Germany

Domestic activities

Germany is particularly committed to reducing the pollutants addressed by the CCAC (so-called SLCPs) in the following areas:

• tropospheric ozone precursors: reduction of NOx emissions, volatile hydrocarbons, methane and CO
• black carbon: reduction of soot emissions as part of particulate matter
• reduction of emissions of nitrogen compounds
• reduction of fluorinated greenhouse gases
• reduction of methane emissions, particularly in the waste sector.

Germany has taken, inter alia, the following measures in these areas:

• At national level, Germany has reduced methane emissions from landfills by 78% since 1990.
• The Chemicals Climate Protection Ordinance stipulates in particular emission limit values for refrigeration and air conditioning systems, heat pumps, and fire protection systems and specifies the qualification required of staff.
• Retrofitting passenger cars and light duty vehicles with particulate reduction systems (BC) is being promoted.

International activities

Germany supports the following multilateral activities:

• amending the 1999 Gothenburg Protocol to the UNECE Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution
• amending the EU Directive on emission ceilings (NEC Directive, 2001) and the EU Directive on ambient air quality (2008)
• reducing fluorinated greenhouse gases under the Kyoto Protocol
• measures under the EC Directive on the reduction of emissions from air-conditioning systems in motor vehicles
• revising the EC Regulation on certain fluorinated greenhouse gases to reduce the emissions of the fluorinated greenhouse gases covered by the Kyoto Protocol
• revising the EC Directive on mobile machinery to introduce limit values for additional groups of machinery. 

Germany has taken, inter alia, the following measures:

• Under its International Climate Initiative (ICI) Germany supports the reduction of short-lived climate pollutants (especially methane, HFC-134a, and HFC-containing preparations R 404A and R 410A) in developing countries and emerging economies. 35 million Euros have been provided for this since 2008.
• Germany shares experience on greenhouse gas mitigation in the waste sector via KfW Entwicklungsbank and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). Germany promotes integrated waste management concepts by providing the funding referred to above and through technology transfers.
• Financial support for bilateral projects under the Montreal Protocol to prevent the use of HFCs as an alternative to ozone-depleting substances will total up to 6.5 million Euros over the next three years.