Dangerous Goods Act 1871 (WA)

WESTERN AUSTRALIA.

ANNO TRICESIMO QUINT°

VICTORTIE REGINA,.

******************1;l*W*****ikall******************WlItilt*

No. V.

AN ACT for the Carriage and Safe-keeping of Explosive

and Dangerous Goods.

[Assented to, 4th August, 1871.]

HEREAS it is expedient to provide for the carriage and

safe-keeping of explosive and dangerous goods: Be it

enacted by His Excellency the Governor of Western Australia and

its Dependencies, by and with the advice and consent of the

Legislative Council thereof, as follows:-

1 THIS Act may be cited for all purposes as " The Dangerous Short Title.

Goods Act, 1871."

2 FOR the purposes of this Act "Petroleum" shall include all interpretation.

such rock oil, Rangoon oil, Burmah oil, any product of them, and any oil made from Petroleum, Coal, Schist, shale, peat, or other bituminous substance, and any such product of them as gives off an inflammable vapour at a temperature of less . than one hundred degrees of Fahrenheit's Thermometer.

35° VICTOItI2E, No. 5.

_Dangerous Goods.

"Municipality" shall mean any Municipality constituted

.under " The Municipal Institutions' , Act, 1871."

"Harbour" shall include any port, dock, navigable river, canal, pier, or other works in or at which vessels ship or discharge goods or passengers.

" Warehouse owner" shall include all persons or bodies of persons owning or managing any warehouse, store, quay, or other premises in which goods are deposited.

And the word " Carrier" shall include all persons or bodies of persons carrying goods or passengers for hire by land or water.

Nitro-Glycerine to be 3 THE goods or article commonly known as Nitro-Glycerine

deemed specially dan-

or Glonoine oil shall be deemed to be specially dangerous within the

gerous.

meaning of this Act, and petroleum as herein defined shall be

deemed to be dangerous within the meaning of this Act.

Other goods may be de-	4 THE Governor may from time to time by Order in Council
by Order in Council.

clared specially dangerous	declare that any goods named in such order other than Nitro- glycerine or glonoine oil are to be deemed specially dangerous within the meaning of this Act, and may from time to time amend or repeal any such Order; And any goods which are by any such Order declared to be specially dangerous shall, so long as such Order is in force, be deemed to be specially dangerous within the
meaning of this Act.

•

Regulations to be observed 5 EVERY vessel carrying a cargo consisting wholly or in part

by a ship carrying Petro-	of goods which are specially dangerous, or of petroleum, on entering
leum and specially danger-
ous goods.	any harbour within Western Australia, shall conform to such regulations in respect to the place at which she is to be moored as may from time to time be issued by the Governor in Council with respect to such harbour. If any vessel is moored at any place in contravention of such regulations, the owner or master of such vessel shall incur a penalty not exceeding Twenty Pounds for each day during which the vessel remains moored, and it shall be lawful for the Harbour Master, or any other person acting under his orders, to cause such vessel to be removed,. at the expense of the owner or master thereof, to such place as may be in conformity with the said. regulations, and all expenses incurred in such removal may be recovered in a summary_ way.

"IFY dangerous goods goods which are specially dangerous, and no petroleum except 1st October, 1871,6 FROM and after the first day of October, 1871, no

35° VICTORLE, No. 5.

Dangerous Goods.

petroleum to the extent of ten gallons kept for private use and not or petroleum except to

for sale, shall be kept within fifty yards of a dwelling house or of a the extent of ten tgall t

building in which goods are stored, except in pursuance of a license keirptpexceptuse not be

Eels e

under this Act. Any petroleum or specially dangerous goods kept in contravention of this section shall be forfeited, and in addition thereto the occupier of the place in which such petroleum or specially dangerous goods are kept shall be liable to a penalty of Twenty Pounds a day for each day during which petroleum or specially dangerous goods are so kept in contravention of this Act.

