There are four paradoxes to be explained in respect of European Union (EU) environmental policy: how it is that a liberal policy regime makes relatively little use of economic instruments; how it is that the formally independent Commission is heavily dependent upon member states in the development of its policy proposals; how it is that a ‘weak’ European Parliament has had greater influence on environmental standard setting than have most national parliaments; and how it is that a supranational political authority regulates subnational environmental public goods so extensively. The author argues that these four features of EU environmental policy are related to one another as the effects of a common cause: the historical importance of the Monnet method of European integration. How far this method should be transcended is also discussed.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AlbertM, 1993Capitalism against Capitalism (Whurr Publishers, London)
2.
ArpH, 1993, “Technical regulation and politics: the interplay between economic interests and environmental policy goals in EC car emission legislation”, in European Integration and Environmental Policy Eds LiefferinkJ DLoweP DMolA P J (Belhaven Press, London) pp 150–171
3.
BagehotW, 1867The English Constitution edited, with an introduction by CrossmanR H S; 1963 (Fontana/Collins, London)
4.
BrownG MJrJohnsonR W, 1984, “Pollution control by effluent charges: it works in the Federal Republic of Germany, why not in the United States?”Natural Resources Journal24929–966
5.
BurrowsP, 1974, “Pricing versus regulation for environmental protection”Economic Policies and Social Goals Ed. CulyerA J (Martin Robertson, Oxford) pp 273–283
6.
CameronD R, 1992, “The 1992 Initiative: causes and consequences”, in Euro-Politics: Institutions and Policymaking in the ‘New’ European Community Ed. SbragiaA M (The Brookings Institution, Washington, DC) pp 23–74
7.
CEC, 1992Fifth Environmental Action Programme COM (92) 23 final (Commission of the European Communities, Luxembourg)
8.
CramL, 1996, “Integration theory and the study of the European policy process”, in European Union: Power and Policy-making Ed. RichardsonJ J (Routledge, London) pp 40–58
9.
DolanE G, 1990, “Controlling acid rain”, in Economics and the Environment: A Reconciliation Ed. BlockW (The Fraser Institute, Vancouver, BC) pp 215–232
10.
ENDS, 1998a, “Parliament declares war on auto/oil standards”Ends Report, 277, February, page 44, Environmental Data Services Ltd, Unit 24, 40 Bowling Green Lane, London EC1R 0NE
11.
ENDS, 1998b, “EC climate policy takes shape, progress on landfills, air pollution Ends Report 288, March, pages 39–41, Environmental Data Services Ltd, Unit 24, 40 Bowling Green Lane, London EC1R 0NE
12.
European Environment Agency, 1996Environmental Taxes: Implementation and Effectiveness (European Environment Agency, Copenhagen)
13.
FlynnB, 1997, “Subsidiarity and the rise of soft law” OP-40 Human Capital and Mobility Network, University of Essex, Colchester, Essex
14.
GarrettG, 1992, “International Cooperation and Institutional Choice: the European Community's internal market”International Organization46533–560
15.
GriffithsR T, 1995, “The European integration experience”Orchestrating Europe: The Informal Politics of the European Union 1973–95 Ed. MiddlemasK (Fontana Press, London) pp 1–70
16.
HaighN, 1992Manual of Environmental Policy: The EC and Britain (Catermill, London), release 12 November 1997
17.
HanleyNHallettSMoffattI, 1990, “Research policy and review 33. Why is more notice not taken of economists' prescriptions for the control of pollution?”Environment and Planning A221421–1439
18.
Hayes-RenshawF, 1996, “The role of the council”, in The European Union: How Democratic Is It? Eds AndersenS SEliassenK A (Sage, London) pp 143–163
19.
HaywardJ, 1996, “Has European unification by stealth a future?”, in Elitism, Populism, and European Politics Ed. HaywardJ (Clarendon Press, Oxford) pp 252–257
20.
HéretierAMingensSKnillCBeckaM, 1994Die Veränderung von Staatlichkeit in Europa (Leske und Budrich, Opladen)
21.
HurrellAMenoneA, 1996, “Politics like any other? Comparative politics, international relations and the study of the EU”West European Politics19386–402
22.
JänickeMWeidnerH, 1997, “Germany”National Environmental Policies: A Comparative Study of Capacity-building Eds JänickeMWeidnerH (Springer, Berlin) pp 133–155
23.
