UDOFA, KINGSLEY DAVID

ENVIRONMENTAL LAW

TOPIC:
“WATER POLLUTION;
MEANING AND
IMPLICATIONS”

JANUARY 2011
Table of Content
1. Introduction
2. Pollution
a. Meaning
b. History
3. Water Pollution
a. Categories Of Water
Supply
b. Forms Of Water Pollution
4. Causes Of Water Pollution
5. Sources Of Water Pollution
a. Industrial
b. Agricultural and
c. municipal
6. Effects Of Water Pollution
7. Legal Control
a. International Legal Control
b. Municipal Legal Control
8. Conclusion

1
 INTRODUCTION
In order to attain success and growth, it is inevitable that man interacts with his
environment. The human environment, being planet earth, is well endowed with
several resources which contribute hugely to the livelihood of mankind. It is from
such interaction with the environment that man benefits immensely and in turn
improves his standards of living. It is the components within the environment that are
of greatest benefit to humanity. These components include the air, water, the physical
environment and indeed life within the environment to include that of plants and
animals. However, as we humans recognize the huge importance of these earth’s
resources and exploit them, we still disregard them by polluting the rivers, lakes,
oceans and air. Subsequently, we are slowly but surely harming our planet to the
point where organisms are dying at a very alarming rate.
The problems facing the environment are vast and diverse. Global warming, the
depletion of the ozone layer in the atmosphere, destruction of the world’s rain forests
and pollution are just some of the problems that many scientists believe will reach
critical proportions in the coming decades.

POLLUTION
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into a natural environment that
causes instability, disorder, harm or discomfort to the ecosystem i.e. physical systems
or living organisms. Pollution can take the form of chemical substances or energy,
such as noise, heat, or light. Pollutants, the elements of pollution, can be foreign
substances or energies, or naturally occurring; when naturally occurring, they are
considered contaminants when they exceed natural levels.

Pollution became a popular issue after World War II, due to radioactive fallout
from atomic warfare and testing, then a non-nuclear event, The Great Smog of 1952
in London, which killed at least 4000 people.

WATER POLLUTION
Comprising over 70% of the Earth’s surface, water is undoubtedly the most
precious natural resource that exists on our planet. Without the seemingly invaluable
compound comprised of hydrogen and oxygen, life on Earth would be non-existent:
it is essential for everything on our planet to grow and prosper. However in its usage
and exploitation, humans seem to contaminate the water.

2
 Water contamination or pollution occurs when a body of water is adversely
affected due to the addition of large amounts of materials to the water. When it is
unfit for its intended use, water is considered polluted. Water is typically referred to
as polluted when it is impaired by anthropogenic 1 contaminants and either does not
support a human use, like serving as drinking water, and/or undergoes a marked shift
in its ability to support its constituent biotic communities, such as fish. Natural
phenomena such as volcanoes, algae blooms, storms, and earthquakes also cause
major changes in water quality and the ecological status of water.
Water pollution is a major problem in the global context. It has been suggested
that it is the leading worldwide cause of deaths and diseases, and that it accounts for
the deaths of more than 14,000 people daily. 2 An estimated 700 million Indians have
no access to a proper toilet, and 1,000 Indian children die of diarrheal sickness every
day. Some 90% of China's cities suffer from some degree of water pollution,3 and
nearly 500 million people lack access to safe drinking water. In addition to the acute
problems of water pollution in developing countries, industrialized countries continue
to struggle with pollution problems as well.

Water supplies fall into two basic categories: surface water and groundwater.
Surface water is that exists in streams, rivers, or lakes. When rain falls on the ground
or when snow melts, much of this precipitation drains across the surface of the earth
and collects in ravines, streams, and creeks. Gradually these smaller waterways join
together and form rivers. A group of rivers and the streams that feed into them make
up a river basin, also known as a watershed. A river basin denotes all land through
which a particular river and its tributaries flow. With the exception of a few
geographical areas, such as the Great Basin, the ultimate destination of surface water
is an ocean.4 However, when precipitation falls to the ground, not all the water runs
into rivers as surface flow. Some precipitation becomes groundwater after seeping
down into the earth and collecting within underground reservoirs called aquifers.5
Some aquifers amass underground seepage during thousands, sometimes millions, of
years and accumulate huge quantities of water.6 In the United States, 53% of the

