Article 202. Permissible emission standards and technological emission standards. The period of excess emissions of the Environmental Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan

     1. Permissible emission standard is an environmental standard that is established in an environmental permit and is defined as the maximum mass of a pollutant or mixture of pollutants allowed to be released into the atmospheric air.

     2. The standards of permissible emissions are determined for a separate stationary source and (or) a set of stationary sources that are part of a category I or II facility by calculation using the method of modeling the dispersion of surface concentrations of pollutants in such a way that the total load on atmospheric air within the impact area does not lead to a violation of established environmental quality standards environment or environmental quality targets.

     The area of impact is considered to be the territory (water area) determined by modeling the dispersion of surface concentrations of pollutants.

     For a set of stationary sources, the impact area is calculated as the sum of the impact areas of individual stationary emission sources.

     3. The total load on atmospheric air is understood as the cumulative effect:

     1) emissions of a category I or II facility for which emission standards are being developed, taking into account the levels of existing exposure (for existing emission sources) or reasonably anticipated exposure levels (for new and reconstructed emission sources);

     2) the natural background of atmospheric air, which is understood as the mass concentrations of pollutants in atmospheric air caused by the release into atmospheric air or the formation of pollutants in it as a result of natural processes;

     3) the basic anthropogenic background of atmospheric air, which is understood as the mass concentrations of pollutants in atmospheric air caused by emissions from other stationary and mobile sources, which are carried out at the time of determining the standards of permissible emissions in relation to the facility specified in subparagraph 1) of this paragraph.

     4. The total load on atmospheric air is determined taking into account geographical, climatic and other natural conditions and features of territories and water areas for which environmental regulation is carried out. When determining the total load on atmospheric air, the variability (seasonality) of the effects specified in paragraph 3 of this article during the calendar year is also taken into account.

     5. Standards of permissible emissions are established for each pollutant in the form of:

     1) the mass concentration of the pollutant, which is understood as the mass of the pollutant per unit volume of dry exhaust gases and which is expressed as the ratio of milligrams per cubic meter;

     2) the rate of mass flow of a pollutant, which is understood as the mass of a pollutant emitted per unit of time, and which is expressed as the ratio of grams per second.

     Indicators regarding the volume and velocity of the mass flow of exhaust gases are determined under standard conditions of 273.15 K and 101.3 kPa and, unless otherwise expressly provided by the environmental legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan, after subtracting the water vapor content.

     Indicators of the mass concentration of a pollutant are determined by averaging the corresponding emission indicators during one calendar day of normal (routine) operation of a stationary emission source under the most unfavorable operating conditions from the point of view of atmospheric air protection.

     The indicators of the mass flow rate of a pollutant are determined by averaging the corresponding emission indicators during one hour of normal (routine) operation of the emission source under the most unfavorable operating conditions from the point of view of atmospheric air protection.

     6. Emissions are considered excess if:

     1) the average values of mass concentrations for a calendar day exceed the set value of mass concentrations;

     2) the average values of mass concentrations in twenty minutes exceed the set value of mass concentrations by two or more times.

6-1. The period of excess emissions for facilities of categories I and II is determined from the date of submission of the last report on industrial environmental control to the digital system "National Database of Environmental Data and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan", with the exception of sources where an automated monitoring system for emissions into the environment is installed.

     For category III facilities, the period of excess emissions is determined for the period under review.

     7. In order to ensure compliance with the established standards for the permissible total anthropogenic load on atmospheric air, along with the standards for permissible emissions, the environmental permit sets annual emission limits expressed in tons per year for each stationary source and category I and II facilities as a whole.

     8. Permissible emission standards are established for the standard (routine) operating conditions of stationary sources included in a category I or II facility, at their maximum load (capacity) provided for in the design documents, including under the condition of normal (routine) functioning of all ventilation systems and devices and gas purification plants.

     The standards of permissible emissions of a category I or II facility are established for the conditions of its normal operation, taking into account the development prospects, that is, the loading of equipment and its operating modes, including ventilation systems and devices and dust and gas cleaning equipment provided for in the technological regulations. At the same time, for existing category I or II facilities, the actual maximum load of equipment over the past three years is taken into account within the limits set by the project.

