diff --git a/Cargo.lock b/Cargo.lock
index 10e357aad6..1f442f3590 100644
--- a/Cargo.lock
+++ b/Cargo.lock
@@ -1824,6 +1824,16 @@ version = "1.2.0"
 source = "registry+https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io-index"
 checksum = "7655c9839580ee829dfacba1d1278c2b7883e50a277ff7541299489d6bdfdc45"
 
+[[package]]
+name = "is_default_derive_macro"
+version = "0.42.0"
+dependencies = [
+ "indicatif",
+ "quote",
+ "syn 2.0.48",
+ "tracing",
+]
+
 [[package]]
 name = "itertools"
 version = "0.10.5"
@@ -4351,6 +4361,7 @@ dependencies = [
  "format_serde_error",
  "ignore",
  "indexmap 2.2.3",
+ "is_default_derive_macro",
  "itertools 0.12.0",
  "miette",
  "nom",
diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index 9106164c72..9b515933f1 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ codegen-units = 1
 
 [workspace]
 members = [
+    "crates/is_default_derive_macro",
     "crates/progress_bar_derive_macro",
     "crates/spfs",
     "crates/spfs-encoding",
@@ -64,6 +65,7 @@ glob = "0.3"
 indicatif = "0.17.8"
 indexmap = "2.2"
 itertools = "0.12"
+is_default_derive_macro = { path = "crates/is_default_derive_macro" }
 libc = "0.2.80"
 miette = "7.0"
 nix = { version = "0.27.1", features = ["mount", "sched", "user"] }
diff --git a/crates/is_default_derive_macro/Cargo.toml b/crates/is_default_derive_macro/Cargo.toml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..2b5bc66295
--- /dev/null
+++ b/crates/is_default_derive_macro/Cargo.toml
@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+[package]
+name = "is_default_derive_macro"
+version = { workspace = true }
+license-file = { workspace = true }
+homepage = { workspace = true }
+repository = { workspace = true }
+readme = { workspace = true }
+description = { workspace = true }
+edition = { workspace = true }
+
+[lints]
+workspace = true
+
+[lib]
+proc-macro = true
+
+[dependencies]
+syn = "2.0"
+quote = "1.0"
+indicatif = { workspace = true }
+
+[dev-dependencies]
+tracing = { workspace = true }
diff --git a/crates/is_default_derive_macro/src/lib.rs b/crates/is_default_derive_macro/src/lib.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..45fb526c34
--- /dev/null
+++ b/crates/is_default_derive_macro/src/lib.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,72 @@
+// Copyright (c) Contributors to the SPK project.
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+// https://github.com/spkenv/spk
+
+extern crate proc_macro;
+
+use proc_macro::TokenStream;
+use quote::quote;
+use syn::{parse_macro_input, Data, DeriveInput, Fields};
+
+#[proc_macro_derive(IsDefault)]
+pub fn derive_is_default(input: TokenStream) -> TokenStream {
+    // Parse the input tokens into a syntax tree
+    let input = parse_macro_input!(input as DeriveInput);
+
+    // Get the name of the struct
+    let name = input.ident;
+
+    // Generate the trait implementation based on the struct's data (fields)
+    let expanded = match input.data {
+        Data::Struct(data_struct) => {
+            match data_struct.fields {
+                Fields::Named(fields_named) => {
+                    // Generate code that calls `IsDefault::is_default` on each field
+                    let field_checks = fields_named.named.iter().map(|field| {
+                        let field_name = &field.ident;
+                        quote! {
+                            spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault::is_default(&self.#field_name)
+                        }
+                    });
+
+                    quote! {
+                        impl spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault for #name {
+                            fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+                                true #(&& #field_checks)*
+                            }
+                        }
+                    }
+                }
+                Fields::Unnamed(fields_unnamed) => {
+                    let field_checks = fields_unnamed.unnamed.iter().enumerate().map(|(i, _)| {
+                        let index = syn::Index::from(i);
+                        quote! {
+                            spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault::is_default(&self.#index)
+                        }
+                    });
+
+                    quote! {
+                        impl spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault for #name {
+                            fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+                                true #(&& #field_checks)*
+                            }
+                        }
+                    }
+                }
+                Fields::Unit => {
+                    quote! {
+                        impl spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault for #name {
+                            fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+                                true
+                            }
+                        }
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+        }
+        _ => panic!("IsDefault can only be derived for structs"),
+    };
+
+    // Return the generated code
+    TokenStream::from(expanded)
+}
diff --git a/crates/spk-cli/cmd-build/src/cmd_build_test/mod.rs b/crates/spk-cli/cmd-build/src/cmd_build_test/mod.rs
index 129f7342e9..bd4f46346a 100644
--- a/crates/spk-cli/cmd-build/src/cmd_build_test/mod.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-cli/cmd-build/src/cmd_build_test/mod.rs
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ use spk_schema::foundation::option_map;
 use spk_schema::ident::version_ident;
 use spk_schema::ident_component::Component;
 use spk_schema::option_map::HOST_OPTIONS;
+use spk_schema::RuntimeEnvironment;
 use spk_storage::fixtures::*;
 
