Environmental Due Diligence in EU Law

The debate on sustainability related corporate due diligence obligations in global value chains has recently gained considerable momentum, in particular at EU level. However, so far, it has been dominated by the focus on human rights due diligence. By contrast, relatively little attention has been paid to the specifics of a stand-alone environmental due diligence obligation.
This paper examines how environmental due diligence can be designed and integrated in EU legislation applicable to undertakings in the European Union. It provides an overview of conceivable concepts for designing the material scope of environmental due diligence and examines how the issue has been solved in the Draft for a Directive on Corporate Due Diligence and Corporate Accountability adopted by the European Parliament in March 2021.