1st Edition

The Future of European Union Environmental Politics and Policy

Edited By Anthony R. Zito, Charlotte Burns, Andrea Lenschow Copyright 2020

    The Future of European Union Environmental Politics and Policy investigates the trajectory of European Union (EU) environmental policy and reflects on how this hugely vital policy area of the EU has evolved over the decades.

    Gathering together a selection of the leading scholars working on European environmental policy, the volume assesses the extent to which change has occurred in important dimensions of EU environmental policy research. These dimensions include the EU’s values and approaches; the provision of leadership; the possibilities of Brexit and the dismantling of policies; policy instruments and climate change; policy implementation and enforcement; and policy evaluation. The contributors situate their research in the context of current developments and conditions, including the global economic challenges and the rise of political challenges to both European governance and integration. Each chapter reviews the EU environmental policy over the long term and assesses the implications of current developments for the future health of European environmental policy, European integration and the environment itself.

    The Future of European Union Environmental Politics and Policy will be of great interest to scholars of environmental politics, environmental governance and EU policy. The chapters were originally published as a special issue of Environmental Politics.

    Foreword

    David Judge

    Introduction: Is the trajectory of European Union environmental policy less certain?

    Anthony R. Zito, Charlotte Burns and Andrea Lenschow

    2. Changing the story? The discourse of ecological modernisation in the European Union

    Amanda Machin

    3. The importance of compatible beliefs for effective climate policy integration

    Katharina Rietig

    4. The European Council, the Council and the Member States: changing environmental leadership dynamics in the European Union

    Rüdiger K.W. Wurzel, Duncan Liefferink and Maurizio Di Lullo

    5. De-Europeanising or disengaging? EU environmental policy and Brexit

    Charlotte Burns, Viviane Gravey, Andrew Jordan and Anthony Zito

    6. Voluntary instruments for ambitious objectives? The experience of the EU Covenant of Mayors

    Ekaterina Domorenok

    7. Compliance with EU environmental law. The iceberg is melting

    Tanja A. Börzel and Aron Buzogány

    8. Left to interest groups? On the prospects for enforcing environmental law in the European Union

    Andreas Hofmann

    9. Environmental policy evaluation in the EU: between learning, accountability, and political opportunities?

    Jonas J. Schoenefeld and Andrew J. Jordan

    Biography

    Anthony R. Zito is Professor of European Public Policy at Newcastle University, UK. He is currently Co-director of the Jean Monnet Centre for Excellence at Newcastle University and Co-editor of the leading international environmental journal, Environmental Politics. His research focuses on governance, learning theory, networks, and EU decision-making.

    Charlotte Burns is Professor of Politics at the University of Sheffield, UK. She is Co-chair of the Brexit and Environment Network. Her research focuses upon EU environmental policy-making and decision-making and the impact of Brexit on EU/UK environmental policy.

    Andrea Lenschow is Professor of European Integration and Politics and Director of the Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence in European Studies at Osnabrück University, Germany. Her research focuses on local, EU and global environmental policy and governance, policy integration, implementation and institutional change.