 use super::Build;
@@ -728,3 +729,36 @@ build:
         );
     }
 }
+
+#[rstest]
+#[tokio::test]
+async fn test_package_with_environment_ops_preserves_ops_in_recipe(tmpdir: tempfile::TempDir) {
+    let rt = spfs_runtime().await;
+
+    build_package!(
+        tmpdir,
+        "env-ops.spk.yaml",
+        br#"
+api: v0/package
+pkg: env-ops/1.0.0
+build:
+  script:
+    - true
+install:
+  environment:
+    - set: FOO
+      value: bar
+"#
+    );
+
+    let recipe = rt
+        .tmprepo
+        .read_recipe(&version_ident!("env-ops/1.0.0"))
+        .await
+        .unwrap();
+
+    assert!(
+        !recipe.runtime_environment().is_empty(),
+        "should have environment ops"
+    );
+}
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/Cargo.toml b/crates/spk-schema/Cargo.toml
index 2144874b64..f5193f5d51 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/Cargo.toml
@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@ format_serde_error = { version = "0.3", default-features = false, features = [
 ] }
 ignore = "0.4.18"
 indexmap = { workspace = true }
+is_default_derive_macro = { workspace = true }
 itertools = { workspace = true }
 nom = { workspace = true }
 regex = { workspace = true }
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/crates/foundation/src/is_default.rs b/crates/spk-schema/crates/foundation/src/is_default.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..1446a6f25d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/crates/foundation/src/is_default.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+// Copyright (c) Contributors to the SPK project.
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+// https://github.com/spkenv/spk
+
+pub trait IsDefault {
+    /// Returns true if the value equivalent to the default value.
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool;
+}
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/crates/foundation/src/lib.rs b/crates/spk-schema/crates/foundation/src/lib.rs
index 22e3996f0c..4527d47087 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/crates/foundation/src/lib.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/crates/foundation/src/lib.rs
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ mod from_yaml;
 pub mod ident_build;
 pub mod ident_component;
 pub mod ident_ops;
+mod is_default;
 pub mod name;
 pub mod option_map;
 pub mod spec_ops;
@@ -17,3 +18,4 @@ pub mod version_range;
 
 pub use fixtures::*;
 pub use from_yaml::{FromYaml, SerdeYamlError};
+pub use is_default::IsDefault;
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/crates/foundation/src/version/compat.rs b/crates/spk-schema/crates/foundation/src/version/compat.rs
index ccf711751c..3e65ea3be5 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/crates/foundation/src/version/compat.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/crates/foundation/src/version/compat.rs
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 
 use super::{Error, Result, Version, VERSION_SEP};
 use crate::name::PkgNameBuf;
-use crate::version;
+use crate::{version, IsDefault};
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 #[path = "./compat_test.rs"]
@@ -324,11 +324,6 @@ impl FromStr for Compat {
 }
 
 impl Compat {
-    // True if this is the default compatibility specification
-    pub fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
-        self == &Self::default()
-    }
-
     /// Create a compat rule set with two parts
     pub fn double(first: CompatRuleSet, second: CompatRuleSet) -> Self {
         Compat {
@@ -467,6 +462,13 @@ impl Compat {
     }
 }
 
