Table of Contents (To Be Developed When the This Draft Is Finalised)

Groundwater Pollution ControlRegulations

Table of Contents (to be developed when the this draft is finalised)

Preamble

Safe groundwater is a scarce resource in Palestine. The Water Law No. 3 of 2002 stipulates in Article 29 the responsibility of the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) with the delineation of the protection of water resources and prevention of its pollution. However, the PWA has a shared responsibility with other relevant authorities such as the Environment Quality Authority to protect the ambient environment, the Ministry of Agriculture for regulating the agriculture and irrigation sector, and the Ministry of Health for the protection of water resources quality responsible to drinking water quality. These Regulations aim not to contravene any other regulations or standards relevant for the protection of groundwater.

The Water Law No. 3 of 2002 has to be considered as the basic legislation for these Regulations. In addition, the Environmental Law No. 7 of 1999 prescribes development of relevant regulations and standards, contributes to clarification of the division of roles and responsibilities between different relevant authorities within this field, and constitutes alsoa part of the legal basis for theseRegulations.

PWA has in its mandate set out in Article 7.4 of the Water Law No. 3 of 2002 the task to create reservation areas for protection from the danger of pollution, exercising oversight and supervision over such areas, and approval of transfer of water between the different geographic areas.

Article 31 of the Water Law No. 3 of 2002 states that any area that contains groundwater is considered a protected area if the quality or quantity is in danger.

Chapter One – Preliminary

Article 1(Title)

These Regulations may be cited as Groundwater pollution control regulations.

Article 2(Objective)

These Regulations aim to regulate groundwater pollution control toprevent contamination of groundwater, or restore polluted groundwater, to obtain an acceptable water quality in accordance with prevailing standards. In addition, these Regulations aim to contribute to a sustainable integrated water resources management in the PalestinianTerritories to the best for the society as a whole.

Article 3(Application)

These Regulations apply to groundwater pollution control, and measures used in conjunction with such control, relating to protection of areas, activities, substances, discharge, disposal, monitoring and restoration.

Article 4(Interpretation)

In these Regulations, the following words and expressions shall have the stated meaning, unless the context otherwise requires:

Activity

Any activity involving discharge, disposal or storage of substances listed in an annex to these Regulations.

Activity facility

Any facility or physical structure used for activities involving discharge, disposal or storage of substances listed in an annex to these Regulations.

Aquifer

A geological formation or layer of rock or layer of material that is permeable to water and capable of containing or transmitting groundwater.

Authority

The Palestinian Water Authority

Conduit Flow Conditions

Conduit flow conditions are most commonly associated with karst carbonate rocks and results in a rapid response to recharge, turbulence and highly variable water chemistry, temperature and flow rates.

Diffuse Flow Conditions

Diffuse flow conditions can exist within sedimentary, volcanic or metamorphic rock sequences, but are most common within highly fractured sedimentary rocks and results in a less dramatic response to discharge and recharge events than observed in Conduit flow.

Direct discharge

The introduction into groundwater of any substances listed in an annex to these Regulations without percolation through the ground or subsoil.

EQA

The Environment Quality Authority

Environmental Law

The Palestinian Environmental Law, 7/1999

Groundwater

Subsurface water that fills available openings in rock or soil materials such that they may be considered water saturated under hydrostatic pressure.

Groundwater Resources

All water in saturated zones under the surface in aquifers.

Hazardous waste

Any matter or wastes of any description including petroleum related products and radioactive material which, when discharged in any surface water or underground aquifer, presents an imminent and substantial hazard to public health or welfare and shall include all materials or wastes, so designated in these Regulation or other related regulations.

Indirect discharge

The introduction into groundwater of any substances listed in an annex to these Regulations after percolation through the ground or subsoil.

Municipality

A formally established municipal district, village council, city, or town or village with a formally established management body, recognised as such by the Palestinian Authority

PalestinianTerritories

Consists of West Bank and the Gaza Strip as a single territorial unit, in accordance with the provisions of the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements of 13 September 1993 (also known al the ‘Oslo Accord’ or ‘Oslo 1’), currently under the rule official of the Palestinian Authority.

Pollution

The discharge by man, directly or indirectly, of substances or energy into groundwater, the results of which are such as to endanger human health or water supplies, harm living resources and the aquatic ecosystem or interfere with other legitimate uses of water;

Porous Flow Conditions

Porous flow or groundwater movement down gradient through porous media aquifers have fairly homogeneous distributions of solid materials and interconnected pore space such as sandstones and alluvium.

Receiving body

Any zone, interval, formation or unit in the subsurface into which fluids and pollutants are discharged

Time of Travel (ToT)

The amount of time it takes fluids to travel from a point source to a well.

Toxic substances

Wastes which are due to the presence of those substances or combinations of substances including disease causing agents, which after discharge and upon exposure, ingestion or assimilation into any environmentally significant human organism may cause disease, death, behaviour abnormalities, physiological malfunctions or physical deformation in such organisms or their offspring.

