Netherlands

Environmental Management Act 2004

Legislative

Law

Passed in 2004

In fields such as environmental permits, CO2 emissions trading, waste prevention, water quality and landfill policy, most environmental regulations affecting GHG emissions are based on the Environmental Management Act. It is also the legal basis to enforce commitments by companies not covered under the ETS that are undertaken within Long-Term Agreements and the Benchmarking Covenant.

The Act lays out enforcement of legal measures, allocating responsibilities for enforcement and monitoring among authorities. Sanctioning options include demanding compliance at the expense of the violator, financial penalties, withdrawal of operating licences and criminal sanctions such as high financial penalties or imprisonment up to six years.

Documents

Link to updated document on official website (Dutch)
Full text (English)