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Commonwealth legislation
This Act has been repealed and is no longer in force. It is retained for historical reference.
These Regulations set the technical rules for surveying, marking and certifying load-line ships: who may assign freeboards and Load Line Certificates, how surveys and annual inspections are done, what load-line marks and notices must appear on ships, and the fees and forms required. They apply to ships covered by Division 5 of the Navigation Act and adopt the United Kingdom Board of Trade Load Line Rules for matters not provided, affecting shipowners, masters, surveyors and customs officials.
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Direct links to the current provisions in Navigation (Load Lines) Regulations.
Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation (legislation.gov.au), CC BY 4.0.
STATUTORY RULES.
1935. No. 66.
REGULATIONS UNDER THE NAVIGATION ACT 1912-1934. *
I, THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL in and over the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, hereby make the following Regulations under the Navigation Act 1912-1934.
Dated this Eleventh day of July, 1935.
(Sgd.) ISAAC A. ISAACS.
Governor-General.
By His Excellency’s Command,
for the Minister of State for Commerce.
Navigation (Load Lines) Regulations.
Citation.
1. These Regulations may be cited as the Navigation (Load Lines) Regulations.
Commencement.
2. These Regulations shall come into operation on Monday, the thirtieth day of March, 1936.
Repeal.
3. The Navigation (Load-lines) Regulations (being Statutory Rules 1924, No. 198) are hereby repealed.
Definitions.
4. In these Regulations, unless the contrary intention appears—
“amidships” means the middle of the length of a ship;
“assigning authority” means the Minister or a person authorized in writing by him to issue Load Line Certificates;
“classed” in relation to a ship, means classed by a corporation or association for the survey and registry of ships approved by the Governor-General under section 204 of the Act, and holding a valid certificate, as prescribed, issued by that corporation or association;
“flush deck ship” means a ship which has no superstructure on the freeboard deck;
“freeboard amidships” means the height of the side of a ship amidships from the water to the upper edge of the deck line required to be marked on the ship’s side in pursuance of these Regulations;
* Notified in the Commonwealth Gazette on , 1935.
299.—30/14. 6. 1935.—Price 1s.
“freeboard deck” means—
(a) in the case of flush, deck ships and ships with detached superstructures—the upper deck;
(b) in the case of ships having discontinuous freeboard decks within superstructures which are not intact, or are not fitted with Class 1 closing appliances as defined by rule 50 of the Board of Trade Rules—the lowest line of the deck below the superstructure; and
(c) in the case of all other ships the uppermost complete deck having permanent means of closing all openings in weather portions of the deck in accordance with rules 15 to 22 of the Board of Trade Rules;
“length”, in relation to a ship, means—
(a) in the case of a ship having a cruiser stern—96 per centum of the total length on the designed summer load water-line, or the length from the foreside of the stem to the axis of the rudder stock, whichever is the greater;
(b) in the case of a ship not having a rudder post—the length on the summer load water-line from the foreside of the stem to the axis of the rudder stock; and
(c) in the case of all other ships—the length on the summer load water-line from the foreside of the stem to the afterside of the rudder post;
“mean freeboard” means the mean of the freeboards amidships on each side of the ship;
“sailing ship” includes a ship provided with sufficient sail area for navigation under sails alone, whether that ship is fitted with mechanical means of propulsion or not;
“special steamer freeboard” means a freeboard assigned under Part X. of the Board of Trade Rules;
“steamer” includes a ship having sufficient means of mechanical propulsion (except where the ship is provided with sufficient sail area for navigation under sails alone) and a lighter, barge or other ship without independent means of propulsion shall, when towed, be deemed to be a steamer;
“superstructure” means a decked structure on the freeboard deck extending from side to side of the ship, and includes a raised quarter deck;
“superstructure deck” means the deck forming the top of a superstructure;
“Surveyor” means
(a) in respect of a survey for the purpose of the issue or renewal of a Load Line Certificate by the Minister—a person appointed by the Governor-General to be a surveyor; and
(b) in respect of a survey for the purpose of the issue or renewal of a Load Line Certificate by an assigning authority—a person employed by that authority as a surveyor;
“tanker” includes a steamer specially constructed for the carriage of liquid cargoes in bulk;
“tanker freeboard” means a freeboard assigned under Part IX. of the Board of Trade Rules;
“the Act” means the Navigation Act 1912-1934, and, if that Act is subsequently amended, includes that Act as so amended:
“the Board of Trade Rules” means the Load Line Rules, 1932, made by the Board of Trade of the United Kingdom on the seventeenth day of March, 1932, as amended by the Load Line (Amendment) Rules, 1934, made on the twenty-seventh day of February, 1934, and includes any further amendment of those Rules;
“Timber Cargo Regulations” means the Regulations made by the Board of Trade of the United Kingdom on the seventeenth day of March, 1932, in pursuance of the powers conferred upon them by section 61 and sub-section (2) of section 68 of the Imperial Act known as the Merchant Shipping (Safety and Load Line Conventions) Act, 1932;
“timber deck cargo” means a cargo of timber carried on an uncovered part of a freeboard or superstructure deck, but does not include a cargo of wood pulp or other similar substance;
“timber freeboard” means a freeboard assigned under Part VIII. of the Board of Trade Rules;
“timber ship” means a steamer marked with timber load lines in accordance with the Board of Trade Rules;
“unclassed”, in relation to a ship, means a ship other than a classed ship.
