German Federal Environment Agency Research Articles

Analysis of Air Rescue for Offshore Wind Energy: A Retrospective Analysis of Structural and Process Quality for the Years 2014 to 2017

In order to achieve the emission targets required by the German Federal Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt), the offshore wind industry has become 1 of the central building blocks of the so-called “energy turnaround.” After the first offshore wind farm (OWF), Alpha Ventus, started operation in 2010, the number of OWFs in the North Sea and Baltic Sea has grown steadily. Because of the ongoing growth of the industry, the number of workers on-site has more than quadrupled in recent years. Although the majority of OWFs are located in the exclusive economic zone up to 130 km from the mainland, the same legal provisions of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (Arbeitsschutzgesetz) apply here as on the mainland. This means that the operators of the wind farms are legally obligated to maintain a seamless rescue chain. Because of the distance to the mainland, rescue helicopters are the means of choice to ensure prompt emergency preclinical care and, if necessary, rapid evacuation. The company Northern HeliCopter GmbH, part of the DRF Luftrettung since 2019, offers as part of WINDEACare rescue helicopters stationed at 3 locations on the North Sea and Baltic Sea to its contract partners an emergency medical staffed air rescue service, which is operational 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. This article is the first to provide a detailed overview of a new field in prehospital emergency care on the high seas and, to this end, has recorded all offshore missions performed from 2014 through 2017 with evaluation of related medical and aeronautical data.

Air pollution impacts on in-hospital case-fatality rate of ischemic stroke patients

BackgroundA growing body of evidence suggests that air pollution exposure is associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular diseases. Data regarding the impact of long-term air pollution exposure on ischemic stroke mortality are sparse. MethodsThe German nationwide inpatient sample was used to analyse all cases of hospitalized patients with ischemic stroke in Germany 2015–2019, which were stratified according to their residency. Data of the German Federal Environmental Agency regarding average values of air pollutants were assessed from 2015 to 2019 at district-level. Data were combined and the impact of different air pollution parameters on in-hospital case-fatality was analyzed. ResultsOverall, 1,505,496 hospitalizations of patients with ischemic stroke (47.7% females; 67.4 % ≥70 years old) were counted in Germany 2015–2019, of whom 8.2 % died during hospitalization. When comparing patients with residency in federal districts with high vs. low long-term air pollution, enhanced levels of benzene (OR 1.082 [95%CI 1.034–1.132],P = 0.001), ozone (O3, OR 1.123 [95%CI 1.070–1.178],P < 0.001), nitric oxide (NO, OR 1.076 [95%CI 1.027–1.127],P = 0.002) and PM2.5 fine particulate matter concentrations (OR 1.126 [95%CI 1.074–1.180],P < 0.001) were significantly associated with increased case-fatality independent from age, sex, cardiovascular risk-factors, comorbidities, and revascularization treatments. Conversely, enhanced carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, PM10, and sulphur dioxide (SO2) concentrations were not significantly associated with stroke mortality. However, SO2−concentrations were significantly associated with stroke-case-fatality rate of >8 % independent of residence area-type and area use (OR 1.518 [95%CI 1.012–2.278],P = 0.044). ConclusionElevated long-term air pollution levels in residential areas in Germany, notably of benzene, O3, NO, SO2, and PM2.5, were associated with increased stroke mortality of patients. Research in contextEvidence before this study:Besides typical, established risk factors, increasing evidence suggests that air pollution is an important and growing risk factor for stroke events, estimated to be responsible for approximately 14 % of all stroke-associated deaths. However, real-world data regarding the impact of long-term exposure to air pollution on stroke mortality are sparse.Added value of this study:The present study demonstrates that the long-term exposure to the air pollutants benzene, O3, NO, SO2 and PM2.5 are independently associated with increased case-fatality of hospitalized patients with ischemic stroke in Germany.Implications of all the available evidence:The results of our study support the urgent need to reduce the exposure to air pollution by tightening emission controls to reduce the stroke burden and stroke mortality.

