Agenda and minutes

To elect a Chair for 2017/18.

RESOLVED to elect Councillor Alwyn Gruffydd as Chair of this Committee for 2017/18.

To elect a Vice-chair for 2017/18.

RESOLVED to elect Councillor Nia Jeffreys as Vice-chair of this Committee for 2017/18.

To receive any apologies for absence.

Councillor Selwyn Griffiths (Gwynedd Council), Jason Humphreys (Porthmadog Town Council Representative) and Peter L. Williams (RNLI Representative).

To receive any declaration of personal interest.

No declarations of personal interest were received from any members present.

To consider any items which are urgent matters in the opinion of the Chairman.

The Chairman will propose that the minutes of the meeting of this committee, held on 8 March 2017, be signed as a true record.

The Chair signed the minutes of the previous meeting of this Committee, held on 8 March 2017, as a true record.

To submit a report by the Maritime and Country Parks Officer.

The Maritime and Country Parks Officer guided the members through the report, drawing attention to the following main points:

·        That the Consultative Committee was statutory and that the membership was in accordance with Section 6(2) (a-j) of the Porthmadog Harbour Revision Order. A request had been received by Porthmadog Rowing Club to have representation on the Consultative Committee. It was noted that it had been explained to them that Dr John Jones-Morris represented leisure interests on the Consultative Committee and matters could be referred to him to be considered.

·        There were 135 boats on annual moorings in Porthmadog Harbour in 2017 compared with 129 in 2016. It was encouraging to see a small increase in the numbers this year.

·        That the Government's Department for Transport had published modifications to the Ports' Safety Code in November 2016. Copies of the new code had been circulated to all Members of the Consultative Committee and copies could also be obtained on the Maritime and Coastguard Agency’s website.

·        Between 19 and 21 September 2017, a thorough inspection was carried out by the Coastguard Agency's auditors on the current safety arrangements and systems of Gwynedd municipal harbours in order to ensure compliance with the Ports' Safety Code. The initial opinion of the auditors was that the Council complied with the requirements in general but that some aspects relating to recording duties and noting the Duty Holder needed to be amended. The auditors visited the harbours of Aberdyfi, Porthmadog and Pwllheli during the audit. In regards to Porthmadog Harbour, the observations received were excellent and no problems had become apparent. The Harbour Master and the Senior Harbours Officer were thanked for their work in ensuring that the appropriate documentation was in place.

·        A written report had been received by the auditors on the day of the meeting outlining matters requiring attention from the Council. It was explained that the Council had a specific period to revise its arrangements and the Coastguard Agency would revisit the service within 12 months of submitting the report when recommendations submitted in the report would be expected to be actioned. It was noted that copies of the report would be circulated to members.

·        Following a discussion with the auditors, it was agreed in principle that it would be beneficial for the date of the second visit to coincide with the date of the Harbour Consultative Committee. It was suggested to the auditors that it could be beneficial for the auditors to attend a meeting of the Porthmadog Harbour Consultative Committee and invite representatives from the Consultative Committees of Aberdyfi, Barmouth and Pwllheli to the meeting in October 2018.

·        No observations had been received relating to the Marine Safety Code since the previous meeting.

·        A detailed inspection was conducted by Trinity House Lighthouse Authority inspectors on 2 August 2017. Compared with previous reports, the 2017 report confirmed a further improvement in the condition and locations of Porthmadog Harbour's Navigation Aids. A chart displaying the current locations of the navigation aids  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

To elect observers to serve on the following -

a) Aberdyfi Harbour Consultative Committee

b) Barmouth Harbour Consultative Committee

c) Pwllheli Harbour Consultative Committee

It was reported that observer(s) needed to be elected to serve on the Aberdyfi, Barmouth and Porthmadog Harbour Consultative Committees.               

RESOLVED to elect Dr John Jones-Morris to serve as an observer on the Aberdyfi, Barmouth and Pwllheli Harbour Consultative Committees.

To note that the next meeting of the Porthmadog Harbour Consultative Committee will be held on 7 March 2018.

It was noted that the next meeting would be held on 7 March, 2018.