Application of Regulations.
5. These Regulations shall apply to all load line ships within the meaning of Division 5 of Part IV. of the Act, and to load line ships registered in Australia or engaged in the coasting trade which do not engage in international voyages, but shall not apply to any ship which is exempt under section 218 of the Act from that Division.
Application for Load Line Certificate.
6.—(1.) An application for the issue or renewal of a Load Line Certificate shall be made by or on behalf of the owner of the ship to an assigning authority and shall be accompanied by such plans as the assigning authority requires.
(2.) An application for the issue or renewal of a Load Line Certificate in respect of timber freeboards shall be accompanied by such plans as the assigning authority requires showing the fittings and arrangements for stowing and securing timber deck cargoes in accordance with the Board of Trade Rules relating to freeboards for steamers carrying timber deck cargoes and with the Timber Cargo Regulations.
(3.) An application for the issue or renewal of a Load Line Certificate in respect of tanker freeboards shall be accompanied by such plans as the assigning authority requires showing the fittings and arrangements provided or to be provided for the purpose of complying with the Board of Trade Rules relating to freeboards for tankers.
Load line survey.
7.—(1.) The assigning authority shall, upon receipt of an application for the issue or renewal of a Load Line Certificate, and upon being satisfied that the fee payable under regulation 25 of these Regulations in respect of the survey has been paid, cause the ship to be surveyed by a Surveyor in accordance with these Regulations.
(2.) The Surveyor shall survey the ship with a view to satisfying himself—
(a) that the material and workmanship of all parts of the hull of the ship are in all respects satisfactory and efficient and that the hull is in good condition internally and externally;
(b) that the ship—
(i) if the keel was laid on or after the first day of July, 1932, complies with the provisions of Part V. of the Board of Trade Rules to the extent thereby required in her case;
(ii) if the keel was laid before the first day of July 1932, complies with the provisions of Part V. of the Board of Trade Rules in principle and also in detail so far as is reasonable and practicable having regard to the efficiency of the protection of openings, the guard rails, the freeing ports and the means of access to the crew’s quarters provided by the arrangements, fittings and appliances existing on the ship at the time of survey;
(c) in the case of an application for the issue or renewal of a certificate in respect of timber freeboards, that the ship also complies with the provisions of the Board of Trade Rules relating to freeboards for steamers carrying timber deck cargoes to the extent thereby required in her case;
(d) in the case of an application for the issue or renewal of a certificate in respect of tanker freeboards, that the ship also complies with the provisions of the Board of Trade Rules relating to freeboards for tankers to the extent thereby required in her case; and
(e) in the case of an application for the issue or renewal of a certificate in respect of special steamer freeboards, that the ship also complies with the provisions of the Board of Trade Rules relating to special steamer freeboards to the extent thereby required in her case.
(3.) On the completion of the survey, the Surveyor shall forward to the assigning authority a report stating the result of the survey and containing such particulars of the ship as are required by the assigning authority to enable it to assign the appropriate freeboards to the ship.
(4.) On receipt of the Surveyor’s report, the assigning authority, if satisfied that the ship complies with the appropriate provisions of the Board of Trade Rules to the extent thereby required in her case, shall assign freeboards to the ship—
(a) in the case of a ship the keel of which was laid after the thirtieth day of June, 1932, in accordance with such of the Board of Trade Rules as are applicable to the ship; and
(b) in the case of a ship the keel of which was laid before the first day of July, 1932, in accordance with paragraph (c) of sub-section (2.) of section 219a of the Act,
and shall furnish the owner with particulars as to the nature of the load lines and of the position in which the deck-line and the load lines are to be marked on the ship.
(5.) The position of each load line shall be such that the distance measured vertically from the upper edge of the deck-line to the upper edge of the load line is equal to the freeboard assigned to the ship which is appropriate to that load line.
Annual survey.
