Water reuse and saving laws in Brazil: what is mandatory for companies

Brazil has no single law on water saving and reuse. The rules are spread out: the Water Law (Law 9,433/1997) requires a permit from anyone who abstracts directly from nature, the Sanitation Framework (Law 11,445/2007, as amended by Law 14,026/2020) puts reuse and rainwater harvesting among the sector’s guidelines, and Law 14,546/2023 requires anyone using rainwater or greywater to have a separate network and treatment. Part of this is an obligation for companies, part is only an incentive, and the difference changes what to do.

In short:

• Obligation: a permit to abstract from a river or extract from a well, except for insignificant uses (Law No. 9,433/1997).
• Obligation: anyone using rainwater or greywater needs a network and tank separate from utility water and treatment before use (Law No. 14,546/2023).
• Obligation: individual metering per unit in new condominium buildings, since July 2021 (Law No. 13,312/2016).
• Obligation: effluent discharged into a river must meet the standards of CONAMA Resolution No. 430/2011.
• Incentive: non-potable reuse has had defined modalities since 2005 (CNRH Resolution No. 54/2005), and the federal government must encourage it in new buildings and industrial activities.

What are the main water saving and reuse laws in Brazil?

Six federal rules form the base, and cities can go further:

Rule	What it establishes	For the company
Law No. 9,433/1997, the Water Law	Water as a public good with economic value, permits and water use charges	Obligation: a permit for abstraction and wells; charges where the basin has introduced them
Law No. 11,445/2007, with Law No. 14,026/2020	Sanitation guidelines, with loss reduction, rational use, effluent reuse and rainwater harvesting	Indirect: targets in utility contracts
Law No. 14,546/2023	Encouragement of rainwater use and greywater reuse; separate network and treatment required	Obligation for those who adopt rainwater or greywater
Law No. 13,312/2016	Individual metering of consumption in new condominium buildings	Obligation in new condominiums, commercial ones included
CNRH Resolution No. 54/2005	Modalities and general criteria for direct non-potable reuse	Reference for reuse projects
CONAMA Resolution No. 430/2011	Effluent discharge conditions and standards	Obligation for those who discharge effluent into a water body

What did Law 14,546/2023 change?

It brought rainwater and greywater into the Sanitation Law. The new Article 49-A states that the federal government will encourage the use of rainwater and the non-potable reuse of greywater, such as water from showers, washbasins and washing machines, in new buildings and in landscaping, agricultural, forestry and industrial activities. And it imposes two rules on those who adopt these sources:

1. The plumbing and the tank that store rainwater and greywater must be separate from the public supply network.
2. Rainwater and greywater must go through treatment that ensures safe use before being stored and used in the building.

The same law created Article 43-A, which requires water utilities to fix network faults to avoid leaks and losses and to inspect the network for illegal connections. Brazil’s loss figures are in water losses: Brazil loses 39.53% before the tap.

In practice, separating the networks also protects the company: non-potable water mixed into the drinking water network is a health risk. The Brazilian ABNT technical standards that guide these systems are NBR 15527, for harvesting rainwater from roofs, and NBR 16783, for alternative non-potable water sources in buildings.

Is water reuse regulated in Brazil?

It is, with general criteria set by the National Water Resources Council. CNRH Resolution No. 54/2005 defines direct non-potable reuse, reuse water taken to the point of use without first passing through a river, and five modalities:

Modality	Examples
Urban	Landscape irrigation, washing streets and vehicles, construction, buildings and firefighting
Agricultural and forestry	Crop production and planted forests
Environmental	Environmental restoration projects
Industrial	Industrial processes, activities and operations
Aquaculture	Raising aquatic animals or growing aquatic plants

The resolution also provides that, if reuse changes the conditions of a permit in force, the company must ask for the permit to be amended, and it directs basin committees to create incentives for reuse in water use charges. The Sanitation Framework, in turn, recognises that treated sewage can be used to produce reuse water. Quality parameters for each use rest with the competent authorities and state rules. How to set up reuse in a factory is in water reuse in industry, and how water use charges work, in water use charges in Brazil.

What is mandatory in new buildings and condominiums?

Individual metering. Law No. 13,312/2016 added to the Sanitation Law the rule that new condominium buildings shall adopt environmental sustainability standards that include individual metering of water consumption per unit, and it came into force five years after publication, in July 2021. It applies to residential and commercial condominiums. The step by step is in individual water metering in a building.

