Land Drainage Act 1991

68 Power of navigation authorities etc to divert sewers

(1) Where any watercourses under the control of an internal drainage board pass under or interfere with, or with the improvement or alteration of, any river, canal, dock, harbour, basin or other work (including any towing-path adjacent thereto) which belongs to or is under the jurisdiction of any relevant authority, the relevant authority may, at their own expense and on substituting for those watercourses other equally effective watercourses—

(a) take up, divert or alter the level of those watercourses; and

(b) do all such matters and things as may be necessary in connection with the works authorised to be done by them under this section.

(2) If any question arises under this section between any internal drainage board and any relevant authority as to whether any watercourses substituted or proposed to be substituted by the relevant authority for any existing watercourses are as effective as the existing watercourses, that question shall be referred to a single arbitrator to be agreed between the parties or, failing such agreement, to be appointed by the President of the Institution of Civil Engineers on the application of either party.

(3) In this section “relevant authority” means any navigation authority, harbour authority or conservancy authority.