Press | Umweltbundesamt

Germany’s waterbodies and soil are showing more and more traces of pharmaceutical residues, as proven by the latest data from research projects and water monitoring programmes. Several tonnes of pharmaceutical drugs are emitted to the environment every day, mainly through human excretion. Another one hundred tonnes per year owe to the improper disposal of old prescription medicine in the toilet. T... read more

The air in Germany in 2011 once again had excessive levels of particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide pollution. Mean particulate matter levels were above those of the previous four years, and nitrogen dioxide pollution remained high. These are the results of an initial evaluation by the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) of preliminary measurement data submitted by the Länder and UBA. Limit values... read more

The 2011 Report on the Environmental Economy, the second after the 2009 report, presents the latest developments, challenges and prospects of the environmental economy in Germany. It shows that Germany has already made significant progress on the road to new, environmentally sound growth. Today, much less resources, land and energy are used, and fewer pollutants are emitted, than just ten years ag... read more

At all larger waterworks, the incidence of exceedence of guideline limits is rare. The example of nitrate is one of elevated concentrations sometimes occurring in groundwater, whereas in drinking water there are no such incidences. Virtually all microbiological and chemical quality requirements comply with stringent legal guidelines at a rate of more than 99 percent. These are the results of an up... read more

The Federal Environment Agency (UBA) is issuing its 2011 EMAS Environmental Statement today, announcing ambitious goals in environmental protection within the Agency.  “As a specialist environmental agency the Federal Environment Agency can only credibly promote environmental protection by setting a good example and proving that it works”, are UBA President Jochen Flasbarth’s comments on the in-ho... read more

Germany continued to meet its Kyoto Protocol commitments during the 2010 economic recovery period. Based on the 1990 index year, Germany’s greenhouse gas emissions had sunk by nearly 25 percent in 2010. Some 295 million tonnes CO2 less were emitted in 2010 than in 1990. “Germany’s success in climate protection is exemplary on both international and European scale. We have demonstrated that economi... read more

The environmental impact of goods and services are determined as early as the design phase. To focus more public attention on the environmental protection potential of ecodesign and in order to foster innovation in this area, the Federal Ministry for Environment (BMU) and the Federal Environmental Agency (UBA) are tendering the first “Bundespreis Ecodesign“ in 2012. The contest offers businesses a... read more

Octylphenol will become the first chemical to be taken up on the European ‘Candidate List of Substances of Very High Concern for Authorisation’ because of its endocrine disruptive effect. The Federal Environment Agency (UBA) had drafted the proposal for Germany, which the responsible Member State committee at the European Chemicals Agency has approved unanimously. Octylphenol is used in the manufa... read more