+impl IsDefault for Compat {
+    // True if this is the default compatibility specification
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+        self == &Self::default()
+    }
+}
+
 /// Parse a string as a compatibility specifier.
 pub fn parse_compat<S: AsRef<str>>(compat: S) -> super::Result<Compat> {
     Compat::from_str(compat.as_ref())
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/crates/ident/src/request.rs b/crates/spk-schema/crates/ident/src/request.rs
index e4ab184898..076a20c8d1 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/crates/ident/src/request.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/crates/ident/src/request.rs
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@ use spk_schema_foundation::version_range::{
     RestrictMode,
     VersionFilter,
 };
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 
 use super::AnyIdent;
 use crate::{BuildIdent, Error, RangeIdent, Result, Satisfy, VersionIdent};
@@ -45,8 +46,8 @@ pub enum PreReleasePolicy {
     IncludeAll,
 }
 
-impl PreReleasePolicy {
-    pub fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+impl IsDefault for PreReleasePolicy {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
         matches!(self, &PreReleasePolicy::ExcludeAll)
     }
 }
@@ -73,8 +74,8 @@ pub enum InclusionPolicy {
     IfAlreadyPresent,
 }
 
-impl InclusionPolicy {
-    pub fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+impl IsDefault for InclusionPolicy {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
         matches!(self, &InclusionPolicy::Always)
     }
 }
@@ -101,9 +102,9 @@ pub enum PinPolicy {
     IfPresentInBuildEnv,
 }
 
-impl PinPolicy {
+impl IsDefault for PinPolicy {
     #[inline]
-    pub fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
         self == &PinPolicy::default()
     }
 }
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/build_spec.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/build_spec.rs
index befd782f42..e0474432e9 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/build_spec.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/build_spec.rs
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ use spk_schema_foundation::ident_build::BuildId;
 use spk_schema_foundation::name::PkgName;
 use spk_schema_foundation::option_map::{OptionMap, Stringified, HOST_OPTIONS};
 use spk_schema_foundation::version::Compat;
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 use strum::Display;
 
 use super::{v0, Opt, ValidationSpec};
@@ -51,10 +52,6 @@ pub enum AutoHostVars {
 }
 
 impl AutoHostVars {
-    pub fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
-        self == &Self::default()
-    }
-
     fn names_added(&self) -> HashSet<&OptName> {
         let names = match self {
             AutoHostVars::Distro => DISTRO_ADDS,
@@ -128,6 +125,12 @@ impl AutoHostVars {
     }
 }
 
+impl IsDefault for AutoHostVars {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+        self == &Self::default()
+    }
+}
+
 /// A set of structured inputs used to build a package.
 #[derive(Clone, Debug, Eq, Hash, Ord, PartialEq, PartialOrd, Serialize)]
 pub struct BuildSpec {
@@ -161,10 +164,6 @@ impl Default for BuildSpec {
 }
 
 impl BuildSpec {
-    pub fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
-        self == &Self::default()
-    }
-
     /// Returns this build's options, plus any additional ones needed
     /// for building the given variant
     pub fn opts_for_variant<V>(&self, variant: &V) -> Result<Vec<Opt>>
@@ -335,6 +334,12 @@ impl BuildSpec {
     }
 }
 
+impl IsDefault for BuildSpec {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+        self == &Self::default()
+    }
+}
+
 impl TryFrom<UncheckedBuildSpec> for BuildSpec {
     type Error = crate::Error;
 
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/build_spec_test.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/build_spec_test.rs
index e654946434..8783e3e442 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/build_spec_test.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/build_spec_test.rs
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 // https://github.com/spkenv/spk
 
 use rstest::rstest;
-use spk_schema_foundation::{option_map, pkg_name, FromYaml};
+use spk_schema_foundation::{option_map, pkg_name, FromYaml, IsDefault};
 
 use super::{AutoHostVars, BuildSpec};
 use crate::build_spec::UncheckedBuildSpec;
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/component_spec_list.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/component_spec_list.rs
index e40716f2a6..b0d69b5fc7 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/component_spec_list.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/component_spec_list.rs
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
 use std::collections::{BTreeSet, HashMap, HashSet};
 
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 
 use super::ComponentSpec;
 use crate::foundation::ident_component::Component;
@@ -19,8 +20,8 @@ mod component_spec_list_test;
 #[serde(transparent)]
 pub struct ComponentSpecList(Vec<ComponentSpec>);
 
