Author(s)

G. Asadollahfardi

Abstract

In order to control water pollution in a more effective way, there is a need to set up legislation which will cover all aspects relating to water pollution. The second step would be the implementation and management of that legislation in order to achieve the most effective result. Despite three decades of existing legislation and management for water pollution control in Iran, the results of implementation are still not effective. Hence, it is vital to identify the problems which cause improper improvement in surface and ground water quality. First a review of some historical trends of water pollution legislation and management is presented, which have been in progress since the start of legislation in Iran, as well as in England and Wales. Then a comparison of current legislation in both countries is made and also the implementation of the legislation is explained. The results indicate an imbalance in current laws. They point out the existing flaws in the system used in Iran and suggest a few ways for improving it. Keywords: legislation, uniform emission standard, water quality objective standard, water pollution in Iran. 1 Introduction Adequate legislation is the primary requirement for the control of surface and ground water pollution and related organizations must enforce and administer the law. However, depending on factors such as the legal system, degree of development, climate and the traditions of a country, the type of organisation may differ from one country to another (Ellis [4]). A very important point to note is that adequate legislation without effective administration is not constructive. Independence of any such organization is necessary and the administrator should

Keywords

legislation, uniform emission standard, water quality objective standard, water pollution in Iran.