Emissionserklärung und jährliche Berichte über Emissionen; Übermittlung

Air pollutant emissions impair air quality, can form acids in the environment or drive the excessive accumulation of nutrients (eutrophication) in ecosystems. They can also be harmful to human health. The operators of some installations relevant to immission control legislation are therefore obliged to submit an emissions declaration and/or annual reports on emissions and waste to the competent authority.

According to Art. 2 of the Bavarian Immission Control Act (BayImSchG) and § 1 of the Ordinance on the State Office for the Environment (LfUV), the competent authority is the Bavarian State Office for the Environment (LfU). Further information can be found on the LfU website (see "Further links").

Operators subject to reporting requirements can submit their data directly online via the "Betriebliche Umweltdatenberichterstattung" (BUBE) application (see "Online procedure"). BUBE is a cooperation between the federal states under the Administrative Agreement on the Development and Operation of Environmental Information Systems (VKoopUIS).

The following is an overview of important reporting obligations in this regard.

Emissions declaration in accordance with the 11th BImSchV

According to Section 27 of the Federal Immission Control Act (BImSchG), the operators of some installations requiring a permit are obliged to submit an emissions declaration on the emissions from these installations. Installations requiring approval can be viewed in the 4th BImSchV. Only operators of installations listed in § 1 of the 11th BImSchV are not required to submit a declaration.

The following also applies:

• Operators of installations subject to licensing who have operated their installations during the declaration period are obliged to submit an emissions declaration (Section 4 (3) of the 11th BImSchV).
• If the installation is commissioned, shut down or temporarily not operated during the declaration period, the declaration period includes the parts of the calendar year in which the installation was operated.
• The operator of an installation subject to licensing may apply to the competent authority to be exempted from the obligation to submit an emissions declaration if, in individual cases, air pollution from the installation may only occur to a minor extent (Section 6 of the 11th BImSchV).

According to Section 27 (1) BImSchG, the emissions declaration contains information on the type, quantity and spatial and temporal distribution of air pollution. The specific contents of the emissions declaration are set out in the Annex to the 11th BImSchV.

The emissions declaration must be submitted to the competent authority in electronic form every 4 years (by 31.05 of the year following the year of declaration).

Annual reports on emissions in accordance with the 13th and 17th BImSchV

Operators of installations in accordance with the 13th or 17th BImSchV must submit the following to the competent authority annually by the end of April 30 of the following year in accordance with Section 22 of these ordinances

• the installed rated thermal input,
• the type of firing installation
• the date of commencement of operation and the last significant modification
• the total annual emissions of sulphur and nitrogen oxides and dust
• the number of operating hours and
• the total energy input

must be reported.

Annual PRTR reports on emissions in accordance with § 3 of the SchadRegProtAG

The Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (PRTR) is based on European Regulation (EC) No. 166/2006 (PRTR Regulation) and provides the public with online information on the release of pollutants into the air, water and soil, the transfer of waste and pollutants in wastewater from industrial activities.

In accordance with Section 3 (2) SchadRegProtAG, operators of certain facilities are obliged to report the above-mentioned content to the competent authority - in Bavaria, the LfU - by the end of April 30 of the following year.

Details on this special statutory reporting obligation can be found on the LfU website below.

• Emissions declaration

  The content of the emissions declaration within the meaning of § 27 BImSchG is defined by § 3 and the Annex to the 11th BImSchV.

• Annual report according to the 13th BImSchV

  The content of the annual report is defined by § 22 para. 1 of the 13th BImSchV.

• Annual report according to the 17th BImSchV

  The content of the annual report is defined by § 22 para. 1 of the 17th BImSchV.

• PRTR Report

  The content of the PRTR report is defined by Annex 3 of Regulation (EC) No 166/2006.

• Emissions declaration in accordance with the 11th BImSchV: The installation is subject to licensing in accordance with the 4th BImSchV and its annex and is not exempt from the declaration obligation in accordance with § 1 of the 11th BImSchV.
• Annual report in accordance with the 13th and 17th BImSchV: The installation is subject to the 13th BImSchV or § 22 para. 1 of the 17th BImSchV.
• PRTR report: The installation falls within the scope of Regulation (EC) No. 166/2006 and exceeds the reporting thresholds contained therein.

The emissions declaration and/or the report can be submitted electronically using the "BUBE online" application for operational environmental data reporting.

• Emissions declaration in accordance with the 11th BImSchV: According to Section 4 (2) of the 11th BImSchV, the emissions declaration must be submitted by May 31 of the year following the respective declaration period. In individual cases, the submission deadline can be extended to June 30 upon request. The application must be submitted to the competent authority by April 30.
• Annual report in accordance with the 13th and 17th BImSchV: The report must be submitted by the end of April 30 of the following year.
• Annual report in accordance with the PRTR Regulation: The report must be submitted by the end of April 30 of the following year. In individual cases, the submission deadline can be extended to May 31st upon request. The application must be submitted to the competent authority by March 31.