-impl ComponentSpecList {
-    pub fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+impl IsDefault for ComponentSpecList {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
         self == &Self::default()
     }
 }
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/embedded_packages_list.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/embedded_packages_list.rs
index 2bc0c8f1ac..0ec90be6f4 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/embedded_packages_list.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/embedded_packages_list.rs
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use spk_schema_foundation::ident_build::EmbeddedSource;
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 use spk_schema_ident::AnyIdent;
 
 use super::{BuildSpec, InstallSpec, Spec};
@@ -18,6 +19,12 @@ mod embedded_packages_list_test;
 #[serde(transparent)]
 pub struct EmbeddedPackagesList(Vec<Spec>);
 
+impl IsDefault for EmbeddedPackagesList {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+        self.is_empty()
+    }
+}
+
 impl std::ops::Deref for EmbeddedPackagesList {
     type Target = Vec<Spec>;
     fn deref(&self) -> &Self::Target {
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/environ.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/environ.rs
index 74515e25cd..cd8b680ed2 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/environ.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/environ.rs
@@ -3,9 +3,11 @@
 // https://github.com/spkenv/spk
 
 use std::collections::HashMap;
+use std::sync::Arc;
 
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use spk_schema_foundation::option_map::Stringified;
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 #[path = "./environ_test.rs"]
@@ -23,6 +25,42 @@ const OP_PRIORITY: &str = "priority";
 const OP_SET: &str = "set";
 const OP_NAMES: &[&str] = &[OP_APPEND, OP_COMMENT, OP_PREPEND, OP_SET];
 
+/// Some item that contains a list of [`EnvOp`] operations
+pub trait RuntimeEnvironment {
+    /// The set of operations to perform on the environment when running this package
+    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &[EnvOp];
+}
+
+impl<T> RuntimeEnvironment for Box<T>
+where
+    T: RuntimeEnvironment,
+{
+    #[inline]
+    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &[EnvOp] {
+        (**self).runtime_environment()
+    }
+}
+
+impl<T> RuntimeEnvironment for &T
+where
+    T: RuntimeEnvironment,
+{
+    #[inline]
+    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &[EnvOp] {
+        (**self).runtime_environment()
+    }
+}
+
+impl<T> RuntimeEnvironment for Arc<T>
+where
+    T: RuntimeEnvironment,
+{
+    #[inline]
+    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &[EnvOp] {
+        (**self).runtime_environment()
+    }
+}
+
 /// The set of operation types for use in deserialization
 #[derive(Copy, Clone, Debug, PartialEq, strum::Display)]
 #[strum(serialize_all = "lowercase")]
@@ -150,6 +188,29 @@ impl EnvOp {
     }
 }
 
+#[derive(Clone, Debug, Default, Deserialize, Eq, Hash, Ord, PartialEq, PartialOrd, Serialize)]
+pub struct EnvOpList(Vec<EnvOp>);
+
+impl IsDefault for EnvOpList {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+        self.0.is_empty()
+    }
+}
+
+impl std::ops::Deref for EnvOpList {
+    type Target = Vec<EnvOp>;
+
+    fn deref(&self) -> &Self::Target {
+        &self.0
+    }
+}
+
+impl std::ops::DerefMut for EnvOpList {
+    fn deref_mut(&mut self) -> &mut Self::Target {
+        &mut self.0
+    }
+}
+
 impl<'de> Deserialize<'de> for EnvOp {
     fn deserialize<D>(deserializer: D) -> std::result::Result<Self, D::Error>
     where
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/install_spec.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/install_spec.rs
index 7c3e5807e1..f958dd2459 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/install_spec.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/install_spec.rs
@@ -3,18 +3,31 @@
 // https://github.com/spkenv/spk
 
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 use spk_schema_ident::BuildIdent;
 
 use super::{ComponentSpecList, EmbeddedPackagesList, EnvOp, OpKind, RequirementsList};
 use crate::foundation::option_map::OptionMap;
-use crate::Result;
+use crate::{EnvOpList, Result};
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 #[path = "./install_spec_test.rs"]
 mod install_spec_test;
 
