual average concentration of SO2, NO2, NH3 are below the
respective reference values.
In view of the above, the Commission's special concern is the interpretation of the term
"installation" for the purposes of the IPPC directive. The argument for the non-application of
the LCP Directive to Kronospan Szczecinek is shared by the Commission. However, it should
not lead to exclusion from the activity description in point 1.1 of Annex I of the IPPC
Directive ("Combustion installation with a rated thermal input exceeding 50 MW") the
incineration of biomass and waste for the purpose of producing technological heat from
Bormann I and II units in Kronospan Szczecinek. Point 2, Annex I chapeau stipulates that
"The threshold values given below generally refer to production capacities or outputs. Where
one operator carries out several activities falling under the same subheading in the same
installation or on the same site, the capacities of such activities are added together." In
accordance with this rule, for the purposes of establishing the applicable legislation and of
complying with the conditions thereof, the capacities of the Bormann I and II units should be
considered together.
1
OJ L 24, 29.1.2008, p.8.
OJ L 309, 27.11.2001, p. 1.
3 Non-compliance with PM10 limit values is addressed by the on-going infringement procedure 2008/2199.
2
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According to Article 2(3) of the IPPC Directive, ‘installation’ means a stationary technical
unit where one or more activities listed in Annex I are carried out, and any other directly
associated activities which have a technical connection with the activities carried out on that
site and which could have an effect on emissions and pollution'
It is recognised by the Polish authorities that there is a technical connection between the
Kronospan Polska and Kronospan Szczecinek, having common water, energy and gas
supplies, common rain water drainage and the shared use of technological heat used for
drying chipboards. Therefore, the Commission is of the view that, irrespective of the fact that
they are operated by different operators, Kronospan Polska and Kronospan Szczecinek should
be considered as one installation and should hold an IPPC permit.
In the light of the above, the Commission will communicate its position to the Polish
authorities, inviting them to reconsider the situation in terms of integrated permits and to
ensure compliance with EU law. This shall be done also with regard to the provisions of
Directive 2010/75/EU on industrial emissions1 (in particular to its Article 4(2) and 4(3)),
which will apply to existing installations already subject to the IPPC Directive from 7 January
2014.
6.
Commission reply (REV III), received on 30 April 2013
The Commission's observations
In their latest response submitted through the EU-Pilot investigation system on 26 November
2012, the Polish authorities informed the Commission that on 19 November 2012 the Minister
for the Environment issued a decision annulling the permit to release gases and dust into the
atmosphere from the installations operated by Kronospan Szczecinek Sp. z o.o.2 That decision
by the Minister was not yet final as the parties concerned could submit an appeal within 14
days of the date of receipt of the decision, and could also lodge a complaint with the
provincial administrative court.
Since the Polish authorities have not informed the Commission on the developments of the
above-mentioned permitting procedure, the Commission submitted to the EU-Pilot system a
new request for additional information.
In the meantime, the Commission received new information from the petitioner, according to
which the Mayor of Szczecinek issued a decision on environmental requirements for a project
of a Krono Group facility (by Kronotex Sp. z o.o.) involving the construction of two
production and warehouse buildings and the associated infrastructure, without the requirement
to perform an environmental impact assessment. This project qualifies for a substantial
change within the meaning of Article 2(11) of Directive 2008/1/EC on integrated pollution
prevention and control, and the requirements laid down in Article 12(2) of that Directive
should be met. Therefore, the Commission also investigated this aspect with the Polish
authorities.
In addition, the characteristics/classification of the material (sawdust and shavings) to be
incinerated in a heating boiler as fuel is not clear. While the Mayor's decision on
1
OJ L 334, 17.12.2010, p.17.
2 Decision K-SR-Ś-7-6610/9-2/06 of 10 October 2006 of the Governor of Zachodniopomorskie Province, as
amended by Decision WRiOŚ-II-BKow-7720/2-12/10 of 12 April 2011 of the President of Zachodniopomorskie
Province Executive Board.
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environmental requirements accepts it as biomass, according to the petitioner it is hazardous
waste. Detailed information on the content of the material used at the installation for
production of wood-based panels (with regard to the classification of wastes, and to the
relevant CEN standards applicable to wood-based panels) has been requested from the Polish
authorities. This information will also be relevant to assess whether or not the lack of the
environmental impact assessment is in compliance with the applicable EU law.
