The member municipalities of the Ruhrverband are responsible for local drainage in accordance with the division of tasks provided for in the state water law. To this end, they operate sewerage systems that collect domestic and commercial wastewater and transport it to the Ruhrverband's wastewater treatment plants via rainwater treatment plants. On the basis of § 52 Para. 2 LWG, it is possible for local authorities to transfer the tasks of collecting and transporting wastewater to the Ruhrverband.
The sewer network remains part of the public service even after the so-called sewer network transfer. The local authorities retain full control through their statutory, charging and planning sovereignty. Only the economic ownership of the sewer network as an unrestricted right of use is transferred to the Ruhrverband with the transfer of tasks. The association pays the local authority a compensation amount for this, which it can use for municipal tasks or to reduce debt. The association transfers the expenses for the operation and maintenance of the sewer network to the transferring municipality on an annual basis by way of contributions.
Transferring the sewer network to the Ruhrverband creates the prerequisites for operating urban water management competently, reliably and with stable fees from a single source.