Publications

Particulate matter (PM) is the air pollutant that is responsible for the highest burden of disease in Germany and other European countries. Therefore, measures are needed to reduce its ambient concentrations. A large proportion of PM is not emitted directly: it is formed from gaseous precursors in the atmosphere.

This report is an important collection of tools used in the framework of the Geneva Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP). Thus, it provides for example a scientific basis on the application of critical levels and loads, their interrelationships, and the consequences for abatement.

Cities in growth regions face major urban development challenges in meeting the demand for housing within the city. At the same time, capacity limits of urban technical infrastructures may arise and counteract the guiding principle of compact and thus land-saving inner development.

Ambitious CO2 pricing via emissions trading is a key lever for achieving the statutory climate targets in the building and transport sectors. This makes climate protection measures economical, ensures target achievement through a binding upper limit on emissions and helps to keep the economic costs of climate protection low. However, it must be ensured that no social hardship arises.

The study "Sustainable mobility concept EURO 2024" deals with the promotion of sustainable mobility in the context of the European Football Championship 2024 (EURO 2024) in Germany.  The transportation sector is one of the main sources of greenhouse gas emissions. For that reason, it is crucial to promote sustainable mobility as part of the fight against climate change.

With the overall objective of ensuring a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials, the European Commission has proposed a new regulation, the Critical Raw Materials Act. This scientific opinion paper provides recommendations to EU policy makers on how to further develop this proposal from an environmental perspective.

In November 2022, the European Commission put forward a proposal for a regulation for a Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF).This proposal includes various provisions that would empower the Commission to adopt delegated acts. Delegated acts are intended to specify a number of provisions of the regulation.

The Water Framework Directive (WFD) calls for the protection of surface and groundwater. For this purpose, the ten river basin communities in Germany draw up management plans and programmes of measures every six years.

As a Party to the United Nations Framework on Climate Change (⁠UNFCCC⁠), since 1994 Germany has been obliged to prepare, publish and regularly update national emission inventories of greenhouse gases.

The principle of equity plays an important role in the Global Stocktake under the Paris Agreement. This paper discusses several concepts of equity, which can guide the distribution of mitigation efforts, adaptation actions, and means of implementation and support, namely the concepts of responsibility, capabilities, egalitarianism and sufficientarianism.

This partial report shows decision-makers and interested parties the potential of the circular economy for greenhouse gas reduction in 2017 and for 2030 for the EU and 2 clusters of selected member states considering the current legal framework. Municipal waste, food waste and roughly commercial waste and construction and demolition waste are considered using the life cycle assessment method.

The climate neutrality of air and sea transport can hardly be achieved without the accelerated use of almost GHG-neutral fuels. Such fuels are generated from renewable electricity and are thus called electro fuels or (synthetic) e-fuels.