The Lymington Harbour Commissioners, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 61 of the Pier and Harbour Order (Lymington) Confirmation Act 1951, and of all other powers them enabling, hereby make the following byelaws.

Title and Commencement

1.     These byelaws may be cited as the Lymington Harbour Byelaws 1992 and shall come into operation on the expiration of 28 days from the date of confirmation thereof by the Minister

Application

2.         These byelaws shall apply to all parts of the Harbour the limits of jurisdiction of which are set forth in the Schedule hereto and to the harbour premises as defined in byelaw 3 hereof.

Interpretation

3.        In these byelaws, unless the context otherwise requires, the following words or expressions have the meanings hereby respectively assigned to them –
 

'the Harbour' means the part of the Lymington River or creek, within the area defined in section 21 of the Pier & Harbour Order (Lymington) Confirmation Act 1951;

'the Commissioners' means the Lymington Harbour Commissioners as defined by section 3 of the Schedule to the Pier & Harbour Order (Lymington) Confirmation Act 1951; and all references to "the Commissioners" include the Harbour Master;

'Collision Regulations' means regulations for the prevention of collisions made under section 21 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1979;

'the fairway' means the channel defined by the system of piles with top marks or other distinguishing features between Jack in the Basket at the southern end and the ferry terminal at the northern end;

'goods' means all articles and merchandise of every description and includes fish, livestock and animals;

'the Harbour Master' means the person appointed as such by the Harbour Commissioners and includes his authorised deputies, assistants and any other person authorised by the Commissioners to act in that capacity;

'the Harbour premises' means the docks, quays, jetties, stages and all other works, land and buildings for the time being vested in or occupied or administered by the Commissioners;

'hovercraft' means a vehicle which is designed to be supported when in motion wholly or partly by air expelled from the vehicle to form a cushion of which the boundaries include the ground, water or other surface beneath the vehicle;

'master' when used in relation to any vessel, means any person having or taking the command, charge or management of the vessel for the time being;

'owner' includes any part-owner, broker, charterer, agent or mortgagee in possession of the vessel or other person or persons entitled for the time being to possession of the vessel;

'quay' means any quay, wharf, jetty, dolphin, landing stage or other structure used for berthing or mooring vessels, and includes any pier, bridge, roadway or footway immediately adjacent and affording access thereto;

'small vessel' means any vessel of less than 20 metres in length or a sailing vessel and, for the purposes of this definition,

'sailing vessel' means a vessel designed to carry sail, whether as the sole or as a primary or supplementary means of propulsion;

'vehicle' includes any vehicle propelled on rails, any machinery on wheels or caterpillar tracks, trailers, caravans and mobile homes, and includes a hovercraft or any other amphibious vehicle;

'vessel' includes every description of water craft, including non-displacement craft and seaplanes, used, or capable of being used, as a means of transportation on water;

"notification to the Commissioners" may be by word of mouth, including the telephone, to any of the Commissioners' staff, or in writing, by post or direct delivery, to the Commissioners' office.

Vessels to Navigate with Care

4.         The master shall navigate his vessel with such care and caution, and at such speed and in such manner, as not to endanger the lives of or cause injury to persons, and as not to obstruct or otherwise impair the navigation, manoeuvring, loading or discharging of vessels or with moorings.

Speed of Vessels

5.         Except with the permission of the Commissioners, and subject to byelaw 4 and the Collision Regulations, the master of a vessel shall not cause or permit the vessel to proceed at a speed greater than six knots through the water.

Small Vessels Not to Obstruct Fairway

6.         The master of a small vessel which is not constrained by its draft to navigate only in the fairway shall not make use of the fairway so as to cause obstruction to other vessels which can navigate only within the fairway.

Vessels Not to be Made Fast to Navigation Buoys or Marks

7.         The master of a vessel shall not make fast his vessel to or lie against any buoy, beacon or mark used for navigational purposes.

