B4: Pollution of air, water and soil
Pollutant emissions that you already report to authorities or under an environmental management system.
In brief
B4 asks for the emissions of pollutants to air, water and soil from your own operations, but only if you already report them. You report them either because EU or national law requires it, or voluntarily under an environmental management system such as EMAS or ISO 14001. In practice this mostly concerns industrial installations with an environmental permit. If the data is already public, you can refer to it instead of repeating it. Greenhouse gases are reported in B3, not here.
At a glance
- Requirement
- If applicable: when you already report pollutants to authorities or under an environmental management system.
- 10 employees or less
- Required, under the same condition.
- Value chain cap (from 2027)
- Not included.
- In Selko Report
- Page "Pollution"
What changed from VSME
- No change in substance. The VS states more directly that the information comes from your own operations and is the data you report to competent authorities or under an environmental management system.
VS Standard Reference
The official text of the Voluntary Standard, Annex I to Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1560.
Selko Insights
How Selko applies it
A simple first question
The page starts with one question: does your company report pollutant emissions to air, water or soil to authorities, under an environmental permit or to an emissions register, or track them in a certified environmental management system? If not, B4 does not apply to you.
A table or a link
If the figures are already public, for example in the EU Industrial Emissions Portal or your own environmental report, you can give the link. Otherwise you list each pollutant in a table with the amount emitted to air, water or soil. EFRAG's guidance asks for the total across all your facilities, so a link works best when you have one facility or a company-wide report.
A picker with the EU pollutants, and room for your own
The pollutant picker lists 67 substances under eight headings, from air pollutants and heavy metals to pesticides. Your permit may also set limits on substances that are not on the EU list, aluminum for example. Choose "Other (specify)" and type the name as it appears in your permit.
Frequently asked questions
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Read moreReady to make progress?
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