 /// A set of structured installation parameters for a package.
-#[derive(Clone, Debug, Default, Deserialize, Eq, Hash, Ord, PartialEq, PartialOrd, Serialize)]
+#[derive(
+    Clone,
+    Debug,
+    Default,
+    Deserialize,
+    Eq,
+    Hash,
+    is_default_derive_macro::IsDefault,
+    Ord,
+    PartialEq,
+    PartialOrd,
+    Serialize,
+)]
 pub struct InstallSpec {
     #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "Vec::is_empty")]
     pub requirements: RequirementsList,
@@ -25,16 +38,12 @@ pub struct InstallSpec {
     #[serde(
         default,
         deserialize_with = "deserialize_env_conf",
-        skip_serializing_if = "Vec::is_empty"
+        skip_serializing_if = "IsDefault::is_default"
     )]
-    pub environment: Vec<EnvOp>,
+    pub environment: EnvOpList,
 }
 
 impl InstallSpec {
-    pub fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
-        self.requirements.is_empty() && self.embedded.is_empty() && self.components.is_default()
-    }
-
     /// Render all requests with a package pin using the given resolved packages.
     pub fn render_all_pins<'a>(
         &mut self,
@@ -53,14 +62,14 @@ impl InstallSpec {
     }
 }
 
-fn deserialize_env_conf<'de, D>(deserializer: D) -> std::result::Result<Vec<EnvOp>, D::Error>
+fn deserialize_env_conf<'de, D>(deserializer: D) -> std::result::Result<EnvOpList, D::Error>
 where
     D: serde::Deserializer<'de>,
 {
     struct EnvConfVisitor;
 
     impl<'de> serde::de::Visitor<'de> for EnvConfVisitor {
-        type Value = Vec<EnvOp>;
+        type Value = EnvOpList;
 
         fn expecting(&self, f: &mut std::fmt::Formatter) -> std::fmt::Result {
             f.write_str("an environment configuration")
@@ -70,7 +79,7 @@ where
         where
             A: serde::de::SeqAccess<'de>,
         {
-            let mut vec = Vec::new();
+            let mut vec = EnvOpList::default();
 
             while let Some(elem) = seq.next_element::<EnvOp>()? {
                 if vec.iter().any(|x: &EnvOp| x.kind() == OpKind::Priority)
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/lib.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/lib.rs
index 6f00bf873e..b8475647e4 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/lib.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/lib.rs
@@ -30,7 +30,17 @@ pub use component_spec::{ComponentFileMatchMode, ComponentSpec};
 pub use component_spec_list::ComponentSpecList;
 pub use deprecate::{Deprecate, DeprecateMut};
 pub use embedded_packages_list::EmbeddedPackagesList;
-pub use environ::{AppendEnv, EnvComment, EnvOp, EnvPriority, OpKind, PrependEnv, SetEnv};
+pub use environ::{
+    AppendEnv,
+    EnvComment,
+    EnvOp,
+    EnvOpList,
+    EnvPriority,
+    OpKind,
+    PrependEnv,
+    RuntimeEnvironment,
+    SetEnv,
+};
 pub use error::{Error, Result};
 pub use input_variant::InputVariant;
 pub use install_spec::InstallSpec;
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/metadata/meta.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/metadata/meta.rs
index 1055f625c6..52c4032338 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/metadata/meta.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/metadata/meta.rs
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ use std::process::{Command, Stdio};
 
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use spk_config::Metadata;
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 
 use crate::{Error, Result};
 
@@ -27,10 +28,6 @@ pub struct Meta {
 }
 
 impl Meta {
-    pub fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
-        self == &Self::default()
-    }
-
     pub fn has_label_with_value(&self, label: &str, value: &str) -> bool {
         if let Some(label_value) = self.labels.get(label) {
             return *label_value == value;
@@ -83,3 +80,9 @@ impl Meta {
         Ok(0)
     }
 }
+
+impl IsDefault for Meta {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+        self == &Self::default()
+    }
+}
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/option.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/option.rs
index b0496247ee..f31ec02d6f 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/option.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/option.rs
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use spk_schema_foundation::ident_component::ComponentBTreeSetBuf;
 use spk_schema_foundation::option_map::Stringified;
 use spk_schema_foundation::version::Compat;
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 use spk_schema_ident::{NameAndValue, PinnableValue, RangeIdent};
 
 use crate::foundation::name::{OptName, OptNameBuf, PkgName, PkgNameBuf};
@@ -60,8 +61,8 @@ impl Default for Inheritance {
     }
 }
 
