Harmonization of Ukrainian legislation with the European Green Deal: Legal challenges and directions for improvement

The article analyzes the harmonization of Ukrainian legislation with the European Green Deal and the «Fit for 55» package of initiatives. It is noted that legal research in the aspect of harmonization of Ukrainian legislation with the European Green Deal should be grouped according to the following vectors: theoretical foundations of climate law and integration of «green» goals in the state policy sector; monitoring as empirical analytical developments in the field of the EDC; institutional diagnostics and roadmaps of the European Commission on the approximation of Ukrainian legislation to the EDC; sectoral legal research comparing the European acts of the «Fit for 55» package with Ukrainian law and law enforcement practice. A comprehensive legal analysis of the harmonization of Ukrainian legislation with the EDC is possible provided that all these interrelated components are systematically analyzed. It is noted that the approximation of Ukrainian legislation to the EU environmental acquis is carried out according to the following basic vectors: reduction of greenhouse gas emissions; development of renewable energy; increasing energy efficiency (reducing the energy intensity of the economy and implementing the energy efficiency first principle in accordance with the requirements of EU directives, in particular by updating the regulatory framework and introducing modern energy management tools); reducing methane emissions; greening transport: transition to clean transport; industrial pollution control: reform of the permitting system for enterprises, transition to the best available technologies and management methods; implementation of EU requirements for waste management and reduction of environmental pollution, ensuring a fair transformation of coal regions in accordance with the Just Transition principle. According to the results of the study, a set of legal solutions was proposed: urgently adopt a law on industrial emissions taking into account the best available technologies; create a climate fund and fix the targeted use of revenues from permit auctions and environmental taxes; strengthen the institutional capacity of central and local authorities, improve the procedures for strategic environmental assessment and public participation in them. It is concluded that the success of the harmonization of legislation will depend on the political will of Ukraine, its institutional capacity in war conditions, as well as on the comprehensive support of the EU.