One of the German government's sustainability goals was to double resource productivity from 1994 to 2020. The goal was missed, as only about 60% was achieved. It is therefore important to increasingly use waste as a source of secondary raw materials. When these are used, contaminants can be released into the environment, polluting for instance soil or groundwater. This is why the Contaminant Transport and Environmental Technologies division investigates the behaviour of contaminants in different environmental substances using a variety of methods.

We also investigate the potential of wet processing methods to recover useful resources from waste. Not even sustainable waste management concepts can fully avoid the use of landfill sites, but these need to be safe and environmentally compatible. This division is the responsible certification authority in accordance with the Landfill Ordinance for geosynthetics, polymers and leak detection systems for landfill liners.

further information

Dr. rer. nat. Franz-Georg Simon, Head of Division Contaminant Transport and Environmental Technologies, Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM)

Contact Dr. rer. nat. Franz-Georg Simon