REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA

REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA LAND RECLAMATION L A W 9 December 1993 No I-323 (As amended on 5 February 2004 – No IX-2009) Vilnius CHAPTER I GENERAL PROVISIONS Article

1. Purpose of the Law This Law shall establish ownership relations in respect of land reclamation facilities, the rights and duties of land owners and other users related to construction of land reclamation facilities, their use and protection, as well as organisation, management, design and expert examination of land reclamation, accounting of the reclaimed land and land reclamation facilities, and the procedure for financing of land reclamation. Article
2. Definitions
3. “Shared system of land reclamation facilities” shall mean a group of land reclamation facilities located in the land plots of two or more land owners or other users.
4. “Land reclamation” shall mean the improvement of the soil by employing hydro-technical, cultural-technical, agromeliorative and other measures seeking to regulate water, heat and air regime of the soil, to create more favourable opportunities for agriculture, to retain and increase the fertility of the soil and to form rational landholding.
5. “Land reclamation works” shall mean the construction of new land reclamation facilities; reconstruction, repair and demolition of the existing land reclamation facilities, their maintenance and implementation of cultural-technical, agromeliorative and agrochemical soil improvement measures.
6. “Land reclamation system” shall mean a group of land reclamation facilities that are related by functional relations and located in a specific area of the reclaimed land.
7. “Land reclamation facilities” shall mean various facilities used for land reclamation (ditches, overfalls, races, culverts, collector drains and laterals, pump houses, pond embankments, dams, irrigation pipes, manholes, surface inlets and etc.).
8. “Reclaimed land” shall mean a land plot with an implemented and functioning land reclamation system and implemented cultural-technical, agromeliorative and other measures that create favourable conditions for the development of agriculture.
9. “System of land reclamation facilities” shall mean a group of land reclamation facilities located in one land plot of the reclaimed land. CHAPTER II OWNERSHIP OF LAND RECLAMATION FACILITIES Article
10. Ownership of Land Reclamation Facilities
11. Land reclamation facilities located on a land plot shall be considered appurtenances of the land plot and belong to the owner of the land plot by the right of ownership, unless otherwise provided for in the contract, except for land reclamation facilities and hydrotechnical facilities, specified in paragraph 2 of this Article, that belong to the state by the right of ownership.
12. The following facilities shall belong to the state by the right of ownership: regulated streams, ditches taking water from more than one land plot of the land owner or other user, land reclamation facilities located therein, hydrotechnical facilities, polders and other land reclamation systems of water reservoirs that are located on the boundaries of the land plot of two or more land owners or other users provided the water in them is mechanically raised, sewage ditches and collector drains, if their diameter is 12.5 cm or larger, and if they were constructed at the expense of the state, irrespective of the owner of the land plot in the territory whereof these land reclamation facilities are located. CHAPTER III RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF LAND OWNERS AND OTHER USERS RELATED TO THE CONSTRUCTION, USE AND PROTECTION OF LAND RECLAMATION FACILITIES Article
13. Rights of Land Owners and other Users Land owners and other users shall be entitled: 1) to receive from state and municipal institutions, free of charge, information about the implementation of land reclamation programmes financed by the state and also information and technical documentation on land reclamation facilities located on their land plot; 2) to participate in discussions held in state and municipal institutions considering land reclamation programmes and projects related to their interests; 3) to request to get access to the design of land reclamation facilities and the expert examination thereof, if land reclamation facilities that belong to the state by the right of ownership are constructed or reconstructed on their land plot; 4) to request to compensate for losses incurred through the fault of other persons who were performing land reclamation works in the shared system of land reclamation facilities or in those that belong to the state by the right of ownership or incurred not through their fault in the case of malfunctioning of the shared system of land reclamation facilities or of those land reclamation facilities that belong to the state by the right of ownership; 5) to establish legal entities or conclude joint activities (partnership) agreements for construction of systems of land reclamation facilities or shared systems of land reclamation facilities or for ensuring their proper functioning. Article
14. Obligations of Land Owners and other Users
15. Land owners and other users shall have to allow to construct, maintain, repair and reconstruct land reclamation facilities located on their land plot when this is required for reclamation of the land of other owners. Losses, consequently incurred by land owners and other users, shall be reimbursed according to the procedure set forth by laws.
