Abstract: the results of a study of the possibility of managing environmental emergencies are reviewed. The concept of environmental emergencies is given, their classification and sources are indicated. A work program has been proposed to study the socio-economic consequences of the onset of environmental emergencies. The hierarchy of situations that may arise from the point of view of the decision maker during the operation and development of the controlled object is determined. The main management modes, as well as the main factors that influence the management decision-making, depending on the current situation, are highlighted. Control functions are proposed in various modes, carried out in an automated system for managing emergency environmental situations, based on conducting a situational analysis in a scenario study of the behavior of the object under study. As an application, an example of the construction and analysis of a cognitive map of an environmental emergency situation in the Kuzbass coal basin of the Russian Federation is considered. The typical development scenarios for the realization of threats and the emergence of environmental emergencies, evaluation criteria, as well as possible ways to prevent them are considered. © 2019, IFAC (International Federation of Automatic Control) Hosting by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.