     9. Emissions from technologically unavoidable combustion of crude gas are allowed in case of deviations from the initial data used to calculate emissions in draft emission standards and project documentation, provided that the established emission standards and technological standards are observed.

     Excess emissions from the combustion of crude gas on a flare are recognized, which is not recognized by the authorized body in the field of hydrocarbons as technologically unavoidable combustion in case of technological failure, failure or deviation in the operation of technological equipment.

When using flares, in order to reduce emissions of pollutants into the atmospheric air, one or more of the best available techniques are used, provided for in the relevant conclusion on the best available techniques.

     10. Acceptable emission standards are not calculated or established for emergency emissions. An accidental release is an unforeseen, unpredictable and unintended release caused by an accident that occurred during the operation of a category I or II facility.

     The rules for accounting for actual accidental emissions are defined by this Code.

     11. If the emissions from a stationary source contain substances for which environmental quality standards have not been established, an assessment of their possible negative impact on the environment should also be carried out as part of a mandatory environmental impact assessment. The purpose of such an assessment is to determine the type and degree of negative effects of individual substances on the study area, as well as significant dangerous negative consequences for the population and the environment. The assessment of the possible negative effects of substances on the environment should be based on best practices and scientific achievements.

     In the process of assessing the possible negative effects of substances on the environment, the risk of harm to public health is always considered a significant factor, while the negative effects on natural components are recognized as significant based on the results of consideration and analysis of the following aspects:

     1) the purpose of the land and the conditions of land use determined in accordance with the land legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan;

     2) the intended purpose of water bodies and water use conditions determined in accordance with the water legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan;

     3) goals, objectives and activities established within the framework of the implementation of state environmental policy at the national and local levels;

     4) the rights and legitimate interests of land owners, land users and water users affected by the possible harmful effects of the release of such substances;

     5) planned or implemented in the relevant territory (in the water area) measures to protect the environment and improve its quality.

     12. If, according to the results of dispersion calculations, an excess of the established environmental quality standards is detected at any of the assessment points, an environmental permit can be issued only if one of the following conditions is met:

1) the contribution of a stationary source or a group of stationary sources for which the permissible emission standards are calculated does not exceed three percent of the annual value of the environmental quality standard established for this pollutant, and provided that the operator of the facility undertakes to: implement measures to reduce emissions to a level exceeding the minimum values of technological emission indicators, related to the implementation of the best available techniques;

     2) the operator of the facility undertakes an obligation to carry out measures to protect atmospheric air (including by replacing fuels or raw materials with more environmentally friendly ones, making changes to production technology, changing other emission parameters to improve the conditions of dispersion of pollutants and other similar measures), ensuring compliance with environmental standards of atmospheric air quality, to the period specified by the environmental permit, which does not exceed one calendar year from the date of issue of the environmental permit.

     13. For category I facilities, a comprehensive environmental permit establishes technological standards in addition to permissible emission standards.

     14. With regard to new and reconstructed Category I facilities, if the results of calculations of the dispersion of surface concentrations of pollutants show that the total load on atmospheric air will lead to a violation of established environmental quality standards or environmental quality targets, stricter emission standards should be established in the integrated environmental permit than those that comply with technological requirements. indicators related to the application of the best available techniques, thus, to ensure compliance with environmental quality standards or environmental quality targets.

     15. With respect to operating Category I facilities, if the results of calculations of the dispersion of surface concentrations of pollutants show an excess of established environmental quality standards or environmental quality targets, stricter emission standards should be established in the integrated environmental permit than those that correspond to technological indicators related to the use of the best available techniques, to the extent that at least, in which it is technically possible to achieve such stricter emission standards at an economic cost acceptable to the facility operator.

     16. The surface concentration of a pollutant is the mass of a pollutant per unit volume of atmospheric air in a two-meter layer above the earth's surface.

     17. No emission standards are set for mobile sources.

ENVIRONMENTAL CODE OF THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN dated January 2, 2021 No. 400-VI SAM.  

The article was amended and supplemented by the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated July 8, 2026, No. 340-VIII SAM 

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