Authorized classified facilities: amendment to the order of February 2, 1998, concerning chronic emissions

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A decree dated February 28, 2022, amended the general requirements for authorized classified installations regarding chronic emissions, as defined by the decree of February 2, 1998, concerning water withdrawal and consumption, as well as emissions of all kinds from authorized classified installations for environmental protection.

It aims to establish national cross-cutting requirements for authorized ICPE facilities to prevent chronic risks. It also clarifies certain existing provisions.

Most of the newly introduced requirements were already present in the prefectural decrees governing the operating conditions of authorized classified installations.

Note: Certain requirements of this decree may be made applicable to classified installations subject to registration or declaration through the general requirements decrees for the relevant categories. For example, the requirements of Article 43 of the decree of February 2, 1998, are made applicable to classified installations under the declaration regime for category No. 2910 (Combustion installation).

Operators should therefore ensure they review the general requirements decrees applicable to their site, even if it does not fall under the authorization regime. Furthermore, this decree may be made applicable, in whole or in part, by a prefectural decree.

Updating the scope of the decree of February 2, 1998

For greater clarity, the excluded categories are now explicitly named.

Furthermore, to account for various changes in the ICPE nomenclature, installations authorized under the following categories are clearly excluded: 3110, 3260, 3310-1, 3330, 3340, 3610-a, 3610-b, 3641, 3650, and 3660.

Additionally, it is specified that storage facilities covered by the decree of September 24, 2020, regarding the storage of flammable liquids in mobile containers, operated within an authorized classified installation for environmental protection, are excluded from the application of this text.

Provisions applicable to pipeline management

These new provisions aim to ensure the integrity of pipelines transporting hazardous fluids and collecting effluents that are or may be polluted (periodic inspections to verify leak-tightness, identification in accordance with current regulations, and design to ensure polluted water is routed to appropriate treatment systems before being discharged into the authorized receiving environment).

The required content for water supply and collection network plans has been expanded to include:

• the source and distribution of the water supply;

• supply protection devices (disconnection tanks, placement of backflow preventers, or any other equivalent device allowing isolation from the food-grade supply, etc.);
• the sectors collected and their associated networks;
• structures of all types (valves, meters, etc.);
• internal treatment facilities, monitoring points, and discharge points of all kinds.

These provisions apply to both new and existing facilities, effective July 1, 2023.

Provisions for air and water emissions

Effluent collection and treatment facilities

• Incidents that lead to the shutdown of aqueous effluent collection, treatment, or recycling facilities, along with the causes of these incidents and the corrective measures taken, must be recorded in a logbook (Art. 19).
• The operation of effluent treatment facilities must be entrusted to competent personnel with appropriate training (Art. 19).

Discharge onto or into the soil

• This may be authorized for water resulting from the treatment of polluted groundwater (subject to prefectural authorization) and for land spreading (Art. 25).

Isolation of sewage networks

• A system must be in place to allow the facility's sewage networks to be isolated from the outside. These devices must be maintained, clearly marked, and operable under all circumstances. Their preventive maintenance and operation must be defined by written instructions (Art. 49).

Emission monitoring program

• The measurement methods used must ensure reliable, repeatable, and reproducible results (Art. 58).
• Regarding water discharges, if at least one annual measurement is performed, the operator must have a calibration check conducted at least once every two years for all emissions measured annually or more frequently. This check must be performed both by the operator and by an analytical laboratory (Art. 58). Note: If the operator's emission monitoring is already performed by an accredited laboratory, the calibration check does not apply, provided that the measurements (sampling and analysis) are carried out under accreditation.

Open-air burning

• All open-air burning is prohibited, with the exception of fire tests and specific operations provided for by prefectural decree. In such cases, the quality and quantity of the materials burned must be identified (Art. 59 bis).

The provisions of Articles 19 and 49 mentioned above apply to new and existing facilities as of July 1, 2023. The other points mentioned above are already in effect.

Groundwater monitoring

Groundwater monitoring outside of pollution contexts (Art. 65)

Outside of a pollution context, when a facility subject to authorization under one of the categories listed in the table (the list of relevant categories remains unchanged) of Article 65 exceeds one of the thresholds mentioned in that same table, the facility operator must now:

• Rely on a hydrogeological study to determine the need for monitoring and the number of structures to be created (these structures must at a minimum be positioned to avoid areas of activity or storage that could constitute potential sources of pollution);
• Adopt, where applicable, a monitoring plan for each groundwater body to be monitored;
• Register the monitoring structures with the BRGM's National Subsurface Database (Banque du Sous-Sol);
• Carry out the collection, packaging, and analysis of water samples in accordance with standardized methods;
• Report any detected anomalies to the classified installations inspectorate as soon as possible. In the event of results showing one or more atypical upward concentrations, the operator must conduct a supplementary measurement campaign within a period not exceeding three months. If these results confirm groundwater pollution, the operator must determine, providing justification by all useful means, whether its activities are the source of all or part of the observed pollution. The operator shall inform the prefect of the results of its investigations and, where applicable, of the measures taken or planned.

These new provisions apply to both new and existing facilities as of July 1, 2023. Studies regarding the hydrogeological context carried out in accordance with previous provisions shall be considered valid hydrogeological studies within the meaning of this Article 65.

Groundwater monitoring during pollution events (Art. 65 bis)

In a pollution context, facilities experiencing groundwater pollution due to their activity must comply with the provisions set out for non-pollution contexts (monitoring plan, registration of monitoring structures with the BRGM's National Subsurface Database, etc.).

Furthermore, when groundwater monitoring is in place due to a pollution event, a four-year review must be conducted. This review summarizes all results collected since the implementation of the monitoring and analyzes the trends.

These provisions apply to both new and existing facilities as of July 1, 2023. Studies regarding the hydrogeological context carried out in accordance with previous provisions shall be considered valid hydrogeological studies within the meaning of this Article 65 bis.

Additional provisions for certain IED facilities

For establishments whose primary Best Available Techniques (BAT) conclusions are those for:

• organic fine chemical products (OFC);
• specialty inorganic chemicals (SIC);
• polymer production (POL);

the publication of Best Available Techniques (BAT) conclusions for common waste gas management/treatment systems in the chemical sector (WGC) will trigger the review procedure.

In addition, the operator of IED facilities must ensure the monitoring of groundwater and soil if relevant hazardous substances or mixtures are likely to be present on the site and could characterize potential pollution, at a minimum using the structures/points referenced in the baseline report where applicable, or, in the event of technical impossibility, using structures/points with equivalent representativeness.

Sampling and analysis are carried out:

• every 5 years for groundwater
• every 10 years for soil.

These provisions apply to both new and existing facilities, effective July 1, 2023.

Another order dated February 28, 2022, amended the general requirements for authorized classified facilities regarding the prevention of accidental risks, as defined by the order of October 4, 2010 (link to the other article of the month) regarding the prevention of accidental risks within classified facilities for environmental protection subject to authorization.

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