-impl Inheritance {
-    pub fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+impl IsDefault for Inheritance {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
         self == &Self::default()
     }
 }
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/package.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/package.rs
index f3a2050b30..2e3fdf9803 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/package.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/package.rs
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ use super::RequirementsList;
 use crate::foundation::ident_component::Component;
 use crate::foundation::option_map::OptionMap;
 use crate::foundation::version::Compatibility;
-use crate::{DeprecateMut, Opt};
+use crate::{DeprecateMut, Opt, RuntimeEnvironment};
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 #[path = "./package_test.rs"]
@@ -24,7 +24,15 @@ mod package_test;
 /// Can be resolved into an environment.
 #[enum_dispatch::enum_dispatch]
 pub trait Package:
-    Named + Versioned + super::Deprecate + Clone + Eq + std::hash::Hash + Sync + Send
+    Named
+    + Versioned
+    + super::Deprecate
+    + RuntimeEnvironment
+    + Clone
+    + Eq
+    + std::hash::Hash
+    + Sync
+    + Send
 {
     type Package;
 
@@ -62,9 +70,6 @@ pub trait Package:
     /// The components defined by this package
     fn components(&self) -> &super::ComponentSpecList;
 
-    /// The set of operations to perform on the environment when running this package
-    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &Vec<super::EnvOp>;
-
     /// The list of build options for this package
     fn get_build_options(&self) -> &Vec<Opt>;
 
@@ -180,10 +185,6 @@ impl<T: Package + Send + Sync> Package for std::sync::Arc<T> {
         (**self).components()
     }
 
-    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &Vec<super::EnvOp> {
-        (**self).runtime_environment()
-    }
-
     fn get_build_options(&self) -> &Vec<Opt> {
         (**self).get_build_options()
     }
@@ -260,10 +261,6 @@ impl<T: Package + Send + Sync> Package for Box<T> {
         (**self).components()
     }
 
-    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &Vec<super::EnvOp> {
-        (**self).runtime_environment()
-    }
-
     fn get_build_options(&self) -> &Vec<Opt> {
         (**self).get_build_options()
     }
@@ -340,10 +337,6 @@ impl<T: Package + Send + Sync> Package for &T {
         (**self).components()
     }
 
-    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &Vec<super::EnvOp> {
-        (**self).runtime_environment()
-    }
-
     fn get_build_options(&self) -> &Vec<Opt> {
         (**self).get_build_options()
     }
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/recipe.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/recipe.rs
index 7f65b407fc..abc682792c 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/recipe.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/recipe.rs
@@ -26,7 +26,15 @@ pub trait BuildEnv {
 /// Can be used to build a package.
 #[enum_dispatch::enum_dispatch]
 pub trait Recipe:
-    Named + Versioned + super::Deprecate + Clone + Eq + std::hash::Hash + Sync + Send
+    Named
+    + Versioned
+    + super::Deprecate
+    + crate::RuntimeEnvironment
+    + Clone
+    + Eq
+    + std::hash::Hash
+    + Sync
+    + Send
 {
     type Output: super::Package;
     type Variant: super::Variant + Clone;
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/requirements_list.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/requirements_list.rs
index 8dad7595c7..84e573a357 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/requirements_list.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/requirements_list.rs
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ use std::fmt::Write;
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use spk_schema_foundation::name::{OptName, PkgName};
 use spk_schema_foundation::version::Compatibility;
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 use spk_schema_ident::{BuildIdent, PinPolicy};
 
 use crate::foundation::option_map::OptionMap;
@@ -27,6 +28,12 @@ mod requirements_list_test;
 #[serde(transparent)]
 pub struct RequirementsList(Vec<Request>);
 
+impl IsDefault for RequirementsList {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+        self.is_empty()
+    }
+}
+
 impl std::ops::Deref for RequirementsList {
     type Target = Vec<Request>;
     fn deref(&self) -> &Self::Target {
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/spec.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/spec.rs
index 20c0bcc930..112c022d0a 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/spec.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/spec.rs
@@ -36,6 +36,7 @@ use crate::{
     Recipe,
     RequirementsList,
     Result,
+    RuntimeEnvironment,
     Template,
     TemplateExt,
     Test,
@@ -378,6 +379,15 @@ impl Recipe for SpecRecipe {
     }
 }
 
