Do they want to force citizens to pay Azersu's debts?

Baku/10.04.22/Turan: Despite the repeated increase in the cost of drinking water and the constant installation/replacement of meters, the state-owned company “Azersu” remains unprofitable; “Azersu” ended  the 2020 year with 7.3 billion manat debt to the state. The financial report  for 2021 has not been sill not presented on the azersu.az website.

Instead of improving the efficiency of their work and stopping corruption, the management of this company is looking for ways to take more money from the population. Thus,  “Azersu” controllers issue inflated, false bills for unused water to subscribers (Turan has repeatedly published specific facts). The company went further, and this year, on March 17, the Cabinet of Ministers adopted a document called "Rules for the paid use of water in the Republic of Azerbaijan", in which Azerbaijani citizens will have to pay for water, in the production and delivery of which “Azersu” does not participate.

According to information received by the media from the adviser to the Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Rasim Sattarzade, in the decree of the Cabinet of Ministers, natural water resources are considered paid. In water-rich countries, the use of natural water sources by people is paid, he emphasizes.

It should be noted that ancient wells still exist in the Absheron villages, from which residents take water for watering plants, some wells even contain drinking water. Owners do not pay for wells. Residents of Azerbaijani mountain villages receive spring water flowing into their yards through ancient, sometimes preserved ceramic pipes (in the villages of Ilisu, Sarybash, Gakh region, etc.). There is no Production Entity "Azersu" in these settlements, there are no water meters.

The text of R. Sattarzade's statement says that in Azerbaijan payment will be collected from individuals and legal entities that take water using technical devices and equipment from underground and surface water sources (reservoirs, etc.). Payment depends on the volume of  the  used water.

Tariffs will be determined in accordance with annual consumption monitoring data. In this case, the amount to be paid  will depend on the quality of water, destination, technical level of water management, transportation method and other criteria.

R.Sattarzadeh points out that water will remain free for the population (only individuals) in open sources of public use - the sea, lakes, rivers. That is, you will not have to pay for swimming in the sea and rivers, for livestock, fishing, boat trips, provided that the water is taken without the use of technical means.

Within three months, proposals on the mechanism of payment for the use of water will be collected in the Ministry and submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers. And the amount of payment will be determined by the Tariff Council,  R. Sattarzade added.

If a government document mentions the Tariff Council, then Azerbaijanis know from experience that prices will increase; there is hardly any doubt about this. But questions arise: will the power of “Azersu” extend to the inhabitants of villages and settlements using water, for the extraction and delivery of which  “Azersu” did not spend a single qepik? The Ministry of Ecology cannot answer this question, since according to information from the press service of the Ministry, where Turan applied, Rasim Sattarzade went abroad on vacation on April 7. He did not answer the call from Turan. The press service added that the adviser to the minister said everything he could say in an official statement.

Since the statement from the Ministry of Ecology refers to international experience in water use, let's turn to the practice of a neighboring country similar to Azerbaijan - the Russian Federation.

From January 1, 2022, in this country, the use of artesian wells and wells for the extraction of water will be allowed only with a license. This rule does not apply to those who have wells and wells drilled before the specified date on the site.

After January 1, the requirements apply: the well must be located directly on a personal (or rented) site. Its depth can reach only the first aquifer, which, moreover, should not be a source of centralized water supply. (It is worth explaining that all water supplies for centralized water supply appear on the state balance sheet.) A well can produce no more than 100 cubic meters of water per day. Water extraction should not be associated with entrepreneurial activity. Land owners who have a well serving several households, from which up to 500 cubic meters of water are extracted per day, will have to pay a state company.

It should be noted that according to Azerbaijani legislation, drilling of artesian wells is allowed only if there are no surface water sources within an accessible distance, and to a depth determined by law.

In Russia, owners of wells and artesian wells who drilled these sources before the adoption of the law under discussion should not collect certificates for their water sources. But after January 1, the requirements for those who intend to drill an underground source in their area come into force: it is necessary to conduct a geological study of the subsoil, state expertise of mineral reserves, obtain approvals for well projects and provide evidence that the company digging a well  has qualified professionals in this area of ​​work. And the company has the financial and technical means to do it right.

After January 1, the owners of wells require a full package of paid documents.

For unlicensed "extraction of groundwater" in the Russian Federation, they are fined in the amount of 3 - 5 thousand rubles; up to 1 million rubles, depending on the status of the consumer.

If readers have noticed, a three-month discussion of new water use rules in Azerbaijan has been launched after the entry into force of similar rules in Russia. There is little doubt that the Ministry of Ecology of Azerbaijan will largely copy the Russian document, replacing rubles in it with manats. Most likely, just like in the Russian Federation, the owners of old, on their own land, owners of water sources, will not be forced to register them according to the new rules.

According to the text of R. Sattarzade's statement about foreign experience and the document adopted in the Russian Federation, the owners of wells in Azerbaijan can take water for free, but only in the old-fashioned way - a bucket tied to a rope. If the water from the wells is drawn by an electric pump, then the owners are subject to the regulation on the use of technical devices, entailing a payment for water from their own well.

R. Sattarzadeh is on vacation, and when he returns, he can say that the new rules will not be known soon, since they need to collect proposals for three months, then summarize them, analyze and discuss them in government departments. But the sad Azerbaijani experience suggests that in any case, farmers will have to pay more for watering agricultural plots than before, and this will certainly increase the cost of food in stores.--0--