Suchergebnisse

The report for industry and permitting authorities provides an overview of the best available techniques to prevent emissions of hazardous substances from the offshore wind industry into the marine environment during installation, operation and decommissioning. In addition to risk management through the use of proper procedures, timely inspection and knowledgeable personnel, the report identifies the technical measures and techniques that are currently available, tested and economically feasible, as well as the current legislative background. The areas covered are technical installation, storage, bunkering, fire protection, corrosion protection, discharges from open systems, antifouling, cleaning and substitution of hazardous substances.

The subject of this project was the preparation of substance reports for five substances or substance groups relevant for building products emissions. For these substances, the toxicological data basis were compiled and evaluated, and EU-LCI values were proposed. The EU-LCI values allow the harmonisation of the health assessment of building products emissions throughout Europe. The EU-LCI Working Group is currently developing a European list of substances and their associated emission limits. The substance reports developed within this project support and accelerate this process. The project outcome is relevant for all stakeholder involved in the topic of building products emissions.

When public contracts are awarded, a significant contribution can be made to the protection of natural resources. However, sometimes there is uncertainty about fire protection requirements for products such as textiles, furniture, or mattresses in the public sector and, if applicable, how the required fire protection can be implemented in the most environmentally friendly way possible. This report aims to review the legal fire protection requirements for the product groups PPE, work clothing and shoes, house and home textiles, furniture, mattresses, and floorings in nine public sector areas. Further, the report has the objective of presenting environmentally friendly ways of meeting fire protection requirements and of deriving recommendations here.

Protection of drinking water resources from PMT/vPvM substances: Revised guidance for ⁠REACH⁠ registrants on the identification of these substances of very high concern (SVHC). Only 1.9 % of the unique chemical structures in the REACH registration database fall in the new ⁠CLP⁠ hazard classes PMT and vPvM. However, for a total of 64 % no final assessment was achieved, either due to lack of test data (41 %) or due to ambiguous assessment (23 %). These guidance and methods can be used immediately by REACH registrants to ensure the safety of their substances, to close data gaps and, if necessary, to use safer alternatives, or to implement risk mitigation measures (RMMs).

A broad literature review (55 studies published between 2000 and 2019) now shows that 639 chemicals are already known as contaminants in river bank filtrate (114 substances), groundwater (338 substances), raw water (212 substances) or drinking water (385 substances). The literature review carried out by the German Environment Agency reveals: Every second substance that contaminates our drinking water resources is registered under ⁠REACH⁠, of which 24 % fall in the new ⁠CLP⁠ hazard classes PMT and vPvM. Considering only the raw water, the proportion even rises to 32 %. In the REACH registration database, the proportion of PMT/vPvM substances based on CLP criteria is only 1.9 %.

PFAS only the tip of the iceberg: Each water sample was contaminated with mobile forever chemicals such as TFA, PFPrA or TFMS. But also 26 of the 34 non-fluorinated PMT/vPvM substances analysed were detected, including 1H benzotriazole, 1,4-dioxane, melamine, cyanuric acid and diphenyl guanidine. A representative survey of 27 water laboratories in Germany (twelve commercial laboratories, eleven laboratories of a federal state and 4 laboratories of water suppliers) now shows that out of 79 requested PMT/vPvM substances 60 % are not monitored due to lack of analytics ("analytical gap") or lack of monitoring ("monitoring gap"). At the same time, the research project of the German Environment Agency shows that 51 % of these 79 PMT/vPvM substances cannot be removed from raw water with activated carbon filters or ozone. The PMT/vPvM prioritisation framework supports ⁠REACH⁠ registrants, regulators, researchers and the water sector to take immediate action to protect drinking water resources.

In the recent study, two endocrine active substances for human use, the progestin Dienogest and the glucocorticoid Dexamethasone, were tested in a 28-day reproduction test with the New Zealand mud snail Potamopyrgus antipodarum according to the OECD guideline 242. In a ring test in 2016, in which the Fraunhofer IME successfully participated, the OECD test guideline 242 was validated in order to broaden the range of test methods for investigations of e.g. endocrine active substances and their endocrine and reproductive toxic effects on aquatic invertebrates, particularly on water snails as they are proved to be sensitive towards endocrine disruptors (EDs). Until then the focus in testing of EDs was mainly on studies with fish. The results of this study will be used to establish a tailored evaluation concept for environmental risks for progestins and artificial glucocorticoids. In the reproduction test with Dienogest analytically verified concentrations of 6.97, 11.2, 25.6, 106 and 332 ng/L were introduced. After 28 days, no significant effect on any of the investigated endpoints was observed. The NOEC for reproduction (in terms of total, shelled and unshelled embryos), survival and length were therefore determined to be ≥ 332 ng/L, respectively. The reproduction test with Dexamethasone was performed with analytically verified concentrations of 1.06, 3.54, 10.5, 36.3 and 105 μg/L. After 28 days, no significant effect on reproduction, survival and length occurred, resulting in a NOEC of ≥ 105 μg/L, respectively.

