Water Use Rights: Legal Regularization and Improvement

Regulation of Water Use Rights

Title II: Improving Securities for Water Use Rights

Article 44: All holders of water use rights recognized under Article 19, No. 24 (last paragraph) of the Constitution, Article 7 of Decree Law No. 2603 of 1979, and Articles 1 and 2 of the Transitional Water Code, must regularize their titles. If titles are incomplete—due to non-compliance or failure to indicate essential characteristics—holders must improve and regularize them to be incorporated into the Public Water Cadastre, as mandated by law and Articles 309, 310, 311, 312, and 313 of the Water Code.

Article 45: Essential Features for Water Rights

According to the law and these regulations, the following are the essential features required for the adjustment or recognition of each water use right:

• a) Name of the holder;
• b) The riverbed or location of the aquifer;
• c) Province of capture and restitution, if applicable;
• d) Flow rate, as per Articles 7 and 268 of the Water Code;
• e) Classification of the right, per Article 12 of the Water Code (consumptive or non-consumptive, permanent or temporary, continuous, intermittent, or alternating).

Any lack of determination or uncertainty regarding these features requires holders to regularize or refine their registration.

Article 46: Development and Revision Procedures

The development or revision of water rights aims to clarify essential identification characteristics in accordance with Decree Law No. 2603 (1979) and Articles 309, 312, and 313 of the Water Code. Such adjustments, as provided by Article 177 of the Water Code, shall be conducted through the summary procedure established in Title XI of Book III of the Code of Civil Procedure.