Legislative Decree 152/2006 Part Five: a guide to emissions to air in Italy

Legislative Decree no. 152 of 3 April 2006 (D.Lgs. 152/2006), known as the Consolidated Environmental Act or Environmental Code, is Italy's main piece of environmental legislation. Its Part Five, entitled "Rules on air protection and the reduction of emissions to air", governs every plant and activity that produces emissions: from permits and emission limit values to emission monitoring and data management.

In this article we go through the structure of Part Five and the points that matter most to industrial plant operators.

The structure of Part Five

Part Five (Articles 267 to 298-bis) is organised into titles, each covering a different category of sources:

The technical provisions are set out in the Annexes to Part Five, including Annex I (emission limit values and requirements), Annex II (large combustion plants), Annex III (volatile organic compounds), Annex IV (exempt plants and activities) and Annex VI (criteria for emission checks and monitoring).

Scope and definitions

Article 268 contains the definitions on which the whole framework is built. The most important include:

Title I does not apply, among others, to waste incineration and co-incineration plants, which are governed by Title III-bis of Part Four, or to domestic and commercial heating systems, which fall under Title II.

Air emissions permit (Article 269)

Every establishment producing emissions requires an air emissions permit, except in the cases of exclusion or exemption provided for by law. The application is submitted to the competent authority, usually the Region or a body it has delegated, and must include a project describing the plant, the abatement techniques adopted, and the quantity and quality of the emissions.

Key points:

For SMEs and plants not subject to an Integrated Environmental Permit, the air emissions permit is normally included in the Single Environmental Permit (AUA) established by Presidential Decree 59/2013. Plants subject to an Integrated Environmental Permit (AIA), which implements the IED in Italy, have their emissions to air regulated within the AIA itself, under Part Two of the Decree.

Exemptions and general permits (Article 272)

Not every activity requires an individual permit:

General permits set emission limit values, requirements and compliance deadlines that apply to all activities of the same type.

Emission limit values (Article 271)

Emission limit values are set in the Annexes to Part Five and may be made stricter by the Regions or by the competent authority when issuing the permit, for example based on local air quality or on best available techniques (BAT).

Unless otherwise specified, limit values refer to:

Standardising measured data to these conditions is therefore an essential step in verifying compliance.

Large and medium combustion plants

Large combustion plants (Article 273)

Plants with a rated thermal input of 50 MW or more are subject to the limit values in Annex II, which transposes the requirements of the Industrial Emissions Directive 2010/75/EU (IED). For these plants, continuous monitoring of SO₂, NOx, dust and CO is generally mandatory.

Medium combustion plants (Article 273-bis)

Legislative Decree 183/2017, transposing the Medium Combustion Plant Directive (EU) 2015/2193 (MCPD), introduced specific rules for plants with a rated thermal input of 1 MW or more and less than 50 MW. Existing medium combustion plants have staggered compliance deadlines depending on their size: from 1 January 2025 for plants above 5 MW and from 1 January 2030 for plants up to 5 MW.

Volatile organic compounds (Article 275)

Activities using solvents (coating, printing, surface cleaning, manufacture of coatings and others) are subject to specific rules on VOCs, set out in Article 275 and Annex III. In addition to limit values for channelled emissions, there are limits for diffuse and total emissions and an obligation to draw up a solvent management plan.

Emission checks and continuous monitoring (Annex VI)

Compliance with emission limit values can be checked in two ways:

Annex VI to Part Five sets out the criteria for assessing whether measured values comply with limit values, and the requirements for continuous monitoring systems. Its main elements include:

In this context the data acquisition and handling system (DAHS) plays a central role: it is the software that processes the analysers' signals, applies the standardisation and Annex VI validity criteria, and produces reports for the competent authority. The requirements for this software are covered in more detail by EN 17255, which we discussed in a previous article on our blog.

Operator obligations

In short, the operator of an establishment with emissions to air must:

Penalties (Article 279)

Article 279 provides for both criminal and administrative penalties. Offences include, among others, operating an establishment without a permit, breaching emission limit values or permit requirements, and failing to report data or changes. In the most serious cases the competent authority may issue a formal warning, suspend the activity or revoke the permit.

A reliable, well-documented monitoring system is therefore also a form of protection for the operator, as it makes it possible to demonstrate compliance and to act quickly when anomalies occur.

An evolving regulatory framework

Part Five has been amended several times since it came into force, most notably by Legislative Decree 128/2010 and Legislative Decree 183/2017, and it continues to evolve in line with European legislation, starting with the revision of the Industrial Emissions Directive (Directive (EU) 2024/1785). It is therefore important always to refer to the text in force, available in the codes section of the Italian Official Journal (Gazzetta Ufficiale), and to the specific requirements of your own permit.

How APS Automazione can help

APS Automazione designs and builds emission monitoring systems compliant with Legislative Decree 152/2006 and the related technical standards: from analysers to DAHS software, including support with the quality assurance activities required by EN 14181. Contact us to assess your plant's needs together.