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Last changed 12/03/2010
The Federal Environment Agency works on many different aspects of global climate change. The ”climate protection” area focuses on climate change and its impact on different systems and fields as well as the future development of international climate protection conventions (Climate Framework Convention, Kyoto Protocol).
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More information on climate protection, emissions, and energy are on our related web pages, listed below right.
The transport sector can help to protect the climate not only through technical measures, but also through a multitude of non-technical measures which have major CO2 saving potential. This is the key conclusion of a new UBA status report on CO2 emission reduction in the transport sector in Germany. The report identifies significant saving potentials for the 2020 and 2030 time horizons.
In 1990 environmental pollution caused by residential waste was still at levels of some 38 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents. By 2006 overall savings of 56 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents have been achieved compared to 1990, due to replacing landfilling with recycling and energy recovery.
Global emissions of fluorinated greenhouse gases (F-gases) will increase to 4 gigatonnes of CO2 equivalents by 2050 if no political mitigation measures are taken. The contribution of F-gases to global warming is projected to grow from 1.3% (2004) to 7.9% of total direct CO2 emissions. This is the result of a German study which underlines once more the urgent need for measures to reduce F-gas emissions.
Measures to increase energy efficiency benefit both the climate and the job market. Investment in energy efficiency and emissions reduction measures will bolster the position of Germany as a business location in the long term. According to a new study, these measures could create some 630,000 new jobs by 2020.
The study ”Policy Scenarios V – towards a structural change; greenhouse gas emissions scenarios up to 2030”, conducted on behalf of the UBA by a research consortium led by the Öko-Institut, shows that Germany can reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 43% by 2020 compared to 1990. A reduction of even almost 60% could be achieved by 2030. The biggest driving force would be the electricity sector, which alone could reduce CO2 emissions by roughly 250 million tonnes between 2005 and 2030.
Thanks to the use of renewable energies 106 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents were saved in Germany in 2007. These are the conclusions of an UBA study which applied optimised methods to make new calculations of the emissions accounting of renewable energies used in the electricity, heating, and fuel supply sectors. Upstream processes, e.g. production and servicing of installations, extraction of fuels, were taken into account in the net balance.
As a supra-regional water supplier in Europe, the Alps are particularly affected by climate change. Some inner-alpine regions are already taking measures to adapt to changing water availability. On behalf of the EEA and in cooperation with other renowned institutions in Germany and abroad, the UBA has analysed possible measures, key factors of success in their implementation and barriers to be overcome.
The new EU emissions trading directive stipulates that the aviation sector will be included in the EU emissions trading scheme as of 2012, and reporting obligations already commence in 2010. Essentially every carrier whose aircraft depart or land within the European Union will be affected by this extension of the emissions trading scheme.
Would you like to know how much CO2 or waste a certain industrial operator in Germany produces? Since 2008 large industrial operators have been obliged to report on their pollutant emissions to the air, water, and soil, on pollutants in their effluent, and on the volumes of the waste they dispose of. As of 3 June 2009, this information is accessible to the public via the Internet in the German Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (PRTR).
Have emissions of greenhouse gases continued their decline? Will Kyoto targets be achieved? Annual emissions inventories are taken to assess just this. The inventories of 1990-2007, as stipulated by the Climate Framework Convention (UNFCCC), were published and submitted to the international committees in April 2009. The trend tables record the volume and development of emissions. The inventory report details trends, the data sets used, their sources, and explains calculation methodology.
Compared to the previous year, total greenhouse gas emissions in Germany in 2008 were reduced by almost 12 million tonnes, which constitutes a decrease of around 1.2 percent. The main reason for lower CO2 emissions was decreasing demand for hard coal and lignite. At the same time, there was a rise in the use of lower-emission energy sources such as natural gas and, increasingly, renewable energies. Andreas Troge, President of the Federal Environment Agency (UBA), stressed the importance of climate protection efforts in the face of the global financial and economic crisis: "Despite these achievements we should not relent in our efforts. Now is the time to prepare for the future and to focus on technology which will further reduce the emission of climate-damaging gases."
