Free Movement of Goods and Environmental Protection in EU Law: A Troubled Relationship?

This article examines the relationship between the principle of free movement of goods and the protection of the environment under the umbrella of European Union (EU) law. It will be discussed whether Member States are suitably provided with legal means which enable them to take due account of environmental circumstances when they take measures which have an impact on the circulation of goods within the internal market. To this end, the relevant provisions of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) will be critically analysed in the light of their interpretation by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) over the last decades. Particular emphasis will be given to a recent decision of the CJEU which has shed new light on this subject.