Topics

About 500 German undertakings are obliged to include sustainability-related information in their annual reports. According to the plans of the EU Commission more undertakings shall report in the future and apply uniform reporting standards. A study on behalf of UBA recommends precise requirements for reporting on targets, actions and performance indicators and corporate greenhouse gas neutrality.

Building materials such as bituminous sheeting, roofing tiles, exterior rendering and plastered facades can release harmful substances into the environment during the building phase, says a new study by the German Environment Agency (UBA). The good news is that pollutant leaching from building envelopes can be prevented almost entirely with little effort.

Effective immediately, businesses of all sizes from all sectors, designers and students can submit their projects to apply for the award. The award targets creative design ideas and projects which also meet the highest ecological demands. The application deadline is 18 April 2022.

Strict requirements regarding the appearance and size of fruit and vegetables are a burden on the environment because this often requires the use of additional plant protection agents and fertilisers. It also causes unnecessary food losses. The consumer protection centres and UBA call on businesses to offer fruit and vegetables in all sizes and looks as standard.

Germany emitted 728.7 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2020. This is around 71 million tonnes or 8.9% less than in 2019, and 41.3% less compared to 1990, according to the results of final calculations submitted by the German Environment Agency (UBA) to the European Commission. Emissions have fallen most significantly in the energy sector.

Applications are accepted starting today for the Blauer Kompass, Germany’s highest state award for climate change adaptation projects. The application deadline is 25 March 2022.

The EU Emissions Trading System (EU-ETS) generated 5.3 billion euros for Germany through auctioning in 2021, a sum double that in 2020. An additional 7.2 billion euros was generated through sales of certificates in the new national emissions trading system (nEHS), which came into effect in 2021 and targets the heat and transport sectors.

In a joint recommendation, three German higher federal authorities paint draw a picture of how the development of safe and sustainable novel advanced materials can be controlled and regulated. The paper deals with the aspects of risk assessment, sustainaability and control with regard to good governance and outlines relevant fields of action.

Sales volumes of plant protection products (pesticides) in the agricultural sector remain high, says data from the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL). After a temporary decline in sales in 2018/2019, farmers demonstrated greater demand for specific problematic active substances, including insecticides that are dangerous to bees and herbicides critical to groundwater.

The share of renewable energies in gross electricity consumption will decline in 2021 – from 45.3 percent in 2020 back down to a level similar to 2019 of around 42 percent. While total electricity consumption increased, five percent less electricity was generated from renewable sources than in the previous year due to weather conditions.

Ten winners received the German Ecodesign Award 2021 today. The award went to a very diverse set of innovative projects, ranging from personal care products one can mix at home, a school building with a climate-positive energy balance, mail order that does without packaging waste, to giving old fur a new life.

The construction sector is the second-largest consumer of plastics with a volume of some 2.6 million tonnes used in 2017. However, proper guidelines for the recycling of plastic building products are still lacking, and recycling volumes are not recorded adequately.