Companies and other stakeholders can respond to the Biomass Sustainability Decree. That decree must establish how companies demonstrate that the bio-based raw materials they use in the construction and chemical industries are sustainably produced.
Bio-based raw materials can replace fossil raw materials in these sectors and thus contribute to a climate-neutral and circular economy. At the same time, their production can harm the environment, for example through deforestation or loss of biodiversity. The decision must ensure that only bio-based raw materials are used whose origin is demonstrably sustainable.
The requirements will not apply to all bio-based raw materials, but only to subsidized and regulated flows within the construction and chemical industries.
To demonstrate this sustainable origin, the Cabinet has opted for a private system of certification and verification. The specific requirements that a batch of bio-based raw materials must meet are not set out in the decree itself. These will be elaborated later in a separate regulation based on the decree.
In addition to this private system, public supervision will be introduced. Through an amendment to the Environmental Management Act, the Netherlands Emissions Authority (NEa) will be tasked with supervising the certification bodies operating within the system. Consequently, the NEa will not inspect every individual batch of biomass, but rather the organizations that issue the certificates.
In the consultation, the government is requesting input on, among other things, possible areas for improvement in the elaboration of the decision. You can respond until July 13, 2026, via internetconsultatie.nl.
Source: Central Government, internet consultation “Amendment to the Environmental Management Act in connection with supervision and enforcement by the Netherlands Emissions Authority” (Biomass Sustainability Decree), via www.internetconsultation.nl.
Photo: Photo by Bernd Dittrich on Unsplash