1
Water may be contaminated by human activity or natural occurrences. However, the biggest problems
associated with water are those created as a result of human activities.
2
West, Larry "World Water Day: A Billion People Worldwide Lack Safe Drinking Water", March 26, 2006, Wikipedia
3
http://Chinadaily.com.cn 2005-06-07
4
Jackson, Donald C. "Water Policy in the American West." Microsoft Encarta 2009 [DVD]. Redmond, WA:
Microsoft Corporation, 2008.
5
natural rock formations, which contain ground water
6
Jackson, Donald C. "Water Policy in the American West." Microsoft Encarta 2009 [DVD]. Redmond, WA:
Microsoft Corporation, 2008.

3
population relies on ground water as a source of drinking water. In rural areas this
figure is even higher. Eighty one percent of community water is dependent on
ground water.7
When water pollution is talked about, it can be of surface water supply or ground
water supply. Sources of surface water pollution are generally grouped into two
categories based on their origin. The Two groups are point source and non-point
source.
Point sources of pollution occur when harmful substances are emitted directly
into a body of water. Point sources discharge pollutants from specific locations, such
as factories, sewage treatment plants, and oil tankers. The Exxon Valdez oil spill8
and the BP oil spill in the Golf of Mexico best illustrate point source water pollution.
Non–point source pollution occurs when the diffused contamination does not
originate from a single discrete source. A nonpoint source delivers pollutants
indirectly through environmental changes. Such pollution is often the cumulative
effect of small amounts of contaminants gathered from a large area. An example of
this type of water pollution is when fertilizer from a field is carried into a stream by
rain, in the form of run-off which in turn affects aquatic life. Unlike the point source
pollution of water, the non-source pollution is more difficult to control.

CAUSES OF WATER POLLUTION AND TYPES OF POLLUTANTS

The specific contaminants leading to pollution in water include a wide spectrum
of chemicals, pathogens, and physical or sensory changes such as elevated
temperature and discoloration. While many of the chemicals and substances that are
regulated may be naturally occurring (calcium, sodium, iron, manganese, etc.) the
concentration is often the key in determining what is a natural component of water,
and what is a contaminant. 9 Pollution is also caused when silt and other suspended
solids, such as soil from ploughed fields, construction and logging sites, urban areas,
are washed off into river banks when it rains. Under natural conditions, lakes, rivers,
and other water bodies undergo Eutrophication10, an aging process that slowly fills in
the water body with sediment and organic matter. When these sediments enter

7
Tibbetts, J Anon. ‘Water Environmental Solutions’, vol. 9, no. 8, p. 26, 1996
8
An oil spill is a release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment due to human activity, and is a
form of pollution. The term often refers to marine oil spills, where oil is released into the ocean or coastal waters.
9
West, Larry "World Water Day: A Billion People Worldwide Lack Safe Drinking Water", March 26, 2006, Wikipedia
10
Depletion of oxygen in water: the process by which a body of water becomes rich in dissolved nutrients from
fertilizers or sewage, thereby encouraging the growth and decomposition of oxygen-depleting plant life and
resulting in harm to other organisms.

4
various bodies of water, fish respiration becomes impaired, plant productivity and
water depth become reduced, and aquatic organisms and their environments become
suffocated.

Pollutants can be classified into several types depending indeed on the

composition and source. These types are;
1. Toxic or Hazardous wastes -- A toxic substance is a chemical pollutant that
is not a naturally occurring substance in aquatic ecosystems. The greatest contributors
to toxic pollution are herbicides, pesticides and industrial compounds. Toxic or
Hazardous wastes are chemical wastes that are either poisonous, reactive (capable of
producing explosive or toxic gases), corrosive (capable of corroding steel), or
ignitable (flammable).

