Methods are used to solve environmental problems. Causes of environmental problem

Ticket number 4.

Main types of environmental pollution. Basic ways to solve environmental problems. Environmental policy.

Environmental pollution is understood as an undesirable change in its properties as a result of anthropogenic input of various substances and compounds. This pollution leads to harmful effects on the lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, biosphere, buildings, structures and materials, and ultimately on humans themselves. The main source of such pollution is the return into nature of a huge mass of waste that is generated in the process of production and consumption of human society. Particularly dangerous is the release of chemicals into the environment that were synthesized by mankind and did not previously exist in nature.

Pollution soil cover occurs as a result of irrational environmental management. This pollution can arise from illiterate farming, land disturbance, during construction and mining. As a result, little productive and unproductive lands appear. An important cause of soil pollution can be industrial and agricultural waste, household waste, and improper application of fertilizers. The main pollutants are heavy metals and their compounds, fertilizers, pesticides, radioactive substances.

Pollution of the hydrosphere occurs primarily as a result of the discharge of wastewater into rivers, lakes and seas. Their total volume reaches 1 thousand km3 per year. To neutralize them by dilution, about 10 thousand km3 of clean water is required. The most polluted rivers are the Rhine, Danube, Seine, Tiber, Mississippi, Ohio, Volga, Dnieper, Don, Dniester, Nile, and Ganges.

Pollution of the World Ocean is growing, into which about 100 million tons of waste ends up. The most polluted seas are the Mediterranean, Northern, Irish, Baltic, Black, Azov, Japanese, Java and Caribbean. Oil pollution causes great harm. 3-4 million tons of oil and petroleum products enter the World Ocean annually, and according to some estimates, much more (up to 16 million tons). It is believed that 1/3 of the surface of the World Ocean is covered with an oily film. Oil pollution is especially high in the Northern, Mediterranean, Caribbean Seas, Persian and Mexican Gulfs.

Atmospheric pollution occurs primarily as a result of the combustion of mineral fuels. The main atmospheric pollutants are oxides of carbon, sulfur and nitrogen. The annual release of acid gas into the atmosphere is estimated at 100-150 million tons. Its emissions are associated with the formation of so-called acid rains, which cause great harm to the natural and animal world, reduce productivity, destroy buildings, architectural monuments, and negatively affect Cheers to your health. Most widespread Acid rain-qi was obtained in Europe and North America. For example, in Scandinavia, which receives acid precipitation mainly from Great Britain and Germany, salmon, trout and other fish have disappeared from 20 thousand lakes. In many countries of Western Europe and in some regions of Russia, forests are dying due to acid rain.

Currently, environmental pollution has reached such an extent that urgent measures need to be taken. There are three main ways to solve environmental problems. The first is the creation of treatment facilities, the use of low-sulfur fuel, the destruction and processing of garbage, the construction of chimneys with a height of 200-300 m or more, land reclamation, etc. The second direction of overcoming environmental pollution is the development and application of environmental (“clean”) production technology, the development of recycling methods of water supply, etc. This path is of particular importance, since it not only reduces, but prevents environmental pollution. The third way is a deeply thought-out, rational placement of “dirty” industries that have an adverse impact on the environment.

Environmental policy

Environmental pollution and irrational environmental management natural resources hinder the development of production and threaten human lives. Therefore, a massive public movement began in defense of nature. Most economically developed countries and some developing countries began to implement state environmental policy. Environmental laws were adopted and state environmental protection bodies were created. As a result, in the 80s. Environmental pollution in some regions of the world is gradually decreasing. However, in most countries the environmental situation continues to remain tense. The efforts of individual countries were not enough to implement environmental policy. The efforts of the entire world community are needed. The UN system has a special immersive environment program (UNEP), etc. Geographers from many countries, including Russia, are taking part in this work.

The state budget. Sources of income and items of state expenditure. State budget deficit and sources of covering it.

The state budget is a balance of income and expenditure of the state for a certain period of time (usually a year), representing the main financial plan of the country, which, after its adoption by the legislative body (parliament, State Duma, Congress, etc.) acquires the force of law and is binding.

In carrying out its functions, the state incurs numerous expenses. By purpose, government expenditures can be divided into:

 for political purposes: 1) expenses for national defense and

From a macroeconomic point of view, all government spending is divided into:

Government procurement of goods and services (their value is included in GDP);

Transfers (their value is not included in GDP);

Payments of interest on government bonds (servicing government debt)

The main sources of state revenue are:

Taxes (including social security contributions)

Profits of state-owned enterprises

Seigniorage (income from issuing money)

Proceeds from privatization

Types of state budget states

The difference between government revenues and expenditures is the balance (condition) of the state budget. The state budget can be in three different states:

1) when budget revenues exceed expenses (T > G), budget balance

positive, which corresponds to surplus (or surplus) state budget

2) when income is equal to expenses (G = T), budget balance is zero,

those. the budget is balanced

circulation of “shadow” capital on a huge scale;

a significant reason for the budget deficit is the huge

unproductive expenses, additions, theft, etc.

Of course, the budget deficit belongs to the “negative economic

those are integral elements of the economic system. And moreover, without

In them, the economic system loses its ability to move and develop.

It should be noted that a budget deficit does not mean health

economy.

IN economic theory There are several conceptual approaches to

the problem of budget deficit and budget policy.

The first concept is based on the fact that the budget should be annually

balanced. A little earlier, this was considered the goal of financial policy. But

Upon deeper study of this problem, it became obvious what

the state of the budget eliminates or significantly reduces efficiency

fiscal policy of the state, which has a counter-cyclical, stabilizing

direction. For example, let’s say that there has been a long period

unemployment. Population incomes are falling; tax revenues automatically

are being reduced. In an effort to balance the budget at all costs,

the government must: either increase taxes or reduce government

expenses, or combine one with the other. But the consequence of these measures will be

an even greater reduction in aggregate demand. Another example shows how

the desire to balance the budget may increase inflation. In conditions

inflation, with an increase in monetary income, automatically increases

tax revenues. In order to prevent income from exceeding

spending, the government must: either reduce tax rates or increase

government spending, or a combination of one and the other. But the consequence of these

measures will increase inflation.

The second concept is based on the fact that the budget should be

balanced over the economic cycle rather than annually. This concept

assumes that the government is implementing counter-cyclical action and

At the same time, it strives to balance the budget. The rationale for this

the concept is very simple: in order to counter the recession, the government

reduces taxes and increases spending, i.e. deliberately causes deficiency

budget. During a period of inflationary rise, the government increases taxes and

reduces government spending. The revenue side of the budget increases,

which goes to cover the deficit that arose during the recession. So

Thus, the government is pursuing positive counter-cyclical policies and

balances the budget at the same time.

The main problem with this concept is that recessions and

upswings in the economic cycle may not be the same in depth and

duration. And in this case, the appearance of a large deficit during the period

a long and deep recession will not be covered by a small surplus

budget of a short period of recovery, therefore, there will be

cyclical budget deficit.