7 THE following bodies shall respectively be the local authority Definition of local authority,

to grant licenses under this Act in the districts hereinafter

mentioned, that is to say-

1. In any Municipality constituted under " The Municipal Institutions' Act, 1871," the Council of such Municipality.

2., In any port or harbour, whether situate or not within the

jurisdiction of any local authority hereinbefore men-

tioned, the Harbour Master or any person or persons appointed by the Governor to perform the duties of Harbour Master.

3. In any place within the Colony in which there is no local authority as hereinbefore defined, if the same be within the district of a Resident Magistrate or Police Magis- trate's Court, any Resident Magistrate or Police Magis- trate thereof; And if the same be not within the district of a Resident Magistrate or Police Magistrate's Court, then any two Justices of the Peace.

8 LICENSES in pursuance of this Act shall be valid if signed Mode of granting licenses.

by two or more of the persons constituting the local authority, or executed in any other way in which other licenses, if any granted by such authority, are executed. They may be granted for a limited time, and there may be annexed thereto any conditions as to renewal or otherwise which the local authority thinks necessary for diminishing the risk of damage from explosion or fire ; and any. licensee violating any of the conditions of his license shall be deemed to be an unlicensed person.

as to the mode of storage, as to the nature of the goods with which annexed to license. 9 THERE may be annexed to any such license such conditions What conditions may be

dangerous or specially -dangerous goods may. be stored, and generally

350 VICTORDE, No. 5.

Dangerous Goods.

as to the safe-keeping of dangerous and Specially dangerous goods, as may seem expedient to the local authority. Any such license may be for dangerous goods alone, or for specially dangerous goods alone, or for both, and the conditions aforesaid may be made applicable to any specified articles being dangerous, or specially dangerous, or to all such goods generally.

In case of refusal of license 10 IF on any application for a license under this Act the local

ialize the Governor in

the applicant may memor- authority refuses the license, or grants the same only on conditions

coano.n with which the applicant is dissatisfied, the local authority shall, if required by the applicant, certify in writing under the hand or hands of one or more of the persons constituting the local authority, the grounds on which it refused the license or annexed conditions to the grant thereof, and shall deliver the certificate to the applicant, who may thereupon, within fifteen days from the time of the delivery thereof, transmit the same to the Governor in Executive Council, together with a memorial praying that notwithstanding such refusal the license may be granted, or that such conditions may not be imposed, or may be altered or modified in such manner and to such extent as may be set forth in such memorial ; and it shall be lawful for the Governor in Executive Council, if he think fit, on consideration of such memorial and certificate, and if he think it necessary or desirable after due inquiry from and a report by such person as he may appoint for that ptupose, to grant the license prayed for, either absolutely or with such conditions as he thinks fit, or to alter or modify the conditions imposed by the local authority; and the license so granted or altered and modified, as the case may be, when certified under the hand of the said Governor, shall be to all intents as valid as if granted by the local authority.

11 NO person shall deliver any goods which are specially

Specially dangerous goods dangerous to any warehouse-owner or carrier, or send or carry orto he marked and notice of character of such goods to cause to be sent or carried any such goods upon a railway or in any be given to carrier, &c., ship to or from any port of Western Australia, or deposit any such

goods in or upon any warehouse or quay unless the true name or description of such goods, with the addition of the words " specially dangerous," is distinctly written printed or marked on the outside of the package; nor, in the case of delivery to or deposit with any warehouse-owner or carrier, without also giving notice in writing to him of the name or description of such goods and of their being specially dangerous. And any person who commits a breach of this enactment shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding Five hundred pounds, or at the discretion of the Court to imprisonment with or

35° VICTORLE, No. 5.

Dangerous Goods.

without hard labour for any term not exceeding two years. Provided

always as follows:

1. Any person convicted of a breach of the last foregoing enactment shall not be liable to imprisonment or to a penalty of more than two hundred pounds if he shows to the satisfaction of the Court and jury before whom he is convicted that he did not know the nature of the goods to which the indictment relates.

