According to the Basel Convention (1998), pharmaceutical waste is waste from medical care in hospitals, medical centers and clinics, waste from the production and preparation of pharmaceutical products, waste pharmaceuticals, drugs and medicines, wastes from the production, formulation and use of biocides and phytopharmaceuticals. They belong to the so-called Yellow List, and are all, without exception, regarded hazardous. A review of the results of studies on pharmaceutical wastes in water bodies (rivers and lakes) in Russia and abroad has been produced. Medicines are an integral part of medical practice. They serve the preservation of the health of the population and, as a result, enhance the quality and prolong the duration of life. On the other hand, pharmaceutical industry waste is increasingly affecting wildlife, as unused medicines are often discarded or disposed of improperly. At the beginning of the 21st century, the European Environment Agency (EEA) designated the impact of active pharmaceutical ingredients on the environment as a new environmental problem. The main pathways by which drugs reach the environment have been charted. Meanwhile, Russia has no system to regulate maximum permissible
concentrations of drugs in water bodies. The purpose of this study is to work out a methodology for calculating maximum permissible concentrations of drugs in water bodies of fishery importance. An adequate correlation has been established between maximum permissible concentrations of harmful substances in water bodies of fishery importance (MPCf) and their average lethal concentrations for daphnia. Indicative MPCf values have been calculated for 12 pharmaceutical products.