GovWire

Emerging techniques are novel techniques for an industrial activity that, if commercially developed, could provide one of the following:

• a higher general level of protection of the environment
• at least the same level of protection of the environment and higher cost savings than existing best available techniques

You can fit post-combustion carbon capture (PCC) plants to new or existing power and energy from waste (EfW) plants to capture the carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the flue gas.

TheCO₂can be either:

• stored in permanent underground geological storage facilities
• used as a product

These environmental regulators (referred to as the regulators) worked with the UK CCS Research Centre, industry and other stakeholders to develop an evidence review which informs this guidance:

• Environment Agency
• Natural Resources Wales
• Northern Ireland Environment Agency (an executive agency of the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs)

Except where regulations apply, this guidance for emerging techniques is not a regulatory requirement but identifies best practice to address important environmental issues.

The regulators expect operators to follow this guidance, or to propose an alternative approach to provide the same or greater level of protection for the environment.

1. Who this guidance is for

This guidance is for:

• operators when designing their plants and preparing their application for an environmental permit
• regulatory staff when determining environmental permit applications
• any other organisation or members of the public who want to understand how the environmental regulations and standards are being applied

The guidance covers both new plants and retrofits to existing plants.

This guidance coversPCCplants that use amine-based technologies to captureCO₂from the flue gases of:

• power and combined heat and power(CHP)plants fuelled by natural gas and biomass
• EfW plants

The guidance does not include carbon capture for use, though much of this guidance is relevant where you use post combustion capture solvents such as amines.

When youapply for an environmental permitfor this activity, you must tell your regulator whether you are going to follow this guidance. If not, you must propose an alternative approach which will provide the same or greater level of protection for the environment.

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland these installations are permitted under the:

• Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016
• Pollution Prevention and Control (Industrial Emissions) Regulations (NI) 2013

For environmental permitting purposes, aPCCplant is a Part A (1) 6.10 (a) activity in its own right when theCO₂is being captured for geological storage. It could also be a directly associated activity with a combustion activity installation when theCO₂is captured and used for other purposes.

The guidance is informed by an evidence review which summarises the available evidence. This guidance refers to relevant sections in theevidence review.

Thelarge combustion plant (LCP)BATreference document (BREF)identifies carbon capture as an emerging technique but does not address all the potential effects of carbon capture, and it is not listed in the waste incineration (WI) BREF.

Where BAT for an activity is not addressed in existing BREFs or where all the potential environmental effects are not addressed, the regulators must followArticle 14(6) of the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED).

This means that the regulators must set permit conditions covering emission limit values (ELVs) together with other permit conditions. These conditions must be based on the regulators own assessment of emerging techniquesusing the criteria listed inAnnex III of theIED. The regulators consulted industry and other stakeholders when developing the evidence review on which this guidance is based.

Permit conditions must also protect the environment by setting conditions to ensure operators do not breach any environmental quality standards (Article 18 of theIED).

If you operate a large combustion plant, you will need to comply with the:

• IEDChapter III Annex VELVs
• BATassociated emission limits (BAT AELs) identified in theLCPBAT conclusions

If you operate an energy from waste plant, you will need to comply with the:

• IED Annex VI ELVs
• BAT AELs identified in the WI BAT conclusions

Your regulator may grant a temporary derogationofBAT-associated emissions levels (BAT AELs)for up to 9 months, on the basis that carbon capture is testing and using an emerging technique (seeArticle 15(5) ofIED). (Derogation means having less strict emission limit values in the permit than the emission levels associated with the best available techniques.) You should discuss this with your regulator if this is likely to apply.

Your regulator will make a decision on the emission limits and other permit conditions that will apply on a case-by-case basis. They will do this based on the elements outlined in this guidance and the most appropriate source of reference.

2. Power plant selection and integration with thePCCplant

2.1 Energy efficiency in plants withPCC

You must maximise the thermal energy efficiency of th

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