2. Organic Substance -- Organic pollution occurs when an excess of organic

matter, such as manure or sewage, enters the water. When organic matter increases in
a pond, the number of decomposers will increase. These decomposers grow rapidly
and use a great deal of oxygen during their growth. This leads to a depletion of
oxygen as the decomposition process occurs. A lack of oxygen can kill aquatic
organisms. As the aquatic organisms die, they are broken down by decomposers
which lead to further depletion of the oxygen levels. Organic pollution can occur
when inorganic pollutants such as nitrogen and phosphates accumulate in aquatic
ecosystems. High levels of these nutrients cause an overgrowth of plants and algae.
As the plants and algae die, they become organic material in the water. The enormous
decay of this plant matter, in turn, lowers the oxygen level. The process of rapid plant
growth followed by increased activity by decomposers and a depletion of the oxygen
level is called eutrophication.
3. Thermal Pollution -- Thermal pollution can occur when water is used as a
coolant near a power or industrial plant and then is returned to the aquatic
environment at a higher temperature than it was originally. Thermal pollution can
lead to a decrease in the dissolved oxygen level in the water while also increasing the
biological demand of aquatic organisms for oxygen. Even small temperature changes
in a body of water can drive away the fish and other species that were originally
present, and attract other species in place of them. Thermal pollution can accelerate
biological processes in plants and animals or deplete oxygen levels in water. The
result may be fish and other wildlife deaths near the discharge source. Thermal
pollution can also be caused by the removal of trees and vegetation that shade and
cool stream.

5
 4. Ecological Pollution -- Ecological pollution takes place when chemical
pollution, organic pollution or thermal pollution is caused by nature rather than by
human activity. An example of ecological pollution would be an increased rate of
siltation of a waterway after a landslide which would increase the amount of
sediments in runoff water. Another example would be when a large animal, such as a
deer, drowns in a flood and a large amount of organic material is added to the water
as a result. Major geological events such as a volcano eruption might also be sources
of ecological pollution.
5. Sediments and Heavy Metals -- soil particles carried to a streambed, lake,
or ocean, can also be a pollutant if it is present in large enough amounts. Soil erosion
produced by the removal of soil-trapping trees near waterways, or carried by
rainwater and floodwater from croplands, strip mines, and roads, can damage a
stream or lake by introducing too much nutrient matter. This leads to eutrophication.
Sedimentation can also cover streambed gravel in which many fish, such as salmon
and trout, lay their eggs. Heavy metals, such as copper, lead, mercury, and selenium,
get into water from many sources, including industries, automobile exhaust, mines,
and even natural soil. Like pesticides, heavy metals become more concentrated as
animals feed on plants and are consumed in turn by other animals. When they reach
high levels in the body, heavy metals can be immediately poisonous, or can result in
long-term health problems similar to those caused by pesticides and herbicides. For
example, cadmium in fertilizer derived from sewage sludge can be absorbed by
crops. If these crops are eaten by humans in sufficient amounts, the metal can cause
diarrhoea and, over time, liver and kidney damage. Lead can get into water from lead
pipes and solder in older water systems; children exposed to lead in water can suffer
mental retardation.11

SOURCES OF WATER POLLUTION

Water pollutants may result natural and human activities. However, pollution
mostly results from several diverse human activities. Most human activities that
contribute to water pollution are classified into Domestic/municipal, agricultural
and industrial activities.

Pollution may result from municipal or domestic uses which consists of wastes
waters from homes and commercial establishments. Such waste waters somehow find

11
Hart John, "Water Pollution.” Microsoft Encarta 2009 [DVD]. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation, 2008.

6
their way into public water resources and streams. In Africa, such sources can be said
to contribute massively to environmental pollution through ill maintained sanitation.
It is the significance of this problem that has led to world wide calls for treatment of
wastewater especially those flowing from residential and commercial communities.
For many years, the main goal of treating municipal wastewater was simply to reduce
its content of suspended solids, oxygen-demanding materials, dissolved inorganic
compounds, and harmful bacteria. In recent years, however, more stress has been
placed on improving means of disposal of the solid residues from the municipal
treatment processes.12 Similarly, although Sewage and food waste discarded from
ships on the open sea do little harm, plastics thrown overboard can kill birds or
marine animals by entangling them, choking them, or blocking their digestive tracts if
swallowed.

