VOLUME

BRANCH REPORTS

Northern

Minutes of the meeting held at the Fire Brigade Headquarters, Darlington, on Wednesday, 26th September, 1973.

The meet:ing was opened by the Chief Fire Officer, W. R. Golding, Q.F.S.M., the chair being taken by Mr. A. F. Brunner of Hartlepool (Chief Inspector Trading Standards Dept.).

Present Ten members attended, one Associate and two visitors. The a'ttendancecould be described as "thin on the ground" owing in the main to Local Government Re-organisation.

Apologies Apologies for absence were received from the Chairman, Mr. D. J. Bruce (Teesside), the Vice-Chairman, Mr. B. W. Thacker (Teesside), Mr. R. Maughan (North Riding of Yorkshire (Associate), Mr. A. J. Hardy-King (Northallerton U.D.C.) and Mr. J. Hewison (Havant & Waterloo U.D.C.) Association Chairman.

Minutes The minutes of the Annual General Meeting held at ,the Fire Brigade Headquarters, Teesside, on Thursday, 21st June, 1973 having previously been circulated, were approved.

Matters Arising Mr. Harold Johnson, O.B.E. (former Chief Fire Officer, Teesside, and Branch Chairman) now retired, has accepted the Hfe membership of the Branch.

Membership Northallerton Urban District Council have formally resigned from the Association, their representative being Mr. A. J. Hardy-King.

Report of the Honorary Secretary/Treasurer The meeting was informed of Mr. Johnson's acceptance of the Hfe Membership of the Branch, and the fact, that Mr. Johnson at the time of acceptance was ,in fact ,in hospital at .Inverness.

The minutes of the Annual General Meeting were circuIated to the Chairman of the Association, Mr. Hewison, the Secretary Mr. Frid, Mr. Thacker (Hon. Editor) and all members of ,the Branch, together with Associate members.

Irrformation was sought and received from Messrs. Emco Wheaton (U.K.) Ltd., with regard to leak detector valves on remote pumping systems, and ancillary equipment.

Arrangements to be made by the Hon. Secretary to procure the services of a member of B.A.S.E.E.F.A. to lecture on their activities, and in particular certification procedures. Address by D. R. Sanders, Esq., C.Eng., M.I.C.E., F.Inst.Pet., Engineering Manager, V.I.P. Petroleum Ltd. The ,illustrated lecture given by Mr. Sanders, projected the average petroleum officer's knowledge into the very near future, where on forecourts in particular, a different form of dispensation is about to be known to Us in the form of "Remote pumping", "Submerged pumping units", and sophisticated 'intrinsically safe self service dispensing units, in which the metering, computation of price and blending facilities are there,in incorporated.

Mr. Sanders went on to describe in great detail the physical layouts to be expected, the mechanical aspects of submerged pumps, the detection of leaks in the 'arterial pipe lines by the use of "Leak-detector valves" 'and "Pressure Switches", the pressures both working and test which incidentally is far in excess of the standard 10 lbs. p.s.i. accepted as the norm and the electrical parts of the installation.

Those present at the meeting asked Mr. Sanders many relevant questions, and unfortunately the question period had to be curtailed owing to the distance that Mr. Sanders had to traverse ,to reach his home in Cheshire.

A vote of thanks was presented to Mr. Sanders by Mr. Brunner for a most interesting talk, to which those present concurred wholeheartedly in the usual manner.

Mr. Brunner also conveyed the appreciation of the Branch to the Chief Fire Officer, Mr. W. R. Golding, for ,the facilities provided for the meeting and the refreshments.

Any Other Business The question of the venue of the next meeting was left to the Hon. Secretary and Chairman, together with the provis'ion if possible, of a lecturer from B.A.S.E.E.F.A.

Minutes of the meeting held at the Fire Brigade Headquarters, Darlington, on Wednesday, 6th February, 1974.

The meeting was opened by the Chief Fire Officer, W. R. Golding, Esq., Q.F.S.M., the ohair being 'taken by Mr. D. J. Bruce (Chief Fire Officer, Teesside).

Mr. Golding dnformed the meeting it would 'be his last appearance before the members in uniform, as he retires on 31st March. He had always been interested in ,the AssoCiation and its objectives, and also had some very happy memories of friends and wished the Association well in the future.

