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Coordinated and published by The Grassroots Institute, the Grassroots Journal of Natural Resources (GJNR) is an international journal dedicated to the latest advancements in natural resources throughout the world. The goal of this journal is to provide a platform for scientists, social scientists, policy analysts, managers and practitioners (on all academic and professional levels) all over the world to promote, discuss and share various new issues and developments in different arenas of natural resources.
Myroslav Romaniuk1, Yevheniia Lypnytska2, Tetiana Demianchuk3, Oleksadr Herasymenko4,
Andrii Husak*5
1Department of Law Enforcement and Anti-corruption Activities, Interregional Academy of Personnel Management, Kyiv, Ukraine. Email: roman.myr@gmail.com | ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-3157-0036
2Faculty of Sociology and Law, National Technical University of Ukraine “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute”, Kyiv, Ukraine. Email: zenya65uni@gmail.com | ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4608-1734
3The Department of Theory of State and Law, National Academy of Internal Affairs, Kyiv, Ukraine.
Email: tetiana.demianchuk@gmail.com | ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8908-4356
4Department of Postgraduate & Doctoral Studies, National Academy of the Security Service of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine.
Email: mr.oleksandr.ua@gmail.com | ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-5078-3829
5Department of Criminal Law and Procedure, Lesya Ukrainka Volyn National University, Lutsk, Ukraine.
Email: andrijbejkun2@gmail.com | ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2142-5193
*Corresponding author
Grassroots Journal of Natural Resources, 8(2): 306-326. Doi: https://doi.org/10.33002/nr2581.6853.080215
Received: 18 May 2025
Reviewed: 14 July 2025
Provisionally Accepted: 20 July 2025
Revised: 30 July 2025
Finally Accepted: 02 August 2025
Published: 23 August 2025
The increase of environmental crime, instigating/provoking or affecting critical infrastructure, has immediate imperative law enforcement, legal, procedural, and forensic standpoints. At the same time, existing pre-trial investigation GIS is still highly decentralized, fragmented, reactive, and lacks specialization and cross-sector coordination. This research work aims to conceive an underlying legal and procedural framework for the effective investigation of environmental infrastructural crime, mainly focusing on crimes against common goods. This research applies a legal-forensic matrix model (i.e., theoretical framework), time efficiency indexing, and comparative scenario simulation. The study was based on an examination of 300 pre-trial cases from eight European jurisdictions, including systems in transition. More generally, the results support an association between greater procedural integration and improved procedure as well as evidentiary outcomes; across all jurisdictions, Germany and the Netherlands were among those with the strongest record on both compliance with Soviet standards of HDPE ordering procedures and exceptional case thresholds. In addition, the study introduces two novel assessment tools: the Legal-Forensic Matrix, and the Time Efficiency Index. These results highlight the importance of strengthening digital capabilities and specialized training, plus harmonized protocols for response, especially to harmful crimes against ecosystems and strategic infrastructure. The novelty of the research article is a merger between legal procedural analysis and forensic performance metrics in an environmental investigation. Subsequent research should centre on AI-mediated pre-trial diagnosis, dynamic legal algorithm design, and the evaluation of judicial outcomes in order to resolve the discrepancy between environmental risks and criminal responsibility.
Environmental crime investigation; Legal-forensic matrix; Pre-trial procedures; Evidentiary admissibility; Green criminal law
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Romaniuk, M., Lypnytska, Y., Demianchuk, T., Herasymenko, O. and Husak, A. (2025). Legal Principles and Methodological Approaches to Organizing Pre-Trial Investigation of Environmental Criminal Offenses. Grassroots Journal of Natural Resources, 8(2): 306-326. Doi: https://doi.org/10.33002/nr2581.6853.080215
Romaniuk, M., Lypnytska, Y., Demianchuk, T., Herasymenko, O., & Husak, A. (2025). Legal Principles and Methodological Approaches to Organizing Pre-Trial Investigation of Environmental Criminal Offenses. Grassroots Journal of Natural Resources, 8(2), 306-326. https://doi.org/10.33002/nr2581.6853.080215
Romaniuk M., Lypnytska Y., Demianchuk T., Herasymenko O., Husak A. Legal Principles and Methodological Approaches to Organizing Pre-Trial Investigation of Environmental Criminal Offenses. Grassroots Journal of Natural Resources, 2025, 8 (2), 306-326. https://doi.org/10.33002/nr2581.6853.080215
Romaniuk, Myroslav, Lypnytska, Yevheniia, Demianchuk, Tetiana, Herasymenko, Oleksadr, Husak, Andrii. 2025. “Legal Principles and Methodological Approaches to Organizing Pre-Trial Investigation of Environmental Criminal Offenses”. Grassroots Journal of Natural Resources, 8 no. 2: 306-326. https://doi.org/10.33002/nr2581.6853.080215
Romaniuk, Myroslav, Yevheniia Lypnytska, Tetiana Demianchuk, Oleksadr Herasymenko and Andrii Husak. 2025. “Legal Principles and Methodological Approaches to Organizing Pre-Trial Investigation of Environmental Criminal Offenses”. Grassroots Journal of Natural Resources, 8 (2): 306-326. https://doi.org/10.33002/nr2581.6853.080215
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