The article analyzes the concept of "environmental control" in Chinese legislation and doctrines. Discusses the state environmental control and supervision, environmental monitoring and public environmental control. The author examines the authorized subjects of state environmental control and the legal way to suspend and terminate environmentally harmful activities, the problems of differentiation of powers for state environmental control between different authorized entities "vertically" and "horizontally", analyzes the impact of the last reform of the structure of the state Council on the state environmental control. It also highlights the principles on the basis of which the state environmental control and legal responsibility for non-performance of duties of officials are carried out, at the end of the proposed measures to improve this legal mechanism.