8.—(1.) Every application for the survey of a ship in pursuance of sub-section (4.) of section 220a of the Act shall be made by the owner or some person acting on his behalf to the assigning authority by whom the Load Line Certificate in respect of that ship was issued.
(2.) The assigning authority shall, upon receipt of the application, and upon being satisfied that the fee payable under regulation 25 of these Regulations in respect of the survey has been paid, cause the ship to be surveyed by a Surveyor.
(3.) The Surveyor shall survey the ship with a view to satisfying himself—
(a) that the fittings and appliances for the protection of openings, the guard-rails, the freeing ports and the means of access to the crew’s quarters have been maintained on the ship in as effective a condition as they were in when the certificate was issued; and
(b) that no material alterations have taken place in the hull or superstructures of the ship which affect the positions of the load lines.
(4.) Upon the completion of the survey to the satisfaction of the Surveyor, he shall forward a report thereon to the assigning authority and shall endorse on the Load Line Certificate a statement that the survey of the ship has been so completed.
Marking.
9.—(1.) On receiving from the assigning authority the particulars as to the deck-line and load lines which are required to be marked on the ship, the owner shall cause to be marked on each side of the ship, to the satisfaction of the Surveyor, the appropriate marks in accordance with these Regulations.
(2.) The marks shall be painted in white or yellow on a dark ground or in black on a light ground, in such a manner as will, in the Surveyor’s opinion, make them plainly visible, and they shall also be carefully cut in or centre-punched on the sides of iron and steel ships, and on wooden ships shall be cut into the planking to a depth of at least one-eighth of an inch.
Marks on steamers.
10. A steamer shall be marked on each side with a deck-line and load lines as follows:—
(a) A deck-line, which shall be a horizontal line twelve inches in length and one inch in breadth marked amidships with its upper edge passing through the point where the continuation outwards of the upper surface of the freeboard deck intersects the outer surface of the shell, as shown in Figure 1 in the First Schedule to these Regulations. Where the deck is partly sheathed amidships, the upper edge of the deck-line shall pass through the point where the continuation outwards of the upper surface of the actual sheathing at amidships intersects the outer surface of the shell.
(b) A load line disc twelve inches in diameter, marked amidships below the deck line, and intersected by a horizontal line eighteen inches in length and one inch in breadth, the upper edge of which passes through the centre of the disc.
(c) The following load lines, which shall be horizontal lines nine inches in length and one inch in breadth extending from, and at right angles to, a vertical line marked 21 inches forward of the centre of the load line disc, as shown in Figure 1 in the First Schedule to these Regulations, and indicating the maximum depth to which the ship may be loaded in different circumstances and in different seasons, namely:—
(i) the Summer Load Line indicated by the upper edge of the line which passes through the centre of the disc and also by the upper edge of a line marked S;
(ii) the Winter Load Line indicated by the upper edge of a line marked W;
(iii) the Winter North Atlantic Load Line indicated by the upper edge of a line marked WNA;
(iv) the Tropical Load Line indicated by the upper edge of a line marked T;
(v) the Fresh Water Load Line in summer indicated by the upper edge of a line marked F; and
(vi) the Tropical Fresh Water Load Line indicated by the upper edge of a line marked TF:
Provided that the Winter North Atlantic Load Line shall not be marked on a steamer over 330 feet in length, not being a tanker or a steamer of special type to which regulation 13 applies.
Marks on sailing ships.
11. A sailing ship shall be marked on each side with a deck-line, a load line disc and a Winter North Atlantic load line as provided in regulation 10, and with a Fresh Water load line indicated by the upper edge of a line marked F, as shown in Figure 2 in the First Schedule to these Regulations.
Timber load lines.
12. A steamer to which timber load lines are assigned in accordance with the Board of Trade Rules shall, in addition to the lines referred to in regulation 10, be marked with the following timber load lines, which shall be horizontal lines nine inches in length and one inch in breadth extending from, and at right angles to, a vertical line marked twenty-one inches abaft the centre of the load line disc, as shown in Figure 3 in the First Schedule to these Regulations, and indicating the maximum timber load lines in different circumstances and in different seasons:—
(i) the Summer Timber Load Line indicated by the upper edge of a line marked LS;
(ii) the Winter Timber Load Line indicated by the upper edge of a line marked LW;
(iii) the Winter North Atlantic Timber Load Line indicated by the upper edge of a line marked LWNA;
(iv) the Tropical Timber Load Line indicated by the upper edge of a line marked LT;
(v) the Fresh Water Timber Load Line in Summer indicated by the upper edge of a line marked LF; and
(vi) the Fresh Water Timber Load Line in the Tropical Zone indicated by the upper edge of a line marked LTF.
Marks on tankers and special type steamers.
13. A tanker to which
This is an opening excerpt, not the complete document.