The Control of Mercury (Enforcement) Regulations 2017

Regulation 4

SCHEDULE 2 Definitions relating to offshore installations

“Offshore installation”

1.—(1) “Offshore installation” means an installation or structure, other than a ship, situated in waters or on or under the seabed and used for carrying on any of the following activities—

(a) the exploitation, or the exploration with a view to exploitation, of mineral resources in or under the shore or bed of waters in the offshore area;

(b) the exploration of a place in, under or over such waters with a view to the storage of gas;

(c) the conversion of a place under the shore or bed of such waters for the purpose of storing gas;

(d) the storage of gas in, under or over such waters or the recovery of gas so stored;

(e) the unloading of gas at a place in, under or over such waters;

(f) the conveyance of things by means of a pipe, or system of pipes, constructed or placed on, in or under the shore or bed of such waters;

(g) the provision of accommodation for persons who work on or from an installation which is or has been maintained, or is intended to be established, for the carrying on of an activity in this paragraph.

(2) In paragraph (1)—

(a) “gas” means—

(i) gas as defined in section 2(4) of the Energy Act 2008(1), or

(ii) carbon dioxide;

(b) “installation” includes an installation as defined in section 16 of the Energy Act 2008;

(c) “ship” includes a hovercraft, submersible craft and any other floating craft but not a vessel which—

(i) permanently rests on or is permanently attached to the seabed, or

(ii) is an installation as defined in section 16 of the Energy Act 2008;

(d) references to storing gas include storing gas with a view to its permanent disposal.

“Offshore area”

2.  “Offshore area” means—

(a) the seabed and the subsoil within any area designated under section 1(7) of the Continental Shelf Act 1964 (exploration and exploitation of continental shelf)(2), and

(b) waters superjacent to the seabed and the seabed and its subsoil within any area designated under subsection (4) of section 84 of the Energy Act 2004 (exploitation of areas outside the territorial sea for energy production)(3).

“English offshore area”

3.  “English offshore area” means that part of the offshore area which is not the Scottish offshore area.

“Scottish offshore area”

4.—(1) “Scottish offshore area” means such of the offshore area adjacent to Scotland which lies to the north of the Scottish border.

(2) The Scottish border is—

(a) in the North Sea, a line beginning with the co-ordinate 55º 50’ 00” N; 1º 27’ 31” W and then following, in an easterly direction, the parallel of latitude 55º 50’ 00” N until its intersection with the line dividing the United Kingdom and Germany;

(b) in the Irish Sea, a line between the following co-ordinates—

(i) 54° 30’ 22” N; 4° 04’ 50” W;

(ii) 54° 30’ 00” N; 4° 05’ 29” W;

(iii) 54° 30’ 00” N; 5° 00’ 00” W.

(3) In this paragraph—

“co-ordinate” means a co-ordinate of latitude and longitude on the World Geodetic System 1984;

“line dividing the United Kingdom and Germany” means the dividing line as defined in Article 1 of the Agreement between the United Kingdom and the Federal Republic of Germany relating to the Delimitation of the Continental Shelf under the North Sea between the two countries, signed in London on 25th November 1971(4);

“line” means a loxodromic line.

(1)

2008 c.32.

(2)

1964 c.29. Relevant amending enactments are paragraph 1 of Schedule 3 to the Oil and Gas (Enterprise) Act 1982 (c.23) and section 103 of the Energy Act 2011 (c. 16), paragraph 1 of Schedule 3. Areas have been designated under section 1(7) by S.I. [1974/1489, 1976/1153, 1977/1871, 1978/178, 1978/1029, 1979/1447, 1982/1072, 1987/1265, 1993/1782, 1993/599, 1997/268, 1999/2031, 2000/3062, 2001/3670 and 2013/3162].

(3)

2004 c.20.

(4)

Treaty Series No. 7 (1973) Cmnd. 5192.