Introducing remarks on Environmental law and policy. Origins and domestic, comparative and European principles

Environmental protection is a fundamentally important issue that goes beyond the era of the Roman world. Although the modern concept of environmental protection emerged mainly during the 20th century, many ancient societies had some form of environmental regulation. In the Roman world, for example, there was no ecological consciousness as we understand it today, but we can identify certain practices of conserving natural resources and protecting the environment. Through various measures, laws, decrees, edicts, the use of forests, water and agricultural land was regulated. Attention was paid to water pollution and problems concerning land reclamation were considered