Dumping at Sea Act 1974

5 Enforcement of Act.

(1) Each licensing authority, with the consent of the Minister for the Civil Service as to numbers, may appoint enforcement officers for the purposes of this Act.

(2) An enforcement officer appointed under subsection (1) above is referred to in this Act as a " British enforcement officer".

(3) A British enforcement officer may be either an inspector appointed for the purposes of this Act or an officer of the licensing authority appointed to exercise and perform the powers and duties of such an inspector subject to such limitations as may be specified in the instrument appointing him ; and the following provisions of this Act shall be construed, in reference to such an officer, as subject to any such limitations.

(4) A British enforcement officer may, for the purpose of enforcing this Act, exercise, in relation to places and things liable to inspection under this Act, the powers conferred by subsections (7) to (10) below.

(5) Subject to subsection {6) below, the places and things liable to inspection under this Act are—

(a) land (including land submerged at mean high water springs and buildings on land), vehicles, aircraft and hovercraft in the United Kingdom ;

(b) ships in ports in the United Kingdom; and

(c) British ships, aircraft, hovercraft and marine structures, wherever they may be,

in which a British enforcement officer has reasonable cause to believe that any substances or articles intended to be dumped in the sea are or have been present.

(6) The places liable to inspection under this Act do not include any private dwelling not used by or by permission of the occupier for the purpose of a trade or business.

(7) A British enforcement officer may at any reasonable time enter any place liable to inspection under this Act, and board any vehicle, ship, aircraft, hovercraft or marine structure which is so liable, with or without persons and equipment to assist him in his duties.

(8) A British enforcement officer—

(a) may open any container and examine and take samples of any substances or articles ;

(b) may examine equipment and require any person in charge of it to do anything which appears to the officer to be necessary for facilitating examination ;

(c) may require any person to produce any licences, records or other documents which relate to the dumping of substances or articles in the sea and which are in his custody or possession ;

(d) may require any person on board a ship, aircraft, hovercraft or marine structure to produce any records or other documents which relate to it and which are in his custody or possession; and

(e) may take copies of any document produced under paragraph (c) or (d) above.

(9) For the purpose of boarding a vehicle, ship, aircraft, hovercraft or marine structure, a British enforcement officer may require the person in charge to do anything which will facilitate boarding, and the power conferred by this subsection includes power, in the case of a vehicle, ship or hovercraft, to require the person in charge to stop it.

(10) A British enforcement officer may require the attendance of the master of a ship, the commander of an aircraft, the captain of a hovercraft or the person in charge of a marine structure on board that ship, aircraft, hovercraft or structure, and may make any examination and inquiry which appears to him to be necessary.

(11) A British enforcement officer shall be furnished with a certificate of his appointment and on entering or boarding for the purposes of this Act any place or thing liable to inspection under this Act shall, if so requested, produce the said certificate.