Article 2: the following terms and expressions incorporated in this law shall have the meanings assigned hereunder thereto, unless the context indicates otherwise:

The law     : The Water Authority Law in effect.

The Ministry : The Ministry of Water and Irrigation.

The Minister : The Minister of Water & Irrigation.

The Authority  : The Water Authority.

The Board  : The Authority’s Board of Directors.

The Secretary General : The Secretary General of the Authority.

The person  : Natural or juridical person.

Underground water : SubsurfaceWater , which can be Pumped upward to surface by drilling a well.

Surface Water : All Water accumulated on ground surface as: rivers, lakes, seas, permanent current water, dams or pools.

Water Layer :Solid rock layer either cracked or fragmented containing water, permeable allowing underground water movement and the extraction of

 water.

Spring: Water source surfacing from underground due to geological and hydrological factors either incessantly or intermittently.

Catchment  Areas: The areas on which water or snow falls and accumulates on its surface or through which water sources pass, with permeable

 properties which permit water to penetrate deep into ground for feed-up of underground.

The well:Any sinkhole or hole made by machine or special tool used to reach the underground water layer to extract  water to surface either

 automatically or by machinary .

Public Well: The well owned by the official or municipal body.

Private Well: The well owned and utilized by non- official or municipal body .

Drilling Rig : The machine used in drilling water wells with the aim to reach underground water layers and extract water therefrom.

Driller: Any person whose job is  drilling wells to extract underground water

Drilling Rig License : The license issued to a drilling rig to perform the function of drilling wells.

Driller License:The license issued by the Authority to practice the job of drilling

License for drilling a well: The license by which it is permitted to drill a new  well according to this By-Law.

License for drilling a substitute Well: A license by which it is permitted to drill a substitute for an existing well.

License for deepening, cleaning or maintaining a well : A license by which it is permitted to deepen, clean or maintain an existing well.

License for extracting water: A license by which it is permitted to extract underground water, and limit the quantity by cubic meter of underground

 water permited to be extracted annually, within the conditions of safe pumping , and the capabilities of the aquifer of the well location.

Safe Yield : The quantity of underground water permitted to be extracted annually from the aquifer without causing depletion, change in static water

 level, lowering water quality or polution thereof.

Depletion: Extracting of underground water in quantities that exceed the safe-limits and lead to alteration in the properties of underground water in a

 way that limit its use for the purported goals.

Banned Area: The area defined under the provisions of this By-Law where drilling water wells is prohibited.

The Jordan Valley : The area as defined by The Jordan Valley Development Law in force.

 General Provisions

Article 10:

Any one who is granted a license to extract underground water is hereby obligated to refrain from causing any water pollution or depletion, and to  comply strictly with the conditions of the license.

Article 11:

The owner or the possessor of a private well is hereby prohibited to do the following:

A-    To irrigate any land other than that specified in the water extraction license or to sell this water for irrigation purposes.

B-    To sell the water extracted from the well by water-tankers for drinking purposes or any other purpose without obtaining a prior written approval from the Secretary General, or his delegatee, and according to conditions outlined for this purpose.

Article 12:

If the ownership of the land where the well is located, is transferred to a new owner, it is not permitted to transfer the drilling or water extraction licenses to the name of the new owner unless any sums due for the Authority are paid. The new owner shall comply with the license conditions or any additional conditions imposed by the Authority thereon.

Article 13:

The Authority shall have the right -by virtue of a Board decision and in pursuance of the legislation in force to take over by acquisition- any public or private well together with an appropriate access thereto, to enable the Authority to utilize same.

Article 14:

The Authority is not entitled to sell, rent or assign any of its wells unless by virtue of a decision by the Council of Ministers on the submission of the Board.

Article 15:

In case underground water emerges during implementing works on the land either by the owner, occupier or a contractor, which were not intended for water extraction, any of the said persons must notify the Secretary General of that in writing within a maximum period of seven days from the said emergence.

