Dear Reader,The website Distributing Drinking Water, Evaluation Criteria and Guidelineshas been updated as follows:-3rd Amendment-Evaluation criteria document for plastics and other organic materialsPolymer-specific annexes to the evaluation criteria document for plastics and other organic materialsThe documents are now available in English.Your department for Drinking Water and Swimming Pool Wate... read more
German Environment Agency assisting Brandenburg and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania with research on causes of the Oder River crisis

Federal Environment Minister Steffi Lemke has commissioned the German Environment Agency to collect all available data, tip-offs and hypotheses concerning the mass die-off of fish in the Oder river and carry out a systematic evaluation of the information with experts from other authorities in Brandenburg and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. read more
Expert information drinking water and swimming pool water - No.: 10/2022
Dear Reader,The website Distributing Drinking Water, Evaluation Criteria and Guidelineshas been updated as follows:Information on the evaluation of starting substances for the production of cementitious materials in contact with drinking water - Version 2Your department for Drinking Water and Swimming Pool Water Hygiene at UBA. read more
Newsletter "UBA aktuell" - No.: 4/2022
Dear readers,Climate change is making itself increasingly felt in Germany. This newsletter focuses on what we can all do – whether in politics, the economy or in our private lives – to combat the increasing incidence of extreme weather.Good news for climate protection: in the first half of 2022, renewable energy sources generated about 14 percent more electricity in Germany than in the first six m... read more
Expert information drinking water and swimming pool water - No.: 9/2022
Dear Reader,The website Distributing Drinking Water, Evaluation Criteria and Guidelines has been updated as follows:Evaluation criteria for metallic materials in contact with drinking water2nd amendment of recasting -Direct link:Evaluation criteria for metallic materials | UmweltbundesamtAmendments can be reviewed in the German Federal Gazette (only in German):2nd amendment of recasting as 2... read more
Heat in the inner city: a plea for more trees and shade

Climate change is resulting in an increasing number of hot summer days in Germany. Tropical nights – when the temperature doesn't fall below 20 °C – are increasing. This is a particular burden for vulnerable groups in densely populated inner cities. A recent study by the UBA has systematically investigated how cooler temperatures can be realised in inner-city neighbourhoods and their buildings. read more
EU regulation won’t cut pesticide use without incentives for farmers

The European Commission has presented a draft regulation on the sustainable use of pesticides, which aims to drastically reduce their application. The German Environment Agency (UBA) welcomes the proposed regulation but believes its guidelines could be improved to ensure it works in practice. read more
Newsletter "UBA aktuell" - No.: 3/2022
Dear readers,Recently the European directive on the common system of VAT was amended. It states “Member States should be given the possibility to contribute to a climate-neutral and green economy by means of applying reduced rates on environmentally friendly supplies while, at the same time, preparing the phasing out of the existing preferential treatment of environmentally harmful supplies.” Befo... read more