60 years of IFAT – 60 milestones in the environmental industry

1967 – Disasters raise awareness

Major tanker disasters, such as the Torrey Canyon oil spill off the coast of southern England, attract international environmental attention; they are considered catalysts for the modern environmental movement and organizations such as Greenpeace.

1968 – Systematically combating noise

• In Germany, the “Technical Instructions on Noise Protection” (TA Lärm) are published. The regulation makes noise protection systematically measurable, comparable, and enforceable by authorities for the first time.
• Finnigan Instruments (USA) delivers the first commercial GC-MS systems. The combination of chromatography and mass spectrometry quickly becomes the standard for pesticide and dioxin analysis.

1970 – Founding of the EPA

• The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is founded in the USA. It enforces binding emission standards for the first time and massively accelerates the market introduction of new technologies.
• In Germany, the Bavarian State Ministry of Regional Development and Environmental Issues—now the Bavarian State Ministry of the Environment and Consumer Protection—is launched as the world’s first environmental ministry.

1971 – Environmental policy becomes official across Germany

The German federal government’s first environmental program is adopted on October 14. It systematically defines environmental policy as a task based on precautionary principle as well as the polluter–pays principle.

1972 – Waste at IFAT

• The first United Nations Conference on the Human Environment —takes place in Stockholm. It is considered a historic turning point in international environmental policy and led, among other things, to the later establishment of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
• The topic of waste disposal is included in the IFAT exhibition and symposium program for the first time.

1973 -– Oil crisis

On October 17, the price of oil rises by 70 percent from around USD 3 per barrel to over USD 5. Environmental and energy technologies begin to converge. For German politicians, the issue of “security of supply” comes to the fore.

1975 – IFAT in European spheres

• The EU Waste Framework Directive and the German Waste Management Act come into force under the principle that “waste is a design flaw.” This corresponds to the well-known cradle-to-cradle principle.
• At IFAT, the combination of the trade fair with the European Wastewater and Waste Symposium proves its worth.

1976 – Boost for sewage treatment plants

The Waste Water Charges Act comes into force in Germany. It regulates the obligation to pay a charge for discharging wastewater into water bodies, thereby creating an economic incentive to expand municipal wastewater treatment plants.

1977 – Nature conservation becomes law

The Federal Nature Conservation Act comes into force in Germany.

1980 – Flue gas desulfurization

The first large-scale wet flue gas desulfurization plant (FGD) to be used in a West German coal-fired power plant goes into operation at the Scholven power plant (North Rhine-Westphalia). The German large-scale plant manufacturer Lurgi plays a key role in this project.

1981 IFAT takes to the streets

At IFAT, road and winter services for cities and municipalities are added as exhibition topics.

1983 – Look up in the sky!

• The German government publishes official figures on forest dieback for the first time. Technical solutions such as desulfurization plants in coal-fired power stations and the introduction of unleaded gasoline become increasingly important.
• The German Regulation on Large Combustion Plants comes into force.
• The environmental toxins PCB and dioxin, as well as the “summer smog” caused by road traffic, come into the spotlight.

1984 – Emissions and innovations

• The new EU Industrial Emissions Directive requires plant operators to use the best available techniques to minimize emissions of pollutants into the air and water.
• The chemical disaster in Bhopal (India) leads to stricter safety checks in European chemical parks and the further development of early warning systems and retention basins for pollutants.
• PRECO (Uchte) presents the first plastic manhole base at IFAT. This innovation lays the foundation for modern, jointless, and corrosion-resistant sewer systems.

1986 – Chernobyl & Sandoz

• The Chernobyl nuclear disaster occurs on April 26 at the Chernobyl nuclear power station (Ukraine). As one of the consequences, German Chancellor Helmut Kohl establishes the Ministry of the Environment in Bonn in June. Walter Wallmann is the first Minister of the Environment.
• In November, following a major fire at the Sandoz chemical plant near Basel, Switzerland, 20 tons of toxic firefighting foam flowed unhindered into the Rhine, resulting in the death of a huge quantity of fish. In light of the disaster, safety standards of industrial plants are improved and combined with effective monitoring.