Cities can require more. In São Paulo, Municipal Law No. 14,018/2005 created the Municipal Programme for Water Conservation, Rational Use and Reuse in Buildings, with rational use measures, alternative sources and reuse in new buildings, extended by Law No. 14,403/2007 to residential, commercial, institutional, service and industrial buildings. In Curitiba, Law No. 10,785/2003 created PURAE, a programme for water conservation and rational use in buildings. Before designing a new build or a renovation, it is worth checking the municipal law.

What is the government’s role in saving water?

To regulate, to charge and to lead by example. Beyond the laws above, the Sanitation Framework requires utility contracts to include targets for loss reduction, rational use of water and energy, sewage effluent reuse and rainwater harvesting, and directs the regulator to set maximum loss limits in distribution. The Water Law, in turn, gives priority to human consumption and watering animals in scarcity, which can restrict company abstraction in a crisis, as shown in water crisis and companies.

What should a company do to stay compliant?

Six checks cover the essentials:

1. Permit. A well or river intake needs a valid permit, with a volume compatible with actual use.
2. Effluent. Discharge into a water body must comply with CONAMA Resolution No. 430/2011 and the environmental licence; discharge into the public network follows the utility’s rules.
3. Rainwater and greywater. A network and tank separate from drinking water, treatment before use and labelling of non-potable outlets.
4. Metering. Meters on the well, on the intake and, in new condominiums, on each unit.
5. Municipal law. Rational use programmes and requirements for new builds and renovations.
6. Proof of savings. A consumption baseline and reduction reports, useful for inspections, for the ESG report and for the company’s own cash flow.

T&D handles the part that cuts consumption and proves the result. SEA 360º handles implementation, without building works, with a baseline under the IPMVP protocol, efficiency technology at points of use, electronic leak detection and repairs, and continues with ongoing management, with monthly efficiency and ESG impact reports. The ceiling observed in the full programme is a 70% reduction in consumption.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a law that requires companies in Brazil to save water?

There is no federal law setting a consumption limit for companies. There are obligations linked to water use: permits for abstraction and wells, standards for effluent discharge, individual metering in new condominiums and, for those using rainwater or greywater, a separate network and treatment before use. Municipal laws can require more for new builds.

What does Law 14,546/2023 say?

It amended the Sanitation Law so that the federal government encourages the use of rainwater and the non-potable reuse of greywater in new buildings and in landscaping, agricultural, forestry and industrial activities. It requires a network and tank separate from drinking water and treatment before use, and obliges utilities to fix network faults and inspect for illegal connections.

Is water reuse allowed by law in Brazil?

Yes. CNRH Resolution No. 54/2005 defines the modalities of direct non-potable reuse, for urban, agricultural and forestry, environmental and industrial purposes and in aquaculture, and the Sanitation Framework provides for treated sewage as a source of reuse water. Quality parameters for each use follow the rules of the competent authorities.

Is individual water metering mandatory?

In new condominium buildings, yes, since July 2021, under Law No. 13,312/2016. In older buildings, individual metering depends on the condominium’s decision and on the rules of the utility and the municipality.

Does a company need authorisation to use well water?

It needs a permit from the water resources authority, except for uses considered insignificant. Groundwater extraction is among the uses subject to a permit under Law No. 9,433/1997.

Sources

• Law No. 9,433 of 8 January 1997, in Portuguese: principles, permits, water use charges and priority use in scarcity
• Law No. 11,445 of 5 January 2007, as amended by Laws No. 13,312/2016, No. 14,026/2020 and No. 14,546/2023, in Portuguese: rational use and reuse guidelines, contract targets, loss limits and Articles 29, 43-A and 49-A
• Law No. 13,312 of 12 July 2016, in Portuguese: individual metering in new condominium buildings
• CNRH Resolution No. 54 of 28 November 2005, in Portuguese: modalities, guidelines and general criteria for direct non-potable reuse
• CONAMA Resolution No. 430 of 13 May 2011, in Portuguese: effluent discharge standards
• Municipality of São Paulo, Law No. 14,018 of 28 June 2005, in Portuguese: Municipal Programme for Water Conservation, Rational Use and Reuse in Buildings
• Municipality of Curitiba, Law No. 10,785/2003, in Portuguese: PURAE, programme for water conservation and rational use in buildings
• T&D SEA 360º