Notification of Collisions, etc

8.       The master of a vessel which –

(a)     has been involved in a collision with any vessel or property, or has been sunk or grounded, or become stranded in a harbour area so as to affect or be likely to affect the safety of navigation or to damage other vessels or property in the harbour; or

(b)     by reason of accident, fire, defect or otherwise is in such a condition as to affect its safe navigation or to give rise to danger to other vessels or property; or

(c)     in any manner gives rise to an obstruction to a fairway; shall as soon as reasonably practicable report the occurrence to the Commissioners (and as soon as practicable thereafter, provide the Commissioners with full details in writing) and, where the damage to a vessel is such as to affect or be likely to affect its seaworthiness, the master shall not move the vessel except to clear the fairway or to moor or anchor in safety otherwise than with the permission, and in accordance with the directions, of the Commissioners, and shall take such safety precautions including removal, as the Commissioners may prescribe.

9.       Where an occurrence as set out in Byelaw 8 arises in respect of either vessel concerned in a towing operation, the master of each vessel shall report the occurrence to the Commissioners; save that if the towed vessel is less than six metres in overall length, only the master of the towing vessel shall so report.

Vessels Adrift

10.    The master of a vessel which parts from its moorings shall, as soon as possible, report the same to the Commissioners.

Damage to Navigation or Mooring Buoys to be Reported

11.    The owner or master of any vessel colliding with or cutting adrift a navigation mark or mooring buoy, or running into, fouling or damaging any such mark buoy, mooring buoy or other seamark shall as soon as reasonably practicable report the incident to the Commissioners.

Regattas

12.      All races and similar events shall when within the Harbour be conducted in accordance with conditions previously approved by the Commissioners

Provision of Proper Fenders

13.      The master and the owner of a vessel shall ensure that it is provided with a sufficient number of fenders adequate for the size of their vessel and when berthing and leaving, or lying at a quay or against other vessels, the master shall cause the vessel to be fended off from that quay or those other vessels so as to prevent damage to that quay, those other vessels or other property.

Vessels to be Properly Berthed

14.      The master of a vessel shall at all times keep his vessel properly and effectively moored when berthed or lying at any quay.

15.      The master of a vessel shall berth or moor his vessel at such part of the Harbour and shall from time to time remove it to such situation in the Harbour as the Commissioners may direct, and if the Commissioners think that a moored or berthed vessel should be moved for reasons of safety or obstruction, but are unable within an appropriate time to get in touch with the master, they may cause it to be moved, taking all practical steps to inform the master of what has been done.

16.      No vessel shall anchor in the fairway of the Harbour except in an emergency.

17.      The master or owner of any vessel laying alongside or near any quay or other vessel within the Harbour shall, during all the time such vessel shall lay or be moored or be stationed at or near such quay or other vessel, have the anchor or other equipment of the said vessel securely housed, with no projections outside of the rail of the said vessel, such as to cause obstruction to vessels wishing to pass or moor alongside.

Vessels not capable of being safely moved

18.      When a vessel other than a small vessel or a vessel berthed within the marinas currently operated by the Berthon Boat Company and Lymington Yacht Haven is at any time not capable of being safely moved by means of its own propulsive machinery, the master or owner shall inform the Commissioners as soon as reasonably practicable and shall give them any further information they may reasonably require.

Use of Engines while Vessel Moored or Berthed

19.      The master of a vessel which is at a quay or attached to any mooring device shall not permit the engines of his vessel to be worked in such a manner as to cause injury or damage to the bed or banks of the Harbour or to any other vessel or property.

Vessels not to Make Fast to Unauthorised Objects

20.      No person shall make a vessel fast to any post, quay, ring, fender or any other thing or place not assigned for that purpose

Access Across Decks

21.    The master of a vessel alongside a quay or alongside any vessel already berthed within the Harbour shall, if required so to do by the Commissioners, give free access across the deck of his vessel for persons and goods to and from vessels berthed alongside his vessel.

Lost Anchor, Cable or Propeller

22.      (1)     The master of a vessel which has slipped or parted from, or lost, any anchor, chain, cable or propeller shall as soon as reasonably practicable give to the Commissioners notice thereof and, if possible, of the position of the anchor, chain, cable or propeller, and if the Commissioners so direct, shall cause it to be recovered as soon as practicable

         (2)     The master of a vessel slipping or parting from an anchor or propeller shall leave a buoy to mark the position thereof.

