Water Resources Act 1991

109 Structures in, over or under a main river

(1) No person shall erect any structure in, over or under a watercourse which is part of a main river except with the consent of and in accordance with plans and sections approved by the Authority.

(2) No person shall, without the consent of the Authority, carry out any work of alteration or repair on any structure in, over or under a watercourse which is part of a main river if the work is likely to affect the flow of water in the watercourse or to impede any drainage work.

(3) No person shall erect or alter any structure designed to contain or divert the floodwaters of any part of a main river except with the consent of and in accordance with plans and sections approved by the Authority.

(4) If any person carries out any work in contravention of this section the Authority may—

(a) remove, alter, or pull down the work; and

(b) recover from that person the expenses incurred in doing so.

(5) Subsections (1) and (2) above shall not apply to any work carried out in an emergency; but a person carrying out any work excepted from those subsections by this subsection shall inform the Authority in writing as soon as practicable—

(a) of the carrying out of the work; and

(b) of the circumstances in which it was carried out.

(6) Nothing in this section shall be taken to affect any enactment requiring the consent of any government department for the erection of a bridge or any powers exercisable by any government department in relation to a bridge.