As a company or private individual, you can apply for a permit under water law to withdraw or discharge water from above-ground public waters, i.e. from rivers, lakes, canals, streams, ditches and ponds. The competent authority will examine your application and decide whether you can be granted permission.

Under certain circumstances, the authority may have to carry out a formal administrative procedure. This may be the case, for example, if the circumstances are particularly complex. Both affected third parties and you have the opportunity to comment on the project. For this purpose, the authority publishes the project and, if necessary, holds an oral hearing. If you want to withdraw water for public use, you do not need a permit under water law. This may be the case, for example, if you need to pump water to extinguish a fire.

You must provide the following information in your application:

• Purpose of the withdrawal or discharge
• Duration, type and quantity of the withdrawal

To enable the authority to assess your project and its impact, you must submit several documents with your application, for example an

• explanatory report,
• site plans and sketches of the pump system and transport systems.

Depending on the type of project, the documents requested can vary greatly and be very extensive. If in doubt, you should clarify in advance with the authority which documents are required in your case.

The permit specifies the type and extent of use. It may be linked to conditions and ancillary provisions. In contrast to an authorization, a permit can be revoked by the authorities.