According to current figures by the Federal Environment Agency, greenhouse gas emissions in Germany in 2007 were 22.4 percent below emissions in the Kyoto base year (1990/1995). This means that Germany is well on its way to achieving the Kyoto target of a total reduction of 21 percent by 2008-2012. In addition to the climate protection measures that have been initiated, the current success in reduction is also due to low temperatures and other favourable conditions.
What headway are the major emitters in Europe – Great Britain, Italy, Spain, Germany and Poland – making in climate protection? In a new report, the EEA EEA = European Environment Agency describes the development of greenhouse gas emissions in all of Europe. Based on these new data, projections for the various countries can be compared. At the same time, the Federal Environment Agency presents an assessment for Germany.
Countries such as Brazil, China, India, Mexico, South Africa and South Korea could do their part to achieve global climate protection objectives without suffering economic losses and even create jobs in the process. Developed countries can help these countries to tap their large emission reduction potentials.
The consequences of climate change have been a mainstream topic at least since the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Is climate change already noticeable in Germany? How does a changed climate affect humans and the environment? In its brochure ”Germany in the midst of climate change: Adaptation is necessary”, the Federal Environment Agency summarises existing knowledge about risks for Germany due to climate change and presents possible adaptation strategies and measures.
Emissions trading has been a key environmental protection instrument since 2005. First experience has now been gained, and the EU’s climate change package of January 2008 has raised the issue of its further development. The new study examines the extent to which emissions trading interacts with other environmental protection instruments such as energy taxation. It also considers international linking of emissions trading systems and gives recommendations for possible mergers.
On 17 November 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released the summary of its Fourth Assessment Report on Climate Change. Some 3000 experts from 130 countries presented three working group reports in 2007. A new background paper of the Federal Environment Agency provides an overview of some of the IPCC's key messages. Two things are clear: Greenhouse gas emissions must fall markedly worldwide and humankind must adapt to climate change more quickly.
The Federal Environment Agency has identified eight measures to reduce Germany’s CO2 emissions by as much as 40% by 2020 compared to 1990. The study also describes the most important instruments which the federal government can use to achieve implementation of these measures.
The Federal Environment Agency has published a report and a position paper on Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS). The study assesses the technologies for CO2 capture and storage. The position paper examines the storage potential and environmental impacts of CCS and concludes that CCS is only an interim solution and will not be available for large scale power plants in Germany before 2020. The English summaries of both documents can be downloaded here. The long versions are available in German only.
The Federal Environment Agency commissioned a research project to investigate
the significance and impact of extreme weather on Germany. The results
show that the climate changes of the 20th century occurred parallel with
a clear change in extreme weather events. The parameters and regions investigated
revealed differences depending on season and geographic characteristics.
The industrial sector and manufacturing industry in Germany marked emissions reductions of 20 percent – owing largely to the economic crisis. Carbon dioxide emissions decreased by 8.2 percent (68 million tonnes). Primary energy consumption shrank by 6.5 percent. The expansion of renewable energies and boosting energy efficiency offer opportunities to also reduce greenhouse gas emissions in times of economic growth.
For the year 2008 Germany met its climate protection goal in accordance with the Kyoto Protocol and remains an international frontrunner in the area of climate protection. Greenhouse gas emissions in 2008 sank by 22.2 percent over 1990 levels.
More renewable energies and energy efficiency, and an energy saving individual behaviour are key to reducing energy related CO2 emissions. A study carried out on behalf of the UBA analyses global energy scenarios and describes potential and costs of renewable energies and energy efficiency measures, concluding that it remains unclear why potentials are not utilised more strongly.
Where are the political turning points currently important for tackling climate change, both nationally and internationally? And how can Germany better adapt to climate change? The UBA provides answers to these questions in it's recently finished Concept for a Future Climate Policy.
The aim of CCS technology is to reduce atmospheric CO2 emissions. In a background paper, UBA has formulated requirements for safe and environmentally sound carbon capture, transport and underground storage.
Existing buildings harbour vast opportunities for reducing CO2 emissions. Yet, these often remain unexploited because energy-saving modernisation is carried out not often and ambitiously enough. A study just published by UBA shows how the legal framework can encourage development towards more energy-efficient buildings.