Conclusion
The Commission is awaiting the response from the Polish authorities to the additional
information requests. In the light thereof the Commission will decide on the need of any
further action.
7.
Commission reply (REV IV), received on 29 November 2013
By a letter dated 10 May 2013, the Polish authorities submitted answers to the Commission's
questions asked on 4 and 5 April 2013, through the EU-Pilot investigation tool. In their reply,
the Polish authorities state that Kronospan Szczecinek Sp. z o.o. has challenged before the
Warsaw provincial administrative court the decision the Minister for the Environment for the
annulment of Kronospan’s permit to release gases and dust into the atmosphere. Therefore,
the installation still does not have an integrated permit issued in accordance with Directive
2008/1/EC on integrated pollution prevention and control (IPPC), and continues to operate
under sectoral permits.
Given the ongoing administrative procedure, the Polish authorities were unable to answer the
Commission's questions regarding the construction of two production and warehouse
buildings, and the applicability of the IPPC Directive to that project. However, confirmation
has been received from the Polish authorities that the fuel burned in the new boiler is biomass
and it does not contain any hazardous volatile organic compound. Therefore, the project does
not include incineration of hazardous waste and does not fall under Annex I point 9 of the
EIA Directive, as claimed by the petitioner, but it falls under the Annex II point 3 a) of the
EIA Directive. According to the information provided by the petitioner, the project has been
subject to a screening procedure during which the competent Polish authorities determined
that the project is not been likely to have significant negative effects on environment. The
Polish authorities have issued an environmental decision confirming their opinion on 12
October 2012. Given the above, the Commission has not detected the alleged infringement of
the EIA Directive.
In the meantime, the Commission has analysed additional information submitted on a DVD
by the petitioner. This information is namely the environmental impact report of the above
mentioned construction works. However, the documentation, as also admitted by the
petitioner, is not complete, as several parts have been removed for commercial confidentiality
reasons.
Conclusion
Based on the available information, the Commission cannot identify any breach of the
applicable EU law. As regards the issue of the IPPC-permit, the national authorities are
addressing the situation. Therefore, there is no need for the Commission to intervene.
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In the meantime, the Commission has received additional information from the petitioner and
it is currently assessing that information. The conclusions in that regard will be set out in an
additional communication from the Commission.
8.
Commission reply (REV V), received on 30 April 2014
It follows from the previous Communication of 29/11/2013 that the national authorities are
addressing the issue of the lacking integrated IPPC-permit for what concerns Kronospan
Szczecinek and Kronospan Polska, which should be considered as one installation for the
purpose of calculating the thresholds triggering the application of Directive 2008/1/EC on
Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) (replaced as from 7 January 2014 by the
Industrial Emissions Directive 2010/75/EU (IED)).
To allow the two operators to submit a joint application, the Polish Environmental Protection
Act and certain other relevant laws are in the process of being amended.
The Commission has not identified a breach of EU law concerning a new boiler which would
burn hazardous waste without complying with the relevant requirements of the EU legislation.
According to Article 2(11) of Directive 2001/80/EC on large combustion plants and the
corresponding Article 3(31)(v) of the IED, "biomass" covers "wood waste with the exception
of wood waste which may contain halogenated organic compounds or heavy metals as a result
of treatment with wood preservatives or coating, and which includes in particular such wood
waste originating from construction and demolition waste". Plants firing such biomass and
not any other waste do not have to comply with the requirements for waste incineration plants
under the EU legislation. Therefore, dust and other residues originating from wood based
panels production may qualify as "biomass" when they meet the criteria set out in the
aforementioned definition.
According to the Polish authorities, Kronospan produces wood-based panels from wood fibres
glued with urea-formaldehyde or melamine-formaldehyde resins. The additional information
submitted by the petitioner on 2 May 2013 and 14 October 2013 does not allow to conclude
that the dusts from polishing the wood based panels would be hazardous.
Conclusion
The issue of the missing IPPC-permit is being addressed by the national authorities, and
therefore there is no need for the Commission to intervene.
Based on the available information, the Commission cannot identify any other breach of the
applicable EU law.
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