In addition to this self-commitment, as a federal agency the THW also contributes to achieving Germany’s national and international climate goals. The national climate goals are enshrined in the Federal Climate Protection Act. The international climate goals were decided at the 2015 Paris Climate Conference.
As a volunteer-based operational organisation with a nationwide presence, the THW is deeply rooted in society. It serves as a role model in its daily actions.
Precisely for this reason, it is important for the THW to actively and visibly contribute to achieving Germany’s climate goals:

Environmental policy in the THW

With regard to environmental protection, the THW is guided by the following principles:

1. We support climate protection, practice careful use of natural resources, and contribute to the greatest possible reduction of emissions. We align our daily actions with applicable environmental standards and continually work to increase our contribution to environmental protection. It is a matter of course for us to observe and comply with all environment-related regulations, involving all interested parties in this, especially volunteers.
2. We record and analyse the consumption of resources and emissions of our operational organisation and use this analysis to derive specific goals and measures which lead to the greatest possible avoidance, reduction or elimination of environmental impacts. We continuously review the effectiveness of these. To this end we are introducing an environmental management system. The goal is to implement this system at as many THW locations as possible.
3. We assume that extreme weather events will occur more frequently in the future and that the scale of disasters in Germany and worldwide will increase. In this context of the risks of climate warming, the operational readiness of the THW needs special attention. We prepare for future challenges and adapt our operational capabilities accordingly.
4. Our statutory mandate requires us to ensure operational readiness at all times. In doing so, we take climate protection and environmental protection into account as far as possible.
5. We publicise our commitment to contribute to climate protection and incorporate the topic into THW strategy considerations and planning. Environmental protection and environmentally friendly behaviour are self-explanatory aspects of THW culture.

Environmental management at the THW

To achieve the requirements of the Federal Climate Protection Act, the Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community has initiated a ‘convoy procedure’ for the gradual introduction of an environmental management system.