Introduction

A full understanding of how courts handle complex scientific questions is essential to appreciating the dynamics of environmental law. The Habitats Directive (HD) and Wild Birds Directive (WBD) represent the core of European Union (EU) nature conservation law. This comparative volume analyses the case law from current and former EU Member States’ (MS) courts, European courts, and from one non-European jurisdiction, Australia. It explores the dynamics of how, and crucially, why their handling of scientific information and solutions to scientific uncertainty vary. The courts’ scope and depth of review, access to scientific knowledge, and scientific literacy all influence answers to this overall question – as does their interpretation of norms and principles. How have the courts evaluated scientific evidence, encompassing its essential uncertainties?