Vadose zone

The unsaturated zone in the earth, between the land surface and the top of the first saturated aquifer which is not a perched aquifer. The vadose zone characteristically contains liquid water under less than atmospheric pressure and water vapour and air and other gases at atmospheric pressure. Perched water bodies may exist within the vadose zone.

Water Law

The Palestinian Water Law No. 3 of 2002.

Well Head Protection Zones

The entire surface and subsurface area surrounding a well or a well field, supplying a public or private water system, through which contaminants are reasonably likely move towards and reach such water well or well field after some time.

Chapter Two – Prevention of pollution of groundwater

Article 5(Well head protection area)

The Authority shall, to as large extent reasonable in relation to its capacity and need for prioritising, determine a well head protection area applying to the entire surface and subsurface area surrounding a well or a well field, supplying a public or private water system , through which contaminants are likely to reach such a well or well field after a period varying from at least 50 days to up most 10 years.

Article 6(Zoning)

The Authority shall divide a well head protection area into three different zones, taking into consideration the ToT and associated need for protection against pollution. The zoning shall be related to the following criteria:

a. Zone I:50 days ToT or 50 meters radius, whichever indicates the largest area;

b. Zone II:2 years ToT; and

c. Zone III:10 years ToT.

The criteria described under subsection (1) are indicative. Based on all relevant factors and the extent of available information, the Authority shall make an individual decision seeking an optimal solution for zoning of each well head protection area.

Article 7(Restriction of activities)

1. In order to prevent or reduce the risk of pollution of groundwater, EQA shall develop one or more lists of activities which may be restricted within the different zones of a well head protection area. The reason to restrict activities is the connection between those activities and regulated substances. This list, or those lists, shall be incorporated as an annex to these Regulations.

2. The Authority may decide that some activities specified in the annex shall be prohibited within one or more of the zones as described under Article 5. Other specified activities may only provide guidance to the Authorities’ decisions to be made in conjunction with licensing. The Authority may differ between existing activities and establishment of new activities of the same type.

Article 8(Regulated substances)

EQA shall develop one or more lists of substances applicable in relation to the Authority’s considerations of restriction or licensing of activities, discharge, disposal or storage. The involvement of listed substances may make it mandatory for the Authority to reject applications, or the list or those lists, may only give guidance for the Authority’s considerations and decisions. Such list, or lists, shall be incorporated as an annex to these Regulations.

Chapter Three – Licensing and licences

Article 9(Licence requirements)

1. No person may execute any activity involvingdischarge, disposal or storage of substances listed in an annex to these Regulations, or to construct, alternate, own or operate a disposal system, within any zones of a well head protection area, without a licence granted by the Authority. This licence requirement applies to both existing and intended activities.

2. Subsection (1) does not apply to:

1. drilling fluids and additives associated with drilling of new wells; and

1. application of fertilisers, pesticides or other agriculture chemicals approved for that purpose by EQA or any other empowered authority, and in compliance with prevailing standards regulating such activities in particular.

3. The Authority may exempt activities regulated under subsection (1) from licensing if the quantity or adverse impacts of the discharge or disposal is considered to be insignificant.

4. A person who executes an activity regulated under subsection (1) prior to these Regulations becoming effective,shall submit an application for a licence to the Authority within a timeframe from the effective date, to be determined by the Authority by a decision applying to groups of prospective licensees, or to individual prospective licensees. The Authority is responsible for notifying all prospective licensees in a way ensuring them attainment of knowledge about the licensing requirement.

Article 10(Qualification requirements of applicants)

Only the following may obtain a licence:

(a)associations and cooperatives duly registered and organised under laws of Palestine;

(b)Governmental entities, including Governmental owned and controlled corporations;

(c)local authorities and municipalities, and entities and corporations owned and controlled by such;

(d)private persons or corporations

A prospective licensee shall be formally organised in a way that it may sue and be sued in its corporate or personal name.

Article 11(Application)

1. An application for a licence shall, as far as relevant, contain:

1. name, address and full contact details of applicant;
2. public registration documents of applicant;
3. location and description of physical aspects of the discharge, disposal or storage subject to licensing;
4. source, chemical, physical, radiological, toxic and other relevant characteristics of the discharge, disposal or storage subject to licensing;
5. own management procedures for pollution control;
6. quantity of the discharge, disposal or storage subject to licensing, and its distribution over the year, month, and day;
7. construction and engineering detail of any involved facilities;
8. operating data of any involved facilities;
9. methods and procedures for inspection and operations of the involved facilities, and for detecting failure of the system in a timely fashion;
10. contingency plans to cope with all malfunctions to prevent endangerment of groundwater;
11. an assessment of alternative disposal practices demonstrating that the solution applied for is the best management alternative,. in case of direct discharge to groundwater; and
12. any other information deemed required by the Authority.

2. An application for an Environmental Approval, subject to consideration pursuant to Article 47 of the Environmental Law, shall be attached to an application for an abstraction licence.