Present Ten members attended, one Associate, and the guest speaker Mr. J. W. Hewison, President of the Association.

Apologies :<\'pologies for absence were received from Mr. C. H. C!apham @3orough of Richmond), Mr. J. P. Urban District), Mr. R. R. Lumsden (Rural DistrIot Coun.cll of Eas'ington) and Mr. A. F. Brunner 'Of Hartlep'Ool (ChIef [nspector, TradingStanda-rds Department).

Minutes The minutes of the meeting held at the Fire Brigade Headquarters, Darlington, on 26th September, 1973 were approved, with the following amendments:1. It was stated in the minutes that the chair had been taken by Mr. A. F. Brunner of Hartlepool, when in fact

Mr. W. C. Ranson had been in the chair, and 2. Mr. Harold Johnson, O.B.E., should read Mr. Harry

Johnson, O.B.E.

Matters Arising Mr. os. Ord of Sunderland asked for any information available regarding Mr. Harry Johnson, O.B.E. Mr. D. Bruce reploied that in fact Mr. Johnson 'is very well now and has made a good -recovery from his recent illness.

Membership The Borough of Richmond have formally resigned from ,the Association, their representative being Mr. C. H. Cl'apham. Hartlepool also tendered their resignation, their representative being Mr. A. F. Brunner, and who were at this particul'ar meeting represented by Mr. P. H. Cartwright, former Branch Secretary/Treasurer.

Mr. C. Ansbro asked fora vote of thanks ,to he given to Mr. B. W. Thacker of Teesside for his services 'as Honorary Editor of the Bulletin. Mr. Thacker has now resigned from that post.

Mr. D. J. Bruce, recording a vote of thanks s!I'id Mr. Thacker had played a great part in the success of the Bulletin, and 's'aid members were aware of his national fame and his standing with persons associated with petroleum, and the Assooiation have been very fortunate to have had a person 'Of his standing to help and guide them in this way.

Mr. B. W. Thacker repHed to the Chairman on the vote of !thanks, and in his reply, thanking the Branch, he also stated that he reluctantly gave up the position of Honorary Editor as it was considered that he would not have the time to devote to Ithe job. He 'also 'said that it is in good hands with Mr. R. P. Holdaway, as Mr. Holdaway was Editor 'Of the Bulletin many years previously.

Report of the Honorary Secretary/Treasurer The meeting was informed the capitance allowance for membership had been received. The cash balance being £5.92, inclus'ive of capitance -allowance.

A letter of thanks had ,been sent to Mr. D. R. Sanders (Sale, Cheshire) of V.I.P. Petroleum, for his lecture at the last meeting.

Correspondence was read from the Department of Trade and Industry, Buxton, Derbyshire, with regard to the provision of a lecturer for some future Branch meeting. This was not firmly 'arranged with the Department, however, a representative of ,the Department invited the Branch, on prior notice, to a visit to their premises at BllX'ton. The interest of the Branch lies 'in ,the activities of B.A.S.E.E.F.A. and associated certification of electrical equipment, with particular reference to licensed petroleum storage.

Recent communication has -taken place hetween the Branch Secretary and the Petroleum Industry Training Board, arising from which a catalogue of films associated with the petroleum industry generally has been obtained, which appears to be most interesting.

The meeting was informed by letter received from Mr. R. P. Hold-away of Shrewsbury, that he is ,taking over the Editorship of the Bulletin, on the resignation of Mr. B. W. Thacker, Teesside.

Mr. Anshro reported that a successful prosecution regarding illegal storage of petroleum has been submitted ,to the Editor for publication ,in the next edition of the Bulletin, together with a copy of ,the minutes of the meeting held on 26th September, 1973.

Welcome Mr. D. J. Bruce (Chairman) welcomed to the Branch meeting Mr. J. W. Hewis'On, the Chairm'an of the Association, 'saying he had travelled a long way from the outskirts of Portsmouth and was extended a very happy welcome, as .this was considered a rare and very important 'occasion as far as this Branch was concerned, and ,the Branch generally cons'idered it an honour that Mr. Hewison was present.

