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Drinking Water Management Act

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Chapter 1 General Principles

Article 1

This Act is formulated to ensure the quality of drinking water sources, improve public drinking water quality and maintain public health. The regulations of other laws shall apply to those matters not regulated by this Act.

Article 2

The competent authority referred to in this Act means the Environmental Protection Administration, Executive Yuan, at the central government level, the municipal government in special municipalities, and the county or city government in counties or cities.

Article 3

Drinking water referred to in this Act means water provided for human drinking. Types of drinking water include the following types.
I. "Tap water", which means sanitary public water supply subject to the Tap Water Act that is guided and supplied by waterpipes and other facilities.
II. Water from community-installed public water supply equipment.
III. Water provided by source treated by stationary continuous water supply equipment.
IV. Other water designated by the central competent authority.
Drinking water sources are as follows.
1. Surface water body means water, in part or in whole, existing in 

rivers, lakes,reservoirs, ponds and other systems.
2. Groundwater body means the water existing in underground water-bearing

strata.
3. Other water designated by the central competent authority.

Article 4

Drinking water equipment referred to in this Act means equipment subject to the regulations of the Tap Water Act, community-installed public water supply equipment, stationary continuous water supply equipment provided by public or private premises to the public for drinking, and other equipment designated and officially announced by the central competent authority.

Chapter 2 Water Source Management

Article 5

Acts that pollute water source quality are prohibited in areas within a certain distance of a drinking water source quality protection area or drinking water intake point.
"Acts that pollute water source quality" in the foregoing paragraph means:
1. Illegal logging of forests or clearing of land
2. Development of industrial parks or establishment of polluting factories
3. Development of nuclear energy or other forms of energy or construction of radioactive nuclear waste storage or processing facilities
4. Dumping, release or discarding of garbage, ash, soil and rock, sludge, excrement and urine, waste oil, waste chemical products, animal carcasses or other articles sufficient to cause the pollution of water sources
5. For-profit raising of livestock or poultry
6. Development of new communities; however, communities formed by aboriginal villages due to natural population increases shall not be subject to this restriction
7. Construction, renovation or expansion of golf courses
8. Extraction of soil and rock, mineral exploration or mineral mining
9. Development of railways, mass transit systems, harbors or airports with scale and scope requiring the implementation of environmental impact assessments
10. Those river channel modification projects sufficient to impact the self-purification ability of the river and that fail to receive the authorization of the competent authority and industry competent authority
11. Those roadway and athletic facility development projects that fail to receive the authorization of the competent authority and the industry competent authority
12. Other acts officially announced by the central competent authority as prohibited
Those acts in Subparagraphs 1 through 9 and Subparagraph 12 of the foregoing paragraph that are necessary for the lives of residents and that receive the approval of the competent authority shall not be subject to this restriction.
The special municipality, county or city competent authority shall draft the scope of the drinking water source quality protection area and the certain distance from drinking water intake points in the foregoing paragraph, and shall issue official announcements after approval by the central competent authority. The central competent authority shall make determinations and issue official announcements for those circumstances that involve two or more special municipalities, counties or cities.
For those existing buildings or land uses in areas within a certain distance of a drinking water source quality protection area or drinking water intake point that, after official announcement, the competent authority in consultation with the relevant agencies deems are polluting a water source, the owner or user may be notified to carry out removal, make improvements or change the use within a certain time period. The tap water enterprise or other relevant enterprise shall provide compensation for all losses incurred by the owner or user.

Article 6

Only those water bodies designated in each subparagraph of Article 3, Paragraph 2 that meet water quality standards for drinking water sources may serve as drinking water sources.However, drinking water source or water treatment and improvement plans submitted to the central competent authority in application for approval shall not be subject to this restriction. The central competent authority shall determine regulations governing application qualifications for proposing improvement plans, content of the plans, documentation that shall be attached, procedures, monitoring, response measures, approval conditions, rejection, corrections, and other binding matters.
The central competent authority shall determine the water quality standards for drinking water sources in the foregoing paragraph.

Chapter 3 Equipment Management

Article 7

Management of the tap water equipment shall be subject to the regulations of the Tap Water Act.

Article 8

Those public and private premises officially announced by the central competent authority that install stationary continuous water supply equipment for public drinking shall apply to and register with the special municipality, county or city competent authority before use of said equipment may begin; the central competent authority shall determine regulations for application and registration, changes in registration, validity period and extensions and other binding matters for said application.

Article 9

Public or private premises that provide stationary continuous water supply equipment to the public for drinking shall performance maintenance in accordance with regulations and shall keep maintenance records. Records shall be posted and preserved for examination by the competent authority; the central competent authority shall determine regulations for maintenance methods, frequency, production of records, posting, validity period, and other binding matters for maintenance.