1. The third concept is the concept of functional finance, i.e. purpose

public finance is to ensure a balanced economy,

rather than the budget, while achieving macroeconomic stability can

be accompanied by both a stable positive balance and a stable

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Introduction

4. Ways to solve environmental problems.

Conclusion

Bibliography

nature environmental problem

Introduction

At the turn of the century and millennium, our country is experiencing a severe transformation crisis. The transformation of a command-administrative and semi-totalitarian system into a market and democratic one is difficult and slow. The country faces a huge list of problems. One of them is an environmental problem.

Humanity is too slow to understand the scale of the danger created by a careless attitude towards the environment. Meanwhile, the solution (if it is still possible) of such formidable global problems, as environmental, requires urgent energetic joint efforts international organizations, states, regions, public.

World history shows that humanity has not always wisely used the types of energy at its disposal. It waged devastating wars and treated nature incorrectly and sometimes criminally. Not knowing many of the laws of nature, violating them, a person often does not imagine the disastrous consequences of his victory over nature.

It is important to emphasize that during the Soviet decades, environmental problems were simply ignored. As a result, tens and hundreds of cities and towns in the country are poisoned by dirty industries. Economic crisis 1990s in a sense, corrected the environmental situation in the country - many enterprises were closed or even liquidated. But as the economic crisis is overcome, the problem worsens, especially since the starting level is very unfavorable. Old Soviet environmental problems remain unresolved and are being aggravated by new ones.

In this regard, it is both relevant and necessary to study the environmental situation in Russia.

1. Nature is the source of life, material and spiritual well-being

Man is part of nature. Outside of nature, without using its resources, it cannot exist. Nature will always be the basis and source of human life.

In relation to a person, it performs a number of functions related to meeting his needs: environmental, economic, aesthetic, recreational, scientific, cultural.

The content of the ecological function is determined by the fact that, taking into account the interrelation and interdependence of phenomena and processes in nature, ecological balance is ensured, including the ecological optimum for humans. Within its framework, a person interacts with his natural habitat. Individual elements of nature are direct sources of satisfying the natural physiological needs of humans - breathing, quenching thirst, nutrition. The importance of this function for humans is evidenced by the following data: a person can live without air for several minutes, without water for several days, without food for about two months. The state of natural resources, primarily forests, waters, lands, determines the state of the climate and weather conditions, on which people and the economy they develop also depend.

The other most significant function of nature is economic. Its essence is predetermined by the fact that Natural resources that a person uses have economic properties, economic potential. If the ecological function is “eternal” in relation to man, then the economic function appeared when man began to create the first tools, build housing for himself, and sew clothes. Natural resources serve as a source of satisfying a variety of material needs that are ever increasing as man develops.

Aesthetic, recreational, scientific, cultural functions nature appeared much later than the economic one, at a fairly high stage of development of human society. In the process of communicating with nature, a person satisfies his spiritual and information needs.

The nature of the Earth, formed over billions of years, is a rich source of diverse knowledge: about the processes and laws of evolution of our planet and its ecological systems, about the mechanism of functioning of nature, about why man appeared, how he developed and what awaits him if he does not its destructive activities in relation to the rest of nature are sharply limited. In order to build correct relationships with nature, a person is interested in all this information, but it can only be obtained through organizing and conducting scientific research, and then used to create mechanisms, including legal ones, to regulate their relationship to nature.

The question of the functions of nature in relation to humans also underlies the concept of a “favorable environment”, the right to which in accordance with Art. Everyone has Article 42 of the Russian Constitution. Obviously, a favorable environment is one that is capable of satisfying environmental (physiological), economic, aesthetic and other human needs.

A look at the history of the relationship between man and nature allows us to judge his true attitude towards his ancestor. The history of the development of human society is the history of expanding the scale and diversity of human impact on nature, intensifying its exploitation. Based on the results of human activity in relation to nature, one can judge a person’s morality, the level of his civilization, as well as his social responsibility to future generations.

It is easy to see that the impact of people on nature is manifested in the process and as a result of man’s satisfaction of his needs. The potential and actual magnitude of such impacts depends on the types of needs being met. Of course, they turn out to be the most significant due to the satisfaction of material needs and the associated development of industry, agriculture, energy, transport, etc.

Accordingly, the preservation of the favorable state of nature, its qualitative and quantitative characteristics can be ensured by regulating man’s attitude to nature in the process of satisfying his needs at the expense of natural resources. At the same time, how biological creature and part of nature, man must observe the laws of its development.

2. general characteristics environmental problems in Russia

In one of the most thorough analytical works about current state environment in Russia, it is argued that “humanity is already living in a collapsing world in conditions of an ever-increasing severe environmental crisis, which is turning into a crisis of the entire civilization.” It is interesting that the subtitle of the book is “Russia in an Environmental Crisis.”

The modern environmental crisis can be defined as an imbalance in ecological systems and in the relationship of human society with nature. It is a consequence of the discrepancy between the development of productive forces and production relations in human society and the ecological capabilities of the environment. The crisis in nature is characterized by such basic features as a violation of ecological balance in the process of anthropogenic activities and the inability of human society to reverse the trend of environmental deterioration. The ecological crisis is a natural result of the as yet unresolved contradiction between the practice of consumerism of society towards the environment, established in the history of civilization, and the ability of the biosphere to maintain a system of natural biogeochemical processes of self-healing.

The components of the crisis are varied. Environment and its ecological systems exhausted. Thus, short-sighted policies lead to the degradation of Russia’s agricultural resource base, which is manifested in soil erosion, acidification, deforestation and desertification in Asia, almost universal water pollution and water losses. At the same time, there was a steady trend of reduction in the area of productive agricultural land in our country. Every year the area of ravines increases by 8-9 thousand hectares. As part of farmland, erosive-hazardous agricultural lands subject to water and wind erosion occupy more than 117 million hectares. 42.8% of arable land is characterized by low humus content, including 15.1% of the surveyed soils that have a critical level.

Environmental practice in Russia and abroad has shown that its failures are associated with incomplete accounting negative impacts, inability to select and evaluate the main factors and consequences, low efficiency of using the results of field and theoretical environmental studies in decision-making, insufficient development of methods for quantitative assessment of the consequences of pollution of the surface atmosphere and other life-supporting natural environments.

All developed countries have adopted laws on the protection of atmospheric air. They are periodically revised to take into account new air quality requirements and new data on the toxicity and behavior of pollutants in the air. The fourth version of the Clean Air Act is currently being discussed in the United States. The battle is between environmentalists and companies with no economic interest in improving air quality. Government Russian Federation A draft law on atmospheric air protection has been developed and is currently being discussed. Improving air quality in Russia is of great socio-economic importance.

This is due to many reasons and, above all, the unfavorable state of the air basin of megalopolises, large cities and industrial centers, where the bulk of the qualified and able-bodied population lives.

Emissions of harmful substances into the atmosphere from stationary sources located on the territory of the Russian Federation, account for about 60% of the total emissions of the former USSR or 25 million tons. harmful substances, including in million tons: Emissions of pollutants from motor vehicles in Russian cities are about 21 million tons.

