IRISH ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATION

This Order declares that the prohibited zones for the discharge of oil or oily mixtures by tankers and ships other than tankers have, for the purposes of the Oil Pollution of the Sea Act, 1956 , been extended so as to include so much of the Atlantic Ocean as lies within 100 miles from the coast of Canada.

An Act to provide for the making by health authorities of arrangements for the fluoridation of water supplied to the public by sanitary authorities through pipes and to provide for certain other matters connected with the matter aforesaid. [28th December, 1960.]

This Act provides for the fluoridation of water supplies by sanitary authorities. the responsibility for fluoridation of water supplies was transferred to health boards under the Health Act, 1970 

This Order fixes the 18th January, 1960, as the day on which certain statutory provisions for the regulation of sea-fishing come into operation including provisions for the licensing of fishing vessels exceeding the over all length of 75 feet prescribed by S.I. No. 4 of 1960 .

An act to consolidate the Fisheries Acts, 1842 to 1958, and certain other enactments relating to, fisheries.

Penalty for steeping flax or hemp in waters or throwing, etc. deleterious matter into waters

171.(1) any person who ( a ) steeps in any waters any flax or hemp, or ( b ) throws, empties, permits or causes to fall into any waters any deleterious matter, shall, unless such act is done under and in accordance with a licence granted by the minister under this section, be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding twenty-five pounds or at the discretion of the court to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to both such fine and such imprisonment.

(2) where a person is convicted of an offence under this section any flax or hemp found in waters in respect of which the offence was committed shall, as a statutory consequence of conviction, stand forfeited.

(3) the minister, after consultation with the minister for industry and commerce or (in the case of a licence to be granted to a sanitary authority in relation to a sewerage scheme) with the minister for local government, may grant licences for the purposes of this section, may attach conditions to any licence, and may after like consultation revoke any licence.

Protection of waters from pollution.

172.(1) in this section, the expression "deleterious liquid" means any deleterious or poisonous liquid or washings or drainage from any deleterious matter.

(2) where any receptacle used for containing or conveying any deleterious matter is within thirty yards of any waters

( a ) the owner of that receptacle shall provide and maintain such means (in this subsection referred to as suitable means) as will effectively prevent the passage of any deleterious liquid from that receptacle into such waters

( b ) if the owner thereof fails to carry out the duty imposed on him by paragraph (a) of this subsection, he shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding five pounds for each day during which such failure continues,

( c ) where the minister is satisfied that suitable means have been provided in relation to that receptacle, he may, on the application of the owner thereof, issue to him a certificate (which shall remain in force for such period as may be specified therein) and such certificate shall specify the suitable means and the manner in which they are to be used

( d ) if (i) the owner thereof is charged with an offence under this section in relation to that receptacle, and (ii) he proves that a certificate in respect of that receptacle was issued under paragraph (c) of this subsection and that since the issue of the certificate the suitable means specified therein remained available and had been used in the manner specified therein, and (iii) the certificate was in force on the date on which the offence is alleged to have been committed, then the charge shall be dismissed.

These Regulations allow Irish registered ships, other than tankers, of under 80 tons gross tonnage to discharge in the prohibited sea-zones oily mixtures which consist only of oil from bunker fuel tanks and ballast water, provided that the discharge is made outside territorial waters and as far from the land as is practicable.

This Order brings into operation those provisions of the Oil Pollution of the Sea Act, 1956 , which prohibit the discharge from Irish ships of certain oils within the sea areas specified in Parts III and IV of the Schedule of the Act. These sea areas consist of :—

(a) the seas which lie within 50 miles from land and to which the law does not already extend,

(b) part of the Adriatic Sea, and

(c) part of the seas which are within 150 miles of the Australian Coast (for tankers only).

These Regulations require oil-fuelled Irish registered ships to be so fitted as to prevent oil fuel from leaking or draining from machinery spaces into bilges

These Regulations apply to certain vessels (of whatever nationality) and require records to be kept of transfers of oil to and from such vessels within the territorial waters of the State.