Article 10

Drinking water equipment designated and officially announced by the central competent authority shall meet national standards; the central competent authority shall officially announce standards for those circumstances in which there are no national standards.

Chapter 4 Water Quality Management

Article 11

The quality of drinking water shall meet drinking water quality standards.
The central competent authority shall determine the drinking water quality standards in the foregoing paragraph.

Article 12

Public or private premises that provide stationary continuous water supply equipment to the public for drinking shall perform sampling and testing of water quality conditions and keep maintenance records for future reference. The central competent authority shall determine regulations for water quality testing items, frequency, maintenance records, posting, validity period, methods for sample testing of equipment and other binding matters.
Sampling, testing and analysis of water quality conditions in the foregoing paragraph shall be carried out by an environmental analysis laboratory that has been issued a permit by the central competent authority.

Article 12-1

Analysis laboratories shall obtain permits issued by the central competent authority before they may perform analysis in this Act.
The central competent authority shall determine management regulations for the required conditions; facilities; application, review, issuance, replacement, revocation, cancellation, suspension of business, resumption of business, checking and evaluation of permits; and other binding matters for analysis laboratories in the foregoing paragraph.
The central competent authority shall determine testing methods and quality control items for drinking water source quality, drinking water quality and drinking water treatment agents.

Article 13

Those chemical agents used for drinking water quality treatment shall be limited to those officially announced by the central competent authority. Water supply units may apply to the central competent authority to officially announce an unlisted agent as chemical agent used for drinking water treatment. The central competent authority shall determine regulations governing application qualifications, documentation that shall be attached, procedures, approval conditions, rejection, corrections, and other binding matters.

Article 14

Competent authorities at all levels shall select locations, perform regular sampling and testing, compile and analyze data, and, based on testing results, adopt appropriate measures. A competent authority shall officially announce promptly a prohibition on the consumption of that drinking water for which it has been proven there is a concern of the endangerment of human health.
Special municipality, county and city competent authorities shall report the sampling locations, testing results and adopted measures in the foregoing paragraph to the central competent authority.

Article 14-1

When a natural disaster or other force majeure causes drinking water source quality to deteriorate, the water supply unit for tap water, small water treatment facilities or community-installed public water supplies shall adopt response measures and strengthen drinking water quality testing promptly after the incident occurs; the water supply unit shall also promptly notify the public of water quality conditions and response measures via newspaper, television, radio, billboards, posted official announcements or other methods.

Article 15

Competent authorities at all levels may dispatch personnel to enter public or private premises bearing documents verifying their duties or markings providing sufficient identification and inspect drinking water source quality, drinking water quality, stationary continuous water supply equipment, drinking water treatment agents, or seek relevant samples or data; evasion, obstruction, or refusal by the owners, users, or managers of public or private premises is prohibited.

Article 15-1

In those circumstances in which the use of a water body as a drinking water source or for drinking water is prohibited pursuant to Article 21 or Article 24, once the water intake organization or water supplier addresses the reason for prohibiting the water body, a non-subordinate environmental analysis laboratory that has received a permit from the central competent authority shall carry out sampling of the water body that originally failed to comply with water quality standards. The water body may resume serving as a drinking water source or as drinking water after the sample has been sent for testing and the environmental analysis report showing compliance with standards has been submitted to and approved by the organization handling review of the matter.

Chapter 5 Penal Provisions

Article 16

Those for whom one of the following circumstances applies shall be punished by a maximum of one year of imprisonment or detention, and may be fined a maximum of NT$60,000.
I. Those circumstances in which Article 5, Paragraph 1 is violated by failure to comply with the prohibition of the acts at issue after notification is given in accordance with Article 20.
II. Those circumstances in which Article 6, Paragraph 1 is violated by failure to comply with the prohibition of the acts at issue after notification is given in accordance with Article 21.
III. Those circumstances in which Article 11, Paragraph 1 is violated by failure to comply with the prohibition of the acts at issue after notification is given in accordance with Article 24.
Those that commit violations in the foregoing paragraph and thereby cause human death shall be punished by a maximum of seven years of imprisonment and may be fined a maximum of NT$300,000.Those that cause severe injury shall be punished by a maximum of five years of imprisonment and may be fined a maximum of NT$150,000.

Article 17

(Delete)

Article 18

Those that violate Article 13 shall be punished by a maximum of one year of imprisonment and detention, and/or may be fined a maximum of NT$60,000.

