Publications | Umweltbundesamt

Waste | Resources

Determination of food waste in Germany in 2020, fulfilment of the reporting obligation to the EU Commission in 2022 and derivation of recommendations for action

The study provides an up-to-date database on food waste in Germany for the 2020 reporting year as part of mandatory EU reporting. Food waste was determined in all five stages of the food chain. The methodology is based on the disposal of waste. The data is based on official waste statistics. The proportion of food waste per waste code (waste coefficient) was determined in order to calculate the ac...read more

Climate | Energy, Economy | Consumption, Air, Waste | Resources, Health, Transport, Noise, Soil | Land, Agriculture, Water, Sustainability | Strategies | International matters

Methodological Convention 3.2 for the Assessment of Environmental Costs

Value Factors

The new version of the UBA Handbook on Environmental Value Factors – the „Methodological Convention 3.2” – contains a partial update of the monetized environmental impacts published in the “Methodological Convention 3.1”, based on new value factors for greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions. A comprehensive update of all value factors – including components such as emission factors and utiliza...read more

Climate | Energy, Sustainability | Strategies | International matters

The EU Carbon Removal Certification Framework: Options for using certified removal units and funding mitigation activities

With the Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF), adopted in 2024, the EU established a voluntary framework for carbon removal certification, which includes criteria for the certification of removals, rules for the certification process and the recognition of certification schemes. This report discusses the options for how certified removal units may be used and what policy options are avail...read more

Climate | Energy, Sustainability | Strategies | International matters

How to measure and quantify biogenic carbon removals

Requirements for a transparent monitoring system

Robust quantification of carbon dioxide removals (CDR) lies at the heart of any certification mechanism and is central for their functionality and environmental integrity. For the establishment of a Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF) that was recently adopted, the EU Commission is currently conducting an inventory of the existing knowledge base. The objective of most certification mecha...read more

Climate | Energy, Waste | Resources, Sustainability | Strategies | International matters, Digitalisation

Factsheet: The use of natural resources

Since 2016, the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) has regularly published a report on the situation regarding the use of natural resources in Germany. The UBA Resource Report examines the diverse connections between raw material consumption, raw material extraction, global trade and economic development and also takes a look at flowing resources such as wind, sun and water as well as the environmen...read more

Climate | Energy, Waste | Resources, Sustainability | Strategies | International matters, Digitalisation

Factsheet: Digitalisation and natural resources

The ‘DigitalRessourcen’ research project analysed the resource intensity and greenhouse gas emissions of the digital transformation in Germany at both micro and macro level. The resource intensity of digital applications was calculated in ten case studies (micro level) using LCA methodology. At the macro level, the raw material consumption (RMC), the raw material input (RMI) and the carbon footpri...read more

Climate | Energy

Submission under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change 2024

National Inventory Document for the German Greenhouse Gas Inventory 1990 – 2022

As a Party to the United Nations Framework on Climate Change (⁠UNFCCC⁠), since 1994 Germany has been obliged to prepare, publish and regularly update national emission inventories of greenhouse gases. Pursuant to Decision 24/CP.19, all Parties listed in ANNEX I of the ⁠UNFCCC⁠ are required to prepare and submit annual National Inventory Reports (NIRs) containing detailed and complete information o...read more

Chemicals

Further development of test methods for hormonally active pharmaceuticals and other substances

Sensor cell lines have been developed to monitor rapid non-genomic signalling cascades influenced by endocrine-active substances. These in-vitro bioassays were created by genetically modifying G-protein coupled estrogen receptor (GPER1) expressing cells to become artificial fluorescent signalosomes. Both GPER1 agonists and antagonistic compounds were used to characterize the respective sensor cell...read more