SHANNON NAVIGATION BYE LAWS
The Shannon Navigation Bye-Laws and the Shannon Navigation (Construction of Vessels) Bye Laws are contained in Statutory Instruments Nos. 79 and 80 of 1992. These may be purchased for a small fee from the Government Publication Sales Office, Molesworth St., Dublin 2. An abridged list of the main Bye Laws are set out below. These are also printed on the Shannon Navigation Charts.
NAVIGATION
1. Always keep to the marked channel.
Red On Left Going upstream and into bays & harbours. Black on Right
Black On Left Going downstream and out of bays & harbours Red on Right
2. Keep a good distance off all navigation markers. Keep clear of weirs.
3. When meeting an approaching vessel, keep to the right of the channel so that you pass each other on the left-hand side.
4. If you meet a vessel crossing from your right and there is a danger of collision, you must give way.
5. When overtaking leave the other vessel on your right hand side. You must keep out of its way when doing so and it must leave you sufficient room to overtake.
6. Keep to the marked navigation arch when negotiating bridges. Use the arch to your right when more than one arch is available.
7. When going upstream at a bridge, give way to vessels coming downstream.
8. You must give way to vessels under sail.
9. Keep a good lookout and navigate with care, caution and reasonable consideration of others.
10. It is an offence to navigate when under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
SPEED, LOCKS AND BRIDGES
11. It is an offence to exceed 5 km per hour within 200m of a bridge or jetty and within 100m of a lock, harbour, marina, moored vessel or in a canal. Reduce speed when passing swimmers, anglers and small boats.
12. Always approach locks slowly and keep out of the way of vessels exiting. When in a lock, do not refuel and do not light cookers or any other appliances with a naked flame. When there is more than one vessel in the lock, switch off your engine. When leaving the lock, do so at slow speed.
13. Ensure that you have adequate headroom when passing under bridges. If in doubt, at Roosky or Tarmonbarry, request that the bridge be raised. Portumna Bridge must be opened and the Lough Allen Canal footbridge must be raised. Always check air draft gauges at Limerick before passing under bridges.
REGISTRATION AND NAVIGATIONAL AIDS
14. Your vessel must be registered unless it is open, undecked and carrying an engine not exceeding 15hp. You must conspicuously display your registration number at all times.
15. If your vessel has a draft in excess of 1.7m you may not navigate without permission.
16. When navigating at night, your vessel must be equipped with lights as specified in the bye-laws.
17. When proceeding from one navigation marker to another, keep an eye on the one behind as the wind may cause you to drift inside the line.
18. When crossing the major lakes, establish your position by the numbers on the large buoys in Lough Ree and the letters on similar buoys in Lough Derg with those on the accompanying charts.
19. Ensure that the mooring ropes do not trail in the water as they may foul the propeller.
20. It is an offence to moor at any navigation mark.
21. You may not berth at a particular quay or harbour for more than 5 consecutive days nor more than a total of 7 days in any one month.
VESSEL CONSTRUCTION
22. If your vessel is for hire or carriage of passengers, it’s hull must be of sound construction.
23. Your vessel, if mechanically propelled, must have an efficient means of reversing.
24. Your vessel must be equipped with bow and stern mooring lines appropriate to the vessel’s tonnage and length. Lines shall be at least 12m long and minimum diameters shall be 12mm for nylon and 16mm for polypropylene.
25. Your vessel must have at least one efficient anchor and chain (cable/hawser) appropriate to tonnage of the vessel. These should be stowed, with other equipment, so as to enable them to be dropped or weighed quickly.
26. Your vessels must have sufficient fenders to prevent damage to other vessels and property.
SAFETY EQUIPMENT
27. You must carry on your vessel a flotation device for each person on board.
28. If your vessel has a freeboard of more than 50cm, you must carry a boarding ladder or steps.
29. Your vessel must carry either a distress flag or 6 pyrotechnic distress signals and 2 buoyant smoke signals. The flag shall be 1m wide by .5m high and shall have a white background with a red diagonal cross.
30. A vessel up to 10m in length must have at least one fire extinguisher. A vessel more than 5m in length with cooking facilities must have two and a vessel more than 10m in length with cooking facilities must have three. They must be in good working order and be in accessible positions close to where the potential of fire is the greatest. Fire extinguishers shall be either dry powder (1kg), carbon dioxide (2kg), foam (9L) or a fire blanket.
ENGINES AND FUEL
31. Exhaust noise is to be kept to a minimum.
32. Electric leads must be supported, insulated and installed clear of any fuel, gas or exhaust pipe.
33. Fuel tanks shall be of non-corrosive material other than glass fibre and uncoated steel (except for diesel), shall be drained only by means of a screw plug and shall be readily accessible for inspection. Petrol containers shall be installed upright away from cooking/heating appliances, be secured on deck away from hatches/openings or housed in a ventilated area above the waterline.
34. For inboard engines fuel tanks must be fitted with filling pipes of metal or flexible hose (non-perishable and non-kinking), connected by means of leak proof joints and closed by means of a screw cap/plate on the deck. Tanks larger than 4.5l, or whose filling pipe is not straight, should be vented to the air outside. Feed lines shall be of softened copper, stainless steel, aluminium alloy (for diesel -mild steel) and shall be fixed clear of exhaust systems, heating apparatus and supported to minimise vibration. Flexible lines are to be used only in the engine compartment. A shut-off cock must be fitted in the feed line close to the tank where it is visible and easily operated. The battery should be stored in a ventilated place away from any fuel cock, tank or filter. If your vessel hull is not made of metal or fibre and fitted with oil tight bulkheads or frames fore and aft of the engine, then an oil tight tray must be fitted under the engine, gearbox and propeller shaft.
35. For outboard engines where the tank is connected to the engine by a flexible pipe, refuel only when the tank has been removed from the vessel. Modifications must be in accordance with suppliers recommendations.
For gravity feed systems a cock must be fitted between the feed pipe and fuel tank.
COOKING AND HEATING
36. Materials adjacent to cooking/heating appliances must be insulated or treated to withstand excess heat. Cooking/heating areas shall be permanently ventilated. When refuelling, turn off appliances with naked flames or lights. If your vessel has a petrol engine, enclose all pilot lights and burners on gas/paraffin fridges and vent air for combustion from the outside. Water heaters shall be close to the deckhand and ventilation allowed for flue outlets.
S. I. No. 284 of 2001
Merchant Shipping (Mechanically Propelled Pleasure Craft) (Safety) Regulations, 2001.
Fast power craft (17 knots plus), Personal watercraft, mechanically propelled pleasure craft and any objects being towed by such craft.
· Persons under the age of 16 shall not operate these craft. Persons under the age of 12 shall not operate craft with a power rating of more than 5hp (3.7kw).
· Persons under 16 shall wear lifejackets or flotation devices whilst on any of these craft.
· All persons using personal watercraft must wear lifejackets or flotation devices.
· It is an offence to operate any of the above when under the influence of alcohol or drugs or both. The intake of alcohol or drugs or both whilst on board a fast power craft or personal watercraft is an offence.
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