Tasks and powers of the Water Resources Appraisal and Verification Center in Vietnam

Tasks and powers of the Water Resources Appraisal and Verification Center in Vietnam (Internet image)

Regarding this issue, LawNet would like to answer as follows:

1. Location and functions of the Water Resources Appraisal and Verification Center

- The Water Resources Appraisal and Verification Center is a public service unit under the Department of Water Resources Management; has the function of technical appraisal and quality assessment of programs, works, schemes, projects, and tasks on water resources; inspecting machinery and equipment for monitoring and supervising water resources according to the provisions of the law; and carrying out consulting and service activities on water resources according to the provisions of the law.

- The Water Resources Appraisal and Verification Center (hereinafter abbreviated as the Center) has legal status, has a seal, and is allowed to open accounts at the State Treasury and banks according to the provisions of law; It is headquartered in Hanoi City.

(Article 1 of Decision 3971/QD-BTNMT 2022)

2. Tasks and powers of the Water Resources Appraisal and Verification Center in Vietnam

The tasks and powers of the Water Resources Appraisal and Verification Center are specified in Article 2 of Decision 3971/QD-BTNMT 2022, including:

- Submit to the Director of the Department of Water Resources Management (hereinafter abbreviated as the Director) long-term, medium-term, and annual plans on the Center's operations, done after approval.

- Technical and professional appraisal for:

+ Meeting the requirements of protection, exploitation, integrated, and multi-purpose use of water resources and compatibility with water resources in the planning of projects to build reservoirs and transfer water in river basins.

+ Plan for regulating and distributing water resources; Measures to protect and prevent landslides, river beds, banks, and water source protection corridors for inter-provincial rivers; minimum flow, inter-reservoir operating procedures across river basins; Exploitation limit thresholds of aquifers, water reserve areas, artificial groundwater recharge areas, areas where groundwater exploitation is restricted, and areas registered for groundwater exploitation;

+ Related content on plans to exploit, use, and protect water resources in regional, provincial, and centrally run city planning; Content related to exploitation, use, and protection of water resources; prevention, control, and overcoming of harmful effects caused by water for irrigation, hydropower, water supply, inland waterway traffic planning, and other technical and specialized planning with water resource exploitation and use activities prepared by ministries and ministerial-level agencies and activities related to exploitation, use, and protection of water resources;

+ Records, data, documents, drawings, mathematical models, physical models, databases, products, planning reports, basic surveys, water resources inventory
and other programs, works, schemes, projects, and tasks in the field of water resources.

- Verify product quality of tasks, schemes, and projects in the field of water resources under the management of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

- Inspect machinery and equipment for monitoring and supervision of organizations and individuals with water exploitation and use projects in the water resource exploitation and use monitoring system of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment; products, equipment, and technologies that use water economically, reuse products, and circulate water are eligible for loan incentives and tax exemptions and reductions according to the provisions of law.

- Check the volume and quality of products and the results of completing tasks, schemes, and projects in the field of water resources of units under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and at the request of ministries, branches, and localities.

- Participate in developing legal documents, standards, national technical regulations, technical regulations, economic-technical norms, product unit prices in the field of water resources, and the contents of appraisal and inspection of water resources as assigned by the Director of the Department.

- Implement programs, tasks, schemes, projects, scientific and technological research topics in the field of water resources assigned, ordered, bid for, or as assigned by the Director of the Department, and international cooperation programs and projects in the field of water resources according to the provisions of law.

- Carry out consulting and service activities:

+ Evaluate the outline; Verify product quality of tasks, schemes, and projects related to the field of water resources;

+ Investigate, inventory, evaluate, and forecast water resources; investigate the current status of the exploitation and use of water resources and the discharge of wastewater into water sources; Investigate, evaluate, measure, observe, and monitor flow developments, sedimentation, and erosion of river beds, banks, and beaches; measure, survey, and create cross-sections of rivers and streams;

+ Establish water resources planning tasks and integrated river basin planning; establish water resources planning and integrated river basin planning; basic survey planning of water resources; Content related to exploitation, use, and protection of water resources; prevention, control, and overcoming of harmful effects caused by water in regional, provincial, and centrally run city planning; planning for irrigation, hydropower, water supply, inland waterway transportation, and other technical and specialized planning activities to exploit, use, and protect water resources;

+ Determine the ability to receive wastewater and the carrying capacity of the water source; Implement measures to protect water resources, prevent and combat degradation, pollution, water resource depletion, and other harmful effects caused by water; assess the impact of climate change on water resources; Identify water source functions, plan to regulate and distribute water resources, and restore polluted, degraded, and exhausted water sources; surface water environmental quality management plan;

+ Map water resources, build models to calculate flow and material spread in the river system and aquifers; classify and list river basins and water sources; Make a list of ponds, lakes, and lagoons that cannot be leveled;

+ Determine the minimum flow in the river, the threshold for underground water exploitation, water reserve areas, and water source protection corridors; Artificial recharge areas; delineation of restricted areas and areas that must register for underground water exploitation; Determine the sanitary protection zone of the drinking water intake area;

+ Prepare documents for registration, issuance, extension, adjustment, and re-issuance of licenses in the field of water resources and environment; dossiers for calculating fees for granting rights to exploit water resources; design, supervision, and construction of works to exploit and use water resources; discharge wastewater into water sources; and works to monitor and supervise water resources;

+ Establish and adjust operating procedures for reservoirs and inter-reservoirs in river basins;

+ Consulting and service activities on environment and climate change related to water resources according to the provisions of the law.

- Manage organization, job positions, number of employees; officials, employees, finances, and assets under the Center's management according to the law and according to the decentralization of the Department of Water Resources Management; carry out the responsibilities of the budget-using unit according to the provisions of the law.

- Implement administrative reform according to the administrative reform program and plan of the Department of Water Resources Management and the assignment of the Director.

- Statistics and periodic and extraordinary reports on the implementation of assigned tasks.

- Perform other tasks assigned by the Director.

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