77 officer roles, all coveredArt. 33 GDPR, 72 hours to report a breach93 controls under ISO/IEC 27001:2022905 ready-to-run audit templates in the workspace§ 130 OWiG, supervisory duty of the management boardOfficer appointment letter, signed, filed, evidencedOne workspace for tasks, trainings, audits, documentationDIN 14095 fire protection plans, standardisedEU AI Act, the first horizontal AI regulation worldwide77 officer roles, all coveredArt. 33 GDPR, 72 hours to report a breach93 controls under ISO/IEC 27001:2022905 ready-to-run audit templates in the workspace§ 130 OWiG, supervisory duty of the management boardOfficer appointment letter, signed, filed, evidencedOne workspace for tasks, trainings, audits, documentationDIN 14095 fire protection plans, standardisedEU AI Act, the first horizontal AI regulation worldwide
civac.
ENDE
Get started
All officer roles
ImB

Emission Control Officer

Emission monitoring, supervision of permit-required plants, annual report to operator management, input on notifiable plant changes. Mandatory per § 53 BImSchG.

Focus areas
§ 53 BImSchGEmission monitoringPermit supervisionPlant changes
Legal basis

§ 53 BImSchG

Quick contact

Talk to us about Emission Control Officer

Three lines and you are in our inbox. We reply within one business day.

By sending you agree to our privacy notice. We use the data only to reply to you.

What is an emission control officer?

The emission control officer (Immissionsschutzbeauftragter) is the statutory function under § 53 BImSchG (Federal Immission Control Act) for internal supervision of air, noise and vibration emissions at permit-required installations. The duty in § 53 paragraph 1 BImSchG is filled in by § 1 paragraph 1 of the Fifth Ordinance implementing the BImSchG (5. BImSchV) of 30 July 1993, which ties it to the installations named in Annex I to that ordinance. Those include combustion plants under number 1.1 of the 4. BImSchV from 150 megawatts thermal input on solid or liquid fuels and from 250 megawatts on gaseous fuels, cement clinker plants under number 2.3, glass works under number 2.8, basic chemical production under number 4.1, waste incineration and waste treatment plants under number 8.1, and surface treatment with organic solvents under number 5.1.1.1 from 250 kilograms of solvent per hour.

The officer advises management on permit procedures under § 4 BImSchG, reviews change notifications under § 15 BImSchG and substantial modifications under § 16 BImSchG, monitors compliance with ancillary conditions of the permit including stack height calculation and odour immissions under GIRL, maintains the emission register, and validates the emission declaration under the 11. BImSchV, whose reporting period under § 4 paragraph 1 of that ordinance falls in every fourth calendar year, most recently 2024 and next 2028. Under § 54 paragraph 2 BImSchG the officer files an annual report to the operator on measures taken and planned. The officer also supports implementation of BAT conclusions under the Industrial Emissions Directive and verifies continuous emission measurements against TA Luft 2021, TA Lärm and the sector annexes of the 13., 17. and 30. BImSchV.

§ 58 BImSchG prohibits any disadvantage arising from the role, and for an employee the dismissal protection runs for one year beyond the end of the appointment. Appointment, any change of scope and removal must be notified to the authority without delay under § 55 paragraph 1 BImSchG. Neither § 62 BImSchG nor the 5. BImSchV makes failure to appoint an administrative offence; the authority instead orders the appointment under § 53 paragraph 2 BImSchG. Qualifications follow § 7 of the 5. BImSchV: a university degree in engineering, chemistry or physics, recognised courses covering Annex II to that ordinance, and two years of practical experience, with refresher training at least every two years under § 9.

Duties of the emission control officer

  • Advise on permit applications under § 4 BImSchG and the 4. BImSchV including stack height calculation under TA Luft 2021 and dispersion modelling.
  • Review change notifications under § 15 BImSchG and substantial modifications under § 16 BImSchG before execution.
  • Validate the emission declaration under the 11. BImSchV, due for every fourth calendar year (PRTR pollutants under Regulation 166/2006).
  • File the annual report to the operator under § 54 paragraph 2 BImSchG covering measures, incidents and modernisation.
  • Monitor continuous emission measurement systems under 13., 17. and 30. BImSchV and the EFUET emission data server.
  • Assess noise immissions against TA Lärm and vibrations against DIN 4150 in case of complaints.
  • Train staff on emission limits, authority notification under § 31 BImSchG and maintenance duties.
  • Liaise with the immission control authority and accompany on-site inspections under § 52 BImSchG.
  • Review urban planning and neighbouring projects for encroachment and conflict potential.
  • Support implementation of BAT conclusions under Directive 2010/75/EU through § 12 paragraph 1a and § 17 paragraph 2a BImSchG.