Mr. Hewison thanked the Northern Branch for inviting him, and said Mr. Ansbro had kept him informed of all meetings, for which he was very thankful. He expressed appreciaNon to Mr. Thacker for an he had done over the years and said his efforts were appreciated very much in the Associ'ation, and especially in the Council. He was a great help and will be sadly missed on the Council. He expressed the hope that the Association will carry on after Local Government Re-organisation, and stated he would be pleased to help where he COUld. He thought ,the Nor.them Branch looked to be pretty soHd and flourIshing and was very appreciative of the efforts in this area to keep the thing in being.

Legal Proceedings Mr. Bruce reported two or three cases of <illegal s'oorage of petroleum at Teess-ide.

Mr. Hewison had deaIt with cases of illegal storage of petroleum. On each occasion the initial report came from the police, and he had ,immediately procured a Court Order to search ,the premises and seize the petroleum. This is the legaHty of it. You -are only allowed on the premises ,if they are licensed, and must have 'a Cou-rt Order. The question of s'ampling petroleum was then raised and how it should be undertaken, further, Mr. Hewison suggested Ithat the overall question of seizing, sampHng and Court Orders etc., would make an excellent 'article for the Bulletin, as many petroleum officers will appreciate.

Meeting with County CouncDs Association Mr. Hewison thought it a good idea if the Counties would take their guidance, and suggested we ca-rry on 'as we are,

being council membership rather than officer membership. We must get people who are interested and wh'O -are willing to keep the Branches in operation, particularly those who attend the first meeting of the Secretaries' of ,the County Councils Association on 15th February, 1974.

Local Government Re-organisation Mr. Hewison stated we must play our part if and when the Association carries on. It is up to each Branch in its area. Petrol companies would be only too willing to attend meetings and get exchange of ideas, and said the Comp'anies have a lot to give, with their experience in all fields. Petroleum companies and pump manufacturers would bring their equipment f'or showing, and would speak to a Branch readily. Mr. D. Bruce said we should approach associated firms regarding membership of the Association.

Question of Plastic Tanks G.R.P. tanks for petroleum storage were discussed. Mr. Hewison informed the meeting that these tanks are going in at the rate of 200 a month in America. They are hound to come sooner or later to this country; some are guaranteed indefinitely. U the Branch 'are interested they shOUld write to Messrs. Bunting Plastics for more information.

Unifonnity of Licensing It was suggested that Secretaries of local counoils should meet 'about this. Various authorities are now fonnulating their own licenses, and we should try to persuade all authorities throughout Britain to maintain some uniformity, or we may finish up exactly as we arc, or become worse off.

The question 'Of pre-licensing conditions was discussed, and it would appear that another case fur uniformity is presented.

Delivery of Petroleum on Forecourts Mr. Ansbro informed the meeting that his authority within licensing conditions insists on one compartment 'Of a tank at 'One time being delivered into 'one underground storage tank 'Or compartment. In the ensuing discussion it was accepted that the vent pipe area was the hazard area associ:ated with filHng stations, or in fact could be so, therefore to alleviate the situation this condition 'is enforced. Neighbouring authorities did n'Ot entirely 'agree to this however, each individual filling station was vetted on its merits, and permission given f'Or multiple rill where circumstances allowed.

Mr. Hewisonreferred to a new bill that had had jots first reading namely the "Health & Safety etc." bill, which may include' the licensing 'Of large in$talIations among 'Other things.

Mr. Tha'cker referred to international membership for the AssociaNon, bearing in mind that the Assooiatron already had members of the European Economic Community.

End of Forum Mr. B. Thacker thanked Mr. J. Hewison :for coming all ,the way from the south coast and was sorry it was such an atrocious day. He commented "We hope you have enjoyed y'Our day with us, and would like to assure you of our support for the Association".

Mr. Thacker also expressed thanks to Mr. Golding for the use 'Of the premises, and also as he is now nearing retirement, for the help he has given the Association, as Chief Fire Officer of Darlington, in the past.

Any Other Business Mr. S. Ord (Sunderland) raised the subject of Petroleum Coke. He stated there were stockists in Sunderland and Birtley. It is being sold as smokeless fuel. The question of vapour arose. The name possibly denotes its origin. It was decided it needs investigation, and any further information on this product would be welcomed.

The question 'Of the venue of the next meeting was left to the Honorary Secretary and Chairman.

Wessex and South Wales

Minutes of the meeting held on Monday, 22nd October, 1973 at 11.00 a.m. at Digby Hall, Hound Street, Sherborne, Dorset.

