Who needs an industrial emissions licence?

The EPA grants and enforces Industrial Emissions (IE) licences for specified industrial and agricultural activities.  These are listed in the First Schedule to the EPA Act.

The types of industry* which may require an Industrial Emissions licence include:

  • Minerals and other materials
  • Energy
  • Metals
  • Mineral Fibres and Glass
  • Chemicals
  • Intensive Agriculture (poultry and pigs)
  • Food and Drink
  • Wood, Paper, Textiles and Leather
  • Fossil Fuels
  • Cement, Lime and Magnesium Oxide
  • Waste
  • Surface Coatings
  • Other Activities (includes testing of engines, manufacture of printed circuit boards, production of lime, the manufacture of ceramic products, the capture of CO2 streams and treatment of waste water).

* Some activities only require an EPA licence above specified thresholds.

Refer to Industrial Emissions Directive FAQs for further guidance.

If you are planning to start a new activity which requires an industrial emissions licence you must have a licence first. It is an offence to carry on a licensable activity without a licence from the EPA.

The EPA has developed an advice note for Large Scale Emergency Generation for installations which do not currently hold an IED licence. You can download it here.