Russia Tightens Environmental Emission Standards for Dairy Industry

Key Changes: Emission Limits by Component

One of the main updates is the transition fr om aggregate particulate matter limits (previously 20 mg/dm³) to specific limits for individual pollutants. Under the new standards, allowable air emissions per 1,000 tonnes of processed dairy raw material per year are:

• Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂): 0.4 tonnes

• Nitric oxide (NO): 0.17 tonnes

• Sulfur dioxide (SO₂): 0.012 mg

Tighter Controls on Water Discharges

The new regulations significantly tighten limits on water pollutants:

• Phosphates: lowered from 12 to 9.61 mg/dm³

• Sulfates: reduced from 1,000 to 220 mg/dm³

• Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD₅): now 300 mg/dm³ (down from 361)

• Suspended solids: reduced from 300 to 290 mg/dm³

• Anionic surfactants (A-SPAS): introduced at a lim it of 2.4 mg/dm³

The thresholds for ammonium ions (0.12 mg/dm³) and Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) (500 mg/dm³) remain unchanged. Interestingly, chloride emissions are no longer regulated separately.

Context: Pressure on Agri-Food Sector

These regulatory updates come amid growing debate over the agri-food sector’s contribution to greenhouse gas emissions. The Russian Ministry of Economic Development had earlier proposed requiring agricultural enterprises to report emissions of carbon dioxide, methane, ozone, and nitrogen oxide. However, industry representatives criticized this move, calling it redundant and overlapping with existing reporting obligations.