Obstruction or Interference at Harbour Premises

23.      No person shall

         (a)      except with the permission of the Commissioners, deposit or place on any part of the harbour premises any goods, or park any vehicle, so as to obstruct any road, building, mooring place, plant, machinery or apparatus, or the access thereto; or

(b)     without lawful authority, use, work, or move any plant, machinery, equipment or apparatus at the harbour premises

Safe Driving of Vehicles

24.      No person shall drive or otherwise operate a vehicle in the harbour premises without due care and attention or without reasonable consideration for other persons using the harbour premises

Supervision of Vehicles

25.      A person having charge of a vehicle in the harbour premises shall at all times comply with any directions of the Commissioners with respect to the loading, discharging, manoeuvring and removal thereof, and shall not, without the permission of the Commissioners –

         (a)     leave the vehicle unattended anywhere within the harbour premises/ dock estate; or

         (b)     take it into any shed or working area.

Accidents to be Reported

26.      Any person driving or otherwise operating a vehicle involved in an accident in the harbour premises whereby any injury is caused to any person, or any damage is caused to any property, shall stop the vehicle and report the accident to the Commissioners, and shall give his name, address and details of his motor insurance to the Commissioners.

27.      No person shall intentionally or recklessly do or cause or permit to be done any act or thing injuriously affecting the safety of navigation within the Harbour, or cause or permit an obstruction to any of the public landing places or hards within the Harbour be it from the land or seaward side.

Inspection Facilities, etc., to be Made Available to Commissioners

28.      The master of a vessel shall, so far as may be required by the Commissioners in the exercise of their duties, afford the Commissioners access to any part of the vessel and provide all reasonable facilities for its inspection and examination.

Navigation under Influence of Drink or Drugs Prohibited

29.      A person shall not navigate any vessel in the Harbour whilst under the influence of drink or drugs to such an extent as to be incapable of taking proper control of the vessel.

Vessels not to be Fumigated without Permission

30.      The master of a vessel shall not cause or permit it to be fumigated without the prior permission of the Commissioners.

Laying down Moorings, Buoys and Other Tackle

31.      (1)     No person shall lay down any mooring, buoy, or similar tackle without a licence or prior consent in writing of the Commissioners, nor except in accordance with such conditions as the Commissioners may impose.

         (2)     A mooring, buoy or similar tackle shall forthwith be removed by its owner or any other person claiming possession of it if the Commissioners so direct, and if it is not thus removed, the Commissioners may do so, having given due notice to the owner or possessor accordingly.

Dumping in Harbour Waters Prohibited 

32.      No person shall deposit or throw into the waters of the Harbour any rubbish or other material whatsoever, or place it in such a position that it can fall, blow or drift into the Harbour.

Drift or Trawling Nets not to Obstruct Vessels

33.    No person shall cast or place any drift, trawl or other net in such a position as to be likely to become an obstruction or danger to any property including, in particular, but without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, any vessel or mooring.

No Dragging or Grappling without Permission 

34.      No person shall drag or grapple for any material or article, nor remove the same from the bed of any water area of the Harbour, without the written consent of the Commissioners, save for the purpose of immediately recovering items dropped overboard.

No Wreck Removals without Permission 

35.      No person shall intentionally or recklessly set fire to, detonate, destroy, break up or remove any vessel, wreck or structure within the Harbour without the prior consent of the Commissioners and then only in compliance with any reasonable instructions or conditions stipulated by them.

Vessels to have Names marked on Them

36.      The owner of a vessel which is not registered as a ship under the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 to 1988 and marked accordingly, shall ensure that the vessel is marked conspicuously with its name or other means of identification unless otherwise exempted by the Commissioners.

Abandonment of Vessels or Materials Prohibited 

37.    (1)     No person shall abandon a vessel on the banks or shore of the Harbour

(2)     For the purposes of paragraph (1) of this byelaw, a person who leaves a vessel on the banks or shore of the Harbour in such circumstances or for such a period that he may reasonably be assumed to have abandoned it shall be deemed to have abandoned it there unless the contrary intention is shown. 

3)      No person shall, without the Commissioners' permission leave any material or equipment on the Commissioners' property. 

(4)     The reference to "material" in (3) above and elsewhere in these byelaws shall include refuse, rubbish and goods. 

Water Ski-ing, Aquaplaning, etc 

38.      (1)     No person shall engage or take part in water ski-ing, aquaplaning, board sailing, jet biking, ascending by towed kite or parachute or the use of hovercraft, except with the written permission of the Commissioners, given either specifically or generally, and only in such areas as may be designated and in accordance with such reasonable conditions as may be imposed.