The aim of this report is to compare the different methodologies applied in lists/databases of environmental unit costs for use in CBAs and environmental/sustainability reporting. The analysis is based on a core set of lists/databases from a scoping exercise performed by the German Environment Agency supplemented with other recent lists/publications that include relevant data for Germany. 15 unit costs lists and their supporting documents are compared methodologically across 6 main environmental topics: i) greenhouse gases, ii) Local/regional air pollutants (PM10 (including PM2.5), NOX, SO2, NH3, and NMVOC), iii) Eutrophication (N and P) , iv) Other local/regional water and soil pollutants, v) Traffic noise and vi) Land use changes affecting biodiversity and ecosystem services.

In the first part of the project, a compilation of data on disinfection by-products (DBPs) as well as the biocidal active substances from product types (PTs) 1-5, 11 and 12 that are approved within the EU or within the approval process were compiled. The data on the DBPs resulted from a literature search in which 272 DBPs were identified. In addition to the substance data, the active substances used and the matrix treated were recorded in the tabular summary. A strong bias of the scientific literature on the investigation of highly reactive, especially chlorinating active substances in aqueous solution was determined. The list of biocidal active substances was compiled from the ECHA database (as of July 2019). A categorization of the biocidal active substances was developed and the DBP formation potential of each active ingredient was evaluated on the basis of this categorization. In a modeling approach, the distribution of selected DBPs and biocidal active substances in the water and air compartments for applications in solution and on surfaces and the distribution in water and sewage sludge in a sewage treatment plant was estimated. In most cases, there were significant differences between the distributions of the DBPs and the active ingredients. The formation of approximately 60 DBPs was investigated in laboratory simulations of disinfection applications in solution and on surfaces with different active substances. In addition, samples from real disinfection applications were analyzed. Based on the project results, the current procedure for risk assessment of the DBPs was analyzed in the last project phase and proposals for modifications were discussed, which aim to simplify and harmonize the risk assessment of the DBPs within the EU.

Uniform monitoring of beach litter in the Arctic is crucial for assessing the state of the environment and the success of measures against plastic debris to protect the marine environment. In this project, remote sensing methods such as satellite imagery and drone imagery were used to efficiently survey beaches in the Arctic. The results show that a combination of satellite imagery, drone imagery, and traditional mapping is most effective, and drone aerial surveys hold great potential for long-term monitoring of beach litter. Future studies should use higher resolution to capture smaller trash accumulations. These findings will help to better understand the environmental impact in the Arctic and to take appropriate action.

Climate protection potentials of the circular economy are determined holistically by means of the life cycle assessment method of waste management in this study. It includes emissions from all waste treatments as well as the benefits from the generation of secondary raw materials and energy and the resulting possible substitution of primary products. For Germany and the EU, the given greenhouse gas mitigation potential is shown for the base year 2017, and for the target year 2030, it is outlined how contributions can also be achieved in the future. In addition to municipal solid waste, food waste is considered in more detail as a special balance, and industrial and commercial waste as well as construction and demolition waste are considered roughly. Also considered are possibilities to include preparation for re-use and waste prevention. This partial report presents the results for Germany. All balance areas show GHG emission savings potentials in the net result. In the 2030 scenarios, these are declining due to the defossilisation of the energy system. This effect, which necessarily occurs with increasing implementation of the climate protection targets that urgently need to be achieved, is counteracted by waste management optimisation measures. Conclusion is that important climate protection potentials still exist. Joint efforts are needed to support ambitious targets for increasing separate collection and recycling. This applies to a greater extent at the EU level, in parallel with measures for a rapid end to landfilling.

This report is provided in the scope of the project "Advancing REACH", funded by the research plan of the German Ministry for the Environment. The project aims to develop options to improve the (implementation of) the REACH regulation by analysing various REACH processes and related issues, including substitution, sustainable chemistry, precautionary principle, articles, cost-benefit analyses, socio-economic analyses and financing ECHA. This report discusses the question, which policy options are available to improve the efficiency of the appeal procedure under REACH and the impacts on the objectives laid down in Art. 1 REACH. It discusses three policy options with regard to streamlining the ECHA procedure. The first option consists of streamlining deadlines, the second option grants the Board of Appeal the discretion to issue an interim order, and the third option includes legislative options to limit the scope and intensity of the review. In light of the overall objectives of REACH and a legal systemic consideration, the second option appears most favourable.

