Prohibited Acts under Vietnam’s Law on Water Resources 2023

Short answer: From 01/7/2024, the current legal framework is the Law on Water Resources No. 28/2023/QH15 (replacing the Law on Water Resources 2012). Article 8 of the Law lists 10 groups of prohibited acts in water resource activities, from wastewater discharge and illegal exploitation to falsifying water resource data. All citations of the Law on Water Resources 2012 now have only historical reference value.

Current legal framework: Law on Water Resources 2023

The Law on Water Resources No. 28/2023/QH15 was passed by the National Assembly on 27/11/2023 and took effect on 01/7/2024, replacing the Law on Water Resources 2012. Decree 53/2024/ND-CP is its main guiding document.

10 groups of prohibited acts (Article 8)

1. Dumping waste and garbage, dumping or leaking toxic substances, discharging toxic exhaust gases into water sources;
2. Discharging wastewater into groundwater; discharging wastewater not treated to meet environmental technical regulations on wastewater into surface water or seawater;
3. Discharging wastewater or introducing waste into sanitary protection zones of domestic water intake areas;
4. Illegal exploration, exploitation, and use of water resources, and illegal underground water drilling practice;
5. Encroaching upon or filling rivers, streams, canals, ditches, and arroyos (except where the law provides otherwise); placing obstacles, building architectural works, or planting trees that obstruct flood drainage or water circulation without remedial measures;
6. Illegal exploitation of sand, gravel, mud, soil, and other minerals on rivers, streams, canals, ditches, arroyos, lakes, or within water source protection corridors; drilling, digging, or building causing landslides on river, stream, canal, ditch, arroyo, or lake banks;
7. Destroying works for water protection, regulation, and storage, water exploitation and use, water resource monitoring and supervision, and works for preventing and remedying water-caused damage;
8. Falsifying information and data on water resources;
9. Failing to comply with reservoir and inter-reservoir operation procedures issued by competent authorities;
10. Building dams, reservoirs, water regulation and storage works, or developing water sources contrary to water resource planning, provincial planning, and other relevant plans.

Key notes

• The above acts may be subject to administrative sanctions under the sanctioning decree in the water resources sector, and may be subject to criminal prosecution if causing serious consequences.
• Enterprises exploiting and using water resources must hold licenses as prescribed and comply with obligations on water source protection, monitoring, and reporting under the Law on Water Resources 2023 and Decree 53/2024/ND-CP.

How ANT Legal can assist

ANT Legal advises on water resource exploitation and use licenses, compliance with environmental obligations, and handling legal issues arising in water-resource-related activities. For advice on your specific case, please contact our lawyers at 0966.475.966.