Waters Protection Ordinance (WPO) (WPO)
English is not an official language of the Swiss Confederation. This translation is provided for information purposes only and has no legal force.
Art. 33 Water withdrawals from watercourses
1 For withdrawals from watercourses (Art. 29 WPA) which comprise stretches with permanent flow and others without permanent flow, a permit is required if the site of the water withdrawal shows permanent flow. The conditions for granting the permit must be fulfilled only in the stretches with a permanent flow (Art. 30 WPA). 2 If the waters at the site of water withdrawal shows no permanent flow, the authorities shall ensure that the required measures under Federal Act of 1 July 1966 on the Protection of Nature and Cultural Heritage and the Federal Act of 21 July 1991 on Fish and Fisheries are taken.
Para. 2 — SR 451 Para. 2 — SR 923.0
Art. 33a Ecological potential
When determining the ecological potential of a body of water, consideration shall be given to the following: a. the ecological importance of the body of water in its current state; b. the potential ecological importance of the body of water in a state in which the man-made harm is eliminated to the extent possible at a reasonable cost.
Art. 33a — Inserted by No I of the O of 4 May 2011, in force since 1 June 2011 (AS 2011 1955).
Art. 34 Protection and utilisation plan
1 The authorities shall file the application for the approval of a protection and utilisation plan (Art. 32 let. c WPA) with the FOEN. 2 The application shall contain: a. the protection and utilisation plan decided on; b. the justification why the measures planned represent sufficient compensation for a lower minimum residual flow; c. information on how the planned measures should be made binding on all concerned for the duration of the license. 3 Compensatory measures in the context of the protection and utilisation plan are deemed appropriate if they serve to protect waters or the habitats depending on it. Measures that would be necessary in any case, according to federal regulations on environmental protection, are not taken into consideration.
Para. 1 — Term in accordance with No I 13 of the O of 7 Nov. 2007 on the New System of Fiscal Equalisation and the Division of Tasks between the Confederation and the Cantons, in force since 1 Jan. 2008 (AS 2007 5823). This amendment has been made throughout the text.
Art. 35 Residual flow report
1 For water withdrawals which are subject to an environmental impact assessment (EIA), the residual flow report is part of the environmental impact report (Art. 33 para. 4 WPA). 2 For water withdrawals on which the federal government must be consulted and which are not subject to an EIA, the authorities shall ensure that the opinion of the cantonal expert body on the residual water report or on an amended draft thereof is made available to the FOEN. The FOEN may limit itself to making a summary review of the documents.
Para. 2 — Amended by No I 1 of the O of 29 June 2011 on the Amendment of Ordinances in the Environment Sector, in force since 1 Aug. 2011 (AS 2011 3379).
Art. 36 Inventory of existing water withdrawals
1 For water withdrawals serving installations using water power, the inventory shall include (Art. 82 para. 1 WPA) as a minimum: a. a description of the water withdrawal and restitution (names, co-ordinates, height above sea level and, where appropriate, names of power stations and dams); b. the beginning and duration of the right of use granted, its extent, in particular the amount of water extractable in m3/s as well as the name of the person entitled to extract (the user); c. the removable amount of water in m3/s; d. the residual flow maintained previously with details of the location or the water endowment flow in l/s; e. other obligations to transfer water imposed on the user; f. the participation of the user in maintaining and correcting the waters; g. further conditions or installations in the interests of waters protection and fisheries; h. the Q347 flow rate, the flow regime of the watercourse upstream of the water withdrawal point and the amount withdrawn every month in m3/s,
Art. 37 List of water withdrawals not listed in the inventory
The cantons shall draw up a list of withdrawals for the use of water power from watercourses without permanent flow.
Art. 38 Remediation report
1 For every withdrawal of water listed in the inventory under Article 36 paragraphs 1 and 2, the remediation report (Art. 82 para. 2 WPA) shall indicate whether the watercourse requires remediation; if this is the case, the report indicates the reasons for such remediation, its extent and the period of time forecast to implement it. 2 For every water withdrawal, the report contains in particular: a. the description of the water withdrawal and return (names, co-ordinates, height above sea level and, where appropriate, names of any power stations or dams); b. the rate of Q347 flow; c. data relating to the flow regime of the watercourse upstream of the water withdrawal point and in the stretch of residual water flow; d. the amount withdrawn every month in m3/s expressed as the average over several years. 3 For water withdrawals where remediation is necessary, the report shall also contain information on: a. remediation measures which may be imposed without infringing rights of use which j
Art. 39 Information obligation
1 The user must provide the authorities with the information required to draw up the inventory and the remediation report. 2 The authorities may require the user to carry out flow measurements.
Art. 40 Submission, updating and accessibility of inventories, lists and remediation reports
1 The cantons shall submit the inventories, lists and remediation reports to the FOEN. 2 They shall update the inventories and lists. 3 They shall ensure that the inventories, lists and remediation reports are made accessible to the public after consulting those concerned. Business secrecy shall be preserved.
Art. 41 Water withdrawals under licences already granted
Articles 36–40 apply by analogy to planned water withdrawals for which a licence was granted before the entry into force of the Waters Protection Act (Art. 83 WPA).