The meeting took place in accordance with arrangements made by Mr. T. K. Blackwell, Engineer and Surveyor, Sherborne U.D.C. and in consequence of the kind invitation of Sherborne Urban District Council.

Immediately prior to the meeting, members and their wives partook of coffee and in an informal atmosphere held discourse with the Chairman of Sherborne U.D.C., other Officers of Sherborne UD.C. and 'their wives as well as the National President Mr. J. W. Hewison and his wife.

Present The Chairman of the Association, Mr. J. W. Hewison, Mr. M. Clark, Chairman of the Branch and 16 members.

Welcome Councillor E. H. King, Chairman Sherborne U.D.C. welcomed members and their ladies to the town of Sherborne on their return visit after four years and to the Digby Hall complex which was an addition to the facilities ,the town could offer visitors. He outlined the history of the Association 'and the formation 'Of the Wessex and South Wales Branch. Members were interested ,in the detailed information which he gave concerning the 'Origin of Digby Hall and its complex as a joint venture with Dorset County Council Branch Library which conta'ined a stock of well over 15,000 books.

The reply to the weloome was made by the Chairman of the National Association, J. W. flewison, Esq. He expressed appreciation 'Of ,the arrangements and facilities which had been made available, -to the ,warm words of welcome made by Councillor E. H. King and the presence of wives of officers and members at this opening session. He very much appreciated the charm of the town and the advantages of the layout of the Public Hall and Library which it was intended should be 'inspected. in more detail later lin the day.

Business Meeting Mr. Clark 'Opened the meeting by welcoming and Jntroducing Mr. J. W. Hewison, National Association Chairman. He expressed his pleasure at Mr. Hewison's presence 'and hoped

that later in the meeting Mr. Hewison would be able to address 'the Branch and bring members up to date 'On Aoss'Ociation matters generaHy.

Minutes On the prQPQsition of L. Haggett, secQnded by T. L. CQX, the minutes of the Annual General Meeting held at Thornbury on Monday, 2nd May, 1973 were cQnfirmed and signed by the Chairman.

The Secretary explained that matters aris'ing from the minutes were covered either in his report 'or by later items on the present agenda.

Apologies Apologies were received from 20 members including those of ,the Voice "Chairman, Assistant Divisi'Onal Officer, W. J. Jones, Newport C.B.

Honorary Secretary/Treasurer's Report The Seoretary rep'Orted that he had arranged a visit to the Fire Service Technical College, f'Or Wednesday, 12th September and that 17 members attended the visit ,including the immediate past Chairman, Mr. R. P. H'Oldaway of Shrewsbury. During the course of the visit, Mr. Holdaway had ,taken the opportunity 'Of speaking ,to the members, when we learned that "the C'Ouncil of ,the AssoCiation" was shortly to attend a meeting with 'the Town Clerk of Dudley, Honorary Legal Adviser, t'O clarify problems arising out 'Of Local Government Re-organisatron. inary meetings had already ,taken place with representatIves of the Home Office, and the general feeling was that the Ass'Ociation should -continue in existence, although subscripti'On fees might 'be as high as £40-£60 per annum. Menti'On wa's made of the p'OsS'rble advantages to joining the Association 'On an ,individual basis. Mr. Holdaway recommended that local authorities should renew ,all Hcences for 12 months and thus enable the new authorities a breathing space to get organised.

The Honorary Secretary/Treasurer outlined the circumstances ,in which he had to take out a 'One day insurance cover in order to enable him t'O give the necessary form of indemnity, and he had paid the premium 'Of £4.50 to the Municipal Mutual Insurance C'Ompany, 'On the propositiQn of T. L Cox and L. Haggatt, the Secretary's action was oonfirmed.

The Secretary's report briefly referred t'O the welcome which they had received at the Technical College, the work and training which they did there and the practical faciHties which they saw during the course Qf the c'Onducted tour. During the visit it was learnt that apparently the H'Ome Office did not intend to allow the Technical College to be used fQr the training 'of uniformed petroleum 'Officers. This had 'prompted '1he Secretary '1'0 place Item 7 'On the agenda f'Or today's meeting.

The Honorary Seoretary /T'reasurer's report was accepted by the meeting with an 'indication '1hat it sh'Ould be precised foOl' inclusi'On in the minutes.

