Abstract: Related documents on environmental governance in China, according to the introduction of concept of ideal types, are sorted out in a systematical manner. With the help of the theoretical framework of action system, four ideal types of environmental governance are distinguished by taking actors and means of actions as the dimensions. Those four types are single-center scientism model, multi-center scientism model, single-center humanism model and multi-center humanism model, with their corresponding typical practices of campaign-styled, market-oriented, resistance-based and participative environmental governance, the current research progress of which is also reviewed. On the basis of the comparative study of ideal types, it concluded thatthe overall current characteristics of environmental governance in China features governmentdominated by means of scientific approaches, and the future development direction is predicted to be comprehensive and innovative environmental governance.