WATER CODE OF TURKMENISTAN

of October 15, 2016

This Code governs the relations in the field of steady and rational use of waters for the purpose of requirements satisfaction in water resources of legal entities and physical persons and is directed to increase in value of water resources, ensuring protection of waters from pollution, contamination and depletions, the prevention and liquidation of negative impact of waters, recovery and improvement of condition of water objects.

Section I. General provisions

Chapter I. Basic provisions

Article 1. The basic concepts used in this Code

1. In this Code the following basic concepts are used:

1) waters – set of all waters concentrated in water objects;

2) water object – concentration of waters in artificial waterways and conduits or natural deepenings of the land surface, or in the subsoil having certain borders, amount and signs of the hydrological mode or the mode of underground waters;

3) water resources – inventories of surface and underground water of this territory;

4) waterway – the water object which is characterized by movement of water in the direction of bias in deepening of the land surface;

5) reservoir – the superficial water object in deepening of the land surface which is characterized by the slowed-down water movement (flowing) or its total absence (landlocked);

6) the water area – water space within natural, artificial or conditional borders;

7) the integrated (complex) water resources management – the approach allowing to provide the sustainable and balanced development of water resources and management with them, considering social, economic and nature protection interests, and also coordination of water resources management in different sectors of economy;

8) the basin principle of management – the management of water fund for hydrographic signs realized in case of distribution of water resources within basins of the rivers, lakes and other water objects;

9) the hydrological mode – change in time of levels, expenses and amounts of water in water objects;

10) water disposal – set of the actions providing removal of waste, rain and drainage waters;

11) water use – use of water resources according to the procedure, established by the legislation of Turkmenistan, for requirements satisfaction of legal entities and physical persons;

12) the water user – legal entity or physical person which according to the procedure, established by the legislation of Turkmenistan, is granted right to use by water resources;

13) water consumption – use of water resources for ensuring needs of the population and industries of economy;

14) the water consumer – the legal entity or physical person receiving in accordance with the established procedure from the water user water for ensuring the needs;

15) the state water management organizations – the territorial and basin state water management organizations performing activities in the field of use and protection of waters;

16) the supplier of water – the territorial or basin state water management organizations performing water intake and transportation of water for the water user;

17) services in water supply – the services including charges in working order and operation of intereconomic, intraeconomic irrigating and collector and drainage network, hydraulic engineering and other constructions, and also pumping units;

18) hydraulic engineering constructions – artificially created constructions for the purpose of regulation of use and protection of water resources, water supply, water disposal and elimination of negative impact of waters;

19) hydromeliorative system (network) – complex of technologically interconnected hydraulic engineering constructions, devices and the equipment intended for irrigation, flood and drainage of lands;

20) irrigating network – part of hydromeliorative system (network) consisting of constants and temporary irrigation canals and pipelines serving for water supply for the purpose of irrigation of lands, its distribution between land users for watering of crops, green (forest) plantings;

21) collector and drainage network – part of the hydromeliorative network consisting of underground and land channels, constructions on it and intended for collection and removal of excessive ground waters in water intakes (the main collectors, lowerings of land relief);

22) water intaking construction – complex of the constructions and devices intended for water intake from water objects;

23) protection of water objects – complex of the actions directed to the prevention, prevention, liquidation of pollution, contamination and depletion of water objects, their preserving and recovery;

24) pollution of water objects – receipt in water object of the pollutants, microorganisms, heat worsening structure and properties of water;

25) contamination of water objects – receipt in superficial water objects of the foreign substances worsening quality of waters;

26) depletion of water objects – reducing inventories of surface and underground water with the subsequent possible deterioration in their quality;

27) negative impact of waters – flooding, flooding, bogging of certain territories, destruction of water objects or their parts and other harmful effects on them;

28) sewage – the waters which are formed as a result of economic and other activity of the person, loss of atmospheric precipitation and also mine, career and miner waters;

29) drainage waters – ground waters which removal is performed by the hydraulic engineering constructions which are specially intended for this purpose for the purpose of prevention of their negative impact;

30) returnable waters – the surface and underground water getting to water objects after their economic or household use;

31) zone of sanitary protection of water objects – the territory including source of drinking water supply and water constructions, consisting of three belts of zone of sanitary protection in each of which the specific mode of economic activity and protection of waters from pollution, contaminations and depletions is set;

32) cross-border water objects (cross-border waters) – water objects which designate cross border between two and more foreign states or on which the Frontier lies;

33) the water protection zones – the territory adjacent to water objects in which zones with special conditions of its use for the purpose of the prevention of pollution, contamination and depletion of water objects, maintenance of their ecological stability and proper sanitary condition are established;

34) coastal water preserving strips – the territories within the water protection zones on which the mode of limited economic activity is set;