The .Honorary Secre-tary briefly reported 'On routine correspondence, and the fact that he had supplied lists of members ,to the National AssociaHon with a claim for payment of 'capitation fees. The National Chairman assured the meeting that these WQuld be forthcoming f'Or the current year.

Chairman's Address Mr. M. Clark, Chairman, then invited the Nati'Onal Chairman, Mr. J. W. Hewison, .t'O speak to the Branch. The National Chairman expressed his pleasure at being able to be present at the meeting, and to give members the brQad ouUine 'Of 'the present position. He stated that preliminary discussions on the future of the Association had already taken place with officers 'of the Home Office, the InstLtute of Petroleum, -the Greater London Council and 'Officers of our AssQoiation. The present membership 'Of 'Our Ass'Ocia'tiQn for Petroleum Acts Admisistrati'On was approximately 600. After re-organisation it was thought there would be 46 authorities resp'onsible f'Or petr'Oleum adminisration-'if all j'Oined. -H was the generally expressed view of members that they would Hke to keep our Association viable but ,in order to do SQ, it had been estimated .that it might invQlve an annual subscriptiQn 'Of £40-£60.

He said they had discussed the possibility of dual membership of local auth'Ority members and individual members. It was his des'ire to endeavQur to keep ,the Association alive, he would hate to see it fall. Its strength in 'the past was its membership 'Of mixed disciplines blended together. A's far as ,theyoould judge, the future respons,ibility for petrQleum was approximately 50% each to fire brigades and consumer protecti'On departments.

Mr. T. K. Blackwell, Sherbourne U.D., felt that at any future Association meetings attendance should not be restricted to the chiefs as there was 'Scope fQr senior inspectorate and juniors to attend and gain linformation.

It was resolved:

Proposed by Mr. Crookson, Weymouth M;B., seconde.d by Mr. R. Crowther, Gloucester City, that if possible this Associa,tJiQn ,carry' on in its present fQrm after 31st March, 1974.

lot was further proposed by Mr. R. Crowthe-r, seconded by Mr. L. Haggatt, that the Association look -into the p'O'ss'ibility of lQcal authorities paying an annual ,subscription based on the number of petroleum officers ,in the establishment, and that this would entitle all 'Officers to attend meetings.

Both these resolutions were put to the meet'ing and approved.

It was further proposed by Mr. L. Haggatt, seconded by Mr. A. Addison, that the Association look into the question of a standard basic tra'ining course for aB pe-troleum officers and the Home Office be pressed to work tQward this end.

Date and Place of Next Meeting It was left for a meeting of the Executive C'Ommittee to consider the date and place of future meetings.

Any Other Business Among various quesHQns and answers Mr. J. W. HewisQn referred to a type of clip-on '1ab for "fill-pipes" and promised to circulate the name of 'the manufacturer to members.

The meeting closed at approximately 4.15 p.m. after which' members were entertained to light refreshments kindly provided by Sherborne U.D.e. and Mr. T. K. Blackwell, assisted by their ladies. The Chairman expressed the wish that a letter of thanks should be sent by the Secretary to all those concerned with this successful meeting and this was agreed with general acclamation.

Regarding training, the courses at Attingham had always been over-subscribed, until the advent of additional courses in the north and south. All these had been good courses. Views had been expressed that this year's course at Lanoaster University had been very high pressure. Refresher courses were also needed, the annual conference at Hastings had been very successful.

He sought the views of the Branch on a possible further annual conference in March. Mr. Clark, Chairman, suggested that local authorities might be reluctant ,to release officers so near to the time 'of change over. Members were in general agreement with this view, but some felt it might be feasible if -the ,annual conference was brought forward to early March.

From the ensuing discussion the following points arose:

A. S. Gigg, Gloucester C.C. Fire Prevention Officer, referred to the training arrangements he had made in respect of his brigade and stressed the importance of our Association avoiding becoming a second-class one. The Branch Treasurer drew attention to the danger of a possible «'take-'over" of our Association by another. He drew attention to the pattern which was apparently being followed in the re-organisation of the District Councils Associati'On, and the Association of Rural District Council Surveyors which had redesignated itself the Association of District Council Surveyors. Mr. J. W. Hewison, National Chairman, stressed the importance of our Association continuing its work where local 'authorities were arranging for the duties to be carried out by a separate inspectorate under the auspices of another department. Messrs. Gigg and T .. L. Cox, Cricklade and Wotton Bassett, considered there might be a danger to the best interests of Petroleum Administration if local authorities only appointed one officer as their representative in any new "set-up" as Trade & Industry representatives could be in the majority. They suggested the National Association's attention be drawn to this aspect.