         (2)     A master, whilst using his vessel for the purpose of towing a water-skier or a person aquaplaning, shall have on board at least one other person capable of taking charge of the vessel and of giving such assistance as may be reasonably required during the towing and in the recovery of the water-skier, and shall carry - 

a)   for each person on board, a life jacket manufactured in accordance with the appropriate British Standards Specification or a personal buoyancy aid of the British Marine Industries Federation approved type, two hand-held distress signals and a fire extinguisher; 

(b) for each person water ski-ing or aquaplaning, a rescue quoit with line or other sufficient hand-thrown rescue device.

Assistance to Fire and other Services 

39.      The master of a vessel shall give every reasonable facility and assistance to the fire, police, ambulance and other emergency services for dealing with, alleviating or preventing any emergency.

Fire Precautions 

40.      The master of a vessel shall take all reasonable precautions for the prevention of accidents by fire.

41.      No person within the Harbour or the Harbour Limits shall without the written permission of the Commissioners heat any pitch, tallow, tar or any other substance or flammable matter, or have or allow any fire, naked light or flame in any place other than for the immediate ignition of any authorised fire, light or flame.

42.      No person shall bring on board a vessel or shall use on a vessel any flammable materials, fuel oils or gases or warning flares or similar safety equipment unless the same are securely contained in a safe and proper manner and are intended to be used on or within the vessel for propulsion, maintenance or safety purposes, or in connection with domestic cooking, lighting or heating.

43.      Whilst any naked flames or fire is being used on board any vessel within the Harbour, the owner or master of that vessel shall not without reasonable excuse fail to provide and keep at least one person continually on board the vessel who shall be specifically charged with the care of the naked flame or fire.

44.      No person shall without lawful authority displace or tamper with any safety or fire equipment within the Harbour except in the event of an emergency.

Diving 

45.      No person, unless authorised in writing by the Commissioners, shall undertake, engage or take part in any underwater operations, diving or diving activities of any kind in the main navigable Harbour fairways or approach fairways. Nothing contained in this byelaw shall authorise any operation on the seabed or foreshore which is under the management of the Crown Estate Commissioners without the consent of the Crown Estate Commissioners having first been obtained.

Wildfowlers' Shooting Boundaries 

46.      No person shall at any time use, permit or assist another person in using a shotgun or firearm of any description within the Harbour, north of a line indicated by the low leading light in transit with the lookout tower of the Yacht Haven office.

Obstruction of Officers of the Authority 

47.      No person shall intentionally obstruct any officer or employee of the Commissioners in the execution of his duties.

Vessels to be effectually silenced 

48.      Any vessel within the Harbour fitted with or carrying an internal combustion engine, shall not, unless otherwise authorised by the Commissioners in writing, run or operate such engine unless there is connected to the exhaust of the engine, an effectual silencer of such size and construction and so properly fitted as to prevent a nuisance or annoyance arising from the noise of said exhaust.

49.      The master or owner of such a vessel shall not cause or permit any engine of such a vessel to be run so as to cause a nuisance or annoyance.

50.      The master or owner of any vessel fitted with an outboard engine shall not cause or permit the use of such outboard engine within the Harbour so as to cause a nuisance or annoyance

51.      The master or owner of any vessel shall ensure that all rigging is so secured as to prevent noise from ropes, wires or lines rattling against the mast

High Pressure Hoses 

52.      No person shall at any time within the Harbour use, permit or assist another person in using high pressure water hoses for any purpose whatsoever, except with the prior approval of the Commissioners and subject to such reasonable conditions which the Commissioners may impose on the use thereof.

Animals 

53.      No person shall permit any animal aboard any vessel in the Harbour to behave in such a manner as to cause a nuisance or an annoyance to other Harbour users.

Sound and Pyrotechnic Signals

54.      No person shall sound or use or knowingly cause or permit to be sounded or used in the Harbour a siren, steam whistle, foghorn, alarm, distress rocket, or other instrument, appliance or system for producing alarm signals on any occasion or for any purpose other than in connection with navigation distress or race control.

Sound Amplification Systems 

55.      No person shall use or cause or permit the use of any sound amplification system, whether fitted on a vessel or not, within the Harbour so as to cause a nuisance or annoyance to other Harbour users.

