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Formulating theories and models to describe and explain decisionmaking in the unique entity that is the European Union (EU) is an ongoing challenge for global political economists. In the decades since the 1957 Treaties of Rome launched the project, mainstream International Relations scholars have variously employed functionalist/neofunctionalist, intergovernmental, and multilevel governance assumptions to explain Europe’s progress toward economic, political, social, and security integration. This paper investigates the conceptualization, theoretical precursors, appropriateness and usefulness of a network governance model to understanding environmental decisionmaking in the EU. EU networks are constituted of multiple interdependent governmental and nongovernmental actors, possessing a variety of resources, who interact in various ways to solve problems, achieve their policy goals, and move forward the integration project. Networks are distinctive and comparable along several attributes including size, tightness or looseness, longevity and membership stability over time, resource interdependencies, identity and social cohesion, and level of policy consensus. The study concludes by considering the implications of a network governance model for broader normative and theoretical concerns associated with democracy and globalization. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]