RUA, Colombia's Single Environmental Registry

The Single Environmental Registry (Registro Único Ambiental, RUA) is the annual filing through which establishments in Colombia report to the competent environmental authority on their use of renewable natural resources and on their pollutant releases and transfers. It sits inside the Renewable Natural Resource Use Information Subsystem (SIUR), part of Colombia's Environmental Information System (SIAC), and is administered by IDEAM.

The rule in force is Resolution 0839 of 28 August 2023, issued by the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development. It replaced Resolution 0941 of 2009, consolidated reporting into a single application covering all productive sectors, and adopted the Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (RETC).

Who has to file

The RUA must be completed and updated by natural and legal persons that, under environmental rules:

• Require an environmental licence or an environmental management plan.
• Hold permits, concessions or other environmental authorisations for the use of renewable natural resources: water concessions, discharge permits, air emission permits, forest use permits and others.
• Are generators required to report to the hazardous waste generator registry.

Two details change how much work this is. The obligation applies per establishment, not per company, so a group with several plants files one report for each, with the environmental authority in its jurisdiction. And the scope is no longer limited to manufacturing: implementation extends gradually to all productive sectors, following Colombia's adaptation of the ISIC revision 4 classification.

What information is reported

The RUA captures the establishment's environmental balance for a full calendar year, in these blocks:

• Establishment identification and its current environmental authorisations.
• Water abstraction and consumption, and discharges.
• Energy consumption.
• Air emissions.
• Raw materials and natural resources used.
• Products and services generated.
• Hazardous and non-hazardous waste.
• Environmental management actions.

The RETC is generated from that same information, with no separate filing. That is one of the simplifications Resolution 0839 of 2023 introduced.

Who receives it, and how often

Filing is annual and covers the previous calendar year. It goes to the environmental authority with jurisdiction over the establishment, through the application built by IDEAM, whose access link is published by the environmental authorities, IDEAM itself and the SIAC portal.

Sector schedule

Annual windows by tax ID

Within each year, the filing window depends on the last digit of the tax identification number, excluding the check digit:

Registration comes before filing. The resolution set prior registration windows: between June and November 2024 for manufacturing and between June and November 2025 for the remaining productive sectors, also split by the last digit of the tax ID.

What the information is used for

RUA data feeds Colombia's environmental indicators, informs policy and regulation, supports the assessment, control and monitoring that environmental authorities carry out on registered establishments, and helps identify sources and quantities of pollutant releases and transfers.

For a company that has a direct consequence: what you declare in the RUA is what the environmental authority uses to cross-check your permits against your operation. A discharge or waste figure that does not match what you are authorised to do is a red flag.

Background

The manufacturing RUA was governed for years by Resolution 1023 of 2010, which applied to establishments in ISIC section D. Under Resolution 0839 of 2023 reporting moves to a single application shared by all productive sectors, with a transition regime from the previous scheme.

Frequently asked questions

Who must file the RUA?

Natural and legal persons that require an environmental licence, an environmental management plan, permits, concessions or other environmental authorisations for the use of renewable natural resources, plus generators required to report hazardous waste. Filing is per establishment.

When is it filed?

Every year, covering the previous year: between 1 February and 15 March if the tax ID ends in 0 to 4, and between 16 March and 30 April if it ends in 5 to 9.

Is the RUA the same as the RETC?

No. The RUA is the registry where information is filed. The RETC is the pollutant release and transfer register, generated from RUA data without an additional filing.

What if my company is not in manufacturing?

It still applies. Manufacturing reported first, filing the 2024 balance in 2025, and the remaining productive sectors came in with the 2025 balance filed in 2026.

The RUA requires a closed year of water, energy, emissions and waste data, broken down by establishment and traceable. Manglai keeps that information in order throughout the year so the filing does not depend on a February scramble. Start with our waste management solution.