Publications | Umweltbundesamt

Sustainability | Strategies | International matters

Development of consumption-based land use indicators

With our demand for food, feed, energetic and material use of biomass extensive land use is associated, both at home and abroad. This entails considerable environmental effects. Therefore, land use should be measured more in detail. In this research project, area based land footprint indicators of biomass consumption were further developed and calculated based on global data sets. The detailed res...read more

Climate | Energy

International Climate Initiatives – A way forward to close the emissions gap? Initiatives’ potential and role under the Paris Agreement

Final Report

In December 2015 Parties adopted the Paris Agreement at the 21st session of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). In its Article 2 governments agreed to limit global warming to “well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels” and to pursue to limit it to 1.5°C (UNFCCC 2015). The UNEP Emissions Gap Report 2016 showed that a gap of 14 GtCO2e exists for 2030 between the (unc...read more

Waste | Resources

Product Labelling Body for the promotion of product resource efficiency and recyclability

This paper correlates closely with the previous position paper of the Resources Commission which was published in 2016: Ein ressourceneffizientes Europa– Ein Programm für Klima, Wettbewerbsfähigkeit und Beschäftigung (A resource-efficient Europe - a programme for the climate, competitiveness and employment). This paper highlights the fact that an effectively driven resources policy results in econ...read more

Climate | Energy

Synergies and Conflicts between Climate Protection and Adaptation Measures in Countries of Different Development Levels

How can developing countries maintain development targets, cope with unavoidable consequences of climate change and contribute to climate protection in parallel in a warming world? This question calls for the derivation of climate resilient future pathways that consider the synergies between adaptation, mitigation and sustainable development action. For 16 selected countries (BRA, KHM, COL, GRD, E...read more

Air

Indoor air quality after installation of building products in energy-efficient buildings

In this research project the indoor air quality in energy-efficient buildings has been investigated with regard to odours and volatile organic compounds. The original aim of the study was to investigate the indoor air quality of energy-efficient retrofitted buildings using the example of the German Environment Agency’s (Umweltbundesamt, UBA) Bismarckplatz office building in Berlin. Due to the post...read more

Transport

Tomorrow‘s Cities

Big cities are by definition exciting, diverse and vibrant, but also loud and crowded, claustrophobic and exhausting. How do we want to live in our cities in the future? Is it at all possible to create an urban environment with environmentally friendly transport, low noise levels, green spaces and a functional mix? Yes, such a city is possible. Our brochure explains how an environment with less tr...read more

Air

Modelling and assessment of acidifying and eutrophying atmospheric deposition to terrestrial ecosystems (PINETI2)

Part I: Atmospheric deposition to German natural and semi-natural ecosystems during 2009, 2010 and 2011

The report describes the modelling of nitrogen and sulfur deposition to terrestrial ecosystems with the LOTOS-EUROS model system for Germany during the years 2009-2011. The method of the modelling and the parameterization of the model are described. The results are assessed and compared to other relevant data. The results for the year 2009 are provided within the UBA map-server for assessment proc...read more

Chemicals

Joint effects of pharmaceuticals and chemicals regulated under REACH in wastewater treatment plant effluents – Evaluating concepts for a risk assessment by means of experimental scenarios

Non-target organisms in the environment are exposed simultaneously to a multitude of substances from various sources. In the aquatic environment, effluents of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) represent a key source for co-incidental mixtures of chemicals from various uses. The aim of the present project was to explore the consideration of mixtures of chemicals released via WWTPs in an Environme...read more