Formation of Ukrainian legislation on land reclamation

The article carries out a comprehensive study of the development of Ukrainian legislation on land reclamation, limited by the time frame of the period of independence. The relevance of the chosen topic is due to two main circumstances – factual and legal. The factual circumstance is that the state of land resources is deteriorating in Ukraine: degradation processes are progressing, soil fertility indicators are decreasing, the area of reclaimed land is decreasing, etc. The legal circumstance is the launch of the hydro-reclamation reform seven years ago, which is currently in the active phase of its implementation. The analysis of the formation of domestic legislation on land reclamation for the period 1990–2025 allows us to identify some features and characteristic trends of the evolution that has taken place. Based on the research conducted, an updated periodization of the development of land reclamation legislation is substantiated, which consists in the allocation and characterization of three consecutive stages: 1) the stage of formation (1990–1999), the main features of which were: a) predominantly subordinate regulation; b) a paternalistic type of state administration and support for the industry; c) the preservation of many elements of the legal model of regulating relations, characteristic of the previous historical and legal period; 2) the stage of stable development (2000–2019), the main features of which can be indicated: a) the development of special legislation; b) reforming property relations for land reclamation networks; c) legal delimitation of land reclamation networks and land plots; d) testing of concession, lease, easement and other land legal mechanisms for the formation and strengthening of the economic interest of landowners and land users in investing in land reclamation; 3) the reform stage (2019 – to date), characterized by: a) parallel development of program and regulatory support, legislative and subordinate legislation; b) development of regulatory and legal frameworks for the three main areas of reform: administrative-functional, property and protection; c) identification of individual shortcomings and inconsistencies in the practical implementation of legislative provisions on reform.