ABSTRACT
This chapter explores how sustainable development is generally understood, both in international law and in EU law, before inquiring in the purpose and scope of integration in the context of sustainable development. The priority of protecting ecosystem services does not derive from the concept of integration but from the purpose of sustainable development to which it pertains. While Article 11 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) provides some help by requiring environmental integration as part and parcel of sustainable development. According to Article 11 TFEU, environmental integration does not serve the purpose of achieving a high level of environmental protection. Rather, by linking environmental integration to the purpose of sustainable development, Article 11 TFEU could hold the danger that environmental protection can be watered out or 'balanced away' if it can be shown that social interests or economic interests prove to be strong enough.
