This Act provides for the preservation and management of public waters for their continuous use and for the efficient use of reclaimed land through environment-friendly reclamation of public waters. Public waters means seas or seashores and rivers, lakes, ditches, or water surfaces or water streams used for public use, which are state-owned. Reclamation of public waters means a formation of land by artificially filling the public waters with earth, rocks, stones and other objects. The Act specifies the authorities responsible for the management of public waters and specifies acts on public waters which shall be prohibited. Any person who intends to perform acts listed in article 8 shall obtain permission for occupancy or use from the management agency for public waters and then shall obtain authorization of implementation plan for occupancy and use of public waters in advance from the management agency before starting the related work. The Act provides for the establishment of a basic plan for the reclamation of public waters every ten years. Contents of the plan are given in the Act. Any person who intends to reclaim public waters shall obtain a licence from the administrative agency as provided for in the text. A reclamation licencee shall prepare an implementation plan and obtain authorization thereof before starting reclamation work. The Act further provides for: dispositions related to the reclamation of public waters; investigations related to the management, occupancy or use of public waters; reports and inspections; offences and penalties; etc.
Public Waters Management and Reclamation Act.