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Land take, air and noise pollution: these are just some of the major challenges which motorized transport brings to many cities in Germany.

On 10th and 11th of October 2017, the German Ministry for the Environment and UBA will host a Scientific Stakeholder Meeting on Nanomaterials in the Environment at the headquarters of UBA in Dessau-Roßlau, Germany.

On 11 September a panel jury of environmental and design experts made the nominations for this year's Bundespreis Ecodesign (German Ecodesign Award). Twenty submissions in the areas of architecture, energy, nutrition, home living, interior design, mobility and fashion can now hope to receive an award at an awards ceremony to be held 27 November.

Why not tap the enormous sources of raw materials which we ourselves have created?

The Advisory Assistance Programme of UBA has been supporting the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States for many years in the development of effective waste management structures. Seminars and workshops held in May and June 2017 provided targeted information and training for stakeholders from government, industry and non-governmental organizations.

Two years after two historic global agreements – the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change – the World Resources Forum Association invites leaders from government, business, research and NGOs to Geneva to talk about how to accelerate the Resource Revolution. How should we manage, coordinate, finance, track progress, and communicate about it?

Emission reduction credits (ERCs) from high-quality international climate change mitigation projects will continue to compensate the official travel by German federal employees. The Federal Government plans to purchase more than 235,000 ERCs which will then be cancelled. ERCs for emissions in 2015 were purchased earlier this year. The next compensation procedure for 2016 emissions will now follow.

A new guide by the Federal Environment Ministry and the German Environment Agency offers companies advice on how to integrate sustainability into their supply chains.

Toy manufacturers can now apply for the new Blue Angel ecolabel for toys to be awarded to their cuddly toys, wooden train sets, rubber balls etc. Not only must the products be exemplary in terms of pollutant content but also as concerns the social labour conditions of the extraction of raw materials and at the final assembly sites.

German Environment Agency calls for improving the durability of products

High temperatures and heat waves are adding up to public health problems – and the impact of climate change is becoming more noticeable also in Germany. The federal states and local authorities can draft and implement heat wave action plans to protect public health. The German Environment Agency (UBA) has developed a master plan in collaboration with many experts from various disciplines. 

Drinking water could become markedly more expensive in many regions across Germany, and it is because of the high levels of nitrate groundwater contamination. A family of four could then expect to add another €134 per year to their water bill.