Regional Act No. 13 on soil protection.

Within the legal framework laid down in Act No. 183 of 1989, this Regional Act has been enacted to guarantee soil conservation, water restoration and to encourage the rational use of water resources. The Regional Basin Authority, established under the Regional Council (art. 2) shall govern the use and management of regional basins, which are determined by Annex B. The Authority consists of the Institutional Committee (art. 4), the Technical Committee (art. 6) and the Secretary-General (art. 7). The Region shall manage and coordinate an assessment and surveillance net which aims at protecting soil. The basin plans referred to in article 10 constitute sectorial territorial plans programming all interventions intended for the conservation and protection of soil and for the proper use of waters. Article 11 regulates the procedure to be followed to elaborate the above-mentioned plans. Basin Plans are enacted through three-year intervention programmes (art. 13).