1987 – A committed minister

In Germany, Klaus Töpfer becomes the new Federal Minister for the Environment. He initiates far-reaching developments such as the phase-out of CFC production, the end of thin acid dumping in the North Sea, and the reduction of dust emissions. In May 1988, he jumps into the Rhine near Mainz to demonstrate the river’s restored cleanliness following the Sandoz chemical accident in 1986. This famous act helped to bring environmental protection to the forefront of social debate in the 1980s.

1988 – Germany leads the way in thermal waste utilization

Germany is an international leader in direct energy recovery from waste: Around 98% of incinerated waste is processed in plants that recover heat. In the European Community, the figure is only 15%.

1992 – Standards are set in Rio

The UN Conference in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) is considered a milestone for the integration of environmental and development efforts.

1994 – Angela Merkel enters the scene

• In Germany, Angela Merkel becomes Federal Minister for the Environment. She holds this office until 1998.
• Bayer AG (Leverkusen) revises its “Guidelines for Responsible Conduct in Environmental Protection and Safety.”

1995 – Digitalization of life cycle assessment

The company Particip (Wehingen, Germany) presents “UMCOM,” a software program that can be used to create company-specific life cycle assessments. “VOICE,” a database application from Drägerwerk (Lübeck), lists 1,100 pollutants.

1996 – All eyes on waste

• On October 7, the German Closed Substance Cycle and Waste Management Act comes into force. It is considered a global pioneer in terms of waste prevention, recycling, and treatment.
• In Bassum (Lower Saxony), Germany'’s first large-scale mechanical-biological waste treatment plant (MBT) goes into operation.
• Examples of innovations showcased at IFAT include improved biological phosphate elimination processes, retrofittable systems for coupled nitrification and denitrification in wastewater treatment plants, and a wet oxidative process for residual waste treatment.

1997 – Türkiye boosts waste and wastewater disposal

• Türkiye’s largest waste disposal plant to date for the environmentally friendly disposal of hazardous waste, industrial waste, and industrial wastewater goes into operation in Izmit. In addition to a sewage treatment plant and a landfill site, there is also a hazardous waste incineration plant with a capacity of 30,000 tons/year.
• The Netzsch company (Waldkraiburg, Germany) presents a world first: an eccentric screw pump with ceramic rotors. Its advantages include a longer rotor service life, as well as both extreme chemical resistance and abrasion resistance.

1998 – The environment becomes the subject of reports

• Companies such as Bosch publish detailed environmental reports that focus on avoiding environmental risks, resource efficiency, and reducing workplace accidents.
• In Bremen, the company C.F. Plump commissions a new cold separation technology plant for hazardous waste, plastics, and composites. The process is based on embrittling the waste by shock freezing it at -120 °C.

1999 – Relocation to Riem

• For the first time, IFAT is held at the exhibition center in Munich-Riem, which opened in 1998. It now also covers thermal and biological waste recycling. In addition, solutions for in-house water and wastewater treatment using mechanical-physical, chemical-physical, and biochemical processes are presented there.
• The chemical companies DSM (Heerken, Netherlands) and Allied Signal (Morristownship, USA) open what they claim is “the world’s first large-scale carpet recycling plant” in Augusta (USA). It can recycle 90,000 tons of nylon 6 carpet waste per year.

2000 – Mandated growth in water management

• The EU adopts the Water Framework Directive (WFD). For the first time, a uniform goal of “good ecological status” for all waters is proclaimed throughout Europe. The WFD is considered a key driver of growth in the European water industry in the 2000s and 2010s.
• The Econ-Air company’s new spray can recycling plant starts operating in Porta Westfalica. Propellants, solvents, aluminum, and tinplate are recovered from 6,000 tons of spray can waste per year.
• A new slag bath gasifier begins operation at the Schwarze Pumpe secondary raw materials recycling center. There, technology from the manufacturer Lurgi (Frankfurt/Main) converts various types of waste into synthesis gas.

2001 – Not so neat and clean after all

The German Environment Agency (UBA) publishes reports on material flows from detergents and cleaning agents that enter the environment despite sewage treatment plants, emphasizing the importance of wastewater technology.

