ABSTRACT
Environmental policy has received tremendous attention from EU scholars. Considering the relatively late appearance of this policy in the list of competences of the EU and its comparatively marginal status in the economy-dominated policy repertoire, this is notable. Numerous environmental crises and accidents exciting citizens and scholars alike since the 1970s, and the emergence of an environmental social movement in several European countries, may all be part of the explanation. Yet, even after green politics in Europe quietened and environmental policy gained a ‘normal’ status in the acquis communautaire, this attention never subsided. This chapter will argue that the study of environmental policy lends itself to contribute to several larger debates on the dynamics in EU policy making and the nature of the EU polity.