The radiation situation in Russia is currently determined by the global radioactive background, the presence of contaminated areas due to the Chernobyl (1986) and Kyshtym (1957) accidents, the exploitation of uranium deposits, the nuclear fuel cycle, shipboard nuclear power plants, regional radioactive waste storage facilities, and anomalous zones ionizing radiation associated with terrestrial (natural) sources of radionuclides.

On the territory of the Russian Federation, the problem of pollution of surface and groundwater nitrogen compounds is becoming increasingly important. Ecological and geochemical mapping of the central regions of European Russia showed that the surface and ground waters of this territory in many cases are characterized by high concentrations nitrates and nitrites. Regular observations indicate an increase in these concentrations over time.

A similar situation arises with groundwater pollution organic substances. This is due to the fact that the underground hydrosphere is not capable of oxidation large mass organic matter entering it. The consequence of this is that the contamination of hydrogeochemical systems gradually becomes irreversible.

In agricultural areas with high agricultural load, a noticeable increase in phosphorus compounds in surface waters was revealed, which is a favorable factor for the eutrophication of drainless reservoirs. There has also been an increase in persistent pesticides in surface and groundwater.

In Russia, many reservoirs are assessed as environmentally unfavorable. Their chronic pollution has led to a serious deterioration in the conditions for the reproduction of valuable fish species, a reduction in their stocks and catches.

The area of the Russian forest fund is about 1180 million hectares. Total stock wood in forests - 80 billion cubic meters. m. Approximately 90% of the total felling area is made up of the most environmentally hazardous clear-cutting. Forest fires cause great damage to forestry. The area of burned forests annually exceeds 1 million hectares.

One of the significant manifestations of the environmental crisis is associated with excessive consumption of natural resources. Already, humanity is consuming natural resources by an order of magnitude Furthermore, which can be removed from the biosphere without damaging its biochemical cycles and self-healing ability. Humanity now consumes 40% of all products produced by photosynthesis on land. In other words, the entire 20th century. humanity lived at the expense of its descendants. As a result, it brought the biosphere, and therefore itself as an integral part of the biosphere, to the brink of complete degradation.

Nature is degrading, and along with it, the population of our country is degrading. “The health of the population is certainly deteriorating as a result of pollution, although man, apparently, is well adapted to the products of combustion of wood and fossil fuels, since he has always inhaled them in caves, dugouts, chicken huts, having mastered the culture of using fire at the most early stages existence. A person’s health is much more significantly affected by the fact that he has destroyed his ecological niche over a large land area, and since there is no evidence that biological laws do not apply to humans, it is obvious that the human genome is disintegrating as a result of the cessation of the mechanisms that maintain the decay of the species at a certain level in the natural ecological niche.

Unfortunately, judgments around the world coincide with the assessments of domestic scientists. “The survival rate of Russians has reached a critical point,” according to authoritative foreign experts from UNESCO and the World Health Organization. They periodically conduct research into the dynamics of living standards and the so-called vitality of peoples, depending on the socio-economic policy of the government and the environmental situation in a particular country. The viability coefficient is measured on a five-point scale - it characterizes the possibility of preserving the gene pool, physiological and intellectual development nation in the context of the continuation of the government's socio-economic policies implemented at the time of the survey of a particular country. At the same time, the real environmental situation, as if “accompanying” such a policy, is also taken into account.

Viability coefficient of Russia in 1998-1999. was rated at 1.4 points.

A score of 1 to 1.4 is considered by experts to be essentially a death sentence for the nation. This range means that the population is doomed to either gradual extinction or degradation - “reproducing” generations will be distinguished by physiological and intellectual inferiority, existing only by satisfying natural instincts. These generations will not be able to think analytically, because they will not have the ability to think independently.

Below Russia is the Republic of Burkina Faso, up to 80% of whose population is a carrier of AIDS. This country, as well as Chad, Ethiopia, South Sudan have a score of 1.1-1.3. According to the UNESCO-WHO criteria and explanations, a score below 1.4 indicates that “the physiological and intellectual agony of the population can continue forever... A nation with such a vitality coefficient no longer has internal sources of progressive development and immunity. Its destiny is slow degradation...”

109 million Russians out of 148 million live in unfavorable environmental conditions. 40-50 million people are affected by 10-fold excess of maximum permissible concentrations (MPC) of various harmful substances in the environment, 55-60 million - 5-fold excess of MAC.

Scientists predict the death of humanity in the foreseeable future. This will happen if we fail in the near future - the last years of the 20th century. and in the coming 21st century. - change the dominant trends in global development and our attitude towards nature. It is obvious that a global catastrophe will fall primarily on the developed countries of the “North”. Unfortunately, Russia is still almost the first in this sad “queue”.

3. Causes of the environmental crisis in Russia

Knowing the causes of the environmental crisis is important for both scientific and practical reasons. By using scientific knowledge processes can be assessed and the necessary recommendations can be made; practical knowledge helps to change in a positive way the attitude towards the nature of the state, society, individual social groups and citizens.

Experts say that the first wave of the environmental crisis is now underway. It covered mainly industrialized and former socialist countries, including Russia. In our country it manifested itself most acutely, because... Economically developed states were able at this stage to find means, if not to solve crisis problems, then to mitigate them.

If we evaluate the most general causes of the Russian, as well as the global, environmental crisis, then the main one is the nature-consumer and nature-conquering ideology of humanity.

Some authors see the causes of the environmental crisis “in an excessively grown population. However, it is hardly possible to consider quantitative population growth as a cause of the environmental crisis. For example, only 142 million people live in the vast territory of Russia. Meanwhile, the state of the environment here is assessed as catastrophic.

The reasons for the crisis, in our opinion, lie elsewhere. They have subjective roots, manifested in the attitude of man, society and the state to nature. Based on the analysis of the state policy and the state of environmental law, the following can be identified as the main reasons for the existing environmental situation in Russia.

a) The most important reason is the system of mobilization economy that operated throughout the Soviet decades, for which environmental problems simply did not exist.

Throughout almost the entire 20th century, our country had to fight fiercely for its survival; its development took place within the framework of the “Iron Curtain”. Naturally, under these conditions, environmental problems were not considered at all. Let's add to this the totalitarian political regime, lack of rights of citizens, omnipotence of the nomenklatura bureaucracy. The result was dozens and hundreds of cities with a poisoned ecology, destroyed agriculture, tens, hundreds and thousands of environmental disaster zones, starting from the zone Chernobyl disaster, to the endless landfills surrounding Russian cities.

b) Lack of political will of the state to consistently, effectively implement environmental protection activities and ensure rational use of natural resources. Lack of will in relation to necessary solution environmental problems are typical not only for the socialist stage of development of the state and society in Russia, but also in the post-socialist period.

In the field of law, this reason manifested itself, in particular, in the absence of laws and adequate legal regulation in a number of environmentally significant areas (handling industrial and consumer waste, hazardous substances, etc.). At the same time, although the country adopted laws and other regulations in the field of the natural environment, the state made no effort to ensure their implementation.

