Merchant Shipping (Investigation of Marine Casualties) Act, 2000

Interpretation.

2.—(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires—

“Board” means the Marine Casualty Investigation Board established by section 7 (1);

“Chairperson” means the Chairperson of the Board, and includes the Deputy Chairperson while acting as or performing the functions of the Chairperson;

“Chief Surveyor” means the person from time to time holding (including temporarily), or performing the duties of, the position with the designation Chief Surveyor in the Marine Survey Office of the Department of the Marine and Natural Resources;

“functions” includes powers and duties;

“investigation” means an investigation of a marine casualty in accordance with Part 3;

“investigator” means a person appointed under section 26 (2) to be an investigator;

“Irish waters” includes the territorial sea, the waters on the landward side of the territorial sea, and the estuaries, rivers, lakes and other inland waters (whether or not artificially created or modified), of the State;

“marine casualty” means an event or process which causes or poses the threat of—

(a) death or serious injury to a person;

(b) the loss of a person overboard;

(c) significant loss or stranding of, or damage to, or collision with, a vessel or property; or

(d) significant damage to the environment,

in connection with the operation of—

(i) a vessel in Irish waters;

(ii) an Irish registered vessel, in waters anywhere; or

(iii) a vessel normally located or moored in Irish waters and under the control of a resident of the State, in international waters contiguous to Irish waters,

and includes an accident or damage referred to in section 26 (1) (b);

“Minister” means the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources;

“owner”, in relation to a vessel, means—

(a) where it is owned by the State or another state and operated by a person who in the State or that other state, as the case may be, is registered as its operator, the person so registered, and

(b) in any other case—

(i) the person registered as its owner; or

(ii) the person who directly or indirectly owns the vessel,

and includes any part-owner, charterer, manager or operator of the vessel;

“record” includes any memorandum, book, plan, chart, map, drawing, diagram, pictorial or graphic work or other document, any photograph, film or recording (whether of sound or images or both), any form in which data (within the meaning of the Data Protection Act, 1988 ) are held, any form (including machine-readable form) or thing in which information is held or stored manually, mechanically or electronically, and anything that is a part or copy, in any form, of any of, or any combination of, the foregoing;

“report” means a published report of an investigation into a marine casualty, in whatever form the report may take;

“tribunal” means a person or persons appointed under section 38 (2) (a) to hold an inquiry;

“vessel”, in relation to a marine casualty, means a vessel or craft (or part of a vessel or craft) which at the time of the casualty—

(a) is registered in the State, or

(b) is located in the State (including in Irish waters), or

(c) being a vessel normally located or moored in Irish waters, is under the control of a resident of the State in international waters contiguous to Irish waters,

and capable of being used, or intended to be used, for navigation or transportation on water, but does not include a seaplane.

(2) In this Act, including the Schedule

(a) a reference to any other enactment shall, except to the extent that the context otherwise requires, be construed as a reference to that enactment as amended by or under any other enactment, including this Act,

(b) a reference to a section or Part is a reference to a section or Part of this Act, unless it is indicated that reference to some other enactment is intended,

(c) a reference to a subsection, paragraph or subparagraph is a reference to a subsection, paragraph or subparagraph of the provision in which the reference occurs, unless it is indicated that a reference to some other provision is intended, and

(d) a reference to the Schedule is a reference to the Schedule to this Act.