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It is hereby declared to be the public policy of the Government of the United States Virgin Islands, in recognition of its sovereign duty to conserve and control its water resources for the benefit of the inhabitants of the United States Virgin Islands, that comprehensive planning and regulation be undertaken for the protection, conservation and development of the water resources of the United States Virgin Islands to the end that they shall not be wasted and shall be used to the fullest extent to meet the present and future needs for domestic, agricultural, commercial, industrial, recreational and other public, beneficial purposes. It is further declared that an emergency condition exists with respect to the availability of surface and underground water in the United States Virgin Islands and that restrictions are necessary to prevent overpumping of water from wells, the depletion of surface and underground water, the intrusion of salt water and the resultant permanent destruction of underground water reservoirs as sources of potable water supply.
In view of the foregoing, all waters within the United States Virgin Islands are hereby declared to be public waters belonging to the people of the United States Virgin Islands, subject to appropriation for beneficial use in the manner set forth in this chapter and not otherwise.