Water rights

Water rights regulate access to and use of rivers, lakes, groundwater and springs. They determine who may abstract, divert, dam, store or discharge water and under what environmental, planning and public-interest conditions. In Switzerland, water law is strongly shaped by cantonal sovereignty over waters, federal environmental and water-protection rules, and concessions for hydropower. Rights may be public-law concessions, permits or private-law entitlements depending on the resource and use. Key issues include residual flows, flood protection, competing uses, drinking-water security, ecological restoration and compensation when rights are restricted or expired.