The article considers the environmental management system as a complex multilevel management object, including a set of natural resources, economic entities, regulatory institutions and mechanisms for the reproduction of natural resource potential. In the Russian scientific tradition, the category of "nature management" has long become an interdisciplinary concept combining environmental, economic, legal and managerial approaches. At the same time, it is precisely the aspect of the consistency and manageability of environmental management in the context of the transition to a model of sustainable development that requires further theoretical study. The need for a transition from industry-based and resource-based approaches to a systematic one that takes into account the interrelationship of environmental, economic, and socio-institutional parameters is substantiated. Based on the analysis of the regulatory framework of the Russian Federation, Rosstat statistics, and state reports on the state and protection of the environment, key trends and contradictions in the development of the environmental management system are shown. The main management tasks, levels and tools of environmental management, as well as directions for improving the system in the context of sustainable development and "green" transformation of the economy are highlighted