35) cross-border impact – the harmful effects resulting from the quantitative or high-quality change of cross-border waters caused by activities of the person which physical source is located fully or partially in the territory of the adjacent state or neighboring states;

36) association of water users – the public association created for the purpose of joint management of intraeconomic hydromeliorative systems (networks) both their content in working order and operation;

37) group of water users – users of water resources without formation of legal entity which in zone of servicing of daykhansky consolidation, associations of water users or other water users take maintenance responsibility in working order and operation of irrigating and collector and drainage network, being part of single intraeconomic hydromeliorative system (network) of daykhansky consolidation, association of water users or other water users;

38) project water management action – ensuring reliability of operation of hydraulic engineering constructions at all stages of their construction and operation, safety of animal and flora, including actions for preserving bioresources;

39) water management operational action – effective operation of hydraulic engineering constructions or water management objects during the normative term of their service for the purpose of accomplishment of the functional requirements imposed to them, ensuring normative (operational) technical condition and normal level of safety in case of economical use of water, land, labor, energy resources and obligatory holding the actions preventing negative impact of work of these constructions and objects on the environment;

40) separately located hydraulic engineering constructions – the engineering constructions and devices which are not entering hydromeliorative systems and providing regulation, rise, giving, water distribution to consumers, removal of waters, protection of soils against water erosion, antimudstone and protection against landslide.

2. Other concepts are determined in individual clauses of this Code.

Article 2. Water legislation of Turkmenistan

1. The water legislation of Turkmenistan is based on the Constitution of Turkmenistan and consists of of this Code and other regulatory legal acts of Turkmenistan governing the water relations.

2. The regulatory legal acts of Turkmenistan regulating questions of use and protection of waters are accepted on the basis of of this Code and shall not contradict its provisions.

3. The relations arising in the field of use of drinking water and drinking water supply are regulated by this Code and the legislation of Turkmenistan on drinking water.

4. The relations arising in the field of use and protection of sea and cross-border waters are regulated by this Code and international treaties of Turkmenistan.

5. If the international treaty of Turkmenistan establishes other rules than containing in this Code, then rules of the international treaty are applied.

Article 3. Purposes and tasks of the water legislation of Turkmenistan

1. The purposes of the water legislation of Turkmenistan are achievement and maintenance of ecologically safe and economically optimum level of water use and ensuring protection of waters for improvement of vital conditions of the population and preserving the environment.

2. Tasks of the water legislation of Turkmenistan are:

1) carrying out state policy in the field of use and protection of water fund, water supply and water disposal;

2) providing the legal basis of support and development of steady water use and protection of water fund, water supply and water disposal;

3) management of the relations in the field of studying, investigations, rational and complex use and protection of water resources, hydromeliorative systems and hydraulic engineering constructions;

4) determination of the directions of development of water economy and improvement of land reclamation;

5) protection of the population, the territory and subjects to managing against emergency situations on hydraulic engineering constructions and the effects caused by them.

Article 4. Basic principles of the water legislation of Turkmenistan

The water legislation of Turkmenistan is based on the following basic principles:

1) recognition of the state value of the waters which are basis of social and economic development of the country and preserving health of the population;

2) public administration and the state control in the field of use and protection of waters;

3) ensuring equal access of the population to water;

4) steady and rational use of water resources;

5) the integrated (complex) water resources management;

6) combination of the administrative-territorial and basin principles of water resources management;

7) creation of optimal conditions of water use, preserving ecological stability of the environment and sanitary and epidemiologic safety of the population;

8) priority of use of fresh waters for the drinking needs corresponding to standard rates of quality;

9) prevention of pollution, contamination and depletion of waters;

10) participation of citizens and public associations in the solution of the questions concerning use and protection of water objects in preparation of decisions which implementation can make positive impact on water objects in case of their use and protection;

11) ensuring publicity during the holding the actions connected with use and protection of waters and availability of information on use and protection of waters;

12) the paid nature of special water use, except for the separate types of special water use established by the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan;

13) responsibility for violation of the water legislation of Turkmenistan;

14) compensation of the damage caused owing to violation of the water legislation of Turkmenistan;

15) international cooperation in oblasyot of use and protection of waters, including by regulation of the water relations in borders of pools of cross-border water objects.

Article 5. Property right to water fund of Turkmenistan

1. The water fund of Turkmenistan is in exclusive property of the state.

2. The right of possession, uses and orders of water fund belongs to the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan.

3. Actions of the legal entities and physical persons violating the right of state-owned property to water objects involve responsibility, stipulated by the legislation Turkmenistan.

Article 6. Property right to hydraulic engineering constructions

1. Hydraulic engineering constructions can be in the state or other pattern of ownership.

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