Legal support of the use of Industry 4.0 technologies in the field of natural resource management and environmental protection
Authors: Bredikhina Viktoriia 
Published: February 2024

Problem setting. The European integration vector of Ukraine’s development amidst the overall globalization and social transformation determines the priority of environmental protection, rational and responsible use of natural resources, and the implementation of energy-, resource-saving and other innovative technologies into production. This is particularly important during Russia’s armed aggression against Ukraine resulting in grave devastating consequences for our country’s economy and natural resource potential. These circumstances require Ukraine to increase the adaptive capabilities of the national economy and social development to climate change, to respond effectively to current food and resource consumption challenges, and, thus, to improve the management of natural resources used in the economic activity. According to the state program documents, the improvement and development of the state system of environmental protection and management is to be carried out, in particular, by providing scientific, information and innovative support for the management decision-making process, by establishing corresponding environmental information resources, systems, databases and their cyber defense, by using electronic information and media communications in the environmental field. Under the current conditions of social development, the environmental field is becoming one of the platforms for the implementation of innovative Industry 4.0 technologies – digitalization and automation of many technological and organizational processes, the usage of artificial intelligence, the Internet of things etc. accompanying the regulation of environmental and adjacent economic relations. These recent development tendencies require scientific substantiation and an adequate political, organizational, economic and legal response. Аnalysis of recent researches and publications. The issues of the implementation of Industry 4.0 technologies in the field of environmental management and protection are quite recent and still poorly researched within the national legal science. Nevertheless, some of them have already been explored in the scientific works among the economic fields, environmental, economic, land and agrarian law. In particular, the digitalization of regulation of these social relations has become the scientific focus of such scholars as N. Malysheva, O. Vinnyk, I. Maksymova, V. Kurylyak, K. Yefremova, M. Khaustova, K. Markevych, S. Romanko, V. Sydor, O. Lozo, O. Onishchenko and others. Thus, the scholars have studied the legal issues of digitalization in the environmental field in correlation with the corresponding economic processes, in the environmental and legal policy of Ukraine and other states regarding climate change, have analyzed the role of artificial intelligence and other digital technologies in addressing climate change, have determined ways of implementing the European digital policy etc. At the same time, the legal regulation of implementing digitalization in the field of environmental management and protection in the course of economic activity remains relevant. Purpose of research is to study the legal issues and features of legal support for the implementation of Industry 4.0 technologies, in particular, digitalization, automation, artificial intelligence etc. in the field of natural resource management and environmental protection; for this purpose, it also includes analyzing the main program and strategic documents and other legislative acts regulating these issues as well as drawing scientific, theoretical and practical conclusions and formulating potential ways of improving the corresponding legislation. Аrticle’s main body. The article deals with the scientific, theoretical and practical analysis of the implementation and application of Industry 4.0 technologies in the field of legal regulation of natural resource management and environmental protection. Author has analyzed the main legislative acts of general strategic, program and industry levels in this field. The article singles out the main directions of implementing digitalization and other Industry 4.0 technologies, in particular, formulating the environmental and climate state policy, carrying out the economic activity using natural resources, their management and environmental protection. The article examines the features of legal regulation of implementing the digital technologies into various fields of natural resource management and environmental protection, in particular, subsoil and forest use, environmental impact assessment, environmental monitoring and natural resources record. The goals and the role of digital transformation of the environmental management system, such as de-bureaucratization of the economic activity, simplification of the permit system and direct access to state registers, fight against corruption in the field of natural resources distribution and prevention of corresponding risks, achievement of transparency in providing natural resources for use in economic activity, simplification of recording procedures for arising or termination of the natural resource management right have been determined and analyzed. Conclusions and prospects for the development. The implementation of digitalization in the environmental management and protection is a highly dynamic and comprehensive process that is developing and covering more and more fields of economy, economic, law and public life. Nowadays, Ukraine is successfully implementing digitalization and other Industry 4.0 technologies considering its European integration commitment, prospects of strengthening economic and environmental partnership with the EU, and the need to find ways of post-war restoration and climate-neutral green transformation of the state economy. The implementation of digitalization as an innovative tool for the natural resource management optimization at the current stage is undoubtedly a step forward towards the adoption of European values and standards, including transparency and simplification of economic activity using natural resources, and fight against corruption in this field. However, there are still fields that require scientific and legislative attention from the perspective of sustainable development and have significant opportunities and reserves for the use of digital technologies and tools, such as environmental and ecological resources security, emergency response and civil protection, waste management, adaption to climate change and climate policy establishment, agriculture and other areas. Many benefits of digital technologies in various production sectors, economic activity, and regulation of environmental relations have been proved. These include, in particular, efficiency, time saving, modernization, convenience, transparency (access of the public, entities and management bodies to certain types of necessary information), acceleration and simplification of legal and organizational procedures (de-bureaucratization of permit and contractual systems). At the same time, the implementation of digital technologies into any field, including environmental, should be controlled, balanced, cost-effective, environmentally and energetically efficient, and safe for society.