JordanA, 1999a, “Editorial introduction: the construction of a multilevel environmental governance system”Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy171–17
24.
JordanA, 1999b, “The implementation of EU environmental policy: a policy problem without a political solution?”Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy1769–90
25.
JordanA, 1999c, “European Union water standards: locked in or watered down?”Journal of Common Market Studies forthcoming
26.
JudgeD, 1992, “‘Predestined to save the Earth’: the Environment Committee of the European Parliament”Environmental Politics1(4) 186–212
27.
KayJ, 1994, “Clever trick but the cracks remain”Financial Times 16 August, page 14
28.
LaursenF, 1996, “The role of the Commission”, in The European Union: How Democratic Is It? Eds AndersenS SEliassenK A (Sage, London) pp 119–141
29.
LodgeJ, 1996, “The European Parliament”, in The European Union: How Democratic Is It? Eds AndersenS SEliassenK A (Sage, London) pp 187–214
30.
MajoneG, 1996Regulating Europe (Routledge, London)
31.
ManinB, 1997The Principles of Representative Government (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge)
32.
MazeyS, 1996, “The development of the European idea: from sectoral integration to political union”European Union: Power and Policy-making Ed. RichardsonJ J (Routledge, London) pp 24–39
33.
MilwardA, 1992The European Rescue of the Nation State (Routledge, London)
34.
MonnetJ, 1978Memoirs translated by MayneR (Collins, London)
35.
PehleH, 1997, “Germany: domestic obstacles to an international forerunner”, in European Environmental Policy: The Pioneers Eds AndersenM SLiefferinkD (Manchester University Press, Manchester) pp 161–209
36.
PeltzmanSTidemanT N, 1972, “Local versus national pollution control: note”American Economic Review62959–963
37.
PetersB G, 1997, “Escaping the joint-decision trap: repetition and sectoral politics in the European Union”West European Politics20(2) 22–36
38.
PetersenJ, 1995, “Playing the transparency game: consultation and policymaking in the European Commission”Public Administration73473–492
39.
RothenbergJ, 1970, “Local decentralization and the theory of optimal government”The Analysis of Public Output Ed. MargolisJ (Columbia University Press, New York) pp 29–64
40.
SCEC, 1983, “Memorandum: the ‘polluter pays’ principle”, in House of Lords, Select Committee on the European Communities. The Polluter Pays Principle Report 10, Session 1982–83 (The Stationery Office, London) pp 102–103
41.
SCEC, 1987House of Lords Papers and Bills - Session 1986–87. Fourth Environmental Action Programme HL 135, Select Committee on the European Communities (The Stationery Office, London)
42.
SCEC, 1992House of Lords Papers. Session 1991–92. Carbon/Energy Tax HL 52, Select Committee on the European Communities (The Stationery Office, London)
43.
ScharpfF W, 1988, “The joint-decision trap: lessons from German federalism and European institutions”Public Administration66239–278
44.
ScharpfF W, 1994, “Community and autonomy: multi-level policy-making in the European Union”Journal of European Public Policy pp 219–242
45.
SchmitterP C, 1996“Examining the present Euro-polity with the help of past theories”, in Governance in the European Union Eds MarksGScharpfF WSchmitterP CStreeckW (Sage, London) pp 1–14
46.
SchramaG J IKlokP-J, 1995, “The swift introduction of ‘clean cars’ in the Netherlands, 1986–1992: the origin and effect of incentive measures”, in Successful Environmental Policy: A Critical Evaluation of 24 Cases Eds JänickeMWeidnerH (Edition Sigma, Berlin) pp 203–222
47.
SidgwickH, 1891The Elements of Politics (Macmillan, London)
48.
TsebelisG, 1994, “The power of the European Parliament as a conditional agenda setter”American Political Science Review88128–142
49.
WallaceW, 1996, “Has government by committee lost the public's confidence?”, in Elitism, Populism, and European Politics Ed. HaywardJ (Clarendon Press, Oxford) pp 238–251
50.
WealeA, 1996, “Environmental rules and rule-making in the European Union”Journal of European Public Policy3594–611
51.
WealeAWilliamsA, 1992, “Between economy and ecology? The single market and the integration of environmental policy”Environmental Politics1(4) 45–64
52.
WeberM, 1947The Theory of Social and Economic Organization translated by HendersonA M, ParsonsT (Oxford University Press, Oxford)