16. Land owners shall construct new land reclamation systems, repair and reconstruct land reclamation facilities according to the procedure set forth by the Law on Construction and other legal acts. Article
17. Obligations of the Reclaimed Land Owners and other Users The reclaimed land owners and other users shall: 1) use land reclamation facilities according to their purpose and maintain the facilities that belong to the land owner by the right of ownership and are located on the reclaimed land, and promptly repair them, if damage to the property of other persons or the state property, or the natural environment may be done due to their failure; 2) allow institutions exercising the state supervision, managing in trust and operating land reclamation facilities that belong to the state by the right of ownership inspect them, and for specialists from teaching and research institutions – to analyse and collect data about the condition of these facilities without causing damage thereto; 3) allow maintenance, repair or reconstruction works in respect of land reclamation facilities that belong to the state by the right of ownership in accordance with a work schedule in advance co-ordinated with a builder; 4) co-ordinate excavation works with other land owners, in respect of whose property or interests damage may be done, and institutions managing in trust land reclamation facilities that belong to the state by the right of ownership; 5) compensate for damage done by illegal actions in respect of land reclamation facilities that belong to the state or the other land owner by the right of ownership. CHAPTER IV ORGANISATION AND MANAGEMENT OF LAND RECLAMATION. DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION AND EXPERT EXAMINATION OF LAND RECLAMATION, ACCOUNTING OF THE RECLAIMED LAND AND LAND RECLAMATION FACILITIES Article
18. Organisation and Management of Land Reclamation
19. The Ministry of Agriculture shall draft programmes on land reclamation, set land reclamation priorities, co-ordinate the state supervision over land reclamation works and use of land reclamation facilities, keeping the record of the reclaimed land and land reclamation facilities and the activities of institutions that manage in trust land reclamation facilities that belong to the state by the right of ownership, and in co-operation with the Ministry of Environment, which, under the Law on Construction, is delegated with the task of drafting technical construction regulations, shall draft and approve regulatory documents on design and construction of land reclamation facilities and recognition of a facility suitable for use and establish the procedure for submission of technical documentation on land reclamation facilities to the land owners and other users.
20. State supervision of land reclamation works and use of land reclamation facilities shall be carried out by the administration of the county governor.
21. Municipalities shall manage in trust and use land reclamation facilities that belong to the state by the right of ownership.
22. Land owners of land plots shall organise the construction of new land reclamation facilities, except for those specified in paragraph 2 of Article 3 of the Law, as well as reconstruction, repair and maintenance of the existing facilities. Article
23. Design, Construction and Expert Examination of Land Reclamation Facilities
24. Design of a land reclamation facility, expert examination of the design of the land reclamation facility and the land reclamation facility itself, the construction, technical supervision of the construction, supervision of the implementation of the design, recognition of the facility suitable for use and state supervision shall be carried out in accordance with the procedure set forth by laws.
25. Expert examination has to be carried out in respect of land reclamation facilities included into the state investment programme or those financed from the European Union structural or any other funds.
26. An enterprise which possesses a qualification certificate issued or recognised by the Ministry of Agriculture authorising to engage in a certain particular technical activity shall be entitled to carry out the design of land reclamation facilities, expert examination of the design of the land reclamation facility and the land reclamation facility itself (except for emergency breakdown elimination works) and the construction of land reclamation facilities. Article
27. Accounting of the Reclaimed Land and Land Reclamation Facilities Accounting of the reclaimed land and land reclamation facilities shall be a constituent part of the Land Information System and shall cover the information on legal, geographical and economic conditions of the reclaimed land and land reclamation facilities. The Ministry of Agriculture shall establish the procedure for accounting of the reclaimed land and land reclamation facilities. CHAPTER V FINANCING OF LAND RECLAMATION Article
28. Financing of Land Reclamation
29. The state shall finance maintenance, repair and reconstruction of land reclamation facilities that belong to the state by the right of ownership. The Seimas shall approve the budget appropriations for land reclamation works according to their purpose.
30. The state shall provide financial support to the owners of the reclaimed land for carrying out the construction, reconstruction, repair and maintenance works in respect of land reclamation facilities in accordance with the procedure established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an institution authorised by it. The funds from the state budget, from the European Union structural or any other funds shall be used for this purpose.
31. Reconstruction of land reclamation facilities that belong to the state by the right of ownership that has to be carried out due to the necessity to build engineering structures not related to land reclamation shall be financed by builders of engineering structures. Reconstruction of other land reclamation facilities that has to be carried out due to the necessity to build engineering structures not related to land reclamation shall be financed by builders of engineering structures, unless agreed otherwise. I promulgate this Law passed by the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania. PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC ALGIRDAS BRAZAUSKAS