UBA-sponsored research on the risks of climate change and on options for adapting to its impacts – UBA currently supports about 30 projects on this issue – made an important contribution to the development of the German adaptation strategy and action plan on adaptation (due to be published in April 2011). The status conference aims to provide an insight into the diversity of this research and into ongoing work between the German Environment Ministry and the UBA in shaping climate change adaptation policy.
A research project commissioned by the UBA analyses economic instruments designed to reduce emissions from seagoing ships. The results are presented in two studies. One deals with the extension of the EU emissions trading scheme to shipping, and the second study evaluates different market-based instruments for abatement of emissions from shipping, taking the Baltic Sea as pilot region.
Some canned PU foams contain HFCs as propellants, and these fluorinated gases have a substantial global warming potential. Since 4 July 2008, the use of these gases has been subject to restrictions, under EU Regulation No 842/2006, except where national safety standards cannot be met using other propellants (hydrocarbons). A study commissioned by UBA concludes that this is now only the case for the use of canned PU foams in coal mining.
In the current trading period an annual volume of over 40 million emission allowances (EUAs) is sold by the German Federal Government on different stock exchanges. Starting in 2010 that amount will have to be auctioned, and in 2013 auctioning will become the basic allocation principle throughout the EU. This paper discusses methodological and institutional issues concerning the design of an auctioning scheme in Germany.
The refrigerant commonly used in mobile air conditioning units to date is tetrafluoroethane, a greenhouse gas 1300 times more potent than CO2. Measurements on behalf of the Federal Environment Agency have now demonstrated that mobile air conditioning systems based on CO2 are climate-friendly, effective and energy-efficient.
Operators produced far lower volume of greenhouse gases in 2008 and were in major part responsible for mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions in Germany. ”Emissions trading is a proven instrument for promoting effective climate protection”, says Dr. Hans-Jürgen Nantke, Head of the German Emissions Trading Authority (DEHSt) at the Federal Environment Agency (UBA).
Commercial refrigeration systems are one of the major sources of HFC emissions in Germany. The study provides a comprehensive overview of HFC-free systems and equipment for supermarkets offered and used in Europe including information about the energy efficiency and economics of these systems in comparison to conventional systems. It shows that refrigeration systems that contain natural refrigerants have the best climate balance of all currently available technologies.
The EU Member States have committed to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions under the Kyoto Protocol. A study by the Federal Environment Agency looks into the differences in target attainment by Member States and analyses factors that may have been responsible for this. Based on this, it makes proposals for future burden sharing in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
In the negotiations on a post-2012 climate change agreement, attempts are being made to also include emissions from deforestation in tropical countries into such a regime. The report takes six countries as an example to describe the methodological problems in determining related CO2 emissions and proposes practical solutions.
The climate is changing – also in Europe. A new report by the European Environment Agency (EEA) identifies clear warning signs for all areas of life and the economy. 40 indicators describe what impacts a change in precipitation levels and temperatures could have.
With this report, which is based on the study "Policy scenarios for climate protection IV - Scenarios up to 2030", Germany is meeting its reporting obligations under the Kyoto Protocol. It concludes that Germany will achieve a 20% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions between 2000 and 2020 with the climate protection measures initiated, and additional climate protection instruments could even result in reductions of 31%.
Many less developed countries have considerable, as yet untapped, potential for using renewable energies. A new study looks into the role the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) can play in exploiting these potentials.
The flexible project-based Kyoto mechanisms JI (Joint implementation) and CDM (Clean Development Mechanism) can do much to support the international diffusion of climate-friendly technologies and thus increase the cost-efficiency of climate protection measures. A new study predicts a significant market growth for CDM and JI projects.
Germany may experience a noticeable general rise in temperatures due to climate change. New regional climate model calculations predict a temperature rise of between 1.8 – and 2.3 degrees Celsius by the end of this century. Precipitation as well may change considerably in some regions. Summers will be drier whilst winters may become wetter on average. Regional findings like those are important to plan appropriate adaptation measures.
The large majority of experts agree that climate change will bear grave consequences for mankind and the environment. Knowledge about the impending dangers and possibilities to act have increased considerably over the past few decades. What matters now is recognizing the future risks of climate change for the individual regions in Germany and containing potential damage by means of active climate protection and adaptation efforts.