One of the most bright examples may be evidenced by the fact that more than ten government regulations and programs have been adopted at the national level aimed at protecting the unique natural complex Lake Baikal, none of which were fully implemented.

The most serious manifestation of the lack or deficit of political will was the fact that in a country in which a powerful anthropogenic impact on nature, a targeted, scientifically based state environmental policy has not been developed. The processes of interaction between society and nature have developed and are still developing largely spontaneously, without taking into account the laws of development of nature and the environmental needs of man and society.

Finally, the real attitude of the Russian state towards solving environmental problems in the country is evidenced by the fact that the environmental situation, according to experts, is practically uncontrollable.

c) Poorly developed legislation and environmental law. The system of Russian legislation and environmental law is still missing many legislative acts and legal norms adopted in foreign economically developed countries 20-25 years ago. The adopted laws suffer from serious defects: an abundance of declarative provisions; weak regulation of procedures (environmental regulation, licensing, environmental impact assessment, organization and conduct of environmental impact assessment, etc.); lack of effective mechanisms for implementing regulatory requirements.

d) Organizational defects government controlled environmental protection and ensuring rational use of natural resources. It's about, first of all, about the system of specially authorized state bodies designed to organize and ensure compliance with legislative requirements in this area. The system of state environmental management bodies in the USSR was organized in relation to the regulation of the use and protection of individual natural resources (land, subsoil, water, forests, etc.) in violation of the principle of separation of economic-operational and control-supervisory functions.

e) In the social development of Russia, as before, preference is given to the development of the economy and the satisfaction of economic interests without the necessary connection with the environmental needs of man and the ecological capabilities of nature. Although economic development is a major factor in negative impacts on the environment, when developing government plans economic development public interests in preserving and restoring a favorable state of the environment, ensuring the sustainable use of natural resources were either not taken into account at all or were taken into account to a minimal extent.

f) Departmental interests, satisfied mainly by ignoring the environmental interests of society, are one of the most serious reasons for the critical state of the environment. Departmental egoism manifested itself in the recent past in attempts to implement such environmentally unsound projects as the project for transferring part of the flow of northern and Siberian rivers, implementing a land reclamation program, etc.

As a rule, “strong” and rich ministries, and now business structures, have powerful lobbies in legislative bodies and the government. They “push through” decisions that contradict the requirements of the Russian Constitution and environmental legislation. The phenomenon associated with the satisfaction of departmental interests contrary to the requirements of the law is very typical.

g) Lack of funding for environmental protection programs and activities. Traditionally, financing in this area is carried out on a residual basis. The situation is aggravated by the extremely low efficiency of investment in environmental protection. In particular, this is manifested in the fact that when considerable funds are allocated for the construction of treatment plants (sometimes up to 40% of the cost of the enterprise itself), they are either operated with a low efficiency or do not work at all.

h) Shortage of environmental specialists: lawyers, economists, sociologists, engineers, etc.

i) Extremely low level of legal awareness, environmental knowledge and ecological culture. Low level general and ecological culture, the unprecedented moral decline of society, impunity - the general background against which the degradation of nature occurs.

The list of reasons for the critical state of the environment in Russia can be continued, and their order can be changed. It is characteristic that all of them, in our opinion, are fundamental and interconnected.

4. Ways to solve environmental problems

Let us consider the question of the main ways to solve environmental problems with the help and within the framework of environmental law.

a) Formation of a new ecological worldview. To overcome the environmental crisis and sequential solution Russia's environmental problems require a completely new and value-based worldview. Its scientific and philosophical basis may become the doctrine of the noosphere, to the development of which the Russian naturalist Academician V.I. made a huge contribution. Vernadsky. It is permeated with the idea of humanism, aimed at transforming relations with the environment in the interests of free-thinking humanity as a whole.

The doctrine of the noosphere is consonant with the ideas of Albert Schweitzer about the revival of law on the basis of a new worldview.

The basis for the formation of a new environmental and legal worldview can be a rethinking of the theory of natural law and natural justice on the basis of modern natural science and social knowledge. At the same time, the problem of restoring the long-lost healthy connection between man and nature and the relationship between legal norms, according to which a person lives or should live, with natural imperatives arising from the laws of natural development. When educating and forming an ecological worldview, these truths should be taken as a basis. Recognizing his life as the highest value, a person must learn to appreciate all life on Earth in order to decisively rebuild the conditions for the joint existence of humanity and nature.

b) Development and consistent, most effective implementation of state environmental policy. This task must be solved within the framework of the permanent environmental function of the state.

The most important elements of environmental policy are the goals of restoring a favorable state of the environment, the strategy and tactics for achieving them. In this case, the goals must be realistic, i.e. based on real possibilities. Taking into account these goals, society and the state determine the strategy for environmental activities, i.e. a set of actions necessary and sufficient to solve the assigned tasks, a means of achieving the intended goals.

c) Formation of modern environmental legislation. Environmental legislation is both a product and the main form of consolidation of state environmental policy. On modern stage It is important to ensure the targeted formation of environmental legislation, rather than its development and improvement, for two reasons. The first and main one is related to the fact that this legislation is being created and will be implemented in political, economic and legal conditions that are fundamentally new for Russia, requiring new legislation. Practice confirms that, in essence, it is now active process its creation. The second reason is the extremely poorly developed environmental legislation of socialist Russia.

d) Creation of an optimal system of government bodies for environmental management and environmental protection, taking into account the principles:

* an integrated approach to solving problems of ensuring rational use of natural resources and environmental protection;

* management organization based not only on the administrative-territorial, but also on the natural-geographical zoning of the country;

* division of economic, operational and control and supervisory powers of specially authorized bodies.

e) Ensuring optimal financing of measures to ensure rational use of natural resources and environmental protection and high efficiency of capital investments.

f) Involvement of broad sections of the population in environmental activities. How political organization society, the state, as part of its environmental function, is interested in this in order to achieve the goals of environmental policy. One of the recent trends is related to the democratization of environmental law. This is manifested in the creation of organizational and legal conditions for the participation of interested public formations and citizens in the preparation and adoption of environmentally significant economic, managerial and other decisions.

g) Environmental education and training of environmental specialists. “Only a revolution in people’s minds will bring the desired changes. If we want to save ourselves and the biosphere on which our existence depends, everyone... - both old and young - must become real, active and even aggressive fighters for environmental protection,” concludes his book with these words, William O. Douglas, Dr. rights, former member Supreme Court USA.

The revolution in people's minds, which is so necessary to overcome the environmental crisis, will not happen on its own. It is possible with targeted efforts within the framework of state environmental policy and the independent function of state management in the field of the environment. These efforts should aim environmental education all generations, especially young ones, to develop a sense of respect for nature. It is necessary to form an ecological consciousness, individual and social, based on the idea of harmonious relationships between man and nature, human dependence on nature and responsibility for its preservation for future generations.

