“Amber Issue” in Ukraine: Prevention and Consequences

The study analyses the current process of amber mining and assesses the legal consequences of illegal activities in the amber mining industry. The relevance of the study is due to the deterioration of the socio-economic aspect of the life of Ukrainian citizens due to the unauthorised extraction of raw materials. The existing fact determines the purpose of the study, namely: the analysis of legal preventive measures and the system of liability norms, in particular, for non-state mining of fossilised resin. The research uses the following methods of searching, processing and presentation of Information: general scientific (formal-logical, analysis and synthesis, concretisation and abstraction, and induction and deduction methods) and special-legal methods (formal-legal, comparative-legal, and method of interpretation of legal provisions). The paper highlights the main gaps in the regulations for amber mining and tort obligations. Based on the results, the main area for changes was established: strengthening responsibility for illegal amber mining, in particular, introducing a state monopoly on its extraction, stopping non-state extraction of valuable resin. The conclusions of the study emphasise that the issue under study also requires the examination of natural aspects of geology, geomorphology, palaeogeography, biology, and the ecology of amber mining sites in general, so only a comprehensive solution to the issues of legalising amber mining at the state level will allow bringing the industry to international standards for mining. The results of the study can be useful for researchers in the field of law, geology, ecology, and biology. Ultimately, the necessary changes in the process of legalising amber mining relate not only to legal aspects. For example, one of the measures aimed at a positive result is the implementation of reclamation processes in the amber mining areas.