Pollutants may also result from agricultural activities. As a matter of fact, most
of the organic wastes discussed above 13 are as a result of agricultural activities.
Pollutants from such agricultural sources as farms, pastures, feedlots, and ranches
contribute animal wastes, agricultural chemicals, and sediment from erosion.
Chemicals used to kill unwanted animals and plants, for instance on farms or in
suburban yards, may be collected by rainwater runoff and carried into streams,
especially if these substances are applied too lavishly. Some of these chemicals are
biodegradable and quickly decay into harmless or less harmful forms, while others
are non biodegradable and remain dangerous for a long time.
When animals consume plants that have been treated with certain non biodegradable
chemicals, such as chlordane14 and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), these
chemicals are absorbed into the tissues or organs of the animals. When other animals
feed on these contaminated animals, the chemicals are passed up the food chain. With
each step up the food chain, the concentration of the pollutant increases. This process
is called bio-magnification15.

Water does also get contaminated as a result of industrial activity. Nowadays, one
of the main sources of water pollution is the waste material discharged by industrial
units, known as industrial water pollution. Waste materials like acids, alkalise, toxic
metals, oil, grease, dyes, pesticides and even radioactive materials are poured into the
12
Richman, M IND. Water Pollution WASTEWATER, vol. 5, no. 2, pp. 24-29, 1997
13
Such organic substances like fertilizers and dangerous chemicals used as pesticides etc are used in agricultural
practices.
14
Very toxic chemical used as pesticide
15
Also known as bioaccumulation: meaning the accumulation of a harmful substance such as a radioactive
element, a heavy metal, or an organochlorine in an organism, especially of an organism that forms part of the food
chain.

7
water bodies by many industrial units. Some other important pollutants include
polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) compounds, lubricants and hot water discharged by
power plants. The pollutants unloaded into the water bodies usually dissolve or
remain suspended in water. Sometimes, they also accumulate on the bottom of the
water bodies. Another important pollutant, that can endanger marine life, is the oil
spilled by oil tanks. As per the estimates of the United Nations, 1.3 million barrels of
oils are spilled annually into the Persian Gulf, and about 285 million gallons are
spilled into the oceans every year. 16
It is on record that the industrial revolution in the early years marked the
beginning of the recognition of water pollution. For instance,
Japan experienced severe environmental pollution during its push to industrialize in
the late 19th century and again during the rush to rebuild the economy after World
War II. Some of the worst pollution incidents caused great human suffering. One of
the first episodes began in the late 19th century, when copper mining operations
released effluents that contaminated rivers and rice fields in the mountains of central
Honshu, sickening much of the local population.17 In the United States industry is the
greatest source of pollution, accounting for more than half the volume of all water
pollution and for the most deadly pollutants. Some 370,000 manufacturing facilities
use huge quantities of freshwater to carry away wastes of many kinds. 18 These
industrial activities are famous for creating the world’s most recognized pollution.
The BP oil spill in the Golf of Mexico is one classic example of industrial forms of
pollution, where several thousand gallons of crude oil leaked into the Golf of Mexico
causing a string of events that were detrimental to the environment.
This goes to establish that industrial activities contribute to water pollution either
directly, as mentioned above, or indirectly especially in cases where the pollutant in
question gets transformed into another form of pollution before finally polluting the
water. For example, sulphur-dioxide from a power plant’s chimney begins as air
pollution. The polluted air mixes with atmospheric moisture to produce airborne
sulphuric-acid, which falls to the earth as acid rain. In turn, the acid rain can be
carried into a stream or lake, becoming a form of water pollution that can harm or
even eliminate wildlife.

16
http:/www.buzzle.com/articles/asbestos
17
Cybriwsky, Roman A., et al. "Japan." Microsoft Encarta 2009 [DVD]. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation,
2008.
18
Htpp://www.inforplease.com/ce6/sci/A0835735.html

