Environmental Justice Berlin 2013

Summary

Factors such as where we live, our social status and environmental loads do not only affect our health immensely but also our life expectancy. In 2008, the State of Berlin launched the project “Environmental Justice in Berlin”. The goal: to make the city more just in terms of the environment and its health-policy. These five indicators are at the heart of the project:

  1. Noise load: what are the noise levels in Berlin?
  2. Air pollution: which areas are loaded by a particularly high number of air pollutants?
  3. Green space supply: how many green spaces are available to Berlin’s residents?
  4. Bioclimate / thermal load: how do air temperature, heatwaves and other factors influence our health?
  5. Social problems / status index: what is the extent of social differences in Berlin?

The data we collected reveals: the population of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg is the most disadvantaged when we look at the whole city. Does this surprise you at all? The people of Steglitz-Zehlendorf and Treptow-Köpenick are exposed to fewer environmental loads in comparison.

Throughout Berlin, the air pollution, noise load and thermal load are particularly high along busy roads and the air corridor of Tegel Airport. Social problems are evident in some districts with a Wilhelminian influence and in large housing estates, the latter including the Märkisches Viertel and Marzahn.

On the following pages, you can discover how things are going in your neighbourhood. For more in-depth information, do have a look at the maps on environmental justice.

The contents of this edition are historical and no longer up-to-date.

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