Background to E-PRTR
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Glossary
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Glossary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W
SO2, NOx and NH3 are known as acidifying substances as they (partly) turn into their acid forms (sulphuric acid, nitric acid and ammonia) when coming into contact with air and cause acid rain. These substances can travel enormous distances in the air. Hydrochloric acid and other organic acids are also released into the air, but usually in such low quantities that their impact on the environment is only very small.- With respect to releases to water agriculture means the sum of releases from agricultural processes. This is usually closely connected to releases from agricultural soils. Releases from this sector are mainly due to the application of synthetic or natural fertilizer. Precipitation, erosion, digging and artificial irrigation, as well as natural leaching processes then cause the release of nutrients to the aquatic environment.
- With respect to releases to air, agriculture sums up releases from fuel combustion in agriculture,fishing and forestry (NFR 1A4c), enteric fermentation (NFR 4D), manure managements (NFR 4B), rice cultivation (NFR 4C), agricultural soils (NFR 4D), field burning of agricultural wastes (NFR 4F)and other agricultural processes (NFR 4G) These sub-categories are not always strictly diffuse but it can be stated that a maximum of 10% of the releases compiled under agriculture as diffuse source sector in this inventory might originate from point sources as defined under E_PRTR in reality.
CDR-EIONET
The Central Data Repository (CDR) is part of the ReportNet architecture hosted by the European Environment Agency. The Central Data Repository is like a bookshelf, compiling data reports on the environment as submitted to European and international conventions. For each country either a collection of deliveries or a link to an external mostly national database is provided. Reports are arranged under the relevant reporting obligations or agreements. The category EEA-request includes data reported under the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP) and UNFCCC (UN Framework Convention on Climate Change) in different quality and reporting years for EU Member States and other countries.Common Reporting Format (CFR)
The Common Reporting Format (CFR) is a standardised reporting format which is established for reporting on national emissions under UNFCCC and CLRTAP. Within the CFR a standardised Nomenclature for Reporting (NFR) is applied, which lists and classifies a number of source categories and sub-sectors by codes.Construction
Potential diffuse source sector for the inventory on releases to air. The sector would include releases from all construction and demolition activities. Currently an allocation of data from current reporting is not possible. According to the definition in the European PRTR Regulation diffuse sources are the many smaller or scattered sources from which pollutants may be released to land, air or water, whose combined impact on those media may be significant and for which it is impractical to collect reports from each individual source. Reporting on diffuse sources according to this definition does not include so called diffuse or fugitive releases occuring at large industrial installations subject to reporting as point source. These releases are included in the corresponding figures in E-PRTR for Annex I activities. DPSIR is the causal analytical framework for describing the interactions between society and the environment adopted by the European Environment Agency: D = driving forces, P = pressures, S = states, I =impacts, R =responses (extension of the PSR model developed by OECD). The framework has been adopted in the guidance document for identification of pressures and assessment of impacts within the characterisation of water bodies for reporting under the article 5 of the Waterframework Directive.The UN-ECE/EMEP emission database WebDab has been constructed in order to facilitate the access to data reported to the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP) on Main Pollutants, Heavy Metals and Persistent Organic Pollutants. Endocrine disruptors are exogenous substances that cause adverse biological effects by interfering with the endocrine system. The endocrine system is made up of gland, which secrete hormones, and receptor cells which detect and react to the hormons. Some chemicals mimic a natural hormone, fooling the body into over-responding to the stimulus, or responding at inappropriate times. Other endocrine disruptors block the effects of a hormone from certain receptors by blocking the receptor site on a cell. Still others directly stimulate or inhibit the endocrine system and cause overproduction or underproduction of hormones.