8
 EFFECTS OF WATER POLLUTION
The effects of water pollution are numerous (as seen above). Some water
pollution effects are recognized immediately, whereas others don’t show up for
months or years. Additional effects of water pollution include:19
1. The food chain is damaged. When toxins are in the water, the toxins
travel from the water the animals drink to humans when the animals’ meat
is eaten.
2. Diseases can spread via polluted water. Infectious diseases such as
typhoid and cholera can be contracted from drinking contaminated water.
This is called microbial water pollution. The human heart and kidneys can
be adversely affected if polluted water is consumed regularly. Other health
problems associated with polluted water are poor blood circulation, skin
lesions, vomiting, and damage to the nervous system. In fact, the effects of
water pollution are said to be the leading cause of death for humans across
the globe.
3. Acid rain contains sulphate particles, which can harm fish or plant life in
lakes and rivers.
4. Pollutants in the water will alter the overall chemistry of the water,
causing changes in acidity, temperature and conductivity. These factors all
have an affect on the marine life.
5. Marine food sources are contaminated or eliminated by water pollution.
6. Altered water temperatures (due to human actions) can kill the marine
life and affect the delicate ecological balance in bodies of water, especially
lakes and rivers.

LEGAL CONTROL OF WATER POLLUTION

It’s the concern of environmental law, being a branch of international law and
also municipal law, to also provide some form of legal control in order to stem the
devastating effects of water pollution on not just humans but also on other species on
planet earth. Such Law and regulation help to prevent and reduce water pollution
incidents. Legislative action plans against water pollution are usually been developed
at the international, regional and national levels.
19
http://scipeeps.com/types-of-water-pollution/

9
 International Legal Control
International law deals mostly with marine pollution. These laws prohibit
dumping of waste and other hazardous materials at sea and also regulate oil spillages
from ships and other vessels. International law has played a major role in controlling
and reducing pollution in international waters.20 Perhaps the biggest reason for
developing a worldwide effort to monitor and restrict global pollution is the fact that
most forms of pollution do not respect national boundaries. The first major
international conference on environmental issues was held in Stockholm, Sweden, in
1972 and was sponsored by the United Nations (UN). The most important outcome of
the conference was the creation of the United Nations Environmental Program
(UNEP). UNEP was designed to be the environmental conscience of the United
Nations.21
Some of the examples of international legal framework to protect against the
pollution of water are listed below;
1. The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships,
1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 (MARPOL 73/78)
2. International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and
Cooperation, 1990 (OPRC)
3. International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in
Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances
(HNS) by Sea
4. Protocol on Preparedness, Response and Co-operation to Pollution
Incidents by Hazardous and Noxious Substances, 2000 (OPRC-HNS)
Protocol
5. The International Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti-fouling
Systems on Ships
6. Nairobi International Convention on the Removal of Wrecks, 2007
7. The Helsinki Rules On The Uses Of Waters Of International Rivers

Municipal legal control

The protection against the pollution of water resources in Nigeria over the past few
years has been solely the responsibility of the Federal Government. To this end, several

20
http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtmll/DTD/xtmll
21
MacDonnell, LJ., Water Quality LAND WATER LAW REVIEW., vol. 31, no. 2, pp. 329-348, 1996

10
national legislations and policies had been put in place to reflect the performance of this
duty.
The legislations include as follows 22:
1. Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999
Section 20 Chapter 11 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria 1999 provides that “The state shall protect and improve the
environment and safe guard the water, air, land, forest and wild life in
Nigeria”.5 Under the second schedule, part 1, item 64 of the same
constitution, the Federal Government of Nigeria has exclusive jurisdiction
on primary water matters from sources affecting more than one state as
maybe declared by the National Assembly. Therefore, the sourcing,
production, supply and distribution of water other than those stated above
falls under the concurrent legislative list under part 11 of the 1999
Constitution. Each federating state is permitted by the Constitution to
legislate on water matters as it affects such state. Besides the Constitution
of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, there are several federal and state laws
that regulate the supply and usage on water in Nigeria as water is a
complex and multifarious compound.
2. The Water Resources Act 1993.
Besides the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the next
primary law regulating water is the “Water Resources Act 101 OF
1993.”23 This law vest on the Federal Government of Nigeria through the
Federal Ministry of Water Resources, the rights to regulate, develop, and
license all water operators in Nigeria. This includes planning,
development, and usage of Nigeria’s water resources, ensuring quality,
quantity, distribution, use and management of water, ensuring application
of appropriate standards and techniques for investigation, use control,
protection, management and administration of water resources,
facilitating technical assistance and rehabilitation for water supplies etc.