Towards Wayside Wheel Flat Detection and Classification Based on Psychoacoustic Quantities

Somewhat similar to the acoustic problems that were uncovered with the replacement of combustion engines with electric motors in cars, the retrofitting of all DB Cargo freight wagons with low-noise brakes caused other disturbing noise emissions to become more prominent. Among these, the periodic beating sounds originating from flattened wheel treads attract most attention. As there is no sufficiently validated solution for wayside wheel flat detection which meets the requirements of precise detection, focus on acoustic relevance and economic feasibility, the German Federal Environmental Agency has initiated a research project to determine an acoustic maintenance criterion for flat spots. In this contribution, we present the results of psychoacoustic analyses performed on a dataset comprising audio recordings of 200 cargo train passings. Regions with perceptible flat spots are labelled by trained ears. Common acoustic and psychoacoustic quantities are calculated for signal windows of classes "flat spot" and "no flat spot" and statistical analyses are performed to find quantities which qualify best for a separation of both classes. The effects of window size and sample rate are examined. Based on the results of listening tests, an acoustic classification criterion for the annoyance of wheel flats is proposed.

Integration of social aspects in the German Blue Angel scheme – Views from manufacturers and consumers

There is an urgent need to address social issues in global supply chains. Voluntary certification schemes for green products face major technical, methodological, and institutional challenges when it comes to integrating reliable and verifiable product criteria on social and human rights aspects. The main focus of eco-labels, such as the German Blue Angel, has largely been on addressing the environmental and health-related aspects of products and services. There is a continuous uncertainty about what consumers expect from well-established eco-labels, such as the Blue Angel, and how manufacturers and license holders would react to the proposition of including social criteria. Therefore, in 2018, the German Federal Environment Agency (UBA) commissioned the project “Extended integration of social aspects in the Blue Angel eco-label” to analyse the expectations and interests of consumers and enterprises regarding the integration of social criteria in the Blue Angel label. The applied approach involved two primary data collections, a manufacturer, and a consumer survey. Both surveys collected insights into the opinions and preferences of manufacturers and consumers regarding the integration of social criteria into the requirements of the Blue Angel scheme. The survey also collected information on product groups that were perceived to be most relevant as well as on expectations with respect to specific social issues. One key result is that generally consumers and manufacturers have a strong interest in integrating social criteria in the Blue Angel scheme. This reflects the societal consensus that social and human rights issues should be an integral part of sustainability certification schemes and the supply chain management of enterprises.

Real-world Laboratories in the Building Sector - Strategies for Transformation and Leap Innovations

The German Federal Environment Agency’s (UBA) goal is a climate-neutral and resource-conserving building sector by latest 2050. To reach these targets radical innovation is needed in all areas from material and construction development to the lifecycle-compatible design and adaptability of entire buildings. To accelerate this kind of radical innovation in various areas of the economy, real-world laboratories or regulatory sandboxes are already employed. These are physical or theoretical spaces where legislative frameworks in targeted areas can be lowered or abolished – allowing researchers and businesses to operate in less restrictive regulatory environments. Real-world laboratories have the potential to function as what Schaepke and Steltzer call transformative research – research that drives societal change processes by transforming knowledge. In the building sector, this approach can facilitate the necessary rapid development of new material and construction techniques, while simultaneously valuing the communicative exchange and transfer processes through which these advances can be societally co-produced, validated and legitimized. Planning culture is plagued by outdated and often counterintuitive norms and regulations, making it extremely difficult and economically unviable to apply experimental techniques, materials, and approaches in real-world projects. In this context, the Real-world Laboratories model has great potential to drive innovation in the planning disciplines through new inter- and transdisciplinary approaches that can integrate actors from civil society at an early stage, thus anchoring newly produced knowledge and innovation in society. Universities are well placed to initiate and drive such processes. Especially in architecture training, projects with a strong link to real contexts, actors, and materials allow learners to access new understandings of how planning processes can function. By working on eye level with clients, administrators, lawmakers and those from other disciplines, a new blueprint for real practice can be developed. This paper analyses the characteristics of the Real-world Laboratory method specifically for the building sector. Principles to successfully implement the method in practice are derived from a series of transdisciplinary projects undertaken as part of the research, practice and teaching at Natural Building Lab, TU Berlin.