EPER
EPER is the European Pollutant Emission Register which is based on a Commission Decision of 17 July 2000 (2000/479/EC) It is based on Article 15 of the IPPC-Directive (96/61/EC) concerning an integrated pollution prevention and control. Article 15 requires Member States to inventory and supply data on principal emissions and responsible sources and the European Commission to publish the results of the inventory every three years. EPER is amended by the European PRTR Regulation (166/2006/EC) (see European PRTR).European PRTR
The European PRTR is the European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register. It is based on the European PRTR Regulation (166/2006/EC) which entered into force 24 February 2006. The European PRTR Regulation has incorporated the provisions of the UN-ECE Protocol on Pollutant Release and Transfer Register under the Aarhus Convention, which was adopted at the Kiev Ministerial Conference 'Environment for Europe' in May 2003 and has been ratified for the European Union by Council Decision 2006/61/EC. Erosion is a pathway used in the inventory of releases into water. In this context it means the discharge into the water body via soil losses from land. The discharge is based on soil loss, sediment delivery and enrichment ratio and is mainly a function of land cover, slope and soil characteristics including the pollutant surplus.Fossil fuel distribution of natural gas
Fossil fuel distribution of natural gas is a diffuse source sector used in the inventory of releases to air. The sector uses data from NFR 1B2b"distribution of natural gas" because they are expected to be emitted by non-point-sources like pipelines. Data from NFR codes for fossil fuel distribution oil, other, venting and flaring are not taken into account, because activities are expected to occur largely at large point sources such as refineries and thus are reported under point sources. Greenhouse gases (GHG) are gaseous components of the atmosphere that contribute to the greenhouse effect. The major natural greenhouse gases are water vapor, carbon dioxide (CO2) and ozone. Other greenhouse gases are methane (CH4), nitrouse oxide (N2O), chlorofuorcarbons (CFC) and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6).Groundwater is a pathway used in the inventory of releases into water. In this context it contains the discharges which result from water leaching from the root zone through all soil layers and is a function of precipitation, landuse, soil texture and seepage level and includes retention processes and losses in the unsaturated zone and the groundwater.
Heavy metals are a group of elements - between copper and lead on the periodic talbes of the elements - having atomic weights between 63.546 and 200.590 and specific gravities greater than 4.0. Living organisms require trace amounts of some heavy metals, including cobald, copper, manganese and zinc, but excessive levels can be detrimental to the organism. Other heavy metals such as mercury, lead and cadmium have no known vital or beneficial effect on organisms, and their accumulation over time in the bodies of mammals can cause serious illness. Main pollutants are such pollutants which are released in large amounts to the environment. They are mainly produced during combustion processes. In this inventory carbon monoxide (CO), ammonia (NH3), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC), nitrogen oxides (NOx/NO2), sulphur oxides (Sox/SO2) and particulates (PM 10) are counted among the main pollutants. Also CO2, listed in Greenhouse Gases, is one of the main pollutants to atmosphere. Military is used as a diffuse source sector in the inventory on releases to air. Figures reported for this sector correspond to "other stationary fuel combustion activities including military" (NFR 1A5a) and "other mobile fuel combustion activities including military" (NFR 1A5b). Stationary activities are included as military installations are similarly scattered and widespread as is the residential sector and are not included in reporting on "large" point sources.. Natural background losses is a diffuse source sector used In the inventory of releases into water. Natural background losses are releases that would exist if there was no human activity in the catchment area. Natural background losses are calculated on the basis of measurements in small, uncultivated rural catchments characterized by very low cultivation intensity and lack of point sources. They partly depend on geological conditions and may differ even over short distances.
Nomenclature for Reporting (NFR)
The standardised Nomenclature for Reporting (NFR) is used within the Common Format (CFR) for reporting on national emissions under UNFCCC and CLRTAP to classify source categories and sub-sectors which cause releases into the environment. Ozone Precursors are chemicals such as, oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that react to form ozone in the atmosphere.
Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)
POPs are organic compounds that are persistent to environmental degradation through chemical, biological and photolytic processes. Because of this they have been observed to be persistent in the environment, are capable of long-range transport, bioaccumulate in human and animal tissue, and have potential significant impacts on human health and the environment.Pollutant
Pollutants are substances or a group of substances that may be harmful to the environment or to human health due to its toxic properties and its introduction into the environment.Pathway Modelling
Pathway modelling is a source oriented approach to quantify diffuse releases into water. Models trace the way a pollutant takes before it enters the surface water body and try to quantify retention and leaching processes it undergoes therein. A number of models have been developed in European Member States largely focussing on leaching from agricultural soils.Pathways
In opposite to source sectors, which name the activity or "driver" causing the releases, pathways describe the way a pollutant takes before it enters the surface water body thus causing "pressures". In the MONERIS model pathways identified for diffuse releases include erosion, surface run-off, groundwater, tile drainage, atmospheric deposition and urban areas. In the inventory, data are presented exemplarily for the Danube river basin. Paved urban areas is a pathway used in the inventory of releases into water.The pathway is defined as run-off from paved areas and consequently is not related to soil properties.Railway is a diffuse source sector used in the inventory of releases to air. In this context data compiled in the inventory refer solely to releases from fuel combustion (NFR 1A3c). Releases are any introduction of pollutants into the environment as a result of any human activity, whether deliberate or accidental, routine or non-routine, including spilling, emitting, discharging, injecting, disposing or dumping, or through sewer systems without final waste-water treatment.