At the same time, the most important prerequisite for solving environmental problems in the country is the targeted training of ecologists - specialists in the field of economics, engineering, technology, law, sociology, biology, hydrology, etc. Without highly qualified specialists with modern knowledge on the entire spectrum of issues of interaction between society and nature, especially in the process of making environmentally significant economic, managerial and other decisions, planet Earth may not have a worthy future.

However, even with organizational, human, material and other resources to address environmental issues, people must acquire the necessary will and wisdom to adequately use these resources.

Conclusion

Ecological situation in modern Russia without exaggeration it can be called critical. It is already having an extremely adverse impact on economic development and public health. And, ultimately, the environmental problem is emerging as one of the main problems of modern Russia.

At the same time, in no case can we say that there is no way out of the situation. It seems that Russia is one of those few highly developed countries in the world that are able to cope with the environmental problem not only on its territory, but also on a global scale. It seems to me that our country has a complex of factors and conditions that sharply distinguish it in this sense from Western countries. This is an extraordinary wealth and diversity of nature, a large territory, relatively high level understanding by society and the state of the importance of the environmental problem. But, perhaps, the most important thing is the special properties of the mentality of Russians, which can make it easier than in other countries to form a new environmental worldview and, in general, new look a new man - the Man of the Post-Industrial Era. In Russia, far from being as strong as in the West, the cult of Man-Conqueror-Nature is strong, much more modest than the needs of people (at least in comparison). Economic efficiency and profit are not elevated to the rank of deities, and accordingly, it seems that it will be, in a certain sense, easier for our country to make economic sacrifices in the name of nature.

Of course, this is speculation. First of all, coordinated efforts of society and the state are needed to solve specific environmental problems in specific regions of Russia. However, the ultimate goal should be a fundamental change in attitude towards nature. Without it ecological disasters and disasters will inevitably recur again and again.

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Destruction of plant and animal species

The destruction and impoverishment of the gene pool is the largest environmental problem in the whole world. American scientists have calculated that over the past 200 years, earthlings have lost 900 thousand species of plants and animals.

In the territory of the former USSR, the gene pool decreased by 10–12%. Today the number of species on the planet is 10–20 million. The reduction in the number of species is due to destruction natural environment habitats of plants and animals, excessive use of agricultural land, due to existing...

An even faster decline is predicted in the future species diversity. Deforestation

Forests are dying out on a massive scale across the planet. Firstly, due to logging for the use of wood in production; secondly, due to the destruction of the normal habitat of plants. The main threat to trees and other forest plants is acid rain, which occurs due to the release of sulfur dioxide from power plants. These emissions have the ability to be transported over long distances from the immediate point of release. Over the past 20 years alone, earthlings have lost about 200 million hectares of valuable forests. Of particular danger is the depletion of tropical forests, rightly considered the lungs of the planet.

Reduction of mineral resources

Today, the amount of mineral resources is rapidly decreasing. Oil, shale, coal, peat are our inheritance from the dead biospheres that absorbed the energy of the sun. However, it should be remembered that approximately half of the oil produced by mankind has been pumped out of the bowels of the earth over the past 10–15 years. The extraction and sale of minerals has become a gold mine, and entrepreneurs do not care about the global environmental situation. Only the development of alternative projects can save earthlings from the loss of energy sources: collecting energy from the sun, winds, sea tides, hot bowels of the earth, and so on.

Problems of the world's oceans

As you know, the world's oceans occupy 2/3 of the planet's surface and supply up to 1/6 of the animal proteins that the inhabitants of the Earth eat. About 70% of all oxygen is produced during photosynthesis by phytoplankton.

Chemical pollution of the ocean is extremely dangerous, because it leads to a depletion of water and food resources, and an imbalance in the oxygen balance in the atmosphere. During the twentieth century, emissions into the world's oceans of indegradable synthetic substances and products of the chemical and military industries increased greatly.

Air pollution

In the 60s, it was believed that air pollution was characteristic only of large cities and industrial centers. However, it later became clear that harmful emissions can spread over vast distances. Air pollution is a global phenomenon. And the release of harmful chemicals in one country can lead to a total deterioration of the environment in another.

Acid rain in the atmosphere causes damage to forests comparable to deforestation.

Ozone layer depletion

It is known that life on the planet is possible only because ozone layer protects it from the deadly effects of ultraviolet radiation. If the amount of ozone continues to decrease, humanity faces at least an increase in the incidence of skin cancer and eye damage. Ozone holes appear most often in polar regions. The first such hole was discovered by a probe from a British station in Antarctica in 1982. At first, this fact of the occurrence of ozone holes in the cold polar regions caused bewilderment, but then it turned out that a significant part of the ozone layer is destroyed by aircraft rocket engines, spaceships, satellites.

Surface contamination and disfigurement of natural landscapes

A handful of soil, this skin of the earth, contains many microorganisms that ensure fertility.

A layer of soil 1 cm thick takes a century to form, but it can be destroyed in 1 field season.

And this, in turn, leads to the complete disfigurement of natural landscapes.

The annual plowing of agricultural soils and grazing of animals leads to rapid depletion of soils with further loss of their fertility.

Solving environmental problems

There are quite a lot of ways to solve humanity's environmental problems. But usually it all comes down to properly disposing of production waste and, in general, switching to more environmentally friendly industrial methods, using cleaner fuel, natural systems electricity generation (as solar panels or windmills). However, in reality the problems are much deeper.

Humanity is accustomed to living in cities and megalopolises, which is already a violation of the natural biogeocenosis. The city and hazardous industries are the main sources of environmental pollution.

IN currently creating a completely eco-friendly city is beyond the reach of humanity. If you try to imagine what an environmentally friendly city integrated into nature should look like, then only 100% harmless materials, similar in properties to wood and stone, should be used for construction there.

Naturally, such a city should be much more reminiscent of a park or nature reserve than an industrial metropolis, and the houses in it should be buried in trees, and animals and birds should calmly walk along the streets. But creating such a metropolis is a complex process.

It is easier, on the contrary, to disperse human settlements and begin to settle in natural landscapes practically untouched by human hands. Settlements dispersed in space reduce the load on the biosphere in individual places. Naturally, life in new places should include adherence to technology environmental safety.

Holzer biocenosis

The possibility of such a natural, almost heavenly life without losing the comfort that the achievements of modern civilization provide was proven by the famous Austrian farmer Sepp Holzer. He does not use irrigation, land reclamation, pesticides or herbicides on his farm. He has only one hired worker (despite the scale of the farm of 45 hectares), only one tractor and his own power plant.

Holzer created a natural biocenosis, where, in addition to cultivated plants, animals, birds, fish, and insects live. Almost the only work that the owner and mistress do is sowing and harvesting.

Everything else is done by nature with the correct organization of natural environmental conditions. Holzer was able to grow even rare species of plants that do not grow in high alpine regions, as well as plants characteristic of much warmer countries (kiwi, lemon, cherries, oranges, cherries, grapes).

All of Austria is lining up for Holzer's vegetables, fruits, fish, and meat. The farmer believes that today's food production is completely pointless, because it wastes an inordinate amount of energy. Easy enough to learn natural patterns and create the most natural living conditions for plants and animals.