Resource Management as Part of Sustainable Urban District Development

Rising urban populations, limited natural resources (following the German Federal Environmental Agency, natural resources are resources that are part of nature. They include renewable and non-renewable primary raw materials, physical spaces (surface areas), environmental media (water, soil, air), flowing resources (e.g., geothermal, wind, tidal and solar energy) and biodiversity. It is irrelevant here whether the resources serve as sources for producing products or as sinks for absorbing emissions (water, soil, air)) and climate change require a new approach to urban planning. Recently, international, European and national programmes, concepts and framework documents have been created to promote the implementation of measures for more sustainability, resource efficiency and climate resilience in urban districts. In the funding measure of the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research’s “Resource-Efficient Urban Districts for the Future-RES:Z”, twelve funded research project networks are dedicated to understanding the impacts that urban districts have on the resources of land, water and material flows, as well as the resulting impacts on urban green spaces and energy issues. By considering the different resources involved, it is shown that the optimisation of their use cannot take place independently of each other. This may even lead to conflicting goals. Use conflicts can be recognised at an early stage and measures can be tailored to the specific neighbourhood context when applying an integrated approach that provides a common view on all of the aforementioned resources. Special attention is paid to solutions which create numerous benefits i.e., multifunctionality. The RES:Z funding measure utilises living labs for the research on and implementation of solutions. This lays the foundation for a sustainable transformation of urban districts and the basis for further research.

Compensatory Application Provisions of Plant Protection Products to Protect Biodiversity

For the protection of biodiversity, the German Federal Environmental Agency (UBA) pursues the goal of establishing compensation areas to balance unavoidable indirect effects on nature and the environment caused by the application of plant protection products. Whether there is a legal basis for this within either European Union or national law is one of the most debated and pressing issues currently in the authorisation procedure for plant protection products in Germany. The purpose of this article is to provide a comprehensive legal assessment of whether it is legally permissible to make plant protection product authorisations contingent to compensatory application provisions to protect biodiversity.

Geothermal Energy with Heat Pump as a Possible Solution in Dramatic Climate Change – Market Situation and Potential in Germany of a Renewable Energy Source

Goal: Global sustainability is becoming an increasingly important topic, which is impressively demonstrated by numerous conferences of the UN and its sister organizations with worldwide participation. The purpose of this paper is to critically review the use of geothermal energy through the use of heat pumps. Opportunities and starting points are discussed briefly. Design / Methodology / Approach: This paper does not only deal with geothermal energy, but also shows the potential uses and effects of using heat pumps. Not only the basic assumptions and the goals are documented, but these are, as far as possible, checked for their realism or feasibility. Carry out a method comparison of the published literature with technical, economic and ecological approaches. Findings: The findings are presented in a concise summary and provide opportunities for further analysis, discussion or results. The use of heat pumps is to reduce CO2 emissions in heat production, to measure the impact on nature using indicators and values. Geothermal energy can make a significant contribution to environmental protection through the use of heat pumps. Their lack of market penetration in Germany is apparently not due to too low benefits, but rather to lack of awareness (lack of marketing) and also lack of German government support, e.g. about tax incentives. Research / Practical Implications: Results and implications for practice, applications and consequences are identified. Use of geothermal energy and its effects can be assessed in the short, medium and long term. All people worldwide could use geothermal energy if they had a working electrical connection. Future research into renewable energy sources should always include geothermal energy, although currently it does not have enough multipliers and interest groups to support it. From the perspective of permanent availability (24/7), it is unbeatable. Originality / Value: This paper deals with sustainability and the related consequences in the field of regenerative energy production through the use of geothermal heat, as well as the implementation by means of heat pumps. In addition to purely scientific literature, facts and figures are used by the German Federal Environment Agency and the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology, which ensure the highest degree of neutrality.

