The purpose of this Bill is to enable Ireland to give effect to the International Convention on Load Lines, 1966. This Convention, which supersedes the existing Load Line Convention of 1930, was adopted at an International Conference of Maritime States, including Ireland, which met in London in March-April, 1966 under the auspices of the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organisation (more commonly known, from its initials, as IMCO).
IMCO is a specialised agency of the United Nations concerned with shipping and maritime affairs. It gives particular attention to the promotion of safety of life at sea, the development of the highest standards of navigation, and the exchange of information between nations on technical maritime questions.
Senators may recall that in 1966 they passed the Merchant Shipping Act, 1966 which was designed to permit of the ratification of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1960. That Convention, like the Load Line Convention, deals with safety at sea, but is concerned more with such aspects as life-saving and fire-fighting appliances on board ship, radio equipment, the carriage of dangerous goods, and the traffic rules of the sea, whereas the Load Line Convention is concerned with the prevention of overloading and with ensuring the weather-tightness and stability of the ship's construction. In view of the connection between the two Conventions, IMCO has decided to examine the possibility of amalgamating them into one document in due course.
The Bill is of a technical character, and I am sure it would help towards a better understanding of its provisions if I were to give some general background information about load lines. Load lines are what are colloquially called Plimsoll marks. They may be defined as marks required by law to be indicated externally on both sides of the hulls of sea-going ships to show the maximum depths to which the hull may be safely submerged in various sea areas or zones and at different seasons of the year. The distance from the load line downwards to the bottom of the keel is known as the draught of the ship. The distance from the load line upwards to the level of the uppermost continuous deck is the freeboard of the ship or, in other words, the height of that deck above the water. Freeboard is assigned to a ship to ensure ample reserve of buoyancy and is dependent on the structural strength and hull form and on the efficiency of the closing appliances in the freeboard deck openings.
The importance of the load line for the safety of ships is obvious. A vessel which puts to sea in an overloaded condition runs a greater risk of being overwhelmed due to reduced freeboard, and there were, before the advent of load line legislation, numerous instances of the fatal results of having ships too deeply submerged in the water. The reason, of course, why such risks were incurred was the desire to carry heavier cargoes of merchandise or greater numbers of passengers.
The history of load lines goes back to the Middle Ages, when notable seafaring peoples of the period, such as the Italian Republics, Venice and Sardinia, took steps to compel shipowners and masters, in the interests of safety, to have their ships marked with a symbol which must be kept clear of the water. However, this example did not find widespread acceptance, and a hundred years ago the position everywhere was highly unsatisfactory. It was then that Mr. Samuel Plimsoll commenced his campaign in the British House of Commons to promote the safety of British seamen. The first Parliamentary measures adopted were inadequate, and it was not until 1890 that British shipowners, and owners of foreign ships calling to British ports, were obliged by law to carry a load line mark in a position to be determined under rules and tables, known as freeboard tables, prescribed by the Government. A series of bilateral international agreements served to promote the widespread adoption of the load line system, until, in 1930, a conference was called in London, which drew up the first International Load Line Convention. This Convention secured in due course virtually universal acceptance, being ratified by 71 States. Effect was given to the Convention in Ireland by the Merchant Shipping (Safety and Load Line Conventions) Act, 1933 and the Load Line Rules, 1935. The Act of 1933 was largely an enabling measure, and it was the statutory instrument of 1935 which actually reproduced the detailed technical provisions of the Convention.
With the development of new building techniques and the tremendous increase in the size of ships, particularly tankers and bulk carriers, it was found necessary to bring the 1930 Convention up to date. The old Convention provided for the assignment of freeboards to tankers of up to 600 feet in length and for other ships of up to 750 feet. To cater for the larger vessels now being built, the new Convention covers all vessels of up to 1,200 feet and provides for a reduction of up to 15 per cent in freeboards for tankers and up to 10 per cent for other vessels.
As already indicated, the freeboard is in fact related to the integrity of the deck openings and their means of closing. In tankers the deck openings are small in relation to the breadth of the ship and very efficient means are provided for closing these openings. In addition, the cargo tanks are generally filled with oil. These factors account for the reduction in freeboards for tankers envisaged by the new Convention.
In the case of other ships a reduction in freeboards is permissible where improved methods of closing the hatchways and other openings are employed. For instance, a vessel fitted with steel weathertight hatch covers would have a smaller freeboard than a ship fitted with conventional wooden hatch covers secured with tarpaulins.