This kind of “lazy” farming, also called permoculture (permanent culture that reproduces viable environmental conditions), eliminates agricultural depletion of soils and loss of species diversity, helping to preserve natural water bodies and the purity of the atmosphere. A natural, environmentally correct lifestyle will help greatly reduce the volume of hazardous industries, which will also lead to a reduction in environmental pollution.

Modernity can be considered environmental pollution, because anthropogenic activities affect absolutely all spheres of the earth. These include the hydrosphere, atmosphere and lithosphere. Unfortunately, it is man who is the main culprit in this situation, while every day he himself becomes its main victim. Horrifying statistics show that about 60% of people in the world die from air, water, and soil pollution.

The fact is that this problem has no state borders, but concerns all of humanity as a whole, so solutions must take place at the global level. For effective fight so-called “green” organizations have been created that have been successfully promoting their activities for many years; these include the World Fund wildlife", "Green Peace", and other public organizations whose main activities are aimed at preserving nature.

Ways to solve environmental problems should begin with the implementation of solutions that will allow the rational use of natural resources. For example, in the public utilities sector, technology for recycling waste, which is the main source of pollution in all natural spheres, is being successfully introduced. Every day the amount of waste is growing rapidly, so the problem of waste disposal is becoming more and more urgent for humanity.

Moreover, recycling waste can become economically profitable, in addition to the fact that its disposal will have an environmental effect. According to experts, more than 60% of waste can be potential raw materials, which can be successfully sold and recycled.

Every year on our planet the number of industrial enterprises increases, which cannot but affect the environmental situation. This growth of enterprises leads to an increase in emissions of pollution and other harmful substances into the environment.

At the same time, the use of such structures cannot lead to complete purification, however, it significantly reduces the number of harmful substances that enter the atmosphere.

Great amount Western enterprises use waste-free and low-waste production processes in their industrial activities, and also use recycling water supply, allowing to reduce the discharge of wastewater into water bodies. They see this as a kind of way to solve environmental problems, and they are right, because such intervention will significantly reduce Negative influence on the nature of human activity.

It must be said that the rational placement of petrochemical, chemical, nuclear and metallurgical industries also has a positive effect on the environment.

Solving environmental problems is one of the main tasks of all humanity as a whole; it is important to increase the level of responsibility among people, their culture of education so that we are more careful about what Mother Nature has given us.

Rational use of any resources will significantly reduce bad influence people on the environment.

Equally important is reducing the number of animals being shot, because they are an important link in the chain of nature’s development. Chasing profit and material wealth, we forget that we are destroying our future, taking away our children’s right to a healthy future.

Greening the planet is considered one of the ways to improve the condition of our air, improve the condition of the air and give the opportunity to develop many plants in our difficult world.

We have not listed all methods for solving environmental problems, however, we have touched on the most important and relevant areas that require positive human intervention.

Most scientists studying environmental problems believe that humanity has about 40 more years to return the natural environment to a state of a normally functioning biosphere and resolve issues of its own survival. But this period is negligibly short. And does a person have the resources to solve even the most pressing problems?

The main achievements of civilization in the twentieth century include the successes of science and technology. The achievements of science, including the science of environmental law, can be considered as main resource in solving environmental problems.

Let us consider the question of the main ways to solve environmental problems with the help and within the framework of environmental law.

a) Formation of a new environmental and legal worldview. To overcome the environmental crisis and consistently solve environmental problems, Russia and humanity need a completely new and valuable legal worldview. Its scientific and philosophical basis can be the doctrine of the noosphere, to the development of which the Russian naturalist Academician V.I. made a huge contribution. Vernadsky. This teaching is permeated with the idea of humanism and is aimed at transforming relations with the environment in the interests of free-thinking humanity as a whole.

At the same time, the problem of restoring the long-lost healthy connection between man and nature and the relationship between the legal norms by which man lives or should live and the natural imperatives arising from the laws of natural development needs to be solved. When educating and forming an ecological worldview, these truths should be taken as a basis. Recognizing his life as the highest value, a person must learn to appreciate all life on Earth in order to decisively rebuild the conditions for the joint existence of humanity and nature.

b) Development and consistent, most effective implementation of state environmental policy. This task must be solved within the framework of the permanent environmental function of the state (see section 2 of the textbook).

The most important elements of environmental policy are the goals of restoring a favorable state of the environment, the strategy and tactics for achieving them. At the same time, goals must be realistic, that is, based on real possibilities. Taking into account these goals, society and the state determine the strategy of environmental activities, that is, a set of actions necessary and sufficient to solve the assigned tasks, and ways to achieve the intended goals. One of these methods is the law, which regulates the use of various legal means - regulation, assessment of the impact of planned activities on the environment, examination, certification, licensing, planning, audit, monitoring, control, etc. It is necessary to create a situation where any economic , management and other environmentally significant decisions are prepared and made only on the basis of and in accordance with legal environmental requirements.

c) Formation of modern environmental legislation. Environmental legislation is both a product and the main form of consolidation of state environmental policy. The main characteristics and criteria of "modern" environmental legislation include:

Creation of a system of special legislative acts in the field of the environment, acts of natural resource legislation and greening of other legislation (administrative, civil, business, criminal, economic, etc.). The main requirements are the absence of gaps in the legal regulation of environmental relations, its compliance with public needs;

Formation of mechanisms to ensure the implementation of legal environmental requirements;

Harmonization with environmental legislation of Europe and the world.

d) Creation of an optimal system of government bodies for environmental management and environmental protection, taking into account the principles:

An integrated approach to solving problems of ensuring rational environmental management and environmental protection;

Organization of management, taking into account not only the administrative-territorial, but also the natural-geographical zoning of the country;

Separation of economic, operational and control and supervisory powers of specially authorized bodies.

e) Ensuring optimal financing of measures to ensure rational use of natural resources and environmental protection and high efficiency of capital investments. The state must ensure the solution of this dual task by:

Consolidation in legislation of the requirement for mandatory allocation in the budget a minimum percentage of amounts for environmental purposes from the expenditure side of the budget;

Through the implementation of state environmental control over the implementation of legal environmental requirements by enterprises, enshrining in the law measures of economic incentives, providing them with environmental financing within the limits real opportunities;

Creation of a legal mechanism to ensure the maximum effect of investments in the field of environmental management and environmental protection.

f) The state, as a political organization of society within the framework of the environmental function, in order to achieve the goals of environmental policy, is interested in involving broad sections of the population in environmental activities. One of the recent trends is related to the democratization of environmental law. This is manifested in the creation of organizational and legal conditions for the participation of interested public formations and citizens in the preparation and adoption of environmentally significant economic, managerial and other decisions.

A high degree of democratization in the field of legal environmental protection, determined by the needs of the interested public, is an important direction, prerequisite and reserve for increasing the efficiency of the state’s environmental activities.

g) Environmental education and training of environmental specialists. "Only a revolution in people's minds will bring the desired changes. If we want to save ourselves and the biosphere on which our existence depends, everyone... - both old and young - must become real, active and even aggressive fighters for environmental protection"*( 9), - with these words, William O. Douglas, J.D., former member of the US Supreme Court, concludes his book “The Three Hundred Years' War: A Chronicle of an Environmental Disaster.”