2002 – Focus on membranes

• The central event in the IFAT program is the 12th European Water, Sewage, and Waste Symposium. Topics include membrane technologies for drinking water and sewage, finance, TV inspection for operation and maintenance, thermal waste treatment, and landfill and waste disposal.
• A membrane bioreactor (MBR) goes into operation at the municipal wastewater treatment plant in Memmingen (Bavaria), the first large-scale plant of its kind. It was manufactured by the Canadian company Zenon Environmental, which launched the technology in 1989.

2004 – IFAT goes to China

• IFAT China, the Asian offshoot of the world’s leading trade fair in Munich, launches in Shanghai.
• The EU member states implement the Emissions Trading Directive—national allocation planning for power plants and industry begins. This is the first time that a CO2 price has been institutionally prepared in Europe. Trading is set to officially start in 2005, but 2004 is the actual year the infrastructure goes into operation. New markets are emerging for emissions measurement technology, energy efficiency solutions, and environmental consulting.

2005 – China comes to IFAT

• The disposal of untreated household waste is strictly regulated in Germany, for example by the Technical Instruction on Municipal Waste (TA Siedlungsabfall).
• Particularly attractive events at IFAT in Munich include China Day, under the patronage of Bavarian Environment Minister Dr. Werner Schnappauf; the Japan Special; and the International Water, Wastewater, and Waste Symposium of the German Association for Water, Wastewater, and Waste (DWA).

2006 – Wastewater treatment and environmental analysis reach the next level

• The Swiss water research institute Eawag installs the world'’s first large-scale demonstration plant for a “fourth stage of wastewater treatment” at the wastewater treatment plant in Dübendorf. It is designed to remove pharmaceutical residues and industrial chemicals.
• The EU adopts the REACH chemicals regulation. For the first time, manufacturers are now required to systematically submit environmental and health data for chemicals. This leads to a surge of innovation in environmental analysis, filtration, and water treatment, as well as waste and hazardous substance management.

2007 – Billions for better waste management

The global market for waste management and recycling plants reaches a volume of around 35 billion euros.

2008 – IFAT now includes coastal and flood protection

IFAT focuses on the energy recovery of waste (particularly biogas) as well as efficient wastewater treatment and sewer system rehabilitation. In addition, the topic of coastal and flood protection is included in the catalog as a separate exhibition category.

2009 – Fewer greenhouse gases due to the financial crisis

The economic and financial crisis causes greenhouse gas emissions in Germany to fall by 8.4 percent. At the same time, the market for heat pumps, solar thermal energy, and wood-fired heating systems experiences a double-digit slump.

The German government launches the “National Development Plan for Electric Mobility.”

2011 – Energy-efficient wastewater treatment plants

In Germany, a new funding priority for “energy-efficient wastewater treatment plants” is launched. The Federal Ministry for the Environment supports 13 innovative projects with a total of almost EUR 10 million.

2013 – Lead-free pipes

• Drinking water in Germany goes lead-free: A new limit requires old lead pipes to be replaced.
• The first edition of IFAT India takes place at the Bombay Convention & Exhibition Centre (BCEC) in Mumbai.

2017 – Billions in sales with environmental protection

Germany’s Federal Statistical Office estimates that companies in the manufacturing and service sectors in the country generate EUR 73.9 billion in sales of goods, construction, and services for environmental protection.

2021 – The end of plastic straws and similar items

The EU ban on single-use plastics—such as cutlery and drinking straws—comes into force in Germany through the Single-Use Plastics Ordinance. As a result, bio-based plastics and reusable systems are increasingly developed.

2023 – Smart sorting systems and green steel

Waste sorting plants are increasingly using neural networks and laser spectroscopy to separate plastics by type so that they can be reused for food packaging.

Singapore International Water Week Pte Ltd (SIPL) and MMI Asia Pte. Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Messe München in Singapore, announce a long-term agreement to organize Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) | Water Expo.

2025 – A thriving startup scene

There are approximately 3,000 GreenTech startups active in Germany, with one-third holding their own patents and increasingly developing hardware.