National Contact Point for Renewable Energy Sources

A permit under the water legislation is required for projects and activities which may affect the condition of groundwaters and/or surface waters as specified in detail in the Article 389 and other provisions of the Water Law. The permit lists the requirements that are imposed on the investor in connection with an activity requiring the permit.

Pursuant to Article 35(6)(3) of the Water Law, the use of waters for power generation purposes is a water service that can only be performed once the permit required under the water legislation is secured.

Additionally, for hydropower plants, a permit under the water legislation is always required. A permit under the water legislation for the construction and operation of a hydropower plant is required in two aspects, i.e. for the erection of a water structure and the provision of water services involving the use of water for energy purposes.

Furthermore, the functioning of a biogas or biomass plant may require securing a permit under the Water Law. This applies for instance to water intake above 5 m3 a day. The aforementioned permit will also be required for instance to discharge industrial sewage containing substances particularly harmful to the water environment to sewage systems owned by third parties.

The above examples must not be treated as a full list of criteria for the requirement to obtain a permit under the water legislation. Every investor should each time undertake an individualised assessment for their project based on the requirements of the Environmental Law and the Water Law.

An application for a permit under the water legislation should specify the planned activity or project, the planned use of waters (scope), the water structures intended to be built and the location thereof. The following must be attached to the application:

• a survey under the water legislation (Polish: operat wodno-prawny) meeting the requirements laid down in the Water Law which contains the preparation date and a description of the intended activity in a non-specialist language;
• the environmental decision along with an assessment under the water legislation;
• an extract and excerpt from the Local Zoning Plan or, where there is no Local Zoning Plan, a decision on location of a public utility project or a planning permission;
• extracts from the register of land or simplified extracts from the register of land for the real properties situated within the impact range of the intended use of waters or within the impact range of the water structures to be built;
• a draft water management manual containing a description of how the water will be managed and how the needs of all users benefiting from the water structures whom the manual concerns will be satisfied, in a number of copies accounting for the water owner and the number of plants using the waters to which the water management manual applies (this pertains to plants which are expected to impound water by using a damming structure with a retention height above 1 m and with devices to adjust flow or to enable mutually dependent use of waters by several plants);
• a confirmation of effective notification, as referred to in Article 118(1) of the Nature Act, if required.

A survey under the water legislation defines (in the descriptive part):

• the plant applying for the permit, its registered office and address;
• details of:

1. the purpose and scope of the intended water use;
2. the purpose and type of the planned water structures or works;
3. the type of measurement devices and navigation signs
4. the type and range of the intended water use or use of the planned water structures;
5. the legal status of the real properties situated within the impact range of the intended water use or the intended use or the planned water structures, along with registered offices and addresses of their owners in accordance with the register of land and buildings;
6. the responsibilities of the entity applying for a permit under the water legislation towards third parties;

• a description of water structure containing the basic parameters characterising the structure, the conditions of its construction and its location providing information about the name or number of the land precinct and the number(s) of the plot(s) and the coordinates;
• the characteristics of the waters covered by the permit under the water legislation;
• the characteristics of the wastewater or precipitation water or meltwater receiving body covered by the permit under the water legislation (if applicable);
• the arrangements arising from:

1. the water management plan for the catchment area;
2. the flood risk management plan;
3. the drought consequences prevention plan;
4. the sea water protection programme;
5. the national municipal wastewater treatment programme;
6. the development plan or programme for inland waterways of special transportation significance;

• the impact of the planned water structures or the intended water use on surface waters and groundwaters, especially on the condition of those waters and on the attainment of the environmental objectives defined for them;
• the size of inviolable flow and the method for its calculation and for reading its value on the site of the water use;
• the mean low flow for a long-term period (mlQ) or the groundwater resource;
• operating mode of the hydroelectric power plant and its parameters: Qinst (installed flow rate), hinst (water head), Ninst (installed capacity of the power plant);
• the planned start-up period, the procedure for start-up, shutdown or breakdown or any structures important for the implementation of the permit under the water legislation, as well as the extent and conditions of the use of waters and water structures in such situations along with their maximum acceptable duration;
• information on the nature conservation sites created or established based on the Nature Act which are present within the impact range of the intended use of waters and the planned water structures;

and (in the graphic section):

• the outline of the water structures and the impact range of the intended use of waters and the planned water structures along with their surface area on a land survey map, with marked real properties;
• basic longitudinal sections and cross-sections of the water structures and the beds of the running waters within the structure impact range;
• a drawing presenting the location of measurement devices and navigation signs;
• a functional or process drawing for the water structures.

As a part of the verification process, the authority checks if a permit under the water legislation is allowed, i.e. whether the permit may violate:

• the provisions of protection plans and protection task plans for protected areas;
• the provisions of the flood risk management plan;
• the provisions of the drought consequences prevention plan;
• the provisions of the sea water protection programme;
• the provisions of the national municipal wastewater treatment programme;
• the provisions of the Local Zoning Plan, the planning permission and the decision on location of a public utility project;
• the requirements linked to the protection of human health, nature conservation and the protection of the cultural heritage listed in the register of historical monuments and any requirements arising from statutory or other separate regulations;
• the provisions of the water management plan for the catchment area (for hydropower plants, this verification is carried out at the stage of the assessment under the water legislation conducted as a part of the environmental decision process).

In the case of hydropower plants, the authority also checks if the planned water use for hydropower purposes will utilise the hydropower potential in a way that is reasonable from a technical and economic perspective.

The authority also checks if the plant that intends to use waters or built water structures or that plans other activities requiring a permit under the water legislation has complied with the obligations arising from any previously issued permits under the water legislation.

After the verification process, the administration authority must conclude the case by either granting or denying the permit under the water legislation.

If the verification result is negative for any of the items listed above, the authority will refuse to issue the permit.

Up to 1 month,
particularly complex cases – up to 2 months from process initiation (provided that a complete application along with all required documentation has been submitted).

The authority competent for the permit, depending on project type is either the Director of the Executive Board of the State Water Holding Polish Waters Catchment Area (dyrektor zarządu zlewni Państwowego Gospodarstwa Wodnego Wody Polskie) or (less commonly) the Director of the Regional Water Management Board (RZGW) of the State Water Holding Polish Waters.

The application must be submitted to the locally competent authority.

If the State Water Holding Polish Waters is the applicant, the authority competent for approvals under the water legislation is the minister in charge of water management matters.

The Polish Waters unit issues the permit for a fixed term not longer than 30 years.

The stamp duty for a permit under the water legislation is PLN 318.60. Several permits under the water legislation can be issued in one decision.

The stamp duty is multiplied by the number of permits under the water legislation. The maximum stamp duty must not exceed PLN 5,720.17.

The stamp duty for an authorisation is PLN 17.

After receiving the decision, the applicant has 14 days to appeal. The appeal must be filed to the State Water Holding Polish Waters unit that issued the decision.

The appeal is reviewed by:

• the Director of the Regional Water Management Board of the State Water Holding Polish Waters – if the decision was issued by the Director of the Executive Board of the State Water Holding Polish Waters Catchment Area;
• the President of the State Water Holding Polish Waters – if the decision was issued by the Director of the Regional Water Management Board.

If the decision was issued by the minister in charge of water management matters (currently the Minister of Infrastructure), the investor should file a request for reconsideration rather than an appeal to that minister.

The application can be submitted online to the public administration body having jurisdiction over the matter on ePUAP.