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Wastewater management
Requesting authorisation with regard to water extraction or disposal or works close to a watercourse

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The provisions relating to the fight against water pollution aim in particular to:

  • protect the health of humans and animals and ensure the environmental balance;
  • protect the aquatic environment;
  • ensure the sustainable supply of drinking water based on the long-term protection of the available resources;
  • reduce the risk of flooding;
  • protect the surrounding countryside and land.

In this respect, businesses wishing to carry out water extraction or disposal concerning surface or ground water or that wish to carry out development works close to a watercourse must request permission from the Minister for Home Affairs and the Greater Region.

The application should be submitted to the Water Management Authority (Administration de la gestion de l’eau).

Who is concerned?

The water permit concerns all private or public natural or legal persons planning to carry out any of the following as part of their activities:

  • extraction, for example:
    • watering gardens;
    • providing drinking water to animals;
    • using water as cooling water;
  • water disposal, for example:
    • dumping cooling water;
    • storm drains;
    • water purification plants, etc.;
  • development or construction works near a watercourse, in particular:

    • planting coniferous trees (e.g. fir trees) at a distance of less than 30 metres from the edge of a watercourse;

    • felling of trees, shrubs or bushes from alongside watercourses;

    • carrying out works likely to change the rate or manner of water flow;

    • installations, constructions, warehouses, works or activities within a water protection area (flood plains or protection areas as per the general development plans).

What are the triggering events?

A water permit is required to carry out any of the following for personal or professional purposes:

  • water extraction or disposal of any kind with respect to surface water or ground water;
  • works or developments near a watercourse or in a water protection area.

A new permit is required if the authorised installations or activities:

  • have not been commenced, completed or put into service within 2 years;
  • have been subject to a modification or extension;
  • have been inactive for a period of more than 2 consecutive years;
  • have been destroyed or put out of use due to an accident.

The extraction of ground water using a drilling/extraction well also requires a classified establishment operating permit.

Where the project also requires a classified establishment operating permit, applicants do not need to submit a separate water permit application. Applicants should enclose 2 extra copies in their operating permit application. The Environment Agency (Administration de l’environnement) shall then forward them to the Water Management Authority (Administration de la gestion de l’eau).

What are the prerequisites?

Before preparing a water permit application dossier, certain items must be collected and checked:

  • a plan of the establishment on a scale of 1:200 or more precise showing in particular the layout of the premises and the location of the installations;
  • a recent extract from the land register showing the parcels of land or portions thereof situated within a perimeter of 200 metres from the establishment;
  • a topographic map extract on a scale of 1:10,000 or 1:20,000 indicating the planned location of the establishment if situated outside a town;
  • any other document enabling the project to be fully understood (photos, explanations, hydraulic calculations, etc.).

How to proceed

Four copies of the watercourse permit application should be sent to the Water Management Authority by registered letter.

Where the permit application also requires authorisation in respect of the protection of nature and natural resources, an extra copy should be enclosed. The Water Management Authority will then forward this copy to the Nature and Forestry Agency (Administration de la nature et des forêts).

The permit will lay down, in particular, the conditions according to which water extraction may be carried out and the control procedures to be carried out with respect to said extraction.

Officers of the Luxembourg police and certified agents of the Water Management Authority and the Customs and Excise Agency (Administration des douanes et accises) may carry out on-site controls and report offenders in the event of violation.

What are the deadlines?

Notification of the decision to authorise or refuse a permit is sent to the applicant within 3 months following the date on which confirmation that the application is complete is sent.

For classified establishment operating permit applications, the procedure deadlines remain unchanged.

Related form(s) and document(s)

Need help ?

All documents may be completed (either online or in writing) and sent by post. A form with the icon Luxtrust signature possible can be signed electronically with a Luxtrust product and sent online to the competent administration together with mandatory supporting documents, where required (scanned copies in PDF format).




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