Section 15-1501. New or additional sources of water supply; permit

1.  Except  as  otherwise  provided in this title, no person or public
  corporation who is authorized and engaged in, or proposing to engage in,
  the acquisition, conservation,  development,  use  and  distribution  of
  water  for  potable  purposes, for the irrigation of agricultural lands,
  for projects taken pursuant to Article 5-D of the  County  Law,  or  for
  multi-purpose projects authorized by a general plan adopted and approved
  pursuant  to  title  11  of this article, shall have any power to do the
  following until such person or public corporation has first  obtained  a
  permit from the department pursuant to this title:
    a.  To  acquire  or  take a water supply or an additional water supply
  from an existing approved source; or
    b. To take or condemn lands for any new or additional sources of water
  supply or for the utilization of such supplies; or
    c. To commence or undertake the construction of any works or  projects
  in connection with the proposed plans; or
    d.  To exercise any franchise hereafter granted to supply water to any
  inhabitants of the state; or
    e. To extend its supply or distribution  mains  into  a  municipality,
  water  district,  water  supply district, or other civil division of the
  state wherein it has not heretofore legally supplied water; or
    f. To construct any extension of its  supply  mains  except  within  a
  service area approved by the department after public hearing; or
    g. To extend the boundaries of a water district; or
    h.  To  supply  water in or for use in any other municipality or civil
  division of the state which owns and  operates  a  water  supply  system
  therein, or in any duly organized water supply or fire district supplied
  with water by another person or public corporation.
    2.  A  permit  shall  not  be necessary for the extension of supply or
  distributing mains or pipes of a municipal water supply plant  into  and
  for the purpose of supplying water in any territory within the limits of
  the  municipality  owning  such plant, including territory which has not
  been  heretofore  supplied  with  water  by  such  plant,  nor  for  the
  reconstruction  or replacement of existing facilities in connection with
  an existing plant wherein the  capacity  of  the  plant  is  in  no  way
  increased,  nor  for  the  construction of filtration or other treatment
  facilities which will not in any way increase the amount of water  which
  can be made available from the present sources of supply. A permit shall
  not  be  necessary  for the extension of supply or distributing mains or
  pipes of a county water authority into and for the purpose of  supplying
  water  in  any  territory assigned to such county water authority within
  the limits of the county but excluding territory  specifically  assigned
  to  private  or  other municipal water companies by the department which
  has not been  heretofore  supplied  with  water  by  such  county  water
  authority,  nor  for  the  reconstruction  or  replacement  of  existing
  facilities in connection with an existing plant wherein the capacity  of
  the plant is in no way increased, nor for the construction of filtration
  or  other  treatment  facilities  which will not in any way increase the
  amount of water which can be made available from the present sources  of
  supply,  provided,  however, that nothing herein contained shall be held
  to authorize such county water authority to enter into competition with,
  for the purpose of  service  in  the  area  served  by  the  mains,  the
  transmission  or  distribution  mains  of  any other water works system,
  either publicly or privately owned, already legally established in  said
  county  for the sale of water at wholesale or retail, or which hereafter
  may legally be established for said purpose; or to  sell  water  to  any
  other  water  works  system, either publicly or privately owned, and not
  now served by said county authority.

    3. Nothing in this section provided shall be  deemed  to  nullify  the
  requirements  of  Regulation 2, Chapter V of the State Sanitary Code, as
  in effect on January 1, 1960, that plans for a new water treatment plant
  for the treatment of an existing public water supply or for any addition
  to  or  modification  of  an  existing water treatment plant, or for any
  addition to or modification of a public water supply system  which  will
  or may affect the quality of the public water supply, shall be submitted
  to  and  approved by the Commissioner of Health, which regulation has no
  application to a new or additional source or  sources  of  public  water
  supply  of  a  permanent  character  which  require  a  permit  from the
  Department of Environmental Conservation under the  provisions  of  this
  article.