Archived decisions
Item 3
AT A MEETING of the RIVER HAMBLE HARBOUR BOARD held at Ferneham Hall, Osborn Road, Fareham on 24 March 2006.
Hampshire County Council
p Councillor T.G. Knight (Chairman)
p Councillor J.V. Bryant
p Councillor K. House
Independent Members
p Mr T. Lovell
p Mr C. Moody
p Dr S. Tomson
Marine Director
p Mr D. Evans
Also present
Captain M. Capon, Designated Person (Port Marine Safety Code) and Dr Steve Fletcher, Chairman of River Hamble Estuary Management Plan Implementation Forum.
64 APOLOGIES
Apologies for absence were received from Cllr Dr R.J. Ellis, Chairman of the Management Committee.
65 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Members were mindful that where they believed they had a personal or personal prejudicial interest in any matter to be considered at the meeting, they should, normally at the time of the debate, declare their interest and, having regard to the circumstances described in paragraphs 9, 10, 11 and 12 of the County Council's Code of Conduct, consider whether to leave the meeting whilst the matter is discussed.
There were no declarations of interest made under this item.
66 MINUTES
The Minutes of the meeting of the Board held on 20 January 2006 were confirmed as a correct record, save for recording Councillor House as having sent apologies for his absence, and signed by the Chairman.
67 CHAIRMAN'S COMMUNICATIONS
The Chairman requested that the Marine Director and Harbour Master address certain issues under their reports.
The Chairman confirmed that the Harbour Dues Working Group was a sub-group of the River Hamble Harbour Management Committee and, as such, the River Hamble Harbour Board had no involvement in its structure and would be impartial to its findings. He confirmed that Officers would not be making deputations to the public meeting of the Working Group which would be held on 18 April 2006, but that the Harbour Master and Marine Director would make themselves available to answer questions.
It was reported that a press release had been issued to advertise the River Hamble Forum on 4 April 2006 to members of the public.
68 DEPUTATIONS
There were no deputations received.
69 HARBOUR MASTER'S REPORT
The Board considered a report of the Director of Environment (Item 6 in the Minute Book) summarising activities on the river since the last meeting and providing details of the six monthly Port Marine Safety Code audit. It was confirmed that the audit had found no matters of concern and that Capt. Capon had found that the Harbour Authority continued to comply with the Port Marine Safety Code.
A supplementary annex (Item 6x in the minute book) was circulated to give details of the most recent events on the River. It was highlighted that the removal and disposal of the barge `Tim' was a successful example of co-ordinated work between different agencies. Many lessons had been learned which would then be used to deal with similar situations in the future.
The recent rescue of a man-over-board had emphasised the importance for all river users of wearing life jackets. This was considered to be a useful opportunity to highlight to river users the risks of not making use of safety equipment. Concerns regarding the number of Notices to River Users issued each year were overridden by the necessity, as a responsible Harbour Authority, to warn users of the risks.
It was reported that the Harbour Master was pleased that the work on Eastlands Boatyard to replace chained mooring buoys with piling and pontoons had resulted in a more clearly defined and open channel. Work on the Manor Farm Country Park jetty had provided a more secure pontoon requiring less maintenance and had allowed the area to be cleared of other mooring tackle.
The background to the replacement of the Harbour Master's jetty and the installation of a dedicated Fisherman's jetty was outlined. This followed an unsuccessful attempt to combine development plans of the Shore Road area in Warsash. Disagreements about development had led to an end in these combined efforts. However the Harbour Master's jetty was now due for replacement and, in conjunction with this, a dedicated Fisherman's jetty would be installed in order to ease congestion on the Harbour Master's jetty and reduce the risks associated with using small tenders to transfer the catch to the shore.
It was reported that a recent court judgement had clarified that vessels not used in navigation were not classed as ships. Only those vessels which were classified as ships were subject to Merchant Shipping Regulations. The International Regulations for the Prevention of Collisions at Sea (IRPCS), as an international convention, had force of law in UK waters only by virtue of the Merchant Shipping Regulations. Therefore, pleasure craft that were not being navigated were not classed as ships and were not legally subject to the IRPCS. It was recommended that the Harbour Master issue a General Direction, in accordance with his powers, that all vessels using the River Hamble comply with IRPCS. The regulations would then have the force of law by virtue of local legislation and would apply to all vessels irrespective of whether they were being navigated. The General Direction would be drafted in consultation with Capt. Capon. It was proposed by Mr Moody and seconded by Mr Lovell that the Board should support this proposed action.
It could be the case that, in the long term, national legislation would be passed to ensure that all vessels were subject to IRPCS. A number of Harbour Authorities had incorporated the regulations into their bye-laws, however this action had the effect of limiting the imposable penalties for offences. It was felt that this could be considered under a future review of bye-laws of the River Hamble if national legislation was not passed. In the short term it was considered important to ensure that the Harbour Authority fulfilled its responsibility to ensure the safety of all vessels on the river.
