Abstract: Strengthening social and environmental crisis, and the growth of environmental crimes in all states and regions worries specialists in many scientific and practical spheres - lawyers, environmentalists, economists, politicians, and society as a whole.  Unfortunately, the crime does not stay the same, the new threats, the social spheres are widening, including environmental - social ones, and they are influenced by crimes encroaching upon environment and its components, the scale of harm to natural resources and objects is growing, as well as the number of violations of environmental rights of people and interests of businesses and states. Specialized literature, mass media and analytical documents of late years refer to worsening of situation regarding treating various types of waste: dangerous, common, construction, radioactive. All of these circumstances fall within the scope of interests of specialists in criminal law and forensiс sciences, who are striving to develop necessary measures against the violations of treatment of waste and downsizing its negative influence  upon the environment and human health.  Such measures include criminal administrative responsibility, legislative provisions  on compensation of damage to environment, prophylactic measures against violations of norms on waste.

Abstract: The author studies the sources of European law in their relation with the environmental law. The author provides detailed analysis of various acts of the EU bodies: primary law (founding treaties), unwritten primary law; directives and recommendations, environmental and political action plans. The acts are analyzed based on their nature, sphere of application and subjects. The author provides specific examples of various acts of European environmental law. In particular, the author considers that environmental political action plans are sources of European environmental law is spite of their non-normative nature. It is due to the fact that environmental political action plans provide for goals and priorities of environmental policy, include general descriptions of measures for a certain time span, they establish global connections and development tendencies, provide orientations, serve as prerequisites and preparation measures for the legislative measures at the Community level and specify them. Finally, the author makes a conclusion that forms of normative legal acts may be regarded as sufficient and efficient elements of law-making. However, their application in environmental law (and other branches of law) is mediated via many factors, and first of all via the environmental policy of the EU.

Abstract: Intensive development of the environmental law starting from last 70's shows how important the environmental protection issues have grown. Back in XX century scientists, researchers and the society were mostl concerned about the protection of water and forest resources, animals and air pollution but today the threat spectrum has been changed. It does mean the aforesaid problems have been solved though. Unfortunately, there is still a long way to go, but at least solutions have been developed and associated measures have been discussed including legal measures too. Today's priorities include the climate protection, waste and hazardous substances treatment, fight against environmental crime, first of all, organized crime and corruption as well as development of the environmental policy that would comply with the conditions of the gobalising world. 
Twenty years ago very little was spoken of the environmental policy and its trends in our country. The decisive point was when the Environmental Conference  was held in Rio de Janeiro. However, noot all elements of the environmental policy have been modernized, developed or implemented. There are still gaps in the environmental law, too. This can be clearly seen when we analyze the environmental policy and laws in the sphere of waste treatment. 
Therefore, it would make sense to view the contents and meaning of waste treatment, to evaluate how well its elements are developed and how topical its issue are and how efficient methods and measures are compared to the experience of foreign states. 
The author of the article also analyzes the structure and definition of environmental policy from the point of comparative law in the European Union, EU member states and the Russian Federation. The author in detail describes the economic, envirommental and socio-psychological factors influencing the development and implementation of environmental policy.