3. If requested, the Authority shall provide guidance on the contents of an application prior to its dispatch.

4. Within 30 days of receipt of an application, the Authority shall inform the applicant whether the application is regarded as complete, or request additional specified information. The Authority shall also respond on the completeness of such additional requested information within 30 days of receipt.

5. An application for a licence, except for information regarded as business secrets, shall be regarded as a public document and may be reviewed by the public, if requested.

Article 12(Procedures of processing and consultation)

1. The Authority shall refer an applicant to the Environment Quality Authority (EQA) for a consideration of the application for a licence in relation to requirements for obtaining an Environmental Approval pursuant to the Environmental Law, Article 47. If preparation of an Initial Environmental Evaluation (IEE) or an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is not found required, EQA, in consultation with the Authority or the Environmental Assessment Committee (EAC) as required in the Environmental Assessment Policy of 2000, shall decide whether an Environmental Approval shall be granted, and, if so, on what conditions.

2. If preparation of an IEE or an EIA is found required, EQA shall be responsible for the processing of such evaluations or assessments in consultation with the Authority and EAC. The Authority shall seek to have issues of importance for its processing of a licence application to be involved in the preparation of the mentioned evaluations and assessments, including in consultations.

3. If found required, the Authority shall ensure provision of information and execution of considerations beyond the scope of the current environmental evaluations and assessments to be dealt with in its processing of an application, in consultation with EAC.

4. The Authority and EQA shall determine requirements for public consultation for licence applications and IEEs and EIAs and licence applications respectively from case to case. Regarding public consultations, the Authority and EQA shall cooperate and coordinate the execution of appropriate publication of notices, review of applications, evaluations and assessments in public offices, stakeholders’ submission of representations, common meetings with an applicant, local authorities and municipalities, public meetings and site visits.

5. After EQA has granted an Environmental Approval, the Authority shall complete its processing of a licence application.

Article 13(A decision)

1. If attainment of an environmental approval is found required by EQA, the Authority may not grant a licence until such an approval is obtained.

2. Upon making a decision, the Authority shall take into consideration the possibility for treatment of the discharge or disposal. In relation to storage, the Authority shall take into consideration the probability of leakages, and the likely adverse impacts of such leakages.

3. To grant a licence, the benefits of the activity applied for shall exceed the adverse impacts, all relevant interests taken into account.

4. The Authority may reject an application, grant a licence, or grant a licence on certain relevant conditions to be determined in conjunction with each specific licence.

5. If the Environment Quality Authority according to Article 47 of the Environmental Law decides that an activity regulated under subsection (1) of this Article requires an environmental approval, the Authority’s grant of a licence is subject to prior attainment of such an environmental approval.

6. The Authority shall not grant a licence allowing discharge, disposal or storage not in conflict with any standards issued by any competent authority.

7. A decision shall be in writing, and shall include grounds for the decision.

8. A decision, including a granted licence shall be regarded as public documents, and may be reviewed by the public if requested.

Article 14(Licence conditions)

As far as found relevant by the Authority, a licence shall contain conditions relating to the licensee’s inspection and maintenance of own involved activity facilities subject to licensing, and development of a monitoring programme to be approved by the Authority, and the implementation of such a programme. The licence conditions shall be considered and imposed in conjunction with each specific application.

Article 15(Licensing fees)

1. A licensee shall pay licensing fees covering the Authority’s processing of an application for a licence, for a renewal of a licence and for following-up and monitoring in accordance with separate Regulations for Licensing Fees.

2. Licensing fees may be a combination of a one time payment for processing of applications, and an annual fee for following-up and monitoring of a licensee.

3. The part of the licensing fee intended to cover the Authority’s processing of the application shall be paid before the processing is initiated.

Article 16(Duration, renewal and transfer)

1. The Authority shall determine the duration of a licence based on considerations in relation to each specific application. The duration shall not be less than one year, and not exceed 25 years.

2. On expiry, a licence may be renewed for at least one year. An application for renewal of a licence shall be submitted to the Authority within a certain timeframe before expiry of the existing licence, to be determined by the Authority in relation to each specific application. The timeframe shall not be less than one month and not exceed 12 months. The duration of the existing licence and the estimated extent of the process and considerations required in relation to an application, shall be taken into account when determining the timeframe.

3. Upon making a decision on an application for renewal of a licence, the Authority shall take into consideration changed circumstances and additional information and knowledge obtained, since the original licence was granted.

4. The Authority may consult relevant public and private stakeholders before making a decision.

5. Transfer of a licence is subject to prior approval by the Authority.

Article 17(Order compliance)

1. Where the Authority is of the opinion that a licensee is contravening any obligations under these Regulations, its licence, or any other relevant law, the Authority shall direct the licensee to comply with the obligations the contravention is related to.

2. A notice containing the direction to comply shall be submitted to the licensee and shall contain information about the obligations the contravention is related to, acts, omissions or other facts which in the Authority’s opinion constitute the contravention, the period within which the licensee shall rectify the contravention, and the period, being not less than 15 days, within which the licensee may submit its representations on the notice to the Authority.