The general effect of the Convention is to permit ships to carry greater loads than formerly while still maintaining high standards of safety. However, in the case of future ships not exceeding 328 feet long, equivalent roughly to a maximum of 3,000 tons carrying capacity, the new Convention prescribes slightly greater freeboards, involving a certain reduction of draught and carrying capacity, if the ships are not fitted with steel weather-tight covers. This change is considered desirable in order to improve the weathertight integrity and stability of these ships, and to prevent shipping of sea water on decks. The change, however, will not apply to existing ships, but only to ships the building of which is commenced after the Convention comes into effect.
The 1930 Convention applied only to ships of 150 tons gross or over. The 1966 Convention continues to apply to these ships, but extends downwards to include all new ships of not less than 24 metres (79 feet) in length. This length is equivalent to about 100 tons gross.
The new Convention, like the old one, is confined to international trade, and does not apply to naval vessels, pleasure yachts or fishing vessels. The question of load lines for fishing vessels was considered at the 1966 Conference, but it was decided to undertake further studies before drawing up minimum international standards for this purpose.
As before, provision is made for the assignment of special load lines to ships carrying timber on deck. A timber cargo on deck gives a ship an additional reserve of buoyancy by virtue of the nature of the cargo, and a greater degree of protection against the sea, and so justifies some reduction in the normal freeboard, provided the ship complies with certain constructional safety requirements.
The Convention also affords discretion, as did its predecessor, for the granting of partial or total exemption to ships engaged on short international voyages of a sheltered nature, and to ships which, exceptionally, undertake a single international voyage. So that strict adherence to the Convention may not have the effect of hindering research into new developments, the Convention allows for the exemption of vessels which embody features of a novel kind, provided always that the vessel meet adequate safety requirements. In view of present-day experimentation with hydrofoils and other new forms of craft, this is a timely provision.
The Bill before the Seanad is primarily an enabling measure which will provide a statutory basis for the implementation of the 1966 Convention and it repeals, except for a couple of minor provisions, Part II of the Merchant Shipping (Safety and Load Line Conventions) Act, 1933, which enabled effect to be given to the 1930 Load Line Convention. In substance, the new Bill differs only slightly from the existing legislation. The main provision is contained in section 3, which gives power to make Load Line Rules incorporating the detailed technical provisions of the 1966 Convention. Section 29 provides that these and any other orders, rules, or regulations to be made under the Bill shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.
As in the 1933 Act, the new Bill goes beyond the scope of the Convention, in that it applies in principle to all registered ships, that is, of 15 tons net register and upwards, apart from warships, pleasure boats and fishing vessels, whether engaged in international trade or not. This wider scope is considered desirable in the interests of safety. At the same time, power is taken under sections 19 and 20 of the Bill to grant exemptions to ships or classes of ships to which the Convention does not apply and also to grant exemptions to Convention ships in cases where this is permitted by the Convention itself.
The Bill also provides, like the 1933 Act, for the machinery of control and enforcement. As before, ships will be required not to be so loaded as to submerge the appropriate load line, nor to attempt to put to sea from an Irish port unless they have been surveyed and marked in accordance with the Load Line Rules, comply with constructional safety requirements, and carry a valid load line certificate. Customs officers, and surveyors, are empowered to detain a ship which contravenes these requirements. It is intended that, in accordance with the Convention, load line certificates should be issued, as hitherto, for a period of five years subject to annual surveys.
It is expected that the new provisions will be of substantial benefit in the case of the larger Irish vessels, particularly those of Irish Shipping Ltd., which will be enabled to carry heavier cargoes. While there will be a slight reduction in the authorised carrying capacity of smaller vessels which may be built in the future, we must accept this as a measure dictated by safety requirements. In practice, if we were not to implement the Convention, our ships, when in the ports of other countries which had implemented the Convention, would still be bound by its requirements, the only difference being that, since Irish ships would not be in a position to produce a 1966 Convention Certificate, they would be liable to be detained and to be subjected to the delay and expense of a detailed load line survey.
The 1966 Convention is an international document which is the result of the deliberations of the Governments and experts of all the important maritime countries. It embodies the fruits of experience and aims at allowing greater commercial advantage to shipping within the limits imposed by safety and technical development. It has been accepted to date by a total of 19 countries, including Britain, the US, France and other leading maritime countries. I consider it worthy of Ireland's support, and I therefore commend this Bill, which will permit of the acceptance of the Convention, for the approval of the Seanad.
A few minor drafting changes have become necessary since the Bill was prepared. They do not in any way affect the principles or substance of the Bill. I propose to introduce these amendments at Committee Stage.