The meeting adjourned at approximately 12.35 p.m. for lunch at the Post House Motel, and re-assembled at the new County Library. They were received by the Librarian, Mrs. Hamilton who outlined the facilities, and the special features the library provided. She emphas'ised that its provision in 'association with Digby Hall as a Public HaIl enhanced the usefulness, and enabled the dual use of services, etc. Members generally expressed their 'appreciation of this visit and there was general accord to a vote of thanks -to Mrs. Hamilton the Librarian, and to Mr. T. K. Blackwell, Sherbourne U.D.C., who had made ,such a successful inspection and visit possible. During the subsequent discussions on problems of re-organisation and training, numerous members took part in the ensuing discussions. Messrs. Gigg, Crookson and Cox spoke on the problems, dangers and ,shortcomings if the Fire Service Technical College restricted -its 'training to uniformed officers only. Mr. M. Cl ark, Cha-irman, suggested that any officers responsible for enforcing the licensing and regulations should be trained ·to a national course of national standard. If it were not possible at the Fire Service Technical College, then have either the firm of Pump Maintenance, or one of the National Petroleum Companies any facilities, bearing in mind that the training would have to cover not only the retail but bulk storages, etc. Mr. J. W. Hewison, National Chairman, emphasised that the Fire Service Technical Oollege was a most excellent place for training but is designed for the training of fire fighting personnel. Lancaster University has facilities for the practical training of petroleum 'officers generally. Messrs. Crowther, Gloucester City, and Garnett, Cricklade and WoUon Bassett, stressed the need for independence of training of inspectorate, but our Association may not be strong enough in the future to make it feasible, and suggested that if it could not take place ,at the Fire Service Technical College, then some approach might be made to the Local Government Training Board. It was generally suggested that a combination of the Local Government Training Board and our Association should organise a suitable course. Mr. Addison, Port of RA., spoke on the effectiveness of the Fire Service Technical College. Mr. J. W. Hewison, National Chairman, suggested the Home Office should be asked to set up a training college for petroleum officers or a chair of petroleum technology at one of the Universities under the auspices of the Home Office, District Councils, this Petroleum Associat-ion and Petroleum Companies. Mr. L. Haggatt, Merthyr TydfiI, referred to the greater depth which our courses dealt with in respect of petroleum licensing. That next year the Fire Service Tecnical College will run an advanced course on petroleum for the Fire Services and that Mr. Gigg, Gloucester C.C., has officers go-ing on a three week course.

East Midland and West Midland

A Joint Meeting of the East Midland Branch and the West Midland Branch was held at the Leicester City F-ire Brigade Headquarters, Lancaster House, Lancaster Place, Leicester, on Friday, 9th November, 1973.

Mr. H. Booth, Chairman of the East Midland Branch, in opening the meeting extended a welcome to Mr. J. W. Hewison, Chairman of the Association and to members 'Of the West Midland Branch. Mr. T. R. Bass, M.I.F.E., Chief Fire Officer of Leicester City Fire Brigade then welcomed both Branches to Leicester on behalf 'of his authority. He said that there were ,two fundamentals which should continue to exist in Petroleum Administration following Local Government Re-organisat:ion. One fundamental he said was that such administration should always be carried out by men of experience no matter which department was given the responsibility and the other fundamental was that the Associa-tion for Petroleum Administration must continue after Local Government Re-organisation otherwise there would be no organisation ,to which petroleum officers could refer to for help and guidance. Mr. Bass 'then left the meeting and each Branch held its own business meeting as follows:-

East Midland Branch - Ordinary General Meeting

Present The Chairman of the Branch, Mr. H. Booth -and 22 members.

Apologies 19 apologies were received.

Minutes The Minutes of the !Annual General Meeting held at the Town Hall, 'Loughborough, on Tuesday, l&t May, 1973 were approved and confirmed.

Membership There was one -app1i-ca<llion for associate membership which was submitted and approved.

Report of Branch Representative The Branch Represenflative reported that there had heen no Council Meetings of the Association since the last Branch Meeting.

