THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 166/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 January 2006 concerning the establishment of a European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register and amending Council Directives 91/689/EEC and 96/61/EC1, and in particular Article 7(2) thereof,

Whereas:

1. (1)

   In accordance with Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 166/2006 (hereafter ‘the Regulation’), Member States report data to the Commission on pollutant releases and transfers from large industrial facilities. The Commission compiles these data in an electronic and publicly available European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (hereafter ‘E-PRTR’) in order to facilitate public participation in environmental decision-making and the reduction of pollution of the environment.

2. (2)

   In order to enhance coherence with reporting under Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council2 on industrial emissions whose format, frequency and content is established by Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/11353, the Regulation was amended by Regulation (EU) 2019/1010 of the European Parliament and of the Council4 (hereafter ‘the Amendment’) to confer implementing powers on the Commission to establish the information to be made available under the Regulation, and to abolish the reporting format currently laid down in that Regulation.

3. (3)

   The Amendment emphasised the over-riding importance of enabling Union citizens to quickly access environmental information and the necessity for Member States and the Commission to make data publicly available as fast as technically feasible. The Amendment also determined that Member State reporting should occur no later than 11 months after the year-end and set the aim of having information available within three months of the year-end, including by progressing towards this objective through an implementing act under the Regulation.

4. (4)

   The current practices and information technology used for reporting aim at ensuring the high quality of data included in both national pollutant release and transfer registers and in the E-PRTR. The objective of making E-PRTR information available earlier to the public should further promote the reporting of high-quality information. Since this objective requires the implementation of a stepwise approach and careful preparation, including the testing of new reporting methods and the development of new reporting tools, notably for the purpose of validation and quality control of reported data, the reporting deadlines should be reviewed in light of progress in information technology, the results of pilot testing and Member State best practices.

5. (5)

   The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee established by Article 19 of the Regulation,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: