An accessible but sophisticated introduction to, and analysis of, the increasingly important role of the European Union in environmental policy. Written by a well-known authority in the field, the book ranges widely over the emergence and evolution of the EU role in this critical field of policy, the relationship between policies made at the EU and member state levels, and the nature of the environmental policy process. The book ends with in-depth studies of EU activities in key policy areas - from air quality and waste management to global warming - and sums up the successes and failures of EU policy to date.