Date and Place of Next Meeting lit was agreed that in view of Local Government Re-organisation that the Branch should call an early meeting during March, 1974, and the invitation given by Mr. H. E. Wright of 'Leicester City Fire Brigade to hold 'Such a meeting at Leicester was accepted.

West Midland Branch - Ordinary General Meeting Present The Chairman of the Branch, Mr. A. A. Awey, and 18 members.

Apoloates 26 apologies were received.

Minutes The Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held at Newcastle-under-Lyme on Thursday, 22nd March 1973 were approved and confirmed.

Any Other Business Mr. G. ,Harvey, the BTanch Representative,repol'ted that there had heen no Counoil Meetings since -the last Branch Meeting.

It was reported to ,the meeting that Mr. T. Keith of Cannock was 'in hospirtal at ,the ttime of the meeVing. The Secretary was instruoted to write to Mr. Keith gav.ing him the best wishes of the Branch for a speedy recovery.

Mr. D. Hall, Newoastle-under-Lyme, proposed and ,the Chairman seconded tihat an honorarium of £20 be paid to the Branch Honorary Secretary/Treasurer.

Mr. Hall, Newcastle-under-Lyme, also mentioned that s'ince the la'5't Branch meeting Mr. Sharpe, the Association's Honorary Electrical Adviser, had retired !from h1s position with the West Midland Electricity Board and also tendered his resignation from the Association. The meeting authorised the Secretary/Treasurer to write to Mr. Sharpe express'ing the Branch's appreciation for the work done by Mr. Sharpe for the Association since tits inception and that in appreciation of this work a gift to the value of £5 be sent to Mr. Sharpe.

Date and Place of Next Meeting The meeting felt that it would be advantageous '00 hold a further meeting of the Branch prior to 1st April, 1974, the date and venue of this meeting ItO be decided by the Branch Committee.

Joint Meeting After the conclusion 'of the Branch business meetings all the members for a general discus'sjon on the administration of ,the Petroleum Acts and Regulations following Local Government Re-organis'ation and the future of the Association. The Honorary Secretary of the Association, Mr. J. W. Frid, joined the meeting and the discussion was opened by 'the Chairman of the Association, Mr. J. W. Hewis'on, who expressed his concern as to function would be given the responsibility of petroleum iAdiministration. He said that some of the new 'authorities already knew which department would be carrying out the administration while others had not yet made up their minds. He believed that whoever carried out the administration the expel'ltise of 'the present petroleum officers should not be lost. He thought that there shOUld be an independent Petroleum Inspectorate acting as one diSCipline under one department. Mr. ,Hewison concluded by saying that in visiting the V'arious Branches of the Association he had leamed that they 'all agreed that the Association should continue and he thought that the new authorioties should become members for their own benefi,t.

The Honorary Secretary of the Associat10n apologised for the lack 'CYf Council Meetings, but it was felt that the l'imtited funds 'Of the Association must be reserved for meetings during 'the period ,of re-organisation. He said that a draft letter had 'been prepared which would be sent to the Chief Executive Officers of the new County Councils out}iining tthe workcYf the Association 'and asking them whether or not they wished to become members. Several members expressed their views 'on the future of petroleum administration and it was clear from the discuss'ion that whatever pattern of 'administration was emerging 'it was essential ttha,t the Association should continue dn some form for the beaeftt at anyone who would have the responsibility of administering the ,Petroleum Acts and Regulations on behalf of the new authortties.

Address At the af,ternoon session members at both Branches were given a talk entitled "Petroleum Licens'ing" by Dr. G. J. Jeacocke, M.Sc., Ph.D., 'F.R.I.C., of the Home Office. He began his talk by relating the hi'story of the ExplO'Mves Branoh which he said was the oldest technical branch in the Home Office. He welllt on to describe the enormous powers cYf Home Office Inspectors in rel'ation to petroleum administration which were greater than those powers given to I'Ocal authority Inspectors. He described the purposes of the Petroleum (ConsoHdation) Act 1928, which tidied up previous and which gave more powers to local

authorities. He referred to the licensing conditions attached to petroleum licences by local authorities which had become so varied that the Home Office attempted to guide local aU'thorities towards uniformity ,in petroleum administration by first issuing a model code in 1957 and again in 1968. He said that new developments were always taking place and model codes could not be considered to be final otherwise progress would be hindered. He mentioned the difficult task the Home Office had always had in dealing with 1,400 different local authorities responsible for petroleum administration and thought this would become less formidable foHowing Local Government Re-organisation when the number would be reduced to approximately 65 local authorities.