Validation of European horizontal methods for the analysis of PAH, PCB and dioxins in sludge, treated biowaste and soil

BackgroundDraft standards for the determination of organic pollutants in the solid matter of environmental matrices such as sludge, treated biowaste and soil have been basically developed in the framework of the European standardisation project HORIZONTAL. A research project financed by the German Federal Environment Agency was initiated to finalise some of these CEN standard drafts, since fully validated standard procedures are crucial for the evaluation of their reliability in the context of implementation in legislation on environmental health.ApproachAppropriate test materials (< 2 mm particle size) were prepared and homogenised from contaminated soils, sludge and treated biowaste containing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), dioxins, furans and dioxin-like-PCB and served, along with reference solutions, as the basis for international interlaboratory comparisons. Performance data of three analytical standard procedures were obtained by the statistical evaluation of results received from 11 to 29 participants per test material.ResultsThe overall variation coefficients of reproducibility (between-lab standard deviations) for the sum parameters were roughly between 10 and 35%. The variation coefficients of repeatability (within-lab standard deviations) range between 3 and 8% and show no trend considering the substance groups or matrices. The highest coefficients of reproducibility were found for the analysis of PAH, which were between 26 and 35%, depending on the matrix, whereas 7–17% reproducibility was observed for toxicity equivalents (TEQ) comprising dioxins, furans and dl-PCB.ConclusionsOverall, the results confirm that the procedures described in the Technical Specifications are fit for purpose for all three matrices and that the feasibility of the HORIZONTAL approach, to cover several matrices with one standard per analyte, was thereby proven.

Why is the "Number of Premature Deaths Due to Environmental Exposures" not Appropriately Quantifiable?

Epidemiological studies and their applications in regulations of hazardous substances (e. g. by WHO, USA, EU) often quantify effects of environmental exposures on populations ("burden of disease") by calculating "numbers of premature deaths due to exposure". A recent example is the study by Schneider et al., commissioned by the German Federal Environmental Agency (Umweltbundesamt), into the burden of disease caused by exposures to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in Germany. The authors assessed the proportion of premature deaths due to exposure by the "Attributable Fraction" (AF). However, true numbers of premature deaths caused by NO2 could be much higher or smaller. Indeed, Robins and Greenland showed in 1989 that the AF approach is inappropriate. Despite its far-reaching relevance for epidemiology and public health, their seminal work was not adequately taken into consideration, possibly due to its sophisticated level of mathematical argumentation. Our contribution illustrates - with simple examples - unappreciated but important pitfalls. We recommend that the concept of "number of premature deaths" be abandoned and "years of life lost due to exposure" be provided instead, calculated per capita. However, "years of life lost due to exposure" should not be stratified by age or causes of death (diseases). Furthermore, we show that "Disability Adjusted Life Years" (DALY) do not provide a meaningful measure to evaluate the effect of environmental exposures on populations.

In-utero and childhood chemical exposome in six European mother-child cohorts

BackgroundHarmonized data describing simultaneous exposure to a large number of environmental contaminants in-utero and during childhood is currently very limited. ObjectivesTo characterize concentrations of a large number of environmental contaminants in pregnant women from Europe and their children, based on chemical analysis of biological samples from mother-child pairs. MethodsWe relied on the Early-Life Exposome project, HELIX, a collaborative project across six established population-based birth cohort studies in Europe. In 1301 subjects, biomarkers of exposure to 45 contaminants (i.e. organochlorine compounds, polybrominated diphenyl ethers, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, toxic and essential elements, phthalate metabolites, environmental phenols, organophosphate pesticide metabolites and cotinine) were measured in biological samples from children (6–12 years) and their mothers during pregnancy, using highly sensitive biomonitoring methods. ResultsMost of the exposure biomarkers had high detection frequencies in mothers (35 out of 45 biomarkers with >90% detected) and children (33 out of 45 biomarkers with >90% detected). Concentrations were significantly different between cohorts for all compounds, and were generally higher in maternal compared to children samples. For most of the persistent compounds the correlations between maternal and child concentrations were moderate to high (Spearman Rho > 0.35), while for most non-persistent compounds correlations were considerably lower (Spearman Rho < 0.15). For mercury, PFOS and PFOA a considerable proportion of the samples of both mothers and their children exceeded the HBM I value established by The Human Biomonitoring Commission of the German Federal Environment Agency. DiscussionAlthough not based on a representative sample, our study suggests that children across Europe are exposed to a wide range of environmental contaminants in fetal life and childhood including many with potential adverse effects. For values exceeding the HBM I value identification of specific sources of exposure and reducing exposure in an adequate way is recommended. Considerable variability in this “chemical exposome” was seen between cohorts, showing that place of residence is a strong determinant of one's personal exposome. This extensive dataset comprising >100,000 concentrations of environmental contaminants in mother-child pairs forms a unique possibility for conducting epidemiological studies using an exposome approach.

