Water Act (2019).

This Act regulates the use and protection of water by establishing requirements for maintaining the status of surface water, groundwater and marine areas. It defines the classification of water bodies and sets conditions for preventing deterioration of their ecological, chemical and quantitative status. It provides that discharges of pollutants, including hazardous substances, are controlled through environmental quality standards, emission limit values and permits, and prohibits activities such as contamination, direct discharges into groundwater, and depletion of water resources.
Water management is organised on the basis of river basin districts, within which river basin management plans and programmes of measures are prepared and implemented. These instruments identify pressures on water, set water protection objectives and define measures to control pollution, regulate water use and improve water status. The Act establishes monitoring systems for assessing water quality, including the designation of protected areas, nitrate vulnerable zones and areas requiring specific protection measures.
The Act regulates the use of water through a system of permits and requirements governing abstraction, discharge of treated effluent, wastewater treatment, storm water management, and activities altering water bodies, such as damming, dredging and construction. It sets specific conditions for wastewater collection and treatment, establishes pollution limits, and requires the application of techniques to reduce pollution at source. It also includes restrictions on activities in water protection zones and sets rules for agricultural practices affecting water, including limits on fertilizer use and manure management in order to prevent pollution.
The Act establishes requirements for drinking water quality, water supply systems and risk-based control of water safety, as well as rules for mineral water and bathing water. It provides for the assessment and approval of groundwater resources, regulation of hydrogeological work, and control of activities affecting the marine environment, including dumping, pollution from ships and marine research. It defines obligations relating to monitoring, reporting and supervision, and establishes administrative measures and liability for violations of the Act.