Publications | Umweltbundesamt

Climate | Energy, Transport

National Energy and Climate Plans: Evidence of Policy Impacts and Options for more Transparency

A Meta Study assessing Evaluations of selected Policies reported in the Danish, French, German, Slovenian, and Swedish Plan

The meta study makes suggestions on content requirements, transparency and comprehensibility of NECP reporting and contributes to its further development. The authors analysed the German NECP and the NECPs of Denmark, France, Sweden and Slovenia. The focus was on the methodology of ex-ante and ex-post evaluations, the contributions of 23 PaMs to the achievement of the EU climate protection and ene...read more

Air

Particulate matter formation potential of gas-phase emissions over Germany

Particulate matter (PM) is the air pollutant that is responsible for the highest burden of disease in Germany and other European countries. Therefore, measures are needed to reduce its ambient concentrations. A large proportion of PM is not emitted directly: it is formed from gaseous precursors in the atmosphere. Hence, there is an urgent need to assess the contribution of gaseous emissions (NOX,...read more

Air

Manual on Methodologies and Criteria for Modelling and Mapping Critical Loads and Levels and Air Pollution Effects, Risks and Trends

This report is an important collection of tools used in the framework of the Geneva Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP). Thus, it provides for example a scientific basis on the application of critical levels and loads, their interrelationships, and the consequences for abatement. After the transfer of the Coordination Center for Effects from the Netherlands to Germany thi...read more

Climate | Energy, Transport, Noise, Soil | Land, Water, Sustainability | Strategies | International matters

Internal Development in Urban Growth Regions

Opportunities and Challenges for Technical Infrastructures

Cities in growth regions face major urban development challenges in meeting the demand for housing within the city. At the same time, capacity limits of urban technical infrastructures may arise and counteract the guiding principle of compact and thus land-saving inner development. The project therefore investigated the potentials for inner-city development using model cities as examples to examin...read more

Climate | Energy, Economy | Consumption

Effective and socially acceptable design of CO2 pricing in the building and transport sectors

Ambitious CO2 pricing via emissions trading is a key lever for achieving the statutory climate targets in the building and transport sectors. This makes climate protection measures economical, ensures target achievement through a binding upper limit on emissions and helps to keep the economic costs of climate protection low. However, it must be ensured that no social hardship arises. This study by...read more

Climate | Energy, Transport, Sustainability | Strategies | International matters

Sustainable mobility concept EURO 2024

The study "Sustainable mobility concept EURO 2024" deals with the promotion of sustainable mobility in the context of the European Football Championship 2024 (EURO 2024) in Germany.  The transportation sector is one of the main sources of greenhouse gas emissions. For that reason, it is crucial to promote sustainable mobility as part of the fight against climate change. For major sports events suc...read more

Climate | Energy

Introduction of a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) in the EU

The EU will introduce a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) on October 1, 2023. The main idea is to apply the same carbon price to imported emission-intensive goods as if they had been produced under EU carbon pricing rules (EU ETS). This is intended to prevent the relocation of domestic industry, which has to bear rising CO2 costs within the EU ETS, to countries without comparable carbon pr...read more

Economy | Consumption, Waste | Resources

Ensuring a secure AND sustainable supply of critical raw materials

Recommendations on how to take forward the EU Commission's proposal for a Critical Raw Materials Act

With the overall objective of ensuring a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials, the European Commission has proposed a new regulation, the Critical Raw Materials Act. This scientific opinion paper provides recommendations to EU policy makers on how to further develop this proposal from an environmental perspective.read more