2. Any person accused of having committed a breach of the said enactment shall not be liable to be convicted thereof if he shows to the satisfaction of the Court and jury before whom he is tried that he did not know the nature of the goods to which the indictment relates, and that he could not with reasonable diligence have obtained such knowledge.

contravention of the last preceding enactment the same shall be 12 WHERE goods are delivered sent carried or deposited in As to forfeiture of goods.

forfeited, and shall be disposed of in such manner as the Governor shall direct, whether any person is liable to be convicted of a breach of the said enactment or not.

13 NO warehouse-owner or carrier shall be bound to receive or Warehouse-owners, &c., not bound to receive such

carry any goods which are specially dangerous. goods.

14 THE penalties enjoined by the eleventh section of this Act Penalties how recoverable.

shall be recoverable only upon indictment or information in the Supreme Court and not in'a summary way, and all other penalties shall be recoverable in a summary way before any two or more Justices of the Peace, and one moiety of the penalty shall belong to Her Majesty her heirs and successors and be paid to the Colonial Treasurer for the Public use of the said Colony and in support of the Government thereof; and the other moiety to the informer.

Measures at all reasonable times to inspect and test all petroleum may test petroleum. 15 IT shall be lawful for any Inspector of Weights and Inspector of weights &c.,

kept offered or exposed for sale, and if upon such inspection and test any description of petroleum shall be found kept or offered or exposed for sale as aforesaid, contrary to the provisions of this Act, the same shall be liable to be seized and upon conviction forfeited; and such person so examining the same shall retain a sample

35° VICTORI/E, No. 5.

Dangerous Goods.

thereof; and the person or persons so offending shall be liable for any such offence to any penalty not exceeding Five pounds. Provided always that if the person or persons in whose possession such petroleum shall be found as aforesaid shall claim to have a further test made on their behalf, the Magistrate before whom complaint of the said offence may be laid shall call before him some person having competent chemical knowledge, who shall test a portion of the sample so retained as aforesaid in the manner hereinafter provided and . shall give evidence of the result of such test, and the Magistrate shall direct payment to be made to the analyst of a sum not less than five shillings nor more than twenty shillings; and in case of conviction the person convicted shall pay the cost of such analysis; and in case of acquittal such cost shall be paid by the Colonial Treasurer out of the General Revenue.

Search for petroleum, &c.,16 ANY Justice of the Peace of the Colony or of any district kept contrary to this Act. or place in which any petroleum or specially dangerous goods is or

are suspected to be kept contrary to the provisions of this Act, upon reasonable cause assigned upon oath by any person, may issue a warrant under his hand and seal for searching for any petroleum or specially dangerous goods in any house, storehouse, warehouse, magazine, shop, cellar, yard, wharf, or. other place, or any ship, boat, or vessel in which the same is suspected to be kept or carried contrary to the provision of this Act; and every person acting in the execution of every such warrant shall seize all such petroleum and specially dangerous goods, and also barrels and other receptacles

in which the same shall be kept contrary to the provisions of this

Act, and shall convey everything so seized with all convenient speed after the seizure to some proper place and there detain the same, and the barrels and other receptacles in which the same shall be, till it shall be adjudged on a hearing before two or more Justices whether the same shall be forfeited; and any two such Justices are hereby empowered to hear and determine whether the same shall or shall not be forfeited; and such searcher or seizer shall not be liable to any suit for such detainer or for any loss of or damage which may happen to any thing seized other than by his wilful act or neglect. Provided that where any thing is seized under this provision proceedings for the forfeiture thereof shall be commenced within twenty-eight days after the seizure.

Mode of testing petroleum. inflammable vapour shall for the purposes of this Act be tested in 17 THE temperature at which petroleum gives off an

manner set forth in the Schedule hereto.

35° VICTORIZE, No. 5.

Dangerous Goods.

18 NOTHING in this Act contained shall be deemed to Reservation of previous buouvers as to i nillarnmable

exempt any person from any penalty to which he would otherwise	la	stances.
be subject in respect of a nuisance, and all powers given by this Act shall be deemed to be in addition to and not in derogation of any other powers conferred on any local authority by an Act of the Legislative Council, and any local authority may exercise such other powers in the same manner as if this Act had not been passed.

In the name and on behalf of the Queen I hereby assent to

this Act.

FRED. A. WELD, Governor.