La Rioja updates the environmental conditions for Sampedro ceramics in Lardero

The General Directorate of Environmental Quality, Climate Change and Water of the Government of La Rioja has approved the non-substantial modification of the integrated environmental authorization for the ceramic products manufacturing plant of Herederos Cerámica Sampedro, SA, located in the municipality of Lardero. The decision is formalized in Resolution 346/2026, dated September 18, published in the Official Gazette of La Rioja number 184, corresponding to Thursday, September 24, 2026, with the official reference BOR-A-20260924-III–3632 and file IPPC 40/AAI 13-2026.

The resolution is part of the integrated pollution prevention and control procedure and affects the environmental conditions of an already authorized industrial installation. The competent body to grant the integrated environmental authorization in the autonomous community is the aforementioned General Directorate, in accordance with Article 19 of Law 6/2017, of May 8, on Environmental Protection of the Autonomous Community of La Rioja.

A modification limited to atmospheric conditions

The approved change is limited to the text of the authorization relating to atmospheric pollution. Specifically, subscript (2) associated with source 5 in the table of section 3.1.2.1, “Emission limit values,” of Resolution 21/2023, of September 15, which modified and approved the consolidated text of the plant’s integrated environmental authorization, is removed.

The request for non-substantial modification was received by the General Directorate on July 8, 2026. After analyzing the documentation, the environmental body verified that the conditions of Article 14 of Royal Decree 815/2013, of October 18, which approves the Industrial Emissions Regulation, were met, allowing the file to be processed via the non-substantial modification route. The environmental body requested a report from the Climate Change Service.

Eighteen years of successive authorizations

The Lardero plant has had an integrated environmental authorization since 2008, and its history already accumulates eight modification or update resolutions. The activity is included in category 3.5 of Annex 1 of Legislative Royal Decree 1/2016, of December 16, which approves the consolidated text of the Law on integrated pollution prevention and control.

The administrative history of the installation is as follows:

• Initial authorization: Resolution number 2, of January 8, 2008, of the Director General of Environmental Quality (file IPPC 40/AAI 22-2006).
• Modification: Resolution 159, of April 23, 2008 (file IPPC 40/AAI 02-2008).
• Update: Resolution 381, of December 12, 2013 (file IPPC 40/AAI 15-2012).
• Modification: Resolution 251/2016, of October 10, 2016 (file IPPC 40/AAI 08-2015).
• Modification: Resolution 9/2020, of January 14 (file IPPC 40/AAI 12-2019).
• Modification: Resolution of March 19, 2020 (file IPPC 40/AAI 04-2020).
• Modification: Resolution 365/2021, of October 1 (file IPPC 40/AAI 29-2021).
• Modification: Resolution 21/2023, of September 15 (file IPPC 40/AAI 9-2023).

Notifications and appeal process

The authorization is granted without prejudice to other authorizations and licenses required for the facility. The resolution orders its publication in the Official Gazette of La Rioja and its transmission to three recipients:

• Herederos Cerámica Sampedro, SA, as the plant owner.
• The Climate Change Service.
• The Environmental Integration Service.

The text does not exhaust administrative remedies. An administrative appeal (recurso de alzada) may be filed before the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural World and Environment within one month starting from the day following its notification, in accordance with articles 121 and 122 of Law 39/2015, of October 1. The resolution was signed in Logroño on September 18, 2026, by the Director General of Environmental Quality, Climate Change and Water, Isabel Vitoria Díez.

The update is of interest to the residents of Lardero and the plant’s surroundings, as it establishes the conditions under which the ceramics factory may operate regarding atmospheric emissions. The file also records that the facility maintains its activity under the integrated environmental authorization regime, with conditions that have been periodically reviewed for nearly two decades.

Source: Official Gazette of La Rioja, no. 184, of September 24, 2026, section III (Other provisions and acts), pp. 16335-16337 (official reference: BOR-A-20260924-III–3632).