Quality of federal level strategic environmental assessment – A case study analysis for transport, transmission grid and maritime spatial planning in Germany

Strategic environmental assessment (SEA) emerged from Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and was developed based on the procedural steps and understanding thereof, but with the goal to fulfil a more ‘strategic’ function. Federal level plans and programmes constitute the highest planning levels in Germany subject to SEA, as SEA for policies is not compulsory.In this article, we analyse the quality and procedural effectiveness of federal level SEA in Germany with the underlying hypothesis that federal level SEA might be more strategic than SEA at other planning levels, as it represents the highest tier. Therefore, we analysed three federal level SEA case studies in Germany according to a set of criteria and indicators based on international research outcomes, including SEA integration into decision-making, tiering, scoping, selection and assessment of alternatives, cumulative effects assessment, public participation, and monitoring.Results demonstrate that the procedural effectiveness of SEA practice at the federal level is limited in Germany, and the making of SEAs proved not to be as ‘strategic’ as its important role prior to subsequent planning processes and outcomes would suggest. Reasons include an alternatives assessment restricted to macro-siting instead of assessing scenarios of demand or system alternatives, tiering limited to general advice without specific guidance for subsequent planning levels, cumulative effects assessment limited to intra-plan effects, a lack of monitoring, and public participation limited to consultation on the environmental report. These findings support results from a variety of international studies. Reasons for limitations have been identified in current SEA regulations, prior policy-making, institutional settings, the institutions' willingness to learn and limited quality management by the German Federal Environmental Agency. Thus, our recommendations aim to improve quality management and learning by initiating a federal level SEA forum to discuss federal level planning and SEA practice and related issues, expanding the federal EIA portal to SEAs, quality management by the German Federal Environmental Agency in every federal level SEA scoping process and for every federal level environmental report, and further research and development to improve SEA practice.However, the general question for SEA research might be whether SEA contributes to long-term institutional learning processes beyond individual SEA processes, and how those learning processes can be supported, for instance by quality management and capacity building.

Simulation games in the Regulatory Impact Assessment – Simulation of the implementation of the EIA Amending Directive 2014/52/EU

Laws have the task of influencing the behaviour of the respective addressees in such a way that the legislator achieves their intended goals. A (new) law would not be required if existing framework conditions were already designed such that regulatory goals could be achieved. In this case actors would already have sufficient incentives to behave in a targeted manner. But this is not usually the case; on the contrary: legislation has the task of addressing "non-conforming" behaviour and of getting actors to participate in the implementation of regulatory goals. This is a demanding task and applies even in cases where compliance can be assumed. However, it is even more difficult if evasive behaviour is to be expected or it is feared that the addressees could develop and implement individual or collusive counter-strategies. The present contribution and the underlying simulation games on the EIA Amending Directive were funded by the German Federal Environment Agency in the research project "Further development of the EIA instrument – solution proposals and simulation game for the implementation of the EIA Amending Directive 2014/52/EU" (duration 2015 – 2017) within the environmental research plan. This essay is split into two parts. The first part primarily regards the experience from the simulation game on the EIA Amending Directive, which was aligned with the new version of the German Environmental Impact Assessment Act (EIAA). The second part of the essay, which will be published in the next issue of the elni Review, deals with experiences from other simulation games and, based on this, describes more comprehensively the possibilities and limits of simulation games for the purpose of regulatory impact assessment.

