Press | Umweltbundesamt

Land use continues to be an unsolved environmental problem in Germany. Why? Businesses and residents are leaving urban areas and new shopping centres and single-family settlements are mushrooming on greenfield sites. The consequence – especially in many small and medium-sized towns – is urban sprawl, land consumption as well as an inner-city vacancy rate and depreciation. Many experts say that a s... read more

Stuffy air in schools can have a direct impact on children’s health. Now at the beginning of the school year, after school buildings have been remediated or refurbished, is a time when contamination of school rooms may have occurred. Since schools and child care centres are croweded spaces with many people, the levels of carbon dioxide can also rise rapidly. This is why it is especially important... read more

Decentralised energy systems which satisfy their own power demand without being connected to the grid are an option for cities and municipalities in a few isolated cases only. The electricity demand of industry and commerce in particular cannot be met with this approach. This is the conclusion drawn in a study by the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) which develops a scenario of a future electricit... read more

The Federal Environment Agency (UBA) is moving into a new, especially environmentally sound office building called 'Haus 2019' in Berlin-Marienfelde today. The goal for the model green building, which will provide a workplace for 31 people, is particularly ambitious: it is a zero-energy house which will cover its entire energy needs by itself. read more

It has happened to nearly everyone at one time or another: one’s mobile phone or expensive digital camera becomes defective before the end of its predicted service life and can only be repaired, if at all, at high cost. This phenomenon of a product’s natural or artificially influenced wear is called obsolescence. Jochen Flasbarth, President of the Federal Environment Agency (UBA), remarks, “There... read more

Whether it is annoying street noise or hazardous particulate matter – constant exposure to it in our cities can lead to health problems. But there is another solution: traffic-calmed pedestrian zones and roads that welcome cyclists and pedestrians; green urban areas as a retreat for people suffering stress and blooming urban gardens instead of concrete jungles. These images are exactly what the Fe... read more

With increasing frequency, citizens are demanding to be involved in important decision-making processes. They want to contribute their own perspectives and arguments, instead of simply reading or hearing of decisions that have already been made. So people are being involved more closely than before in planning and decision-making processes, for example in the case of noise issues, the expansion an... read more

The idea sounds promising: To increase the speed of surfing on the Internet in rural areas, the European Union (EU) wants to have broadband cables laid through existing energy and water infrastructure, for example water pipes. This proposal might reduce digging and costs. However, it involves unacceptable risks as far as water pipes are concerned, points out the Drinking Water Commission (DWC) at... read more