(European PRTR Regulation, Article 2 (10))
River Basins
A river basin is a region of land where water from rain or snowmelt drains downhill into a water body, such as a river, lake, estuary or ocean. It includes both the streams and rivers that convey the water as well as the land surfaces that feed those channels. The combined streams and rivers that drain the area are collectively the drainage system. In Europe about 120 river basins have been designated by river basin management authorities.Roofing and road paving with asphalt
Asphalt roofing and road paving with asphalt is a diffuse source sector used in the inventory of releases to air summing up data from NFR codes 2A5 and 2A6. Road transport is a diffuse source sector used for the inventory of releases to air. Data in the inventory sum up figures from NFR codes NFR 1A3b "fuel combustion in road transportation" including (i-vii) combustion releases from passanger cars, light and heavy duty, mopeds and motorcycles, gas evaporation, tytre and brake wear and road abrasion and NFR 1A3e "other transportation" composed of pipeline compressors and other mobile machinery. Scattered dwellings is a diffuse source sector used in the inventory of releases into water defined as discharge from households not connected to urban waste water treatment plants and other diffuse emissions as surface run-off from paved areas. Shipping is a diffuse source sector used for the inventory of releases to air. In this context exclusively releases from fuel combustion from NFR code "national navigation" (NFR 1A3d ii) have been summed up. The diffuse source sector solvent use listed in the inventory of releases to air sums up data for paint application (NFR 3A), degreasing and dry cleaning (NFR 3B) and other applications including products containing HM adn POPs (3D). Available data for this sector are not strictly diffuse, but partially include releases from point sources like the chemical industry. These sectors are not strictly diffuse; however based on comparison of data with EPER, it can be stated that a maximum of 10 % of the releases compiled under solvent use as diffuse source sector in this inventory might originate from point sources.Small consumer fuel combustion
Small consumer fuel combustion is a diffuse source sector used within the inventory of releases to air. It corresponds to emissions from fuel combustion in widespread and scattered appliances. Thus data in the inventory sum up NFR codes 1A4a "commercial and institutional fueo combustion" as well as NFR 1A4b "residential combustion", including residential plants and mobile household and gardening appliances.Small and medium enterprises
Small and medium enterprises is a potential diffuse source sector for the inventory of releases to air. It would corresponds to releases in installations not subject to reporting under E-PRTR due to capacities below the threshold levels. Based on current data an allocation of data to this sector from existing reporting categories has not been possible.Source Apportionment
"Source apportionment" is a concept to estimate the contribution of different sources (point or diffuse) to the pollutant load of water bodies taking into account retention processes and losses in soil compartments and aquatic sediments for diffuse sources. Based on the used approach one classifies load oriented or source oriented approaches.Due to the complex processes between releases at source and load in the water body both approaches work with modelled estimations of releases via different pathways either as sum figure or separately for each pathway.
Surface run-off is a pathway used in the inventory of releases into water. It means a watery discharge from the soil surface in contrast to releases from the root zone. It consequently is a function of precipitation, land cover and soil characteristics including pollutant surplus.
Tile drainage is a pathway used in the inventory of releases into water. It means releases from artificial drainage installations. It consequently is a function of precipitation, land cover and soil characteristics including pollutant surplus.
"Total diffuse" is a sum sector used in the inventory of releases into water. The sector contains data calculated from the difference of reported point source releases and the measured pollutant load in the water body. The sector is used, when a further specification of provided data has not been provided. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) website lists under National Reports Greenhouse Gases Inventories from all contracting Parties. The most updated inventories compile data of 2003.
