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64
had arisen in particular with regard to a certain dock which made it desirable
that the powers of the Port Sanitary Authority with regard to the land area
of the docks should be more clearly defined.
Thus a really important question exists as to the jurisdiction of the riparian
authorities over those areas which are within the Port Sanitary area of
London, and the question could not arise if the Local Government Board
were to make the Order asked for under the powers possessed by them under
section 112.
The outcome of the cases referred to was that the officers of the Port
Sanitary Authority who had formerly been able to get sanitary defects
remedied, although without statutory power in some cases to insist, latterly
found a difficulty with regard to certain sanitary matters.
In one case, that of the sanitary conveniences in the Royal Albert Dock, which
required to be altered and modernised, the Dock Company, owing presumably
to the question of the jurisdiction and powers of the Port Sanitary Authority
having been raised elsewhere, would not provide suitable sanitary conveniences,
and it was therefore apparent that if the various dock owners did not willingly
do what they were asked to do, there was some doubt as to whether there were
sufficient powers possessed by the Port Sanitary Authority to insist upon
those things being done.
With reference to a view which appeared to have been taken by some of the
Riparian Authorities, that the Port Sanitary Authority were seeking powers
to extend their present area, it was explained that there was no desire or
attempt to do this, and that the powers sought would be exercised only
within the limits within which the Port Sanitary Authority already possessed
powers.
Evidence in support of the application was given at considerable length by
your Medical Officer of Health, who gave particulars as to the district and
staff of the Port Sanitary Authority, and of the various sanitary works which
had been carried out under the supervision of your officers, such works having
been done without, in some instances, adequate legal powers, but in every case
it was extremely desirable that the Port Sanitary Authority should have full
knowledge of all Sanitary works executed within their jurisdiction.
He set out the nature of the difficulties encountered with regard—firstly,
to the deposit of plans, and secondly, to the execution of the work in accordance
with the views of the Port Sanitary Authority thereon, and it was
shown that the method involved much unnecessary correspondence, was not
expeditious, and sometimes failed through the absence of legal power to
enforce the requirements.
This was notoriously the case with regard to the obsolete out-of-date
arrangement of cesspit-closets and privies obtaining in certain of the docks,
which are extremely objectionable from a sanitary point of view.