Water Retaining Facilities Act (WRFA)
English is not an official language of the Swiss Confederation. This translation is provided for information purposes only and has no legal force.
Section 1 Construction and Operation
Art. 5 Basic principles
1 Water retaining facilities must be designed, constructed and operated in accordance with the state of the art in science and technology so that their safety is guaranteed for all foreseeable operating and loading cases. 2 For the purpose of specifying measures, special attention must be paid as far as possible to the economically viable utilisation of hydropower. Measures are specified by the supervisory authority in consultation with the owner of the facility and, insofar as the measures concerned are of a structural nature and no agreement can be reached with the owner of the facility, following consultation with recognised specialists in the engineering and energy industries. 3 It must be possible to empty the reservoir in order to carry out inspections and maintenance operations and it must be possible to lower the level of water therein if there is any imminent threat. For this purpose, water retaining facilities must at least be equipped with a bottom outlet of adequate dimensi
Art. 6 Planning approval and construction
1 Any person wishing to construct or modify water retaining facilities requires planning approval from the relevant licensing authority. 2 Where the construction or modification of an installation has to be approved on the basis of other legal provisions, at the same time as the decision on approval in accordance with those legal provisions a decision shall be made on whether to grant planning approval under this Act. 3 Planning approval must be granted if the technical safety requirements are complied with. 4 The application for planning approval must include all the information required to carry out the technical safety assessment. 5 The supervisory authority examines the application. If the supervisory authority is not the licensing authority, it shall inform the latter of the result of its technical safety assessment. If deemed necessary for ensuring the technical safety of the installation, the supervisory authority shall specify conditions concerning its construction. 6 When maki
Art. 7 Commissioning
1 In order for a water retaining facility to be commissioned or recommissioned, a licence must be obtained from the supervisory authority. 2 Applications for a licence must include all the information required to carry out a technical safety assessment. 3 The supervisory authority examines the information provided by the applicant and verifies whether the technical safety requirements are complied with. If deemed necessary to ensure the technical safety of the installation, the supervisory authority shall specify conditions concerning its commissioning and its operation.
Art. 8 Operation
1 The operator must ensure that: a. the safety of the population and environment is guaranteed; b. the outlet and relief works are adequate and functional. 2 The operator shall carry out all inspections, measurements and tests that are required to assess the condition and behaviour of the water retaining facility, and shall have the results evaluated without delay. The operator shall submit all corresponding reports to the supervisory authority. 3 The operator must: a. maintain the water retaining facility properly, repair damage and rectify safety defects without delay; b. retrofit or modify the facility if the supervisory authority requires such action in order to rectify safety defects; c. permit the installation and use of national monitoring and measurement systems, and grant inspection bodies access to such systems. 4 The supervisory authority shall evaluate the reports and verify whether the technical safety requirements have been complied with. It shall also carry out periodica
Art. 9 Influence of other structures and installations on safety
Before an authority may decide on the construction or modification of a structure or installation which could have a negative impact on the safety of an existing water retaining facility, it shall consult the supervisory authority.
Section 2 Emergency Concept
Art. 10 Precautionary measures in the event of an emergency
1 The operator shall take precautions for the event that the safe operation of the water retaining facility can no longer be guaranteed as the result of behaviour anomalies, natural events or acts of sabotage. 2 In the event of an emergency, it must take all necessary measures to avoid endangering persons, property and the environment.
Art. 11 Water-alarm system
1 The operator of a water retaining facility with a storage capacity of more than 2 million cubic metres must operate and maintain a water-alarm system in the near zone. 2 The operator of a water retaining facility with a storage capacity of less than 2 million cubic metres which represents a high potential risk within its inundation zone must operate and maintain a water-alarm system in the near zone insofar as he is ordered to do so by the supervisory authority. 3 The term “near zone” refers to the area that would be flooded within two hours following a sudden total collapse of the facility.
Art. 12 Protection of the population in the event of an emergency
1 In the event of an emergency, with the aid of the available civil protection instruments and structures, the federal government, cantons and communes are responsible for distributing instructions to the population concerning the behaviour they should adopt and, if necessary, for their evacuation. 2 In the event of a military threat, the authority designated by the Federal Council may issue special instructions.