Article 16:

If any areas were found to be polluted or depleted, the Board shall take a decision to set the appropriate measures that will put an end to such pollution or depletion including the rationalization or reduction of the extraction rate, to an extent that would allow the halt of pollution or depletion, and the restoration of the natural balance to the aquifer or to the underground water basin.

Article 17:

On the submission of the Secretary General, the Board may take a decision to the following effect:

A-    The cancellation of a drilling or an extraction license, if the licensee violates any of the conditions therein, and the shutting down of the well until the breach is rectified.

B-    The cancellation or amendment of the license conditions if the public interest so requires.

Article 18

A-    The Secretary General may take any of the following measures:

1-Backfill any well drilled without a license in persuance of the provisions of this By-Law.

2-0 Backfill any well whose owner did not abide with the conditions of the license granted thereto.

B-The offender shall bear the costs of rectifying the violations specified by clause (A) of this article.

B-    If the offender does not rectify the offence set out under clause (A) of this article, the licenses granted thereto shall be cancelled.

Article 19:

A-    If any one was caught performing drilling, deepening, cleaning, maintaining or testing any well or extracting water therefrom, or operating or possessing a drilling rig in contradiction to the provisions of this By- Law, a restraint report against him should be made, and the drilling rig and other equipment shall be seized. The offender shall be referred to the competent court to inflict upon him the punishment provided for under this By-Law.

B-    The provisions of paragraph (A) of this article cover the owner or possessor of the land where the breach took place. The offender shall bear the costs of the seizure act until a decision by the court is made there upon, without affecting the right of the Authority to remove the offence by administrative means in accordance with of the law.

Article 20:

To enable the Authority to collect its dues by virtue of this By-Law, coordination should be made by the Authority with both the Land and Survey Department and the Income Tax Department to make use of the process of transactions through these two departments, by their ascertainment that the transactions submitted to either department by owners of lands with ground water wells, have fulfilled their obligations to pay the amounts due from them to the Authority, in the light of lists containing the names of these persons presented to the said Department  from time to time by the Authority .

Article 21:

A-    The application for a drilling-license shall be submitted on the form approved by the Authority, inclosing the supporting documents that are specified by the Secretary General’s instructions issued for this purpose, inclosing therewith a recent real estate registration deed for the relevant plot of land.

B-    The Secretary General shall publish the application to obtain a drilling license in two local daily newspapers at the expense of the applicant. Any person with interest may file an objection in writing against this application to the Secretary General within 15 days of the publication provided he deposits a cash insurance of 50 Jordan Dinars un-refundable if the objection was rejected.

C-    After the study of the application and the recite of the sums due under the provisions of this By-Law, the Secretary General- on the expiry of the objection period shall present the application to the Board to take the appropriate decision. If the decision was an approval, the Minister issues the drilling license containing the extent of the permitted depth and any other conditions that govern the license.

D-    The license shall be valid for one year, renewable once for a similar period by a decision of the Minister on the submission of the Secretary General provided that a renewal application has been submitted prior to the expiry of the original license. The license shall be deemed cancelled if the drilling is not completed within the set out period.

Article 22:

A- It is hereby prohibited to grant a license for drilling a well for irrigation purposes in a land of an area of less than one hundred Dunums provided that the applicant proves his ownership of the land on the date of submitting his application through presenting a real estate registration deed issued by the competent authorities and provided that the provisions of the Jordan Valley Development Law in force are abided with. No drilling licenses may be granted in the Jordan Valley areas unless after consultation with the Jordan Valley Authority.

B- It is thereby prohibited to grant a drilling license to any person to drill a well on lands owned by the State unless after the approval of the Council of Ministers on the submission of the Board, based on the recommendation of the Minister.

Article 23:

The Board shall have the right in all circumstances to reject any application for a drilling license if it is so required by public interest.

Article 24:

No license for drilling a well for industrial or touristic purposes or for universities use may be granted, unless the applications enclose supporting documents from the competent official bodies within the conditions requested by the Authority.  It is prohibited to extract water therefrom except for the purposes for which it was licensed. However, in case either the project or the license thereof is cancelled, the drilling and extraction licenses shall be deemed ipso facto repealed and the licensee must shut down the well or backfill what was drilled thereof. If the licensee fails to comply within the time limit fixed by the Authority, the Authority shall have the right to implement the said measures and to go back on the licensee for the costs plus 25% as administrative expenses.