Article 19

For those circumstances in which a representative of a juridical person, or an agent, employee or other working personnel of a juridical person or natural person, violates, due to the performance of business activities, Article 16 or Article 18, in addition to the perpetrator being punished pursuant to the regulations of each article violated, said juridical person or natural person shall also be fined pursuant to the regulations of each article violated.

Article 20

Those that violate Article 5, Paragraph 1 shall be fined NT$100,000 to NT$1 million and shall be notified of the prohibition of the acts at issue.

Article 21

Those that violate Article 6, Paragraph 1 shall be fined NT$60,000 to NT$600,000 and shall be notified of the prohibition of use of the water body as a drinking water source.

Article 22

Those that violate Article 8 shall be fined NT$10,000 to NT$100,000, and shall be notified to make corrections within a limited time period; those that have still failed to make corrections by the deadline shall be fined per violation.

Article 23

When one of the following circumstances applies for public or private premises that provide stationary continuous water supply equipment to the public for drinking, the said premises shall be issued a fine of NT$10,000 to NT$100,000 and shall be notified to make improvements within a limited time period. Those that have still failed to make improvements by the deadline shall be fined per violation.
I. Where there is failure to maintain stationary continuous water supply equipment, keep maintenance records, post, or adhere to validity period in accordance with Article 9, or a violation of management regulations that are related to maintenance methods, maintenance frequency, record production, posting of records and validity periods determined pursuant to said article.
II. Where there is failure to sample, test or post water quality conditions, and to keep and post records of water quality conditions in accordance with Article 12, Paragraph 1, or a violation of management regulations that are related to water quality testing items, testing frequency, random testing methods for equipment, record production, posting of records and validity periods determined pursuant to said article.

Article 24

Those public or private premises providing drinking water for public drinking that violate Article 11, Paragraph 1 shall be fined NT$600,000 and shall be notified to make improvements within a limited period; those that have still failed to complete improvements by the deadline shall be issued consecutive daily fines; in those severe circumstances, the public or private premises shall be prohibited from providing drinking water.

Article 24-1

Those that violate the regulations determined pursuant to Article 12-1, Paragraph 2 shall be fined NT$50,000 to NT$500,000 and shall be notified to make improvements within a limited time period; those that have still failed to complete improvements by the deadline shall be issued consecutive daily fines; in those severe circumstances, orders may be issued for the suspension of business and, when necessary, permits may be cancelled.

Article 24-2

Those public or private premises that fail to submit verification documents demonstrating compliance with drinking water quality standards and other regulations to the competent authority for checking by the deadline for the notifications to make improvements, report or make corrections issued pursuant to Article 22, Article 23, Article 24 or Article 24-1 shall be considered to have failed to complete improvements.
If the verification documents demonstrating compliance with drinking water quality standards in the foregoing paragraph are those testing reports that have been provided by an environmental analysis laboratory that has been issued a permit by the central competent authority, the competent authority may forego water quality sampling and testing.

Article 24-3

The central competent authority shall determine the starting date, temporary suspension dates, termination date, improvement completion verification checks and other binding matters for consecutive daily fines referred to in this Act.

Article 25

Those that evade, obstruct or refuse checking performed pursuant to Article 15, fail to provide samples or data, or provide false samples or data shall be fined NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 and may be fined per violation and subject to the compulsory enforcement of checking.

Article 25-1

Those that have been notified to make improvements within a limited time period pursuant to this Act and that are unable to complete improvements in their improvement measures and construction plans by the deadline due to natural disaster or other force majeure shall continue to make improvements after the reason ends and shall, within ten days after the reason ends, apply to the original approving agency for the reapproval of the improvement period by submitting a written explanation of cause and relevant verification documents.

Article 26

Unless other regulations in this Act apply, penalties determined in this Act shall be assessed by the Environmental Protection Administration, Executive Yuan, at the central government level, the municipal government in special municipalities and the county or city government in counties or cities.

Article 27

(Delete)

Chapter 6 Supplementary Provisions

Article 28

The water quality management of the water sources of packaged or containerized drinking water that is provided for sale shall be subject to the regulations of this Act; for packaged or containerized drinking water, the sanitation of containers, packaging and manufacturing processes; labeling; advertising; and checking of water quality shall be subject to the regulations of the Food Sanitation Management Act.

Article 29

Those public or private premises designated and officially announced pursuant to Article 8 that have installed stationary continuous water supply equipment before the designation and official announcement shall apply for registration pursuant to Article 8 within six months after the day of the designation and official announcement.

Article 30

The central competent authority shall determine the enforcement rules of this Act.

Article 31

These regulations shall take effect on the date of promulgation.