Meat substitute products such as vegetarian sausage, schnitzel or meatballs are becoming increasingly popular in Germany. A study entitled "Meat of the Future" by the German Environment Agency examines the effects which meat substitutes have on the environment and health and what role they could play in a future diet.
Waste is everywhere: in the Great Pacific garbage patch, as fine particular matter in the air, or as microplastics in the food chain. The group exhibition Zero Waste showcases international positions in contemporary art that point out the urgency to save resources, consume less, and live more sustainably. Zero Waste is on display at the MdBK Museum of fine arts in Leipzig from Jun 25 til Nov 8.
In cooperation with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the German Environment Agency (UBA) is hosting a session on environmental due diligence in global supply chains on June 25, 2020, as part of the "OECD Global Forum for Responsible Business Conduct". The event takes place online.
The German Environment Agency has published the final data for 2019 on nitrogen dioxide (NO2). The data show that only 25 cities exceeded the annual mean NO2 limit value of 40 micrograms NO2 per cubic metre of air (µg/m³), compared to 57 cities in the previous year.
In the 2019 bathing season, the EU Commission rated 93% of all German bathing water sites 'excellent'. Overall, 98 percent of bathing waters in lakes, rivers and on the coast were in compliance with the quality standards of the European Bathing Water Directive. This data is confirmed by the Quality of Bathing Water data published by the EU Commission on 8 June for the 2019 bathing season.
Since the year 2000 the Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMU) runs the Advisory Assistance Programme (AAP) to support projects aiming for environmental protection in the countries covered by the programme. The target regions of the programme are the states of Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasian countries and Central Asia.
Several million buildings in Germany built or refurbished before October 1993 may still contain asbestos today. A new guideline offers advice, especially to non-specialists, on what to consider when planning renovation and DIY work.
The 2019 emissions of the roughly 1,850 stationary installations in Germany recorded in the European Emissions Trading System (EU-ETS) amounted to around 363 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2eq). This is a 14-percent decrease compared to the previous year.
The "Luftqualität" air quality app by the German Environment Agency now also features ozone forecasts. The app can display expected ozone levels for the current and two following days. An automatic alert can be activated to notify the user if high levels of ozone are expected within the next 24 hours.
Sources of natural hazards, such as heavy rainfall, flooding, winter storms or lightning, can cause major accidents. Climate change can change the intensity, frequency and local distribution of such sources of hazards. Operators of installations in which large quantities of hazardous substances are present and the authorities responsible for them must therefore adapt their risk management.
The national authorities of Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Denmark agreed to prepare a REACH restriction proposal with the aim to restrict the manufacture, the placing on the market and the use of all per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the EU. Companies, scientists and NGOs are invited to fill in the questionnaire, before 31 July 2020, to generate further information.
Increasing numbers of customers are paying attention to products’ environmental compatibility. How can and should businesses draw attention to the environmental benefits of their products? When can a product be described as "water-saving” or “recyclable”, for instance?
