WATER SUPPLIES ACT, 1942

Type Act
Publication 1942-02-24
Last updated 2024-10-17
State Repealed superseded text
Text As published
articles 26

This is the act as published. Later amendments are not folded into the text below: each one is a separate act in this repository and an entry in this law's history.

14 amending acts · 2024-10-17, PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT ACT 2024

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AN ACT TO MAKE PROVISION FOR THE TAKING OF SUPPLIES OF WATER BY SANITARY AUTHORITIES AND TO MAKE PROVISION FOR MATTERS INCIDENTAL THERETO OR CONNECTED THEREWITH. [24th February, 1942.]

BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:—

1 Definition.

1.—(1) In this Act—

the expression “the Minister” means the Minister for Local Government and Public Health;

the expressions “sanitary authority” and “sanitary district” have respectively the same meanings as they have in the Public Health Acts, 1878 to 1931;

the expression “source of water” means any lake, river, stream, well, or spring;

the expression “ancillary operations” means any of the following operations, that is to say, the embanking, damming, dredging, deepening, widening, straightening, diverting, altering the level of, or otherwise affecting a source of water or any lake, pond, river, canal, or other water connected directly or indirectly with a source of water;

the word “proposal” means a proposal under section 2 of this Act either (as the case may require) in its original form or as altered under this Act;

the word “prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made under this Act.

2 Power of making proposal to take a supply of water.

2.—Whenever a sanitary authority desire to take from a source of water (whether within or without their sanitary district) a supply of water for the purpose of increasing, extending, or providing a supply of water under the Public Health Acts, 1878 to 1931, they may make, under and in accordance with this Act, a proposal for so taking such supply of water from such source of water.

3 Statements to be included in proposal.

3.—(1) Every proposal shall state—

4 Procedure consequent upon making of proposal.

4.—(1) Whenever a sanitary authority have made a proposal they shall do the following things, that is to say :—

5 Deposit of proposal and book of reference.

5.—Whenever copies of a proposal and book of reference are required by this Act to be deposited for inspection by the sanitary authority making such proposal, such copies—

6 Objections to proposal.

6.—(1) Any person whose name appears in a book of reference may make an objection to the proposal to which such book of reference relates by delivering to the sanitary authority making such proposal before, but not after, the date specified in that behalf in the notice given to such person by such sanitary authority in pursuance of this Act a statement in writing of such objection and the grounds thereof.

7 Agreed proposal.

7.—For the purposes of this Act, a proposal shall be deemed to have been agreed to if either no objection is duly made to such proposal or every objection duly made to such proposal is withdrawn.

8 Application for provisional order.

8.—(1) Where one or more objection or objections to a proposal has or have been duly made, the sanitary authority making such proposal may (unless such objection or all such objections is or are withdrawn) apply to the Minister for a provisional order declaring that such proposal may come into force.

9 Functions of Minister in relation to application for provisional order.

9.—Whenever an application for a provisional order is made under this Act, the Minister shall consider such application and shall do such one of the following things as he shall think proper, that is to say:—

10 Making and confirmation of provisional order.

10.—(1) Sections 209, 210, 212, 213, paragraphs (1), (2), and (7) of section 214, and section 215 of the Public Health (Ireland) Act, 1878, and sub-section (2) of section 5 of the Public Health Acts Amendment Act, 1907, shall have effect as if herein re-enacted in relation to provisional orders under this Act.

11 Coming into force of proposal.

11.—(1) Whenever a sanitary authority has made a proposal and either such proposal has been agreed to or a provisional order in respect of such proposal, has been confirmed, such sanitary authority may publish in a newspaper circulating in any sanitary district in which is situate any place at which a supply of water is to be taken under such proposal a notice specifying the date (not being earlier than one week after the publication of such notice) on which such proposal will come into force and stating that any person (not being a person whose name appears in the book of reference relating to such proposal) who claims that damage has been or will be caused to him by the taking of a supply of water under such proposal may, at any time before, but not after, the expiration of two years from the said date specified in such notice for the coming into force of such proposal, apply in writing to the said sanitary authority for compensation in respect of such damage.

12 Notices of coming into force of proposal.

12.—As soon as may be after a sanitary authority has published a notice specifying the date on which a proposal made by such sanitary authority will come into force, such sanitary authority shall give to every person whose name appears in the book of reference relating to such proposal a notice in writing informing him of the said date on which such proposal will come into force and informing him that he may, at any time before, but not after, the expiration of one year from that date, apply in writing to such sanitary authority for compensation in respect of the damage which has been or will be caused to him by the taking of a supply of water under such proposal.

13 Power to take supply of water, etc.

13.—(1) When a proposal made by a sanitary authority has come into force, it shall be lawful for such sanitary authority—

14 Compensation.

14.—(1) When a proposal made by a sanitary authority has come into force every person to whom damage has been or will be caused by the taking of a supply of water under such proposal shall, on making application in writing therefor under this section, be entitled to be paid by such sanitary authority as compensation the amount of such damage.

