Facts
On 7 May 2001, the Embrach Water Supply Cooperative filed an application with the Canton of Zurich for the granting of a concession to use spring water for drinking and general purposes, including at the [Z.] spring site. In 2002, the Cantonal Government of Zurich granted the Cooperative the right to extract up to 108 l/min of water from the local groundwater resource and use it in the public water supply. Upon appeal by the then-property owner, the Administrative Court in 2002 annulled the decision with regard to the [Z.] springs A, B and C and remanded the matter for re-examination.
After obtaining a hydrogeological expert opinion, the Cantonal Government in 2009 granted the Water Supply Cooperative the right to extract up to 79 l/min of water from the groundwater resource with the [Z.] springs A, B and C. The new property owner [X.] appealed this decision, which the Administrative Court dismissed in 2010.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court held that the Canton of Zurich is authorized under federal law to delineate the boundary between public and private waters. The Cantonal Water Management Act provides that groundwater as well as open and culverted surface waters for which no private ownership can be proven are public waters.
In the present case, the Federal Supreme Court…