Publications

Each issue of the Agency's "What Matters" magazine is devoted to relevant topics in the field of environmental protection. It is published every six months. In its 2-2019 issue, UBA takes a look at air traffic: What effects does flying have on the environment? How do noise and pollutant emissions affect human health?

Due to various international agreements, Germany is obliged to report emissions of air pollutants annually. Emission inventories are calculated using the fuel inputs known from the statistics and the associated fuel-specific emission factors. For large combustion plants comprehensive data on air pollutants are available on the basis of numerous measurements.

Aufgrund verschiedener internationaler Abkommen ist Deutschland verpflichtet, Emissionen für Luftschadstoffe jährlich zu berichten. Die Berechnung der Emissionsinventare erfolgt mit Hilfe der aus der Statistik bekannten Brennstoffeinsätze und den dazugehörigen brennstoffspezifischen Emissionsfaktoren.

Chemicals with a specific combination of intrinsic substance properties pose a hazard to the sources of our drinking water, including substances that are very persistent (vP) in the environment and very mobile (vM) in the aquatic environment as well as substances that are persistent (P), mobile (M), and toxic (T).

Herein a review of substances detected in drinking water and groundwater found that 43 percent of them are registered under EU REACH Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006. In addition, a PMT/vPvM assessment was applied to all REACH registered substances (as of May 2017).

This paper examines the connection between Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement on the one hand and carbon leakage on the other. 

Which criteria and concepts for peatland projects are environmentally sound? This question is answered in a new study by the German Environment Agency. It considers standards for peatland projects in the voluntary market for emissions offsetting and in the future compliance markets.

Ausgabe 02/2019 der Zeitschrift UMID stellt aktuelle Ergebnisse aus der Deutschen Umweltstudie zur Gesundheit vor (GerES V): In der Studie wurden 3- bis 17-jährige Kinder in Deutschland von 2014 bis 2017 auf Schadstoffe im Urin und Blut untersucht.

The Paris Agreement combines collective goals with individual countries’ contributions. This hybrid approach does not guarantee that the individual contributions add up to what is required to meet the collective goals. 

Mould and fungi pose major problems in residential buildings and indoor environments. Not only in older buildings without any insulation improvements on the envelope/building shell, but also in new energy efficient buildings can mould and growth of fungi occure. Most important is the influence of water and dampness.

Given that the Paris Agreement has strengthened the long-term temperature goal and that it calls for a balance of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and sinks within the 21st century, there is the urgent need to re-assess the long-term targets of the EU and to show how the target of GHG neutrality can be reached in the EU.

Die Digitalisierung transformiert nicht nur unsere Gesellschaft, mit ihr gehen auch Auswirkungen auf die Umwelt einher: Einerseits kann Digitalisierung den Umweltzustand verbessern, z.B. durch digital optimierte Produktionsprozesse. Andererseits können negative Umwelteffekte entstehen, da z. B.