Environmental compliance

What are the latest developments? We’ve picked out some highlights for May 2026:

Environmental Omnibus: timeline for parliamentary work
Batteries: Commission explores deposit return systems

Environmental Omnibus: timeline for parliamentary work

Work on the Environmental Omnibus is progressing in the European Parliament, with a detailed timeline emerging for the permitting acceleration file.

Following the appointment of the rapporteur in March, the draft report is expected on 20 May. Committee discussion is scheduled for 22-23 June, with the deadline for amendments set for 30 June. Negotiations between political groups are expected to continue until mid-September, ahead of a committee vote on 1 October and a plenary vote planned for the October session.

In a recent exchange with the European Parliament’s ENVI committee, Commissioner Roswall called for accelerated work on the Omnibus, urging co-legislators to reach agreement still in 2026 and to focus on simplifying rules while maintaining environmental standards.

In parallel, discussions are ongoing in the Council, where Member States are assessing the proposed simplification measures, including the suspension of authorised representatives under extended producer responsibility (EPR). Several Member States, including France, Luxembourg, Spain, Austria and Estonia, raised concerns about this approach in January, warning of potential enforcement gaps, increased non-compliance risks and competitive distortions favouring non-EU producers. Italy has called for any such measure to be strictly time-limited, while Sweden, Belgium and the Czech Republic have requested further clarification on the scope of the measure, alternative traceability mechanisms and its interaction with the upcoming broader reform of EPR under the Circular Economy Act.

The Omnibus package also includes proposals to harmonise reporting frequencies for EPR. A recent Landbell discussion paper examines these changes in detail, including the potential impacts of limiting reporting to 12 months on data quality, collection and operational processes across EPR systems.

The European Commission has launched a stakeholder consultation on the proposals via the “Have Your Say” portal, which closes today on 7 May 2026. Landbell Group contributed to the consultation providing a structured overview of key considerations on EPR implementation, particularly the authorised representative and reporting frequency topics to support the current policy debate.

Batteries: Commission explores deposit return systems

The European Commission has launched a study on the feasibility of deposit return systems (DRS) for batteries, as required under Article 63 of the Batteries Regulation. The study, being carried out by Öko-Institut and Ramboll, will assess potential benefits and design options ahead of a Commission report expected by the end of 2027. The first stakeholder workshop took place on 28 April.

Stakeholders are invited to submit written feedback on the study by 26 May 2026. A draft report is expected in late August, followed by a second stakeholder workshop in September and a further feedback round in October, ahead of the final report submission in December 2026.

Initial findings suggest that DRS could help increase collection rates, particularly for lithium-based batteries, and address safety concerns such as fire risks in waste streams. Two main approaches are currently being assessed: retailer-based systems for light means of transport batteries, such as e-bike batteries, and a broader industry-wide DRS for portable batteries, potentially focused on batteries with elevated fire risks. At the same time, the analysis points to challenges related to system design, including administrative complexity, costs, safety requirements and the interaction with existing extended producer responsibility (EPR) schemes.

Feedback from stakeholders highlights ongoing concerns regarding feasibility, in particular regarding system costs, operational complexity, exacerbated safety concerns, data availability and the interaction with existing collection systems. These aspects are expected to be further examined in the next phase of the study.

In parallel, the Commission has launched a stakeholder consultation on a delegated act introducing additional exemptions to battery removability and replaceability requirements, with feedback open until 26 May 2026.