Updating an existing online adaptation support tool: insights from an evaluation

The Klimalotse (“climate navigator”) is an online tool to support climate change adaptation. Its target audience is decision makers at the local and regional levels. The tool was first published in 2010 by the German Federal Environment Agency. After several years, the Agency evaluated the changing needs of decision makers and the real use of the tool. Decision makers are confronted with various challenges and barriers both prior to and while creating and implementing climate change adaptation measures. In order to be able to take these factors into account in the revision of the Klimalotse, the accompanying research looked into climate change adaptation from the perspective of public institutions and their decision-making processes. In the light of that work, the Agency published a completely revised second edition. This article summarises the lessons learned on that journey.

Powder recycling in laser beam melting: strategies, consumption modeling and influence on resource efficiency

Laser beam melting (LBM) is a powder-bed and laser-based additive manufacturing technology that is increasingly used for the production of metal components. For a sustainability assessment of a production technology, the global warming potential (GWP) can be used, which is commonly referred to as CO2-footprint. Looking at the resource demand of LBM, material losses and powder recycling play a significant role. In the LBM build-up process, powder material is selectively solidified, generating the part layer-by-layer. The non-solidified powder material can be recycled, which is beneficial to the resource efficiency of the process. Due to considerations regarding powder quality degradation, the number of reuse powder cycles in industrial practice varies significantly, ranging from only one to more than several dozen cycles. Similarly, material losses during the process have shown to differ between LBM machines. However, previous approaches for LBM resource efficiency assessment lack a detailed representation of these two factors. In this study, two interacting models are introduced for the evaluation of the GWP of LBM parts. Firstly, a powder reuse cycle calculation model is described. Secondly, a LBM resource and energy consumption model based on the CO2PE!-methodology is put forward with a refined focus on powder recycling and material losses. The models are implemented and validated based on three LBM production use cases including the acquisition of resource and energy consumption data for three commercial LBM machines. GWP-impact values are used from the ProBas database, provided by the German Federal Environmental Agency. Based on the results regarding the three LBM use cases, the role of powder recycling and material losses on the GWP-impact of LBM during the production phase is discussed. The results show that the number of attainable powder reuse cycles lies around 35 cycles (ranging from 1 to 117 cycles) for the analyzed LBM production scenarios when applying the suggested powder recycling strategy. If powder is not recycled and only used once, more than 90% of the powder batch might be discarded. The volume-specific CO2-equivalent of 0.175 kgCO2eq/cm3 can be used as a rule of thumb for a quick estimation of the GWP for LBM parts made from Al-alloy or steel. Electric energy consumption constitutes for the largest share of GWP-impact, followed by the solidified metal powder and the occurring powder losses.

A hierarchical testing strategy for micropollutants in drinking water regarding their potential endocrine-disrupting effects-towards health-related indicator values.

In Germany, micropollutants that (may) occur in drinking water are assessed by means of the health-related indicator value (HRIV concept), developed by the German Federal Environment Agency. This concept offers five threshold values (≤0.01 to ≤3μgl-1) depending on availability and completeness of data regarding genotoxicity, neurotoxicity, and germ cell-damaging potential. However, the HRIV concept is yet lacking integration of endocrine disruptors as one of the most prominent toxicological concerns in water bodies, including drinking water. Thresholds and proposed bioassays hence urgently need to be defined. Since endocrine disruption of ubiquitary chemicals as pharmaceuticals, industrial by-products, or pesticides is a big issue in current ecotoxicology, the aim of this study was to explore endocrine effects, i.e., estrogenic and androgenic effects, as an important, additional toxicological mode of action for the HRIV concept using a hierarchical set of well-known but improved bioassays. Results indicate that all of the 13 tested substances, industrial chemicals and combustion products (5), pharmaceuticals and medical agents (4), and pesticides and metabolites (4), have no affinity to the estrogen and androgen receptor in human U2OS cells without metabolic activation, even when dosed at their water solubility limit, while in contrast some of these substances showed estrogenic effects in the RYES assay, as predicted in pre-test QSAR analysis. Using a specifically developed S9-mix with the U2OS cells, those micropollutants, i.e., Benzo[a]pyrene, 2,4-Dichlorophenol, 3,3-Dichlorbenzidin, 3,4-Dichloranilin, and diclofenac, they show estrogenic effects at the same concentration range as for the yeast cells. Three of the drinking water-relevant chemicals, i.e., atrazine, tributyltin oxide, and diclofenac, caused effects on hormone production in the H295R assay, which can be correlated with changes in the expression of steroidogenic genes. One chemical, 17α-Ethinylestradiol, caused an estrogenic or anti-androgenic effect in the reproduction test with Potamopyrgus antipodarum. Considering these results, a proposal for a test strategy for micropollutants in drinking water regarding potential endocrine effects (hormonal effects on reproduction and sexual development) will be presented to enhance the existing HRIV concept.

