Dismantling of European environmental policy: how great expectations in Brussels are dashed by Italian subnational implementation

Environmental policy has experienced significant expansion, with debates often centred around concerns of environmental overregulation. In response to the perceived burden of administrative requirements imposed by European regulations, the EU Commission initiated an Action Programme for dismantling environmental policy in 2007. Consequently, the Italian national government adopted a single environmental authorization provision in 2013. The effect of this simplification action at the subnational levels was a piecemeal implementation among Italian regions. The empirical contribution of the paper involves assessing the effectiveness of environmental policy dismantling at the regional level in Italy and identifying the capacities that influence this process. Through a comparative analysis of various dimensions (coordinating, regulatory, and delivery capacities), the study will show that the top-down approach for reducing red tape does not necessarily align with the administrative and implementing capacities of Italian regions, which are often affected by endemic problems.