Wine effluents – French Regulations

Extract from the MATEVI website – (Link to the MATEVI article)

‘The obligation to treat applies to everyone: all wineries are concerned, regardless of the volume of wine produced. In the event of an inspection by the Water Police (a department of the DDTM), the penalties can be very severe.

The requirements for treating wine effluent are set out in various regulations (public health codes, regulations governing facilities classified for environmental protection, etc.).

With the exception of distilleries, wineries were not covered by the regulations governing facilities classified for environmental protection (ICPE). The decree of 29 December 1993 brought them under this regime.
The ICPE regulations set out the procedures to be followed to minimise environmental risks for wineries with a production capacity of between 500 hl and 20,000 hl (wineries subject to declaration, Decree of 15 March 1999) or over 20,000 hl (wineries subject to registration, Decree of 26 November 2012 or wineries subject to authorisation, Decree of 3 May 2000).

Effluent treatment is compulsory, and facilities must be declared to the ICPE department.

Wineries fall into three categories:

Production capacity
Applicable regime
Less than 500 hL
Departmental health regulations: 500 hL to 20,000 hL

Declaration system: Over 20,000 hL

Authorisation or registration system
In addition, whatever their production volume, wineries must comply with general regulations such as the Environmental Code and the departmental health regulations. Main regulations applicable to wineries :

Declaration procedure
For wineries subject to the ICPE (Installations Classées pour la Protection de l’Environnement – Classified Facilities for Environmental Protection) declaration procedure, with production of between 500 hl and 20,000 hl, any change to the operation, such as the construction of a building or the installation of an effluent treatment system, must be notified to the authorities before the work is carried out.

For a number of years now, it has been possible to make the initial declaration of a winery or modification to installations online. The procedure is fairly straightforward.

Cellar checks during the harvest
During the harvest and vinification periods, checks are carried out on the wine storehouses. Several bodies are involved: the Water Police (DDTM department), the Installations Classées pour la Protection de l’Environnement (ICPE, DDPP department), the Agence Française pour la Biodiversité (French Biodiversity Agency) and, in support, the Gendarmerie Nationale.

When pollution of the natural environment is observed, these people can enter the farms that are the source of the pollution. They then carry out an inspection of existing installations for managing wine effluents.

Declaration request documents are available:
Extract from the Environment Code – Regulations section – Paper document Initial declaration of an ICPE – Notice for the initial declaration of an ICPE’ .

In practice: obligations and proposed equipment

Current regulations on cellar effluents require them to be stored and then spread.

Oceania Environment offers a compact, simple, reliable and economical filtration and tank pack to treat your cellar effluent in compliance with the regulations.

Benefits :

• Washing water can be reused for washing agricultural equipment (not for the winery, as the water must be potable).
• The documents issued after the declaration (proof of deposit and summary of the declaration) must be kept.
• Washing water can be discharged directly into the environment or the sewage system
  Avoid the need for costly lagooning, which requires construction and maintenance
  Save on storage tanks for spreading

Discover our storage and filtration solutions (mobile filtration unit, simple, mobile and compact) to manage your effluent in compliance with current regulations...Find out more