2.1 Water Standards/Guidelines

2.1.1 Water Works Ordinance

The Water Works Ordinance specified that pollution of water supplies in certain instances is a criminal offence.

Limitation

The Ordinance does not define clearly what constitutes pollution, apart from merely stating that the water becomes "unwholesome".

2.1.2 Urban Water Supply Act

The Act gives the Urban Water Authority powers to make rules regarding surface and ground water pollution, and set punishment for the same. The Act, however, is specific to Dar es Salaam since the latter is the only designated urban centre under the Act.

Limitation

Although the Act addresses urban water supplies, and is silent on rural areas where more than half of the population is based, it only covered Dar es Salaam, largely because the other urban centres have not yet been specified to receive these services.

2.1.3 The Water Utilization (Control And Regulations) Act No. 42 of 1974 as Amended by Act No. 10 of 1981

This is the major legislation on water in Tanzania. The Act vests all water in Tanzania, in the Government, for the benefit of all the people in Tanzania. It accordingly upholds the inherent right of every one to use the water.

(a) Water Rights

The Act also established control and regulatory mechanisms to engender the main objective of water availability to everyone, however, where water is required for industrial, agricultural, forestry or mining activities, the user shall have to apply for water rights. Under Section 15 the applicant should state the use of the water, amount required, period of use, among other needs.

The Water Officer, in granting a water right, should give conditions and directions for safe use of the water. Safe use, if it is granted, should be interpreted to mean avoidance of pollution of the water while it is being utilitised. Where the water is returned into a river or lake, the right-holder shall ensure that the water so returned shall be substantially undiminished in quality. To achieve this, the rights-holder is required to treat the water in such as manner as to comply with prescribed effluent and receiving water standards. The Act sets the standards which form one of the schedules to the Act. The set standards are still temporary (they have remained so for almost 20 years now).

(b) Discharge From Commercial and Industrial Systems

To ensure compliance with the set standards, the Act prohibits discharge of any effluents from commercial and industrial sources into receiving waters, except with a permit and in accordance with the said set standards.

The Law prohibits discharge from commercial, industrial or trade systems into receiving waters without the consent of the Water Officers. Discharging in this case includes discharge into- underground strata. The law also bans any discharges from industrial or commercial systems into any area within 230 meters from a borehole, well or other water-hole.

On receiving waters, the law has identified three categories:

 water suitable for drinking, swimming, food and beverages, manufacturing industries, and other industries which require water of similar quality;
 water suitable for use in feeding domestic animals, in fisheries, shell cultures, recreation and water contact sports; and,
 water suitable for irrigation and other industrial activities requiring water of standards lower than those stated above.

The Act also establishes temporary standards of quality of domestic water. In view of the fact that domestic water is not defined by the Act, it would be safe to place all kinds of human and domestic use under this category.

The Act has prescribed a punishment of T. shs 50,000 for water pollution or T. shs. 100,000 or subsequent conviction of five years imprisonment. According to Section 33(4) of the Act, punishable pollution is said to be committed when it is likely to cause injury directly or indirectly to public health, livestock or fish, crops, orchards or gardens.

Limitation

Curiously enough the Act does not base criminal liability on failure to observe the standards, instead criminal liability is bases on the likelihood of causing injury, a yard-stick which is not readily discernible.

2.1.4 The Public Health (Sewerage And Drainage) Ordinance (Cap.336)

The law empowers urban authorities to prohibit discharge of certain substances into public sewers. In this regard, it has to be read together with Local Government (Urban Authorities) Act, 1982.

2.1.5 The Fisheries Act, 1970

The Fisheries Act, the Fisheries (General Regulations), 1973, the Fisheries (Explosives, Poisons and Water Regulations), 1982, and Fisheries Regulations, 1989, inter alia, ban the flow or passing into water of any solid, liquid, or gaseous matter or cause water pollution in any lake, river, dam, estuary or sea water. (Reg. 27(l) of Fisheries Regulations, 1989).

The person responsible for pollution is required to clean the polluted water within a reasonable period at his own expense. This is the polluter pays principle.

Limitation

It is not easy to apprehend the polluters as monitoring resources are not available, for example, recently where the army had to be asked by the Vice President (whose office supervises environmental affairs) to assist in rooting
out dynamite fishing.