!!!Wasserrecht

Water Law, regulations on water as the basis of all life and on issues 
of water management. The water law is drawn up and executed by federal 
authorities. A uniform Austrian water law was first enacted in 1869. 
The current Water Act dates from 1934; it underwent substantial 
amendments and was passed as the Water Act of 1959, substantially 
amended in 1990. The law distinguishes between public and private 
bodies of water. Every use of water, which exceeds general use where 
public bodies of water are concerned and personal use for home and 
economic purposes where private bodies of water are concerned or where 
other parties´ rights or bodies of water are concerned, requires 
the permission of the water law authority. Under no circumstances may 
municipalities and villages be deprived of water required for 
fire-fighting or other public purposes or for home and business use. 
Legal provisions on the protection of bodies of  Water are becoming 
increasingly important for public health and the public economy. 
Authorisation procedures for flood protection and water regulation 
structures, torrent control measures, sub-drainage and building 
activities on banks and on flood plains are necessary for the control 
and management of bodies of water. Water co-operatives or water 
associations may be set up to protect real estate from water damage, 
to regulate or maintain bodies of water and to deal with issues of 
torrent and avalanche control, water supply, drainage and irrigation, 
disposal and purification of wastewater, exploitation of water power 
and management of bodies of water and water supply structures.

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The water authority is part of the general national administration 
system, which in turn is governed directly by the  Landeshauptmann 
(provincial governor) in the federal provinces. Its three instances 
are the district administrative authority, the provincial governor and 
the Ministry of  Agriculture. Danube power stations, storage dams, 
border waters, nuclear reactors and the supply of Vienna with water 
are administered by the ministry. Municipalities (the local police 
force) are authorised to implement temporary security measures in 
cases of imminent danger. Water supply structures are administered by 
the water board of control organised by the provincial governor. 
Violations of the water law are not only punishable by law and subject 
to liability for damages but violators are also required by law to 
restore a condition consistent with the law and to remedy problems 
caused by the pollution of a body of water. Every administrative 
district has its own water cadastre, where all water exploitation 
rights, water co-operatives and water associations are registered. The 
water cadastre is administered by the provincial governor and is open 
to public inspection.

!Literature
H. Rossmann, Wasserrecht, 1990.


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