Czech Republic: more regulation in water and sewer systems business

Czech Republic

From 15th March, water and sewer systems operators have been subject to tighter consumer protection regulations and more balanced rules governing their relationships with municipalities and customers.

The main changes include:

  • extra regulations provided by the Ministry of Agriculture for renewing water and sewer systems and calculating water and sewage charges
  • new requirements for authorising the operation of water and sewer systems
  • a new obligation for owners to adopt (and follow) 10-year renewal programs for their water and sewer systems (starting from 31.12.2008)
  • a new obligation for operators of water and sewer systems to provide the Ministry of Agriculture on request with details of the calculation of water and sewage charges or the technical conditions of its water & sewer systems
  • extra duties on owners and operators of water and sewer systems to provide information to customers

Law: Act on Water and Sewer Systems No. 274/2001 Coll.