Water Use Concession Application Colombia

A Water Use Concession Application Colombia (Solicitud de Concesión de Aguas) is the formal administrative procedure through which an individual or legal entity requests from the competent Regional Autonomous Corporation (Corporación Autónoma Regional — CAR) or urban environmental authority the authorization to capture, divert, or use public-domain waters — surface waters (rivers, streams, lakes, lagoons, reservoirs, wetlands) or groundwater (wells, springs) — for a specific purpose, pursuant to Article 86 of Decreto-Ley 2811 de 1974 (Código Nacional de Recursos Naturales Renovables) and Article 2.2.3.2.1.1 of Decreto 1076 de 2015 (Decreto Único Reglamentario del Sector Ambiente).

All waters in Colombia are public-domain property of the State under Article 677 of the Colombian Código Civil and Article 80 of Decreto-Ley 2811 de 1974. No person may use public-domain waters without the corresponding concession or permit from the environmental authority, except for minimum household subsistence uses recognized in Article 86 literal (a) of the same Decreto-Ley. A water concession is an administrative act that grants the concessionaire the temporary and revocable right to use a specific flow volume (caudal) of water for a defined purpose, subject to conditions set by the CAR and the hydrographic basin's environmental management plan.

Ley 99 de 1993, in its Article 31 numeral 12, granted the Regional Autonomous Corporations exclusive competence to grant environmental concessions, permits, authorizations, and licenses for renewable natural resource use within their jurisdiction, including waters. In major urban centers (Bogotá, Medellín, Cali, Barranquilla), this competence belongs to urban environmental authorities: the Secretaría Distrital de Ambiente de Bogotá, the Área Metropolitana del Valle de Aburrá, DAGMA, or CRA.

Resolución 865 de 2004 of IDEAM (Instituto de Hidrología, Meteorología y Estudios Ambientales) established the methodology for calculating Colombia's water scarcity index, which is determinative for concession grants: in basins with high or very high scarcity indexes, CARs may deny new concessions to protect hydrological balance. The Plan de Ordenación y Manejo de la Cuenca Hidrográfica (POMCA) for each basin establishes the restrictions and conditions for granting new water concessions within the territory.

A Water Use Concession Application Colombia is mandatory in the following cases established by Decreto-Ley 2811 de 1974 and Decreto 1076 de 2015.

Industrial Water Supply: Manufacturing, mining, food and beverage, pharmaceutical companies, and any industry requiring water as a process input or for equipment cooling must obtain a water concession for their river, deep well, or reservoir intakes. The conceded flow must correspond to the maximum capture rate the company requires at full production.

Municipal Water Supply Systems: Municipalities and water system operators (public utility companies — ESP) must hold water concessions to capture raw water feeding their drinking water treatment plants (PTAP). Water concession for human consumption has priority over all other uses under Article 28 of Decreto-Ley 2811 de 1974.

Agricultural and Livestock Irrigation: Agricultural producers, flower growers, banana plantations, coffee farmers, and livestock operators who extract water from rivers, streams, or wells to irrigate crops or supply livestock facilities need water concessions. Irrigation represents the largest volume use of fresh water in Colombia by total captured volume.

Hydroelectric Power Generation: Energy companies (EPM, Emgesa, Isagen, Celsia) operating hydroelectric plants require water concessions to divert or retain flows needed for electricity generation. These concessions are among the largest by volume and carry strict environmental conditions regarding minimum ecological flows.

Aquaculture and Fish Farming: Fish, shrimp, and other aquatic organism cultivation in ponds or floating cages requires water concessions for water capture from water bodies or deep wells supplying the production systems, especially in departments with strong aquaculture traditions like Huila, Meta, Córdoba, and Cundinamarca.

Special Environmental Uses: Research institutions, universities, and environmental monitoring agencies extracting water samples from bodies of water for scientific purposes require a simplified concession or permit under Decreto 1076 de 2015 Article 2.2.3.2.1.3.

Timing: The concession application should be filed during the pre-investment phase of any project requiring water — before construction of intake works begins. Operating without a concession while construction is underway can generate administrative sanctions under Ley 1333 de 2009, even if the use is otherwise legitimate.

A Water Use Concession Application before the competent CAR in Colombia must contain the following elements required by Decreto 1076 de 2015.

Applicant Identification: Full name or company name (razón social), NIT or cédula, address, telephone, email, and legal representative. Proof of ownership, tenancy, or possession of the land where the water will be captured must be provided through a certificado de tradición y libertad from the Oficina de Registro de Instrumentos Públicos (ORIP) or a lease agreement.

Description of the Requested Use: Type of water use per the classification in Decreto-Ley 2811 de 1974: domestic use (Art. 29), agricultural use (Art. 31), industrial use (Art. 32), livestock use (Art. 33), recreational, mining, or energy generation. The use type determines prioritization criteria and concession conditions.

Water Source Identification: Name of the river, stream, lake, or aquifer from which capture is requested; water source code per the IDEAM system; GPS coordinates of the intake point; hydrographic basin and municipality. For groundwater, estimated aquifer depth, area geology, and pumping test results if the well has been drilled.

Requested Flow Volume: Maximum capture flow in liters per second (l/s) or cubic meters per day (m³/day), with technical justification based on actual or projected consumption. The requested flow cannot exceed what is available in the source without affecting the minimum ecological flow, calculated per Resolución 865 de 2004 of IDEAM.

Intake Works Description: Technical specifications of the capture system (bocatoma, deep well, shallow well, infiltration gallery): dimensions, materials, design flow, pumping system if applicable. Technical plans signed by a licensed civil or environmental engineer.

Hydrological Availability Study: For significant flow concessions, the CAR may require a hydrological study demonstrating the requested flow's availability in the source during low-water conditions (minimum flow in dry season), prepared per IDEAM protocols.

Water Use Fee Payment: The granted concession is subject to the water use fee (tasa de uso del agua) under Decreto 1076 de 2015, calculated by multiplying the conceded flow by the water resource cost factor for the specific basin. This payment is made periodically to the CAR while the concession is in force. Forms-legal.com provides this updated template meeting Decreto 1076 de 2015 requirements to efficiently process water concessions before any Colombian CAR.