The method for reviewing and updating local bye-laws was a long and complex process which required ministerial approval. It was hoped that this may be addressed in the near future, enabling Harbour Authorities to modernise their own local legislation.
There was an increasing trend in the presence of larger vessels in the river. There was the possibility that these could compromise navigational channels and present safety issues. Many were commercial vessels or internationally renowned racing yachts and river users had differing views on the presence of these vessels. The Harbour Master would compile a report on the issue for the following meetings of the River Hamble Harbour Management Committee and River Hamble Harbour Board.
It was reported that the Municipal Ports Review was expected to be published imminently. This would clarify the views of the Department for Transport on the structure of the quasi-Trust model of a Harbour Authority.
RESOLVED
That the River Hamble Harbour Board support the Harbour Master in his decision to issue a General Direction to all river users to comply with international collision regulations.
70 MARINE DIRECTOR'S CURRENT ISSUES
The Board considered a report of the Director of Environment (Item 7 in the Minute Book) outlining recent issues of importance and the current financial situation of the Harbour Authority. The financial situation was satisfactory and there were no anticipated problems.
Harbour Dues were being collected from boats and the system was running as smoothly as could be expected. Signs displaying the Harbour Dues rates had not yet been erected and were still in production. Therefore the main issue for staff was making `trailer sailors' aware that they had to pay the fees. In some cases staff were taking the names and addresses of river users and issuing a bill rather than collecting money on the spot. The Harbour Dues Working Group was looking into the issue and discussing possible alternatives. It would be holding a public meeting on Tuesday 18 April 2006 at 2.00 pm at Warsash Sailing Club to hear the views of members of the public. However, the Harbour Master's staff would continue to collect Harbour Dues in accordance with the approved scheme until such time as an alternative scheme was implemented.
Discussions had begun with the Crown Estate with regard to the proposals under the Visitor's Strategy. A final decision was yet to be made and the Crown Estate was evaluating the figures in the proposal.
With regard to Bunny Meadows Footpath there remained issues over the ownerships of the Chinese Bridge. Partnership working was taking place to form a plan regarding the improvement of the state of the footpath, but until it had been established who owned the bridge a survey was being postponed. It was confirmed that work to improve the condition of the Manor Farm Country Park Jetty had been paid for by the Countryside Service and not by the Harbour Authority. It was felt that this had been a successful project and a good example of partnership working.
The Director of Environment outlined, at the Chairman's request, the current status with regard to Universal Marina and the conditional works consent which had been granted by the Executive Member for Environment on 15 February 2005. Plans produced by the marina in discussion with the Harbour Office regarding Harbour Dues had differed from those which had been given consent. As a result, members of the Harbour Board had met informally on 8 March 2006 on the site to view the changes to the plans and discuss the impact on the works consent. The members had felt that, due to the minor nature of the changes and the fact that there would be no increase in the number of berths at the marina, works should be allowed to continue on the site.
Also discussed at that meeting had been the Section 106 agreement which had been a condition of the planning permission granted by Fareham Borough Council. This had effectively required Universal Marina to remove a walkway and jetty and those houseboats which were residing on it by the end of May 2006 as part of the redevelopment. There had been difficulties with the implementation of this agreement and the matter now rested with Fareham Borough Council. Members of the Board had, at their informal meeting, concluded that it would be appropriate for the Board to reserve its opinion on the matter.
71 PORT MARINE SAFETY CODE
The Board considered the report of the Chief Executive (Item 8 in the minute book) on the Harbour Authority's approach to formally accepting responsibility for risk and safety.
RESOLVED
a) To formally accept collective and individual responsibility for the proper exercise of the River Hamble Harbour Board's duties and powers to the standard required by the Port Marine Safety Code.
b) To endorse and approve the Statement of Compliance, Mission Statement and Policy Statements for signing by the Chairman (Appendices 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5).
72 RIVER HAMBLE ESTUARY MANAGEMENT PLAN IMPLEMENTATION FORUM
The Board received a presentation from Dr Steve Fletcher, Chairman of the River Hamble Estuary Management Plan Implementation Forum (Item 9 in the Minute Book) regarding the work and status of the group. It was emphasised that this group existed entirely independently from the Harbour Authority and that all members had equal status. The purpose of the group was to facilitate the implementation of the Estuary Management Plan in a way that co-ordinated the efforts of different agencies and organisations This fitted well into the Government's agenda for Integrated Coastal Zone Management. The challenges that were faced by the group were outlined, such as a misconception of its status and future changes to funding structures.
Members thanked Dr Fletcher for his presentation and the important work he was leading on the River Hamble.
73 ITEMS FOR FUTURE MEETINGS
The Board considered the report of the Chief Executive (Item 10 in the minute book) on the forward plan of items to be considered at future meetings. Members were informed that there would also be a report summarising the Marine Bill on the agenda for the meeting on 19 May 2006.