Circular No. 03/2022/TT-BNNPTNT amending and supplementing certain Articles of Circular No. 05/2018/TT-BNNPTNT dated May 15, 2018 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development detailing certain provisions of the Law on Water Resources.

CIRCULAR

Amending and supplementing certain provisions of Circular No. 05/2018/TT-BNNPTNT dated May 15, 2018 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development detailing certain provisions of the Law on Water Works

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Pursuant to the Law on Water Works dated June 19, 2017;

Pursuant to Decree No. 15/2017/NĐ-CP dated February 17, 2017 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

At the proposal of the Director General of the Department of Water Resources;

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development promulgates this Circular amending and supplementing certain provisions of Circular No. 05/2018/TT-BNNPTNT dated May 15, 2018 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development detailing certain provisions of the Law on Water Works.

Article 1. Amending and supplementing certain provisions of Circular No. 05/2018/TT-BNNPTNT dated May 15, 2018 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development detailing certain provisions of the Law on Water Works

1. Amend and supplement Article 1 as follows:

"Article 1. Scope of Regulation

1. This Circular provides for the establishment, issuance, and implementation of operation procedures for water works projects; points of delivery and receipt of water products and services; marking boundary markers for the protection zones of water works projects; management and exploitation of small-scale water works and field-level water works.

2. Technical operation procedures for water works projects that are part of the design technical components not within the scope of this Circular shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of the Vietnamese Standard "Water Works Projects - Components and Content of Design Technical Specifications and Construction Drawings."

2. Amend Clause 1 and supplement Clause 5 of Article 2 as follows:

a) Amend Clause 1 as follows:

"1. The operation procedure for water works projects is a document specifying principles, responsibilities, organization of implementation, and operational sequence of water works projects within the system of water works projects; ensuring the safe operation of the water works project system in accordance with the designed mission, suitable to the water source conditions and efficient water distribution, harmonizing the interests between different water usage needs (hereinafter referred to as the Operation Procedure)."

b) Supplement Clause 5 as follows:

"5. A buried channel is an open water conveyance channel with a designed water level lower than the average natural ground surface level around it, which must be excavated below the natural ground surface when constructed."

3. Supplement Clause 9 of Article 4 as follows:

"9. Specific contents of the operation procedure at Model No. 02 Appendix I issued together with this Circular."

4. Amend and supplement Point b of Clause 1 of Article 6 as follows:

"b) Procedures, authority for establishing, reviewing, approving tasks, budgets, and organizing the selection of consulting units to prepare operation procedures shall be carried out according to the regulations on procedures, authority for establishing, reviewing, approving tasks, budgets, and organizing the selection of consulting units to prepare investment construction projects."

5. Amending and supplementing Article 15 as follows:

a) Amending Clause 2 as follows:

“2. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development manages or delegates management to the People's Committee of a province for water works projects where exploitation and protection involve two provinces or more. The list of delegated management tasks for water works projects involving two provinces or more is specified in Appendix II issued together with this Circular.”

b) Supplement Clause 2a following Clause 2 as follows:

“2a. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development decides to adjust the delegation of management of projects specified in Clause 2 of this Article in any of the following cases:

a) Projects completed in the construction phase are delegated to the People's Committee of a province for management;

b) Incidents affecting the safety of the project and downstream areas due to subjective reasons of the project manager or the operating unit;

c) For two consecutive years, the enterprise operating the water works project is rated C by the owner according to the laws on enterprises or the unit, organization operating the project is evaluated by the competent authority as failing to complete assigned tasks according to Party or Government guidelines;

d) Serious violations occur in implementing regulations on issuing permits for activities within the protection zone of the water works project.”

6. Supplement Article 15a following Article 15 as follows:

“Article 15a. Allocation of responsibilities in managing delegated water works projects

1. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development:

a) Aggregate and arrange delegated projects for repair, upgrading, and modernization into the investment plan from state budget funds and other lawful sources;

b) Establish and manage a database on water works; organize monitoring, forecasting water resources and quality to serve the guidance, operation of water works projects;

c) Review and approve adjustments to project tasks;

d) Guide and inspect compliance with laws on water works.

2. Provincial People's Committees:

a) Fulfill the owner’s responsibilities for delegated water works projects in accordance with the law;

b) Direct the project managers and operating units of the locality to implement management and operation of water works projects in accordance with the Law on Water Works and related laws;

c) Report on the results of management and operation of water works projects as required by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development or when there are violations in management, operation, and ensuring project safety.”

