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A Study on the Water Resources Development Related Laws and Regulations of Korea
수자원관련 법령체계 개선방안 연구 Kwang-Mook Kim and Dong-Jin Choi
May 2004․295 pages․Korean
This study aims at proposing directions of improving water resources related laws. To draw out their problems, various water resources related laws are reviewed and compared, and the global trend of water resources legislation and many foreign cases are discussed. However, the scope of this study is not to delve into individual laws but to restructure and harmonize water resources related laws as a whole. The main theme of this study is to clarify the standpoint of national water resurces policy and the rationale of basic water laws which contributes consistency and integration among water resources related laws.
This report is composed of three main parts. Chapter 1 is an introductory part which describes the background and necessity of this research. The second part of the report, from the chapter 2 to the chapter 4, reviews the present status and characteristics of water resources related laws with global scope and deals with key issues in water resources management policy. The chapter 5 to the chapter 7, the third part tries to propose feasible policy alternatives for the development of water related laws, which include the necessity of basic water legislation and disputed points in legislate the basic water resources law.
The chapter 2 issues problems of current water related legal system, which symptomatically enacted and revised according to the transition of water management policy. Various laws, such as the River Act, Basic Environmental Policy Act and Groundwater Act, lack of harmonization. Each water related law has its own objectives, and goals and principles of integrated national water policy have not been elucidated as legislation. There are difficulties in settling water dispute because different provisions on water rights (water use right) such as water use rights in shared rivers (Civil Law Act)
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and permission for private use of flowing water (River Act) are contradictorily coexistent. As solutions to tackle problems in water laws, this study proposes following three priorities: Firstly, it is urgent to enact a national basic water law which integrates other related laws as a mother law. Secondly, it is necessary to introduce public ownership of water resources. Restructuring water management system based on watershed is also presented as one of major programs of the work.
Chapters 3 and 4 overview the global trend of water legislation and reviews foreign experiences of water resources law reform. The recent international trend of water policy could be summarized as follows. Many international meetings on water resources have highlighted the fact that people have to consider sustainable development and that water management and development should be conducted on a participatory basis with decision making occurring at the lowest appropriate level. The attention has increasingly turned to the need to protect and sustain the water resources on which everyone depends. Particular emphasis has been given to the sustainable management of water as a limited natural resource. There is also growing recognition that greater emphasis must be placed on the management of demand for water as an economic good to make sure that water use is as efficient as possible, both in terms of the quantities of used water and the impacts on water quality. In comparing foreign water legislation cases, this study classifies those experiences into four groups including England-American group, Europe continental group, water deficit group and Asia monsoon group. Comparison and analysis are focused on characteristics of water resources, legislative tradition, socioeconomic status.
Chapter 5 proposes directions to improve water related legal system, which give emphasis on legislation of the basic water act. This study recommends a gradual legislation approach without disturbing whole water related legal system. Urgent minimum requirements to harmonize and control existing water laws could be enacted as the basic water law with national water policy principles. Further development of the basic water law will proceed with revising other related laws.
Chapter 6 analyzes major issues in legislation of the basic water act including title and scope of the law, responsibility and obligation of the nation and stakeholders, water
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rights, resolution of water dispute, water related plans, and financing.
A draft of the basic water act which is composed of 4 chapters and 22 articles is presented in Chapter 7. General provisions, the national water management plan, water management system and supplementary rules are main chapters of the basic water act which is proposed as a transitional law in this study.