+impl HasVersion for SpecRecipe {
+    fn version(&self) -> &Version {
+        match self {
+            SpecRecipe::V0Package(r) => r.version(),
+            SpecRecipe::V0Platform(r) => r.version(),
+        }
+    }
+}
+
 impl Named for SpecRecipe {
     fn name(&self) -> &PkgName {
         match self {
@@ -387,11 +397,11 @@ impl Named for SpecRecipe {
     }
 }
 
-impl HasVersion for SpecRecipe {
-    fn version(&self) -> &Version {
+impl RuntimeEnvironment for SpecRecipe {
+    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &[crate::EnvOp] {
         match self {
-            SpecRecipe::V0Package(r) => r.version(),
-            SpecRecipe::V0Platform(r) => r.version(),
+            SpecRecipe::V0Package(r) => r.runtime_environment(),
+            SpecRecipe::V0Platform(r) => r.runtime_environment(),
         }
     }
 }
@@ -529,6 +539,14 @@ impl Satisfy<VarRequest> for Spec {
     }
 }
 
+impl HasVersion for Spec {
+    fn version(&self) -> &Version {
+        match self {
+            Spec::V0Package(r) => r.version(),
+        }
+    }
+}
+
 impl Named for Spec {
     fn name(&self) -> &PkgName {
         match self {
@@ -537,10 +555,10 @@ impl Named for Spec {
     }
 }
 
-impl HasVersion for Spec {
-    fn version(&self) -> &Version {
+impl RuntimeEnvironment for Spec {
+    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &[crate::EnvOp] {
         match self {
-            Spec::V0Package(r) => r.version(),
+            Spec::V0Package(r) => r.runtime_environment(),
         }
     }
 }
@@ -609,12 +627,6 @@ impl Package for Spec {
         }
     }
 
-    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &Vec<super::EnvOp> {
-        match self {
-            Spec::V0Package(spec) => spec.runtime_environment(),
-        }
-    }
-
     fn get_build_options(&self) -> &Vec<Opt> {
         match self {
             Spec::V0Package(spec) => spec.get_build_options(),
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/v0/platform.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/v0/platform.rs
index 4be57463b4..a518e9181c 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/v0/platform.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/v0/platform.rs
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ use spk_schema_foundation::name::PkgName;
 use spk_schema_foundation::option_map::{OptionMap, Stringified, HOST_OPTIONS};
 use spk_schema_foundation::spec_ops::{HasVersion, Named, Versioned};
 use spk_schema_foundation::version::Version;
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 use spk_schema_ident::{
     BuildIdent,
     InclusionPolicy,
@@ -36,6 +37,7 @@ use crate::{
     Recipe,
     RequirementsList,
     Result,
+    RuntimeEnvironment,
     Script,
     TestStage,
     Variant,
@@ -111,9 +113,9 @@ impl PlatformRequirements {
 #[derive(Debug, Clone, Hash, PartialEq, Eq, Ord, PartialOrd, Serialize)]
 pub struct Platform {
     pub platform: VersionIdent,
-    #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "Meta::is_default")]
+    #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "IsDefault::is_default")]
     pub meta: Meta,
-    #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "Compat::is_default")]
+    #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "IsDefault::is_default")]
     pub compat: Compat,
     #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "is_false")]
     pub deprecated: bool,
@@ -148,15 +150,22 @@ impl DeprecateMut for Platform {
     }
 }
 
+impl HasVersion for Platform {
+    fn version(&self) -> &Version {
+        self.platform.version()
+    }
+}
+
 impl Named for Platform {
     fn name(&self) -> &PkgName {
         self.platform.name()
     }
 }
 
-impl HasVersion for Platform {
-    fn version(&self) -> &Version {
-        self.platform.version()
+impl RuntimeEnvironment for Platform {
+    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &[crate::EnvOp] {
+        // Platforms don't have any EnvOps
+        &[]
     }
 }
 