When is appointment mandatory?

Appointment duty arises from § 53 paragraph 1 BImSchG together with § 1 paragraph 1 of the 5. BImSchV: an operator of a permit-required installation named in Annex I to that ordinance must appoint an emission control officer from its own workforce. Headcount, turnover and legal form are irrelevant; only the entry in Annex I matters. Listed installations include combustion plants under number 1.1 of the 4. BImSchV from 150 megawatts on solid or liquid fuels and 250 megawatts on gaseous fuels, cement clinker plants under number 2.3, glass works under number 2.8, basic chemical production under number 4.1, waste incineration and treatment plants under number 8.1, hazardous waste storage under number 8.14, waste treatment from 100 tonnes per day under number 8.15, surface treatment with organic solvents under number 5.1.1.1 from 250 kilograms per hour, and lead battery production under number 3.21 from 1,500 units per day.

Where one operator runs several such installations, § 3 of the 5. BImSchV allows a single joint officer, and § 4 permits a group-wide officer if the authority approves the application. An officer from outside the business is to be permitted by the authority on application under § 5 of the 5. BImSchV; without that permission an external appointment does not satisfy § 1 paragraph 1. Market hourly rates run from 130 to 250 EUR. The appointment must be in writing and must state the tasks precisely; appointment, change of scope and removal are notified to the authority without delay under § 55 paragraph 1 BImSchG, and the works council must be informed beforehand under § 55 paragraph 1a. For installations outside Annex I the authority may order an appointment under § 53 paragraph 2 BImSchG, and conversely § 6 of the 5. BImSchV grants an exemption on application where an appointment is not needed in the individual case.

  • Operation of an installation named in Annex I to the 5. BImSchV, for example a combustion plant under number 1.1 of the 4. BImSchV from 150 megawatts on solid or liquid fuels.
  • Basic chemical production under number 4.1, or waste incineration and treatment under number 8.1 of the 4. BImSchV.
  • Surface treatment with organic solvents under number 5.1.1.1 of the 4. BImSchV from 250 kilograms of solvent per hour.
  • Hazardous waste storage under number 8.14, or waste treatment from 100 tonnes per day under number 8.15 of the 4. BImSchV.
  • Substantial modification under § 16 BImSchG that brings the installation into Annex I to the 5. BImSchV.
  • Individual order by the authority under § 53 paragraph 2 BImSchG for an installation outside Annex I.

Affected sectors

  • Chemical and petrochemical industry (refineries, organic and inorganic basic substances)
  • Iron, steel, non-ferrous metals and foundries
  • Cement, lime, gypsum and glass production
  • Energy and district heating from 150 MW thermal input
  • Waste incineration and refuse-derived fuel plants under the 17. BImSchV
  • Pulp, paper and wood-based panel industry
  • Food industry with large-scale refrigeration, slaughtering and odour emissions
  • Automotive paint shops above 250 kilograms of solvent per hour
  • Lead battery plants from 1,500 starter batteries or industrial cells per day
  • Mineral processing, quarries and ceramics
CIVAC

How CIVAC supports the emission control officer

CIVAC maintains an installation-level register of 4. BImSchV permits with ancillary conditions, BAT conclusions and inspection schedules. Emission data from continuous measuring systems are imported, benchmarked against limits in the 13./17./30. BImSchV and TA Luft 2021, and automatically escalated when half-hour, daily or annual averages deviate. The quadrennial emission declaration under the 11. BImSchV is pre-populated from the prior year; PRTR thresholds are checked against Annex II of Regulation 166/2006. The annual report under § 58b BImSchG is generated from operational data. Change notifications under §§ 15, 16 BImSchG are dispatched with lead time. External and internal officers operate jointly across sites.

Frequently asked questions

Articles on this role

Need this officer role for your organisation?

Appoint our experts as your external officer or license CIVAC for your in-house team. Get in touch and we walk you through the right setup.

Talk to CIVACSee all 77 roles
Other officer roles