The Water Act gives the Minister for Water Resources very wide powers
on water regulation such as to issue licences of water, storage, pumping or
use of commercial scale or construction, maintenance, operation, repair of
any borehole or hydraulic works etc. The Minister may also define places
from which water may be taken or used, fix times of actual anticipated
22
Http://www.martindale.com/legal-library/advancesearch
23
Cap 101 1993, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004

11
 shortage of water, amount of water which may be taken to by any person,
prohibit temporarily or permanently, taking or use of water that is
hazardous to health, revoke the right to use water where such right
overrides public interest, require to be examined or license any drilling
operations, regulate, place, depth, manner of construction of borehole or
well. The Minister in the discharge of his duties is to make provision for
adequate supply of suitable water for animals, irrigation, agriculture,
domestic and non domestic use, generation of hydro electrical energy,
navigation and recreation, drainage, safe disposal of sewage, prevention
from pollution, prevention from flooding, soil erosion, reclamation of
land, protection of the environment etc. Besides these wide powers, all
dams in Nigeria are under the control, development, maintenance and
supervision of the Federal Ministry of Water Resources. They include the
Kainji Dam, the Lake Chad Dam etc. These very wide powers have often
constrained all other water resources agencies including the National
Assembly from exercising control and regulation over the water sector in
Nigeria.
3. River Basins Development Authorities Act.
This Act establishes and regulates all river basin authorities in Nigeria.
The Act lists their functions as agriculture, irrigation, fisheries, forestry
and veterinary institute.
4. The Various State Water Board Acts.
All states in Nigeria has State Water Board Acts which establishes a state
water board in each state to manage, supervise, control the use,
consumption, maintenance of water and its ancillaries. State Water
Boards report directly to the Governors of each state.

5. National Shipping Policy Act.24

The Act establishes the National Maritime Authority to co-ordinate and
implement Nigeria’s shipping policies and all other matters incidental
thereto. It therefore allows the maritime authority some room to affect
policies of government with respect on water issues.
6. The National Resources Conservation Council Act. 25

24
Cap 279, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990.

12
 The Act provides for the establishment of a National Resources
Conservation Council Act responsible for the conservation of natural
resources of Nigeria and to formulate national policy for national
resources conservation including water resources.
7. The Federal Environmental Protection Agency Act.26
Under this Act, no federal, state, local Government or any authority can
perform any acts or duty or functions which may affect the environment
without carrying out an environmental impact assessment including water
projects. The FEPA has also made several regulations to regulate the
environment National Environmental protection management of waste
resources Regulations 1991.
8. Oil in Navigable Waters Act.27
The Act provides for the implementation of the international convention
for prevention of pollution of the sea by oil and provides for remedies
against such pollution.

CONCLUSION
It is settled that water resources remain one of the most fundamental
constituents of human existence without which survival would be daunting.
However with the massive dependence on water resources coupled with massive
explosion in the population figures of humans, these very precious water resources
has become limited and scarce.
As if that wasn’t enough, the limited available water is being polluted either as
a result of human activities or natural causes. The pollution of water resources
bears very catastrophic consequences not only to human beings but also to other
species we as humans share the planet with. To stem the destruction of quality of
water on a global level, the leaders of several nations, from time to time, formulate
guiding principles and frameworks to provide acceptable standards in treatment of
water resources. Following this steps, municipal legal regimes (including that of
Nigeria) usually ratify and or make laws to protect water resources within their
boundaries.

25
Cap 286, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990.
26
Act No.59 of 1992, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
27
Cap 337, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990.

13
 Using Nigerian as a case study, there are national pollution laws governing the
pollution of the environment such as the Federal Environmental Protection Agency
Act. But with the recent international declarations and conventions, there is need to
incorporate these conventions into Nigeria law. The Kyoto Declaration of 2003
that required all industrial countries to regulate their industrial emissions to protect
the environment and ozone layer should be domesticated in Nigeria.
On water sanitation standards and quality, the National Agency for Food and
Drug Administration and Control Act (NAFDAC) and the Standards Organization
of Nigeria has both ensuring that consumed water in Nigeria is of international
qualitative standards.
Indeed, the importance of the regulation cannot be overemphasized especially
when the huge importance of water is put into consideration. It is also for this
reason that law can be said to play its most important role in society and thereby
provide for the accepted standards of behaviour as expected by the society.

14