Topics | Umweltbundesamt

Greenhouse gas emissions in Germany declined by more than 35 % between 1990 and 2019. Data from the previous year's estimate for 2020 show a 40.8 % decrease from 1990 levels.Germany aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40 % by 2020 and by at least 55 % by 2030 compared to 1990 emission levels. Complete greenhouse gas neutrality is to be achieved by 2050.The 2020 target was achieved mainly du... read more

In the RESCUE project, the German Environment Agency (UBA) explores the nexus between climate protection and associated resource requirements. Using six scenarios, different development paths are explored and insights gained on how to reduce future resource use and greenhouse-gas emissions in Germany. read more

The Paris Agreement has strengthened objectives to limit global warming remarkably. Considering a fair or cost-effective contribution to global efforts relevant greenhouse gas emitting countries should upgrade their national 2030 commitments to comply with the respective goals. Even, simply redistributing cost-effective reductions among parties by 2050 would not meet fairness considerations. read more

In 2018, the European Commission published its communication “A clean planet for all”, which calls for net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. A thorough study commissioned by UBA assessing the underlying scenarios for policy making shows, that central aspects for building an adequate ambitious long-term climate strategy, such as socio-economic, fiscal and technological, had been considered. read more

RESCUE shows that until 2050 greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced by 95 to 97 percent (in comparison to 1990). Through the use of sustainable agriculture and forestry practices, even net-zero emissions can be reached. At the same time, primary raw materials consumption can be reduced by 56 to 80 percent. However, the transformation also results in additional demands for single raw materials. read more

The RESCUE study is based on in-house research by the German Environment Agency (UBA) as well as research carried out by external institutions. A central part of this is the following study: „Transformationsprozess zum treibhausgasneutralen und ressourcenschonenden Deutschland“ (FKZ: 3715 41 115 0). For this a combination of five quantitative models was used. read more

GreenSupreme (“Germany – resource efficient and greenhouse gas neutral – Minimizing future greenhouse gas emissions and raw material consumption”) examines a faster transformation path in connection with the most effective assumption from the other scenarios with the goal to minimize cumulated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and raw materials consumption. read more

GreenLife stands for “Germany – resource efficient and GHG neutral – lifestyle changes”. The scenario analyzes changes of lifestyle and behavior in addition to measures from GreenEe and GreenMe. Current trends as well as smaller niche developments for a more environmentally friendly behavior are examined. read more