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/v0/spec.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/v0/spec.rs
index 280680f3c8..2357d4b0e4 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/v0/spec.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/v0/spec.rs
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ use spk_schema_foundation::ident_component::ComponentBTreeSet;
 use spk_schema_foundation::name::PkgNameBuf;
 use spk_schema_foundation::option_map::{OptFilter, Stringified};
 use spk_schema_foundation::version::IncompatibleReason;
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 use spk_schema_ident::{AnyIdent, BuildIdent, Ident, RangeIdent, VersionIdent};
 
 use super::variant_spec::VariantSpecEntryKey;
@@ -47,6 +48,7 @@ use crate::{
     DeprecateMut,
     EmbeddedPackagesList,
     EnvOp,
+    EnvOpList,
     Error,
     Inheritance,
     InputVariant,
@@ -58,6 +60,7 @@ use crate::{
     Recipe,
     RequirementsList,
     Result,
+    RuntimeEnvironment,
     SourceSpec,
     TestStage,
     ValidationSpec,
@@ -83,7 +86,7 @@ pub struct Spec<Ident> {
     pub build: BuildSpec,
     #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "Vec::is_empty")]
     pub tests: Vec<TestSpec>,
-    #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "InstallSpec::is_default")]
+    #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "IsDefault::is_default")]
     pub install: InstallSpec,
 }
 
@@ -181,24 +184,6 @@ impl Spec<BuildIdent> {
     }
 }
 
-impl<Ident: Named> Named for Spec<Ident> {
-    fn name(&self) -> &PkgName {
-        self.pkg.name()
-    }
-}
-
-impl<Ident: HasVersion> HasVersion for Spec<Ident> {
-    fn version(&self) -> &Version {
-        self.pkg.version()
-    }
-}
-
-impl<Ident: HasVersion> Versioned for Spec<Ident> {
-    fn compat(&self) -> &Compat {
-        &self.compat
-    }
-}
-
 impl<Ident> Deprecate for Spec<Ident> {
     fn is_deprecated(&self) -> bool {
         self.deprecated
@@ -217,6 +202,30 @@ impl<Ident> DeprecateMut for Spec<Ident> {
     }
 }
 
+impl<Ident: HasVersion> HasVersion for Spec<Ident> {
+    fn version(&self) -> &Version {
+        self.pkg.version()
+    }
+}
+
+impl<Ident: Named> Named for Spec<Ident> {
+    fn name(&self) -> &PkgName {
+        self.pkg.name()
+    }
+}
+
+impl<Ident> RuntimeEnvironment for Spec<Ident> {
+    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &[EnvOp] {
+        &self.install.environment
+    }
+}
+
+impl<Ident: HasVersion> Versioned for Spec<Ident> {
+    fn compat(&self) -> &Compat {
+        &self.compat
+    }
+}
+
 impl Package for Spec<BuildIdent> {
     type Package = Self;
 
@@ -279,10 +288,6 @@ impl Package for Spec<BuildIdent> {
         &self.install.components
     }
 
-    fn runtime_environment(&self) -> &Vec<EnvOp> {
-        &self.install.environment
-    }
-
     fn get_build_options(&self) -> &Vec<Opt> {
         &self.build.options
     }
@@ -673,7 +678,7 @@ impl Recipe for Spec<VersionIdent> {
         let mut build = updated.map_ident(|i| i.into_build(Build::BuildId(digest)));
 
         // Expand env variables from EnvOp.
-        let mut updated_ops = Vec::new();
+        let mut updated_ops = EnvOpList::default();
         let mut build_env_vars = build_env.env_vars();
         build_env_vars.extend(build.get_build_env());
         for op in build.install.environment.iter() {
diff --git a/crates/spk-schema/src/validation.rs b/crates/spk-schema/src/validation.rs
index 9db140090a..072eeb74aa 100644
--- a/crates/spk-schema/src/validation.rs
+++ b/crates/spk-schema/src/validation.rs
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
 use serde::ser::SerializeMap;
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use spk_schema_foundation::name::{PkgName, PkgNameBuf};
+use spk_schema_foundation::IsDefault;
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 #[path = "./validation_test.rs"]
@@ -35,10 +36,6 @@ pub struct ValidationSpec {
 }
 
 impl ValidationSpec {
-    pub fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
-        self.rules.is_empty() && self.disabled.is_empty()
-    }
-
     /// The rules as specified in the spec file. Usually this is not
     /// what you want, see [`Self::to_expanded_rules`].
     ///
@@ -106,6 +103,12 @@ impl ValidationSpec {
     }
 }
 
+impl IsDefault for ValidationSpec {
+    fn is_default(&self) -> bool {
+        self.rules.is_empty() && self.disabled.is_empty()
+    }
+}
+
 /// Specifies an additional set of validation criteria for a package
 ///
 /// These rules are meant to be evaluated in order with later rules