OREANDA-NEWS. December 02, 2009. Today developing antimonopoly control over circulation of the rights for using water resources becomes especially important, said Stats-Secretary Andrey Tsarikovsky, Deputy Head of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia), speaking at the "CLEAR WATER [CHISTAYA VODA]" International Forum, reported the press-centre of FAS Russia.

Apart from preserving water facilities and water resources, the Water Laws of the Russian Federation should assure development of national economy by providing access to water resources for the users, of all patterns of ownership, by the most rational manner and with due account of the interests of the residents of particular areas.

Andrey Tsarikovsky said that the most efficient way to achieve this -is transition to contract relations. "This mechanism enables the most efficient use of water resources, reduces bureaucratic barriers, eliminates double taxation, protects the interests of the population, and also provides for free-of-charge use of water facilities for the socially important purposes", pointed out the Deputy Head of FAS Russia.

According to FAS Russia, today there is an emerging danger of dominance in certain areas of entrepreneurial activities related to the use of ware resources. This can create conditions for abusive conduct of unfair users of water resources, because possessing considerable rights for use of water resources and their parts, a user of water resources gains a possibility to dominate the adjacent markets.

Antimonopoly control over the use of natural resources as well as associated relations are regulated by the Federal Law "On Protection of Competition", in consistence with provisions of the relevant federal laws.

Until recently the laws on natural resources did not contain specific antimonopoly provisions, which made antimonopoly control in this field significantly more difficult.

On 1st January 2007, a new Water Code came into force, which, along with regulating activities of economic entities related to the use of water resources, contains antimonopoly requirements in this field.

"Antimonopoly requirements, auction procedures for allocating the rights for water resources, and possibilities to exercise state control over economic concentration in the use of water resources provided for by the Water Laws enable more efficient antimonopoly control and supervision of FAS Russia and its regional bodies over the use of water resources", stated Andrey Tsarikovsky.

To enforce Part 3 Article 40 of the Water Code of the Russian Federation, FAS Russia devised the Rules of State Control over Economic Concentration in the Use of Water Facilities, which are approved by No.314 Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of 8th April 2009.

In the opinion of Andrey Tsarikovsky, adopting those Rules was the first step towards creating special legal mechanisms of control over the circulation of rights for the use of ware resources.

The Rules of State Control over Economic Concentration in the Use of Water Facilities established notification-based requirements for informing the antimonopoly authority about transactions and other actions of a person (a group of persons) towards obtaining the right of use of a water area more than 100,000 sq. m., necessary and sufficient to exercise different types of water use by the economic entity, including adjacent activities, by which the persons or the group of persons influence(s) or can influence the state of competition on the markets of various works and services, carried out or provided with the use of water resources.

By enforcing the norms established by the Rules, the antimonopoly authority will possess information about economic concentration in the use of water resources and will be able to take antimonopoly measures against the persons (groups of persons) that abuse their dominance in exercising such rights.

Concluding his speech, Andrey Tsarikovsky pointed out that FAS Russia's measures on preventing antimonopoly violations with regard to water facilities will have positive effect not only upon developing competition, but also achieving a national goal of providing drinking water of appropriate quality to the population of the Russian Federation as well as ensuring social stability in this area.