{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-151.100","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 151.100","heading":"Definitions for KRS 151.110 to 151.460 and 151.990.","body":"As used in KRS 151.110 to 151.460 and 151.990:\n(1) \"Authority\" means the Water Resources Authority of Kentucky;\n(2) \"Authorized representative\" means an individual specifically authorized by the\nsecretary to act on his or her behalf;\n(3) \"Base flood\" means the elevation of surface water resulting from a flood that has a\none percent (1%) chance of equaling or exceeding that level in any given year;\n(4) \"Cabinet\" means the Energy and Environment Cabinet;\n(5) \"Dam\" means any artificial barrier, including appurtenant works, which does or can\nimpound or divert water, and which either:\n(a) Is or will be twenty-five (25) feet or more in height from the natural bed of the\nstream or watercourse at the downstream toe of the barrier, as determined by\nthe cabinet; or\n(b) Has or will have an impounding capacity at maximum water storage elevation\nof fifty (50) acre-feet or more;\n(6) \"Diffused surface water\" means that water which comes from falling rain or melting\nsnow or ice, and which is diffused over the surface of the ground, or which\ntemporarily flows vagrantly upon or over the surface of the ground as the natural\nelevations and depressions of the surface of the earth may guide it, until such water\nreaches a stream or watercourse;\n(7) \"Domestic use\" means the use of water for ordinary household purposes, and\ndrinking water for poultry, livestock, and domestic animals;\n(8) \"Embankment dam\" means any dam constructed of excavated natural materials or\nof industrial waste materials;\n(9) \"Floodplain\" means the area in a watershed that is susceptible to being inundated by\nfloodwaters from any source;\n(10) \"Floodway\" means the channel of a river, stream, or other watercourse and the\nadjacent land areas that must be reserved in order to discharge  the base flood\nwithout cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation more than a designated\nheight;\n(11) \"Gravity dam\" means a dam constructed of concrete or masonry that relies on its\nweight for stability;\n(12) \"Groundwater\" means all water which f ills the natural openings under the earth's\nsurface, including all underground watercourses, artesian basins, reservoirs, lakes,\nand other bodies of water below the earth's surface;\n(13) \"Livestock\" means cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, alpacas, llama s, buffaloes,\nand any other animals of the bovine, ovine, porcine, caprine, equine, or camelid\nspecies;\n(14) \"Owner\" means any person who owns an interest in, controls, or operates a dam;\n(15) \"Person\" means any individual, public or private corporation, p olitical subdivision,\ngovernment agency, municipality, copartnership, association, firm, trust, estate, or\nother entity whatsoever;\n(16) \"Reservoir\" means any basin which contains or will contain the water impounded\nby a dam;\n(17) \"Secretary\" means the secretary of the Energy and Environment Cabinet;\n(18) \"Stream\" or \"watercourse\" means any river, creek, or channel, having well defined\nbanks, in which water flows for substantial periods of the year to drain a given area,\nor any lake or other body of water in the Commonwealth;\n(19) \"Water resources project\" or \"project\" means any structural or nonstructural study,\nplan, design, construction, development, improvement, or any other activity\nincluding programs for management, intended to conserve and develop the  water\nresources of the Commonwealth and shall include all aspects of water supply, flood\ndamage abatement, navigation, water -related recreation, and land conservation\nfacilities and measures;\n(20) \"Watershed\" means all the area from which all drainage pas ses a given point\ndownstream; and\n(21) \"Withdraw\" or \"withdrawal\" of water means the actual removal or taking of water\nfrom any stream, watercourse, or other body of public water.","path":["KRS Chapter 151"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=54090","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:50:45Z","sha256":"aba5543a90edf46fa96b4588de7ee07dcd9be6e082717177e1ef840d1d025114","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-151.050","next":"us-ky/krs-151.110"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}