Topics | Umweltbundesamt

The assessment of the environmental impact of human and veterinary medicinal products has been an integral part of the authorisation process for many years. In Germany, this has been a legal requirement since 1998. The UBA is responsible for conducting the environmental risk assessment. read more

Despite the fact that, according to current knowledge, there are no known effects on human health, precautionary action should be taken to reduce the release of pharmaceutical substances into the environment, especially as there is still no knowledge of the effects of chronic intake – even at low concentrations – on humans and the environment. read more

Since the mid-1980s scientists have increasingly reported about traces of pharmaceuticals in the environment. When endocrine substances drew special attention in the 1990s, public debate also focused on contraceptive hormones and the environmental impact of pharmaceutical residues. There was also concern that antimicrobial feed additives was increasing resistance to antibiotics and that contaminat... read more