Alarm Systems on Vessels or Vehicles 

56.      No person shall use on a vessel, or on a vehicle on harbour premises, any alarm system using a loud and persistent sound signal unless the system has an automatic cut-off after not more than twenty minutes of operation.

Fireworks 

57.      No person shall within the Harbour use distress flares, rockets, or other pyrotechnics for any purpose except instruction or demonstration previously authorised by the Commissioners.

58.      No fireworks display from a vessel within the Harbour or from any structure within the Harbour bounds, shall be held without the consent of the Commissioners, for which application must be made in writing not less than fourteen days before the intended occasion.

Bright Lights 

59.      No person shall exhibit in the Harbour searchlights, floodlights or other bright lights or pyrotechnics other than those indicating emergency or distress, in such a manner as to be liable to endanger safe navigation, unless the consent of the Commissioners has first been obtained.

Barbecues 

60.     No master or owner of a vessel shall knowingly cause or permit any person to hold or participate in any deck barbecue on a vessel moored alongside any wharf, dock, quay or jetty within the Harbour or alongside any other vessel except with the prior written consent of the Commissioners.

61.      (1)   Any person who contravenes or otherwise fails to comply with any of these byelaws, or any condition, requirement or prohibition imposed by the Commissioners in the exercise of the powers conferred on them by these byelaws, shall be guilty of an offence and be liable, on conviction before a court of summary jurisdiction, to a fine not exceeding Level 2 on the standard scale in respect of offences under Byelaws 27, 37 and 50, Level 3 on the standard scale for all other convictions or such higher figure as may from time to time be permitted by any legislation.

(2)   Where the commission by any person of an offence under these byelaws is due to the act or default of some other person, that other person shall be guilty of an offence; and that other person may be charged with and convicted of, the offence by virtue of this byelaw, whether or not proceedings for the offence are taken against any other person. 

(3)     In any proceedings for an offence under these byelaws, it shall be a defence for the person charged to prove 

(a)  that he took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of such an offence; or 

(b) that he had a reasonable excuse for his act or failure to act. 

(4)    If, in any case, the defence provided by paragraph (3a) of this byelaw involves the allegation that the commission of the offence was due to the act or default of another person, the person charged shall not, without leave of the court, be entitled to rely on that defence unless, within a period ending seven clear days before the hearing, he has served on the prosecutor a notice in writing giving such information identifying, or assisting in the identification of that person as was then in his possession. 

Revocation

62. The Lymington byelaws made on 20th February 1915, 30th June 1961 and 7th May 1963 are hereby revoked.

The Corporate Seal of the Lymington Harbour Commissioners was affixed in the presence of:- D.H. Kalis, Chairman. A. Robinson, Clerk on the seventeenth day of July 1992.  

The Secretary of State hereby confirms the foregoing byelaws.  

Signed on behalf of the Secretary of State for Transport on the twelfth day of October 1992 M. W. Jackson, An Assistant Secretary in the Department of Transport  

I certify that this is a true copy of the byelaws made by the Commissioners on 17th July 1992 and confirmed by the Secretary of State on 12th October 1992.  A. Robinson, Clerk.

INTERACTION BETWEEN VESSELS  

Attention is drawn to Merchant Shipping Notice M 930 issued by the Marine Directorate of the Department of Transport, regarding the risk of interaction when small craft pass close to larger vessels; this phenomenon is especially prevalent in narrow channels and shallow water. The Lymington River represents such a channel.

The narrowness of the deepwater channel creates a pattern of zones of different pressure round any craft large enough to occupy much of the available waterway. A smaller craft, passing from one pressure zone to another, will suffer a sheering interaction which may be more than maximum rudder application can correct; collision may follow, as the smaller craft is drawn across the path of the larger vessel.

Keys to minimising the risks are: 

(i)      smaller craft should keep as far away from overtaking or passing larger vessels as circumstances will allow;
 

(ii)     where it be unavoidable, owing to the narrow channel, for vessels to be well separated during overtaking or passing, the smaller craft should reduce the length of time that they are in the "change of pressure" zone. Where meeting the larger vessel on a reciprocal course, maintain maximum speed reasonable in the circumstances. When being overtaken, either slow down to minimum speed, in order to reduce the time of "change of pressure" zone, or where possible double back on a reciprocal course.