Publications | Umweltbundesamt

Climate | Energy, Transport

Climate Protection in Transport – Need for Action in the Wake of the Paris Climate Agreement

Report as part of the project Klimaschutzbeitrag des Verkehrs 2050 (Climate Change Mitigation in Transport until 2050)

Transport is not only an indispensable part of our daily lives, but also one of the major sources of greenhouse gases in Germany. What can be done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transport in the short- and mid-term? How can transport become greenhouse gas-neutral in the long term? Are Germany’s climate targets in the transport sector sufficiently ambitious? This paper answers these questi...read more

Chemicals

Use of PFOS in chromium plating – Characterisation of closed-loop systems, use of alternative substances

PFOS (Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid) is a persistent organic pollutant. Its use has been strictly restricted by the Stockholm Convention and EU POP Regulation. In the EU, the use of PFOS is still permitted for “non-decorative hard chromium (VI) plating in closed loop systems” in the plating industry, as a specific exemption. With the aim of minimizing PFOS-emissions into the environment, this proje...read more

Chemicals

Protecting the sources of our drinking water from mobile chemicals

A revised proposal for implementing criteria and an assessment procedure to identify Persistent, Mobile and Toxic (PMT) and very Persistent, very Mobile (vPvM) substances registered under REACH

Protecting the sources of our drinking water from any threats caused by chemicals is of the utmost importance. A strategy is needed in order to allow Europe’s chemical industry to continue to innovate while ensuring the protection of the water cycle. The German Environment Agency (UBA) is carrying out an initiative to identify those substances that are persistent (P) in the environment, mobile (M)...read more

Economy | Consumption

Guide on Green Public Procurement: Construction Machines

The procurement of low-noise and low-emission construction machines is to result in a reduction of the noise, exhaust gas and particle emissions.The guide itself contains the main information and recommendations which are relevant for the public procurement bodies for including environmental aspects in the tender and contractual documents. The tenderer questionnaire on green procurement of constru...read more

Climate | Energy

Implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions

Viet Nam Country Report

The study analyses the country background, emissions trends, ongoing activities and barriers relating to the implementation of the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) of Viet Nam under the UNFCCC. A special emphasis is laid on further mitigation potentials. Fields of mitigation assessed are efficiency, the setting of right incentives for the upscaled deployment of renewables and emissions red...read more

Climate | Energy

Implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions

Indonesia Country Report

The study analyses the country background, emissions trends, ongoing activities and barriers relating to the implementation of the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) of Indonesia under the UNFCCC. A special emphasis is laid on further mitigation potentials. Fields of mitigation assessed are land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF) governance and monitoring as well as electricity deman...read more

Economy | Consumption, Air

COM draft proposal endangers level of health protection against hazardous VOC emissions from construction products

This Scientific Opinion Paper reports about current plans of the European Commission to issue a delegated act on communication of emissions of volatile organic compounds (⁠VOC⁠) from construction products in form of “VOC classes”. German authorities consider this draft delegated act as completely insufficient regarding health requirements for the marketing of construction products an...read more

Water

Waters in Germany

Status and assessment

Since 2016, there are new legal requirements for the assessment for nutrients and substances of the waters in Germany. New assessment procedures for hydromorphology were developed. These assessment instruments are described in the brochure "Waters in Germany: Status and Assessment". The results of the assessment clarify the still open problems in water protection. The long time series of data for...read more