7. Supplement Article 15b following Article 15a as follows:

“Article 15b. Implementation of Delegation of Management

1. After the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development delegates management of projects to localities, relevant agencies under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the People's Committee of a province have the responsibility to advise the owner to allocate tasks to project managers and operating units.

2. Infrastructure assets handed over shall be handled in accordance with the Law on Management and Use of Public Assets.

3. Transfer project files:

a) For newly completed construction projects, the project investor shall transfer files to the management and operation unit in accordance with the law on construction;

b) For projects already managed and operated, the current operating unit shall transfer all related files to the new operating unit assigned the task. The transfer must be documented in a record with confirmation from all parties involved.”

8. Amend and supplement Article 17 as follows:

"Article 17. Competence to decide on the classification management of water conservancy works and the specific location of product and service delivery points

1. For water conservancy works managed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development:

a) The General Department of Water Resources shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies and units to submit to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for deciding on the classification management of water conservancy works;

b) Organizations providing water conservancy products and services under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall be responsible for coordinating with organizations and individuals using such products and services to determine the specific location of product and service delivery points.

2. For water conservancy works delegated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to provincial People's Committees for management; works managed by provincial People's Committees or delegated to district People's Committees for management:

a) The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant organizations and individuals to submit to the provincial People's Committee for deciding on the classification management of water conservancy works within the province and at the intra-field scale;

b) Organizations and individuals providing water conservancy products and services in the locality shall be responsible for coordinating with organizations and individuals using such products and services to determine the specific location of product and service delivery points.”

9. Amend and supplement Clause 3 of Article 18 as follows:

“3. In cases where there are boundary markers for land clearance or water source protection zones or other works, these markers shall be considered as reference markers for determining the boundaries of the protected area.”

10. Amend and supplement Clause 5 of Article 19 as follows:

"5. Based on the requirements for managing and protecting the works, the provincial People's Committee shall decide on the need to set up boundary markers for the protected area for submerged canals and other cases not specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, and 4 of this Article."

11. Amend Point b of Clause 2 of Article 20 as follows:

"b) For the reservoir basin defined in Clause 2 of Article 19 of this Circular, based on the terrain of the area where the markers are set and management requirements, the distance between two adjacent markers ranges from 200 meters to 500 meters; in areas with steep slopes or without residents, the distance between two adjacent markers may exceed 1,000 meters. At points where the boundary line intersects with terrain features, markers must be set.”

12. Supplement Clause 6 of Article 21 as follows:

"6. The budget estimate for setting up boundary markers, except for new construction projects and repairs decided by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to approve investment proposals, shall be approved by the Ministry.”

13. Supplement Clause 4 of Article 22 as follows:

"4. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall approve the budget estimate for setting up boundary markers for new construction projects and repairs decided by the Ministry to approve investment proposals after the provincial People's Committee approves the plan for setting up boundary markers.”

14. Amend and supplement Point b of Clause 1 of Article 31 as follows:

“b) A cooperative-based water management organization established from four or more grassroots water management cooperatives, operating in accordance with the laws on cooperatives.”

15. Amend and supplement Clause 2 of Article 31 as follows:

"2. The organizational structure of a cooperative-based water management organization shall be implemented in accordance with Article 29 of the Law on Cooperatives.”

Article 2. Amend, replace, and abolish certain provisions of Circular No. 05/2018/TT-BNNPTNT dated May 15, 2015, of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development detailing certain provisions of the Water Conservancy Law

1. Amend, replace, and abolish certain phrases in the following articles, clauses, and points:

a) Add the phrase "WATER CONSERVANCY WORK SYSTEM" to the name of Chapter II;

b) Replace the phrase “of the work” with the phrase “in” in Clause 1 of Article 5;

c) Remove the phrase "except for submerged canals" in Clause 3 of Article 19;

d) Remove the phrase “implementation costs” in Point d of Clause 4 of Article 21;

e) Remove the phrase "Within three years from the date this Circular takes effect" in Clause 1 of Article 30; remove the phrase "within the time limit stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article" in Clause 2 of Article 30.

2. Replace Appendix I and Appendix II issued along with Circular No. 05/2018/TT-BNNPTNT with Appendix I and Appendix II issued along with this Circular.

Article 3. Implementation Provisions

1. This Circular takes effect from August 1, 2022.

2. Transitional Provisions

a) Locations of product and service delivery points that have been approved by competent authorities before this Circular takes effect shall continue to be implemented;

b) Plans for setting up boundary markers for the protection of water conservancy works that have been approved before this Circular takes effect shall continue to be implemented.

3. During implementation, if there are difficulties or obstacles, organizations and individuals are requested to promptly reflect them in writing to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for consideration and resolution./.