ANP extension
ANNOUNCEMENTS••Edited
The province of North Holland has strengthened the natural permit of Tata Steel. In the future, the steelmaker could emit 8% less nitrogen. “This space benefits nature,” the province said.
Tata Steel is according to a list that Minister Van der Wal (Nature and Nitrogen) made last spring made public the largest industrial emitter of nitrogen in the Netherlands.
The environmental organization Mobilization for the Environment (MOB) filed three applications earlier this year regarding the permits granted to Tata Steel. The organization would have preferred to see the naturalistic permit revoked altogether, but according to the province it is not necessary.
Steel production not declining
Now that the permit has been strengthened, new standards for nitrogen emissions will be imposed on the company. For example, trucks and mobile equipment such as excavators and loaders need to be replaced on site with environmentally friendly alternatives. In addition, Tata Steel is required to monitor and report on nitrogen emissions annually.
According to Noord-Holland, even with stricter rules, Tata Steel will have enough room for nitrogen to switch to sustainable steelmaking in the coming years. The province also ensures that the steelmaker presents concrete plans to do so.
Incidentally, due to the tighter permit, Tata Steel does not have to scale back its steel production, because it is not yet using all the licensed nitrogen space.
Further restrictions will follow in the future, writes the province. For example, Tata Steel needs to check whether the emissions in one of the coking plants can be reduced. If this is found to be possible, the permit will be updated in 2026.
‘The Eight Percent You Don’t Write Home About’
According to MOB’s Johan Vollenbroek, this is the first time that a province has dealt with the permit of an industrial company. However, he isn’t exactly happy with the province’s decision. “It’s only eight percent, which isn’t exactly anything to write home about.”
Vollenbroek has little faith in Tata’s plans to become more sustainable. “Such a process can take ten years.” Coking plants remain the biggest problem. “They just need to close in the short term.”
