Article 18 Discharge of water

Subject to paragraphs (3), (4) and (8) the undertaker may use any watercourse or any public sewer or drain for the drainage of water in connection with the construction or maintenance of the authorised development and for that purpose may lay down, take up and alter pipes and may, on any land within the Order limits, make openings into, and connections with, the watercourse, public sewer or drain.

Any dispute arising from the making of connections to or the use of a public sewer or drain by the undertaker under paragraph (1) is to be determined as if it were a dispute under section 106 (right to communicate with public sewers) of the Water Industry Act 1991^f1.

The undertaker must not discharge any water into any watercourse, public sewer or drain except with the consent of the person to whom it belongs whose consent may be given subject to terms and conditions as that person may reasonably impose.

The undertaker must not carry out any works to or make any opening into any public sewer or drain except—

Subject to paragraph (6) the undertaker must not, in carrying out or maintaining works pursuant to this article, damage or interfere with the bed or banks of, or construct any works in, under, over or within eight metres of, any watercourse forming part of a main river, or within 16 metres of a tidally influenced main river without the prior written consent of the Environment Agency.

Where the undertaker discharges water into, or makes any opening into, a watercourse, public sewer or drain belonging to or under the control of a drainage authority (as defined in Part 3 of Schedule 14 (protective provisions)), the provisions of Part 3 of Schedule 14 apply in substitution for the provisions of paragraphs (3) and (4).

The undertaker must take such steps as are reasonably practicable to secure that any water discharged into a watercourse or public sewer or drain pursuant to this article is as free as may be practicable from gravel, soil or other solid substance, oil or matter in suspension.

This article does not authorise the entry into controlled waters (within the meaning given by section 104 of the Water Resources Act 1991^f2) of any matter whose entry or discharge into controlled waters requires a licence pursuant to the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016^f3.

In this article—