This article looks at the relationship between private law and environmental concerns. It describes the history of this relationship and some of its legal foundations in German, European, and international law. It also provides a critical overview of modern theoretical approaches in this field. With a view to developments currently underway, it discusses two cases from Germany and the Netherlands. The article concludes that steps are being taken towards a more eco-friendly concept of private law but that the German Federal Court in particular has not yet sufficiently integrated environmental concerns into its concept of private law.