diff --git a/src/filter/env.rs b/src/filter/env.rs
index 1bca60e..b11d692 100644
--- a/src/filter/env.rs
+++ b/src/filter/env.rs
@@ -155,9 +155,13 @@ impl EnvFilterBuilder {
         EnvFilterBuilder(env_filter::Builder::new())
     }
 
-    /// Initializes the filter builder from an environment.
-    pub fn from_env(env: &str) -> Self {
-        EnvFilterBuilder(env_filter::Builder::from_env(env))
+    /// Try to initialize the filter builder from an environment; return `None` if the environment
+    /// variable is not set or invalid.
+    pub fn try_from_env(env: &str) -> Option<Self> {
+        let mut builder = env_filter::Builder::new();
+        let config = std::env::var(env).ok()?;
+        builder.try_parse(&config).ok()?;
+        Some(EnvFilterBuilder(builder))
     }
 
     /// Adds a directive to the filter for a specific module.