The European legal regime on green public procurement: corresponding and conflicting aspects of environmental law and procurement law in the EU

An increasing variety of methods for fostering the goals of environmental policies have been developed over the last two decades. ‘Command-and-control’ regulations are no longer the only instrument for implementing processes towards better protection of the environment; a number of supplementary instruments have been introduced. These include environmental taxes, voluntary agreements, emissions trading or labelling and auditing schemes. Considering the potential steering effects, green public procurement must also be seen as an instrument of environmental policy.