ABSTRACT

In contrast to the field of Agriculture, which is a classic area of redistributive policy, the Environment field is predominantly governed through regulatory instruments. The European dimension of Environmental policy was formally recognised in 1986 through the adoption of the Single European Act. However, Environmental policy measures had already been adopted by the EU institutions since the early 1970s. Given the lack of an explicit legal base for EU Environmental policy, these early measures were often couched as instruments to remove non-trade barriers to the internal market (Lenschow 2005: 306–307). Compared to Agriculture, EU Environmental policy can be classified as moderately integrated (Nugent 2006: 388). As can be discerned from Table 6.1, Environmental policy is characterised by a considerable degree of legislative activity. The relatively large amount of legislation adopted in Environment, together with the fact that the co-decision procedure grants the EP powers equal to the Council's, has elevated membership in the Environment standing committee to one of the most prestigious posts in Parliament.