Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC)

Abstract

Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) is a holistic approach aiming to prevent or minimize the risk of harm to the environment taken as a whole. The approach recognizes the integrated nature of the environment, combining the effects of substances or activities on all the environmental media (air, water, and soil), the living organisms (including people) that these media support, and the cultural and aesthetic assets. Following a set of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) guiding principles, the European Union has implemented this approach in the regulatory context since 1996, through the IPPC Directive, which has been recently updated and further integrated into the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED). The IPPC approach is implemented in the regulatory arena through permit systems based on the Best Available Techniques (BAT) concept. BAT are used for setting emission limit values and other permit conditions designed to prevent and, where that is not practicable, to reduce emissions and the impact on the environment as a whole.