Article 25:

The distance between a well and another shall be decided by a decision of the Board upon a submission of the Secretary General provided that such distance shall not be in any case less than one kilometer. Provided in this respect the rules in force governing the agricultural units in the Jordan Valley area are complied with.

Article 26:

It is hereby prohibited to issue a license to drill a new or a substitute well, or to deepen an existing well in spring areas unless the drilling site is not less than three km far from the nearest spring, provided that the applicant submits a written undertaking that the extracted water will not have an effect in any way on the average output of the spring. If it was proved that the average output of the spring has been affected or its natural flow has been halted, then the license shall be cancelled by a decision of the Board on the submission of the Secretary General who shall take the necessary measures to backfill the said well.

Article 27:

I-       A license for a substitute well shall be granted by a Board’s decision on the submission of the Secretary General in accordance with the following conditions:

1-     The well should be existent and licensed.

2-     The new license should contain the rules relating to drilling wells in the region and the distances fixed between them.

3-     There should be technical and mechanical reasons but not reasons of water scarcity in the first well.

4-     The distance between the substitute well and the old well should not exceed 50 meters provided that the distances between the wells in the region are complied with, and that the drilling depth should not exceed the depth of the first well.

B-A license for a substitute well shall not be granted if the preceding well was located in the banned area and was not utilized or was back filled, or the drilling therein did not penetrate the underground water layer. In all instances, the first well shall be deemed as if non-existent.

C- The license for water extraction shall not be granted and shall not be utilized unless the preceding well has been back-filled. If the licensee does not abide with this condition, the Authority shall have the right by a decision of the Minister to repeal the original and the substitute licenses, and to back-fill the well by administrative measures without the need for the issue of a notice or warning.

D- A technical report should be enclosed with the application from a specialized and authorized engineering or geological office.

Article 28:

Licenses for deepening, cleaning or maintaining an existing well shall be granted by a Board decision in accordance with the following conditions:

A  -The existence of technical justifications confirmed by a report from a specialized and authorized engineering or geological office if the need arises.

     B   -The well depth should be fixed in the license provided it does not exceed the level of the water-layer where the well is drilled, and provided that the drilling does not affect the water layer utilized by the Authority for drinking purposes.

Article 29:

A-  Every owner of a well drilled and tested in accordance with the provisions of this By-Law should obtain before commencement of utilization thereof a license for water extraction issued by the Secretary General or delegatee containing the conditions that the licensee should comply with, including the following:

1-     The maximum amount of water that may be extracted from the well within a fixed period of time.

2-     The purpose of water use.

3-     The maximum area that may be irrigated from the water of the well licensed for agricultural purposes.

4-     The installation, at the expense of the owner of the well, of a water-meter after it has been approved and stamped by the Authority. This condition should be complied with prior to the issuance of water extraction license.

5-     Notification of the Authority within a period not exceeding 48 hours in case of non-function of the water-meter. The owner of the well shall reimburse the Authority for the fixed maintenance expenses. Of the water-meter

6-     Refrainment from taking any measures that impede the flow of water from the well to water-meter directly for the measurement thereof.

7-     Obligation by the licensee to pay to the Authority in time the prices fixed for the extracted water.

8-     The keeping by the licensee of a register-approved by the Authority where all data relating to the well, and extraction process shall be registered regularly in accordance with instructions issued by the Authority. The competent Authority officials have the right to inspect this register.

B- The water-meter referred to in paragraph “A” of this article shall be considered sufficient evidence on the extracted amount of water from time-to-time, unless the Authority finds the meter non-operative or has been manipulated with. In such cases, the water quantity shall be calculated in the light of the irrigated area, type of crop, or consumed electricity power and in accordance with rules adopted by the Board for this purpose in coordination with Ministry of Agriculture.