Abridged version of the AWMF guideline for the medical clinical diagnostics of indoor mould exposure

This article is an abridged version of the AWMF mould guideline “Medical clinical diagnostics of indoor mould exposure” presented in April 2016 by the German Society of Hygiene, Environmental Medicine and Preventive Medicine (Gesellschaft für Hygiene, Umweltmedizin und Präventivmedizin, GHUP), in collaboration with the above-mentioned scientific medical societies, German and Austrian societies, medical associations and experts. Indoor mould growth is a potential health risk, even if a quantitative and/or causal relationship between the occurrence of individual mould species and health problems has yet to be established. Apart from allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA) and mould-caused mycoses, only sufficient evidence for an association between moisture/mould damage and the following health effects has been established: allergic respiratory disease, asthma (manifestation, progression and exacerbation), allergic rhinitis, hypersensitivity pneumonitis (extrinsic allergic alveolitis), and increased likelihood of respiratory infections/bronchitis. In this context the sensitizing potential of moulds is obviously low compared to other environmental allergens. Recent studies show a comparatively low sensitizing prevalence of 3–10% in the general population across Europe. Limited or suspected evidence for an association exist with respect to mucous membrane irritation and atopic eczema (manifestation, progression and exacerbation). Inadequate or insufficient evidence for an association exist for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, acute idiopathic pulmonary hemorrhage in children, rheumatism/arthritis, sarcoidosis and cancer. The risk of infection posed by moulds regularly occurring indoors is low for healthy persons; most species are in risk group 1 and a few in risk group 2 (Aspergillus fumigatus, A. flavus) of the German Biological Agents Act (Biostoffverordnung). Only moulds that are potentially able to form toxins can be triggers of toxic reactions. Whether or not toxin formation occurs in individual cases is determined by environmental and growth conditions, above all the substrate. In the case of indoor moisture/mould damage, everyone can be affected by odour effects and/or mood disorders. However, this is not a health hazard. Predisposing factors for odour effects can include genetic and hormonal influences, imprinting, context and adaptation effects. Predisposing factors for mood disorders may include environmental concerns, anxiety, condition, and attribution, as well as various diseases. Risk groups to be protected particularly with regard to an infection risk are persons on immunosuppression according to the classification of the German Commission for Hospital Hygiene and Infection Prevention (Kommission für Krankenhaushygiene und Infektionsprävention, KRINKO) at the Robert Koch- Institute (RKI) and persons with cystic fibrosis (mucoviscidosis); with regard to an allergic risk, persons with cystic fibrosis (mucoviscidosis) and patients with bronchial asthma should be protected.The rational diagnostics include the medical history, physical examination, and conventional allergy diagnostics including provocation tests if necessary; sometimes cellular test systems are indicated. In the case of mould infections the reader is referred to the AWMF guideline “Diagnosis and Therapy of Invasive Aspergillus Infections”. With regard to mycotoxins, there are currently no useful and validated test procedures for clinical diagnostics. From a preventive medicine standpoint it is important that indoor mould infestation in relevant dimension cannot be tolerated for precautionary reasons. With regard to evaluating the extent of damage and selecting a remedial procedure, the reader is referred to the revised version of the mould guideline issued by the German Federal Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt, UBA).

