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The Greater London Council has now become actively interested in the refuse wharves and
schemes for improvement are in being. To this end, collaboration has continued between Greater
London Council Officers and appropriate Port Health Inspectors. Three schemes have been
adopted e.g. present time, short term and long term. Minor changes will be made to improve outstanding
deficiencies while plans and financial resources will be geared to the longer term
schemes.
It is anticipated that modernisation will be completed in a reasonable time if the finance is
made available to the venture.
HOUSEBOATS
The Essex County Council Act, 1952, provides that the mooring of any houseboat within the
County shall not be lawful without the consent of the Council of the district in which the houseboat
is situated and that the Council may require the owner or occupier to remove or demolish any
houseboat not authorised by them.
The Port and City of London Health Committee are, however, still responsible under the
London Government Act, 1963. for sanitary supervision of houseboats coming within the jurisdiction
of the Port Health Authority, although under the Essex County Council Act, 1952, the
local Council in Essex is now responsible for the licensing and stipulating conditions under
which licenses to the resident houseboats will be granted.
The functions of the Port Health Committee with regard to the sanitary supervision of houseboats
are safeguarded by Section 212 of the Act, which provides inter alia that no consent shall
be given to moor any houseboat within the Port of London without the previously written consent
of the Corporation of London as the Port Health Authority of the Port of London.
Benfleet
During the year, the Benfleet Urban District Council with the concurrence of the Port Health
Authority granted eighteen "temporary consents" to craft which were considered fit for human
habitation for the ensuing twelve months. This is one less than last year. Although the "temporary
consent" permits permanent habitation, many of the houseboats are seldom occupied. There are
always some problems relating to refuse and sewage disposal and provision of wholesome drinking
water associated with this type of dwelling. An additional problem is that of environmental
health, due to the close proximity of a major refuse tipping site.
Canvey Island
The Canvey Island Urban District Council have never granted "temporary consents" but
sewage, refuse and drinking water facilities are available at the seaward end of Smallgains Creek
where five houseboats are moored. When the site was last inspected it was evident that only one
of the houseboats was used for habitation but the remaining four although empty were in good
condition.
DANGEROUS DRUGS
During the year nineteen certificates authorising the purchase of scheduled Dangerous Drugs
were issued under the Dangerous Drugs Regulations, 1953, Regulation 13 <2) of which is as
follows:—
(a) The master of a foreign ship which is in a port in Great Britain shall be authorised to
procure such quantity of drugs and preparations as may be certified by the medical
officer of health of the port health authority within whose jurisdiction the ship is
or, in his absence, by the assistant medical officer of health, to be necessary for
the equipment of the ship until it reaches its home port.
(b) A person who supplies a drug or preparation in accordance with a certificate given
unde. this paragraph shall retain the certificate and mark it with the date on which
the drug or preparation was supplied and keep it on his premises so as to be at all
times available for inspection.
PIGEON CONTROL
The pattern of control and the methods of destruction have remained the same as previous
years and action has been intensified on all Docks premises which have proved to be roosting
sites and/or feeding centres. As a consequence, there have been few complaints of damage or
fouling.
The Port of London Authority employs a skilled private contractor to cover all the Docks.
The chief method of eliminating pigeons is to feed the birds at suitable times with baits incorporating
a narcotic. The stupified victims are collected and destroyed painlessly. These operations
are repeated as new flocks take possession. Tenants of some industrial premises systematically
carry out trapping of the birds and destruction of the eggs and nests existing at their
properties.
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