MERCHANT SHIPPING

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22020, 1 August 1933, Page 11

MERCHANT SHIPPING

LOAD LINE CERTIFICATES INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION. A Board of Trade announcement, dated June 15, in connection with new forms of certificate required by merchant shipping when clearance is needed, has been received in Wellington. From the first day of this months all ships registered in the United Kingdom will be called upon to produce international load line certificates or United Kingdom load lino certificates (i.e., certificates issued under the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1932) when clearance or traisire is demanded. From the same date' all convention load line ships belonging to other countries which have adopted the International Load Line Convention will be called upon to produce an'international load line certificate. The announcement states that, in order that the International Load Line Convention, which came into operation on January 1,. 1933, might be brought into |'full use with-a minimum of inconvenience to shipping, special arrangements were made by the governments which had adopted the convention for the continued acceptance for a reasonable period after January 1 of load line certificates recognised under arrangements existing before that date, if presented by ships which had been prevented from obtaining convention load lino certificates. The great majority of the ships, British and foreign, which fall within the scope of the convention has now been surveyed, and it has therefore been decided that all ships to which the convention applies shall be called upon to produce the new form of load line" certificates. To meet any exceptional case where a convention load line ship has not been able io undergo survey for the new form of load line certificate his Majesty's Government has suggested to the other Governments concerned that if a convention load line ship belonging to another country arrives without an international load line certificate on or after July 1 the ship should not be detained, but'the master should be -warned of the necessity of obtaining an international loan line certificate without further delay, and the case should be reported to the Government of the country to which the ship belongs in order that that Government may make arrangements for the load line survey. The owners of ships which are laid up and which have not yet obtained the new load line certificates are reminded that these certificates will be required when the vessels are next put into commission.