15 Determination of compensation in default of agreement.

15.—(1) Every application under this Act to a sanitary authority for compensation shall, in default of agreement, be determined by arbitration under and in accordance with the Acquisition of Land (Assessment of Compensation) Act, 1919, as amended by the Acquisition of Land (Reference Committee) Act, 1925 (No. 22 of 1925), in like manner in all respects as if such application were made in respect of the compulsory acquisition of land and such compensation were the price of land compulsorily acquired, but subject to the subsequent provisions of this section.

16 Interest on compensation.

16.—(1) Subject to the provisions of the next sub-section of this section, a sanitary authority shall pay to every person to whom compensation is payable under this Act interest on the amount (when determined) of such compensation at the rate of four pounds per cent. per annum from the date on which the taking of a supply of water under the relevant proposal begins until the date of determination of such compensation.

no interest shall be payable under this section on such compensation in respect of any period after the date of such offer.

17 Power of a sanitary authority to enter on land.

17.—(1) Any officer or agent of a sanitary authority who is duly authorised in that behalf by such sanitary authority may, subject to the provisions of this section, enter on any land at all reasonable times for either of the following purposes, that is to say :—

18 Giving of notices and copies of orders.

18.—For the purposes of this Act, a notice or a copy of an order may be given to a person in any of the following ways, that is to say;—

19 Protection of existing water supplies.

19.—(1) Where, immediately before the passing of this Act, a sanitary authority was taking water from a source of water for the purposes of a water supply provided by them under the Public Health Acts, 1878 to 1931, such sanitary authority may, after the passing of this Act, continue to take water from such source of water at the place, by the method, and in the quantity at, by, and in which they were so taking water immediately before the passing of this Act.

20 Prevention of interference with flow of water and pollution.

20.—Where a sanitary authority is empowered by virtue of this Act to take a supply of water from a source of water at any place, such sanitary authority shall have the same rights to prevent interference with the flow of water in, from, or to such source of water and to prevent pollution of the water in such source of water as an owner of land at such place contiguous to such source of water.

21 Protection of navigable rivers and canals.

21.—(1) In this section—

the expression “navigable water” means any river or canal on which any person is, by virtue of any enactment, entitled to navigate or in respect of the navigation on which any person is, by virtue of any enactment, entitled to receive tolls or dues, and

the expression “navigation authority” means, in relation to any navigable water, the person entitled to navigate thereon or to receive tolls or dues in respect of navigation thereon.

22 Borrowing.

22.—A sanitary authority may, for the purpose of defraying expenses incurred by them under this Act, borrow under the Public Health Acts, 1878 to 1931, as if such purpose were a purpose for which such authority is authorised to borrow under those Acts

23 Expenses of sanitary authority.

23.—Any expenses incurred by a sanitary authority under this Act for the purpose of increasing, extending, or providing a supply of water Under the Public Health Acts, 1878 to 1931, shall be raised and defrayed as part of the expenses incurred by such sanitary authority under the said Acts for the said purpose.

24 Expenses of the Minister.

24.—The expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

25 Regulations.

25.—The Minister may make regulations prescribing any matter or thing referred to in this Act as prescribed or to be prescribed.

26 Short title.

26.—This Act may be cited as the Water Supplies Act, 1942.

SCHEDULE. Rules For Confirmation of Provisional Orders.

1.

A copy of the provisional order shall, with all convenient speed, be given by the sanitary authority making the relevant proposal to every person who duly made an objection to such proposal, together with a statement that the provisional order may be confirmed unless a petition praying that the provisional order shall not become law without further inquiry is presented to the Circuit Court by any of such objectors within a period of five weeks from the date when such copy was given to him.

2.

Any such objectors may, before (but not after) the expiration of five weeks from the date when such copy of the provisional order was given to him, present to the Circuit Court the petition mentioned in the next preceding rule.

3.

A copy of every petition in relation to the provisional order presented under these Rules shall be sent by an officer of the court to the Minister, and, if any such petition is withdrawn notice of the withdrawal shall also be so sent.

4.

Every petition in relation to the provisional order which is presented under these Rules and is not withdrawn shall be heard at the first sitting of the court held after the expiration of one week from the date when such petition was presented or of (where a period is prescribed) the prescribed period, or at such later date as the court may direct, and upon such hearing the court may either confirm or disallow the provisional order.

5.

Where no petition in relation to the provisional order is presented under these Rules, or where every such petition is withdrawn, the Minister may, without further inquiry, confirm the provisional order.

6.

When confirming the provisional order, the court or the Minister (as the case may be) may either confirm the provisional order without amendment or make any alteration in the relevant proposal which the Minister could have made when making the provisional order and amend the provisional order so as to relate to such proposal as so altered and confirm the provisional order as so amended.

7.

The jurisdiction conferred on the Circuit Court by these Rules shall be exercised by the judge thereof having jurisdiction in the circuit in which is situate the place at which a supply of water is to be taken tinder the relevant proposal.

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