Human biomonitoring: Science and policy for a healthy future, April 17-19, 2016, Berlin, Germany.

Following the success of the 1st International Conference on Human Biomonitoring (HBM) in Berlin in 2010, the 2nd International Conference on Human Biomonitoring took place in Berlin from April 17-19, 2016 for an exchange and updates among participants on all aspects relating to HBM. Entitled "Science and Policy for a Healthy Future", the conference brought together international experts from the scientific sector, politics, authorities, industry, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and other involved associations. The conference took a critical look at today's chemicals that have a potential impact on human health and should be investigated as a matter of priority. It also discussed current activities and research efforts on HBM occurring worldwide, presented HBM success stories, and emphasized areas, where further research and focus are needed to improve the use of HBM for policy making. In many countries, HBM has been proven to be a useful tool and warning system to indicate problematic human exposure to pollutants and to evaluate the effectiveness of existing chemicals policy and regulations. However, important challenges remain such as exposure assessment of mixtures of chemicals, the development of analytical methods to detect new chemicals of concern (e.g., substitutes for phthalates), the identification of exposure sources, and the assessment of the impact of exposure on health. This brief report summarizes the discussions and contributions from this conference, which was jointly organized by the German Federal Environment Agency (UBA) and the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMUB).

Arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury levels in blood of Finnish adults and their relation to diet, lifestyle habits and sociodemographic variables.

The Northern Finland Birth Cohort program (NFBC) is the epidemiological and longitudinal prospective general population research program, which was established to promote health and wellbeing of the population in northern Finland. The aim of present study, as a part of the NFBC program, was to analyze the blood levels of arsenic (B-As), cadmium (B-Cd), lead (B-Pb), total mercury (B-Hg) and selenium (B-Se); to compare these levels with threshold limits; to study sociodemographic factors; and to correlate these levels with calcium and haemoglobin. The study was comprised of 249 NFBC subjects, of which 123 were female and 126 were male (ages 31.1±0.3 and 31.1±0.4, respectively). All participants were asked to complete a questionnaire regarding diet and living habits. The geometric means (± SD) of B-As were 0.49±2.80μg/l and 0.44±2.72μg/l; B-Cd were 0.18±4.02μg/l and 0.12±3.21μg/l; B-Pb were 17.0±1.8μg/l and 9.06±2.20μg/l; B-Hg were 2.18±2.02μg/l and 1.85±1.78μg/l; and B-Se were 106.0±1.3 and 94.3±1.3μg/l in males and females, respectively. Among the subjects in the present analysis, 23% of males and 17.1% of females had B-As levels above the ATSDR normal human levels of B-As in unexposed individuals (1.0μg/l). The B-Pb geometric mean (12.44μg/l) was approximately one eighth the CDC toxicological cut-off point of 100μg/l. Twenty-one individuals (8.4%) exceeded a B-Hg level of 5.8μg/l. Fifty-eight females (47%) had a B-Hg higher than 2.0μg/l, the German Federal Environmental Agency cut-off point for women (18-69years) who consume fish at least three times/month; therefore, their babies could be at risk of adverse effects during development.

How does science-based policy advice matter in policy making? The RIU model as a framework for analyzing and explaining processes of scientific knowledge transfer

A “linear” scientific knowledge transfer from science (“truth”) to political practice (“power”) does not seem to be possible. Therefore an alternative understanding of scientific knowledge transfer is suggested: In the RIU-model, scientific knowledge is produced in the science system (Research), and science-based problem solutions are utilized within politics by political actors (Utilization). Between the two spheres there is no “automatic” connection that leads to a linear application of science in policy making. Rather, it highlights the important sphere of “integration”, a step that lies between science and utilization. Integration means the orientation of research toward political and practical problems with the aim to describe and solve them (Integration). By the example of a German case study (activities of the German federal environment agency in waste policy) it will be shown (1) what important integration measures are, and (2) how they lead to science-based policy advice that matters in policy making.