Parliament has passed the Water Use Regulations of 2001 L.I. 1692, approving the procedure for granting of permits for the use of raw or natural water in the country, by the Water Resources Commission (WRC).
It provides for the categories of water uses requiring permits, and specifies the raw water charges payable by all permit holders. The raw water uses requiring permits include commercial, municipal, industrial, and agricultural uses. The rest are, power generation, water transportation, fisheries, (aquaculture) environmental, recreational and under water (wood) harvesting uses.
The L.I. exempts all raw water uses for domestic, fire fighting and subsistence agricultural uses for land areas not exceeding a hectare from obtaining permits. These uses however have to be registered with the Commission for documentary purposes.
The objectives of the L.I. are to enable the Commission undertake its programmes and tasks towards the effective management of the water resources of Ghana. These programmes and tasks include research activities that would be beneficial to the overall management of water resources, promoting conservation and sound environmental practices through public awareness and capacity building programmes, development of an efficient water resources database, watershed protection schemes among others.
It also stipulates the application processes and the obligations of the Commission in receiving, processing and granting or refusing to grant permits.
All applications for water used for domestic purposes, like bore holes or hand-dug wells and subsistence farming are to be submitted to the relevant district assemblies for registration and onward transmission of the data to the Commission for entry into the Water Register on a quarterly basis.
The L.I. provides for the duration of permits, how a permit can be granted or circumstances under which permits may be refused and the mode of seeking redress by aggrieved persons.