This report is provided in the scope of the project "Advancing REACH", funded by the research plan of the German Ministry of the Environment. The project aims to develop options to improve the (implementation of) the REACH regulation by analysing various REACH processes and related issues, including substitution, sustainable chemistry, precautionary principle, articles, cost-benefit analyses, socio-economic analyses and financing ECHA. The objective of this work package was to review the existing literature to determine the current level of knowledge of the benefits and costs associated with REACH. The primary focus was on the identification of the gaps in the assessment of benefits, as multiple studies have already concentrated on the costs caused by the implementation of the REACH Regulation. Sections 2 and 3 summarise the assessment framework and the reports reviewed in this study. In Sections 4 and 5, the current state of knowledge and any gaps in the benefit and cost data/information are broken down by each single component of REACH regulation, namely Registration, Information in the Supply Chain, Evaluation, Authorisation, Restriction, Guidance, Inspection and Enforcement.Section 6 presents the conclusions of this report.

Tropospheric ozone (O3) is considered as the most significant phytotoxic air pollutant. It is well established that elevated O3 concentrations negatively impact plant growth, development and productivity, as well as species composition and biodiversity. In the context of the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP) critical levels for O3 to protect vegetation have been derived for different types of vegetation and are continuously developed on the basis of present scientific knowledge. The aim is to estimate the O3risk for vegetation in the current and future pollution situation in Europe as a basis for mitigation measures in the European air pollution control policy. The derivation of O3 critical levels is based on many years of research on the impact of O3 on vegetation by means of experiments in which plants were exposed to different levels of O3, mostly under otherwise optimal growth conditions. However, it is well known that the effects of O3 in the field can be significantly modified by a number of other environmental and anthropogenic factors. That means that any assessment of the impacts of O3 exposure in a future climate needs to consider possible interactions with nitrogen deposition and factors of climate change. The present study summarises the current knowledge of how climate change factors, including temperature and drought stress, N input, and elevated CO2 influence or alter growth, yield and gas exchange responses to O3.

Pelagische und demersale Fischarten aus Nord-und Ostsee wurden mikroskopisch auf auffällige Partikel und durch Pyrolyse Gaschromatographie Massenspektrometrie auf insgesamt 9 Kunststoffe (Polyethylen (PE), Polypropylen (PP), Polystyrol (PS), Polyvinylchlorid (PVC), Polyethylenterephthalat (PET), Polymethymethacrylat (PMMA), Polycarbonat (PC), Polyurethan (PUR), Polyamid (PA)) qualitativ und quantitativ untersucht. Dies erfolgte nach enzymatisch, chemisch-oxidativer Aufarbeitung und in einigen Fällen einer Dichtetrennung.Im Mittel wurde in 69% der untersuchen Fischproben aus Nord- und Ostsee Mikroplastik 1mm) fehlten vollständig. Es gab keinen pauschalen Trend zwischen der Häufigkeit der S-MP-Aufnahme, den nachgewiesenen, einzelnen Kunststoffarten und dem pelagischen oder benthischen Habitat der jeweiligen Fischarten. Menge und Qualität von S-MP scheinen mit der Art und Qualität der Nahrungsaufnahme der einzelnen Spezies zu variieren. Das S-MP Vorkommen ist wahrscheinlich stärker von lokalen Strömungs- und Sedimentationsbedingungen und physikalischen Kräften abhängig als von der Dichte der Kunststoffe. Eine semi-quantitative Abschätzung ergibt für Fische der Ostsee S-MP-Gehalte unterhalb von 20 μg in denen der Nordsee unterhalb von 15 μg/Probe. Die Mengen einzelner Kunst-stoffarten liegen vielfach unterhalb des derzeitigen Kalibrierbereiches. Die im Rahmen dieser Pilot-Studie untersuchten Fischarten eignen sich grundsätzlich, als vergleichsweise leicht verfügbare Indikatororganismen, zur Erfassung der Belastung ihres Lebensraums mit Mikroplastik. Sie sind von lokaler Aussagekraft und bei Langzeitstudien ein Trendindikator für die MP-Belastung. Eine Ein-schätzung zum Belastungszustand von Nord- und Ostseefischen mit MP sowie der potentiellen Gefährdung des Menschen durch Verzehr von Fischen wird gegeben.