The revolution in people's minds, which is so necessary to overcome the environmental crisis, will not happen on its own. It is possible with targeted efforts within the framework of state environmental policy and the independent function of state management in the field of the environment. These efforts should have the goal of environmental education of all generations, especially young people, and instilling a sense of respect for nature. It is necessary to form an ecological consciousness, individual and social, based on the idea of a harmonious relationship between man and nature, human dependence on nature and responsibility for its preservation for future generations.

At the same time, the most important prerequisite for solving environmental problems in the country is the targeted training of ecologists - specialists in the field of economics, engineering, technology, law, sociology, biology, hydrology, etc. Without highly qualified specialists with modern knowledge on the entire range of issues of interaction between society and nature, especially In the process of making environmentally significant economic, management and other decisions, planet Earth may not have a worthy future.

Even with organizational, human, material and other resources to address environmental issues, will people have the will and wisdom to adequately use them?

2. Formation and development of environmental law. Problems of differentiation and integration in the development of environmental law.

Norms on nature protection can be found already in the first regulations Russian state. It is advisable to consider the question of the history of the development of normative regulation of the protection of property rights to natural resources, nature conservation and environmental management in Russia in relation to three periods: a) before 1917, b) during the Soviet period and c) at the present stage.

a) As in other ancient or medieval states, the protection of natural resources at the initial stage and to a large extent subsequently was carried out primarily through the protection of property rights, economic, military and tax interests of the state. Thus, the “Russian Truth” (1016) provided for the protection of communal property, the object of which, for example, was a forest, or the property of a prince. The Russian Pravda established a fine for theft of firewood. It also provided for a fine for destroying or damaging a borti, that is, a hollow filled with honeycombs. Article 69 of Prostransnaya Pravda provided for a fine of 12 hryvnia for the theft of a beaver, i.e. the same punishment as for the murder of a slave * (25). In accordance with the Council Code of 1649, catching fish in someone else's pond or cage, beavers and otters was also considered theft of property.

A special attitude towards the protection of forest resources was also manifested for military reasons. Already in the 14th century, the protected nature of defensive forest fences was established, which served as a means of protection against Tatar raids. (“Zaseka” is a barrier of cut down and piled up trees). The legislation of that time strictly prohibited cutting down trees within the abatis. Such forests were protected by special guards.

Russian legislation of the Middle Ages provided for a fairly wide range of sanctions for violating the rules concerning natural objects: a fine, “beat with batogs mercilessly” (batog - stick, rod, cane), “beat with a whip without any mercy,” cutting off the left hand. When punishing, the fact of repetition of the violation was taken into account. Thus, in accordance with the Council Code of 1649, for fishing in someone else's pond, anyone caught red-handed was subjected to beating with batogs for the first time, with a whip for the second time, and for the third time, his ear was cut off. The death penalty was widely used (for cutting down trees in a protected abattoir forest, catching small herring, etc.).

Since the 17th century, the protection of forests in Siberia has been associated with the fur trade. Thus, in 1681, a royal decree was adopted (for Yakutia), which stipulated that “in yasak places, forests should not be flogged or burned, and therefore the beast would not run into the distance and... there would be no destruction or harm to the yasak collection” (“yasak "- a tax in kind that was imposed in ancient times on the peoples of the Volga region, Siberia and the Far East).

In the 17th century in Russia, the need arose to regulate the production of wildlife as a measure to prevent their depletion. At the same time, both the methods of production and the size of the species caught, such as fish, were regulated.

Since catching beavers and otters with traps threatened their complete extermination, on August 28, 1635, the royal letter “On the prohibition of trapping beavers and otters” was sent to Perm the Great *(26).

In the 17th century, when sable hunting became predatory and when more than a third of the autumn sable population was caught, their natural growth ceased, entire areas were declared reserves to regulate sable hunting in Siberia. The royal decree adopted in 1676 on the procedure for fishing in Lake Pleshcheyevo ordered that only large herring be caught. For catching small herring, “the headman and fishermen will face the death penalty.”

In the 17th century, restrictions on the right of ownership of natural objects and the right to use them were introduced in the interests of the state, and later of third parties * (27). Thus, Peter I by his decrees prohibited the destruction of forests along rivers suitable for timber rafting. Some especially valuable forests and trees were declared reserves, i.e. inviolable, forbidden * (28).

If the requirements for environmental management and protection of wildlife objects were initially carried out within the framework of the institution of property rights, then the requirements for the protection of air, water and public places from pollution were developed in legislation, which later became known as sanitary legislation. The need for such norms arose in Russia in the 17th century. Thus, according to the decree of Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, adopted in 1640, for prevention in Moscow it was prescribed that “... dead horses and all cattle outside Zemlyanoy Gorod in bare places should be dug into the ground, not shallowly, ... but in the streets and behind in the city, in the settlements, dead horses and all kinds of dead cattle and dogs and cats and... nothing dead... were thrown anywhere...". In accordance with the legal act “Institutions for the Administration of Provinces” of 1775, the zemstvo police officer was obliged to ensure that places and roads were clean everywhere. The charter of the deanery, or police, of 1782 assigned the responsibility of “supervising the cleaning and paving of the streets” to a private bailiff. According to the Code on Criminal and Correctional Punishments of 1845, “if anyone builds a factory or plant recognized by law as harmful to the purity of air or water in the city or, although outside the city, but upstream of the river or canal, then these establishments are destroyed at the expense of the culprit and he is subject to arrest for a period of seven days to three months or a monetary penalty of not more than three hundred rubles"*(29). In 1833, rules were issued “On the location and arrangement of private factories, manufacturing, factory and other establishments in St. Petersburg”, which stipulated that “all harmful gases that can be released during work must certainly be absorbed or burned” . In the same document, industrial enterprises, depending on the harmful effects on the atmospheric air, were divided into three categories, and enterprises of the third category should not be located in the city * (30).

At the beginning of the twentieth century, the issue of creating a special body to monitor compliance with environmental regulations was discussed in Russia. Since the idea belonged to scientists, the creation of such an institution was supposed to be under the auspices of the Academy of Sciences or the Ministry of Education * (31).

Speaking at the conference on international nature conservation (Bern, 1913), the delegate from Russia, Professor G.A. Kozhevnikov noted: “In Russia there is no special law for nature conservation. The reason for this is that until recently Russia possessed and still possesses so many wild animals that the very idea of nature conservation was alien to both the people and the government.” But already in 1915 - 1916. under the leadership of academician I.P. Borodin, a pioneer of serious scientific environmental activities in Russia, the first (unimplemented) draft of the Russian Law on Nature Protection was developed * (32).

b) The main features of the development of legal regulation of environmental management and nature conservation in Russia during the Soviet period were manifested in the following.

Until the 70s, the natural resource approach was dominant in the development of legislation in the area under consideration. This means that regulation of environmental management and environmental protection was carried out in relation to individual natural resources. In the early 20s, a number of laws and government decrees were adopted, including Land Code RSFSR (1922), Forest Code RSFSR (1923), Decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR "On the bowels of the earth"(1920), Resolution of the Central Executive Committee and Council of People's Commissars of the USSR "On the fundamentals of organizing fisheries in the USSR"(1924), Decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR "On Hunting" ( 1920), decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR "On the protection of natural monuments, gardens and parks"(1921), Decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR "On the sanitary protection of dwellings" (1919) and etc.

As for property relations over natural resources, these resources were the exclusive property of the state. The Decree “On Land”, adopted by the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets on October 26 (November 8), 1917, carried out the complete nationalization of land along with other natural resources. Private property on land and other natural resources was cancelled, they were withdrawn from civil circulation.

The problem of protecting nature from pollution during this period was assessed mainly as a sanitary one, rather than an environmental one. This meant that when regulating the protection of atmospheric air and water, primarily the interests of protecting human health were taken into account, and not all living organisms suffering from pollution. Accordingly, relations for the protection of water and atmospheric air were to a certain extent regulated by sanitary legislation. Only in the 70s in relation to water and in the 80s in relation to atmospheric air did problems of environmental protection from pollution begin to be assessed and regulated as environmental.

The body of codified natural resource legislation was formed mainly in the period from 1970 to 1982. It included acts such as Land Code RSFSR (1970), Water Code RSFSR (1972), RSFSR Code on Subsoil(1976), Forest Code of the RSFSR(1978), Law of the RSFSR on the protection of atmospheric air(1982), Law of the RSFSR on the protection and use of wildlife(1982). These laws were adopted in accordance with the Fundamentals of land, water, forestry and mining legislation of the USSR and union republics, the USSR Laws on the protection of atmospheric air and on the protection and use of wildlife. With the adoption in 1968 of the Fundamentals of Land Legislation of the USSR and Union Republics, other sectors - water, forestry, mining - began to develop as independent branches of law and legislation and received scientific and official recognition as such. During this period and to this day, the right to regulate the use and protection of flora outside the forests.

The main attention in natural resource legislation was paid to regulating the use of lands, waters, forests, and other natural resources. With the exception of the Law on the Protection of Atmospheric Air, relations to protect the corresponding natural object from pollution and other harmful effects were regulated in fragments, in general view. This is partly explained by the fact that in the late 60s and early 70s, during their development and adoption, the problem of protecting the environment from pollution did not have the urgency of today in Russia and was not sufficiently realized higher authorities state, including the Supreme Council of the RSFSR, and, moreover, did not have sufficient scientific development.

True, in the early 60s, due to the increasing intensity of the involvement of the country's rich natural resources in economic circulation, during the period of extensive construction of communism at the national level, the need to establish a system of measures aimed at the protection, use and reproduction of natural resources was realized. On October 27, 1960, the RSFSR Law was adopted " On nature conservation in the RSFSR"*(33). It contained articles on the protection of lands, subsoil, waters, forests and other vegetation and wildlife. But this law did not play a significant role in regulating environmental management and nature conservation. It did not propose effective environmental measures and a mechanism for ensuring their implementation .

Basically, with the adoption of the USSR Law “On the Protection of Atmospheric Air” in 1980, relations to protect the environment from physical and biological impacts were included in the scope of legal regulation.

In the system of sources of environmental law during this period, it was not laws that prevailed, but by-laws in the form of decrees of the Government of the USSR and the RSFSR, departmental rules and instructions. At that time, it was not laws, but government regulations that determined some integrated approaches to the regulation of environmental management and environmental protection as a single object.

Concern for nature conservation and better use of natural resources was recognized at the session Supreme Council USSR in September 1972 as one of the most important state tasks. At the same time, measures to further strengthen nature protection and improve the use of natural resources were entrusted to the Government of the USSR to develop. Subsequently, these measures were enshrined not in laws, but in the joint resolution of the CPSU Central Committee and the USSR Council of Ministers of December 29, 1972 “On strengthening nature protection and improving the use of natural resources” * (34). Along with the requirements for the development of environmental regulation, environmental monitoring, and other measures, this resolution provided for the need for mandatory planning of measures for nature protection and environmental management in the system of state plans for social and economic development. The nature conservation plan, approved by the relevant representative body, became legally binding.

Later, on December 1, 1978, another joint resolution was adopted by the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR - “On additional measures to strengthen environmental protection and improve the use of natural resources” * (35). Taking into account the role assigned to planning as one of the main tools for regulating social development, in order to improve it, the resolution provided for a new form of pre-planning document - territorial integrated nature protection schemes.

Efforts to ensure rational environmental management and environmental protection, undertaken on the basis of natural resource legislation and the above-mentioned government regulations, did not, however, produce visible and tangible results. At the end of the 80s, the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Government of the USSR realized that the main reasons for the sharp deterioration of the state of the environment in the country were: weak legal regulation of environmental management and environmental protection, imperfect organization of public administration in this area, the “residual” principle of financing environmental activities, lack of economic incentives for enterprises to rationally use natural resources and protect nature from pollution. On January 7, 1988, the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR adopted a resolution “On a radical restructuring of nature conservation in the country” * (36).

This resolution provided a number of significant directives. The main ones are: 1) consolidation of state management of natural resources and environmental protection through the formation of the USSR State Committee for Nature Protection (based on divisions of natural resource ministries and departments that duplicated each other); 2) improving the economic mechanism that ensures the effective use and protection of natural resources (primarily by regulating payments for natural resources and environmental pollution); 3) decision to prepare a draft USSR Law on Nature Conservation.

These directives had to be implemented in new political and socio-economic conditions and, in fact, in a new state.

With the exception of the Law “On Nature Protection in the RSFSR,” legal regulation regarding nature (the environment) as an integrated object was carried out mainly in joint resolutions of the CPSU Central Committee and the USSR Council of Ministers.

The main general drawback of Russian legislation during the socialist period, in addition to significant gaps, was the lack of a “working” mechanism for ensuring the implementation of norms. Low efficiency of legislation, depletion of natural resources and constant deterioration of the quality of the environment - these and other factors required new approaches to the legal regulation of natural resource management and environmental protection.

c) New approaches to the development of environmental law are being implemented at the present stage of development of Russian society. The transition to market relations in the economy, the rejection of ideological dogmas in law, the desire of Russian society to create a legal and social state in the future, to establish legal norms for the use of natural resources and environmental protection primarily in laws rather than in by-laws - these are the phenomena in environmental law, which mark the beginning of a new stage in its development.

At the present stage, environmental law is developing taking into account the following important factors: the crisis state of the environment in the country and public needs for the restoration of a favorable environment; defects in existing environmental legislation, which is characterized by gaps and fragmentation in the legal regulation of environmental relations; prospects for creating a legal and social state; the ongoing transformation of social economic relations; introducing a number of forms of ownership of natural resources; trends in the development of relationships between society and nature and environmental law in the world. The most important principle of the formation of environmental legislation at the present stage is its harmonization with advanced world legislation.