Dr. Jeacocke then spoke of self-service stations and the planning techniques of reducing hazards at bulk storage depots. He ,then went on to refer to the future responsibilities of local authorINes regarding the conveyance by road of numerous dangerous substances of an inflammable or toxic nature not yet oovered by legislat:ion. Local authorities he said, would have ,to carry out more responsible checks on road vehicles carrying such dangerous substances than under current Conveyance by Road Regulations particularly in relation to constructional deta'ils and the labelling of these substances. He concluded by asking all petroleum officers to inform the Home Office of any interesting incidents arising out of the conveyance of any dangerous substance as such 'information was always helpful to them in formulating any new legislation.

At the end of the talk members inundated Dr. Jeacocke wi'th a variety of questions and it was soon ev,ident that they were not going to lose the opportunity of acquiring information from someone so well-known by petroleum officers for his expertise and guidance over so many years. Questions were asked on the acquiring and keeping of petrol in cans and drums by ,the general public and in particular by motorists. Dr. Jeacocke said that it was difficult to fully control sales of petrol In this manner 'and 'that the Petroleum (ConsoHdlrtion) Act 1928 now reqUIred revision. Some members were concerned about the control of dangerous substances at such places as hospitals and universities regarding storage and disposal. He said 'that the Home Office were aware of the dangers at such places and informed members that legislation might be introduced to control the use storage and disposal of such dangerous substances but ,that it did take time to introduce legislation of this kind since so many interested parties had to be consulted. He reminded members, however, that no matter how muoh good legislation there might be it did n'Ot eliminate accidents completely for there would always be people who would break the law.

Interest was shown in the acceptability 'of Glass Reinforced PI'astic tanks for the underground storage of petrol. Dr. Jeacocke said that as raras the Home Office was concerned ,they were interested -in progress reports on these tanks from petroleum officers to help them in their research and because of ,this the more GRP tanks installed the better for them.

The problems some new petroleum authorities would have to face in dealing with sub-standard petrol sta'tions were referred to by some members 'and Dr. JeaC'ocke was asked as to what line of 'aotion should be taken. In answering this question he told members of the course of action the Greater London Council had taken when they became a new petroleum 'authority. He said that petrol installations were classified into four groups. The first group consisted of "good stations" having no licensing problems, the second group consisted of stations requiring "a little tidying up" and were easily brought up to licensing standards, 'the third group required immediate attention "to serious faults" which had to be corrected before licensing, and the fourth group were so bad that they were not considered for licensing under any circumstances. He said that the G.L.C. had only 'One appeal in relation to a petrol s,tation which was refused a licence and this was extremely satisfactory. Consequently he anticipated that the 65 new oounty authorities woU'ld have few problems regarding ,the licensing of petrol installations. He ,told members that there were some bad petrol 'installatiQns and suggested that the new authorities could bring these <installatiQns up to the required standards by the use 'Of discretion and good commonsense.

One problem 'the new 'petrQleum authorities would have and that was to decide the number of petroleum officers they should engage for a particular area. It was suggested that 'One petroleum officer should be engaged for a specifiC number of petrQI installations and Dr. Jeacocke was a'sked what number he thought to be appropriate. He said that although the G.L.C. had one petroleum officer to every 200 petrol ,installations it was difficult to compare the new authorities with G.L.C. and he CQuld not ,theref'Ore suggest a specific number.

An interesting discussion on plastic cQntainers f'Or petrol took place. Dr. JeacQcke informed members that a draft specification had been prepared for plastic containers and tes,ts under fire conditions 'On both plastic and metal containers were being oorried out. He said that on balance a good plastic container of the correct specification was to be preferred 'loa metal container for in addition to there being no rust problem, petrol in a plastic container did not boil as readily as petrQI in a metal cQntainer since the conductivity of plastic was lower than the conductivity of metal. He warned members 'Of a popular one gallQn plastic conta'iner which easily melted and said that approved plastiC containers shQuld carry the well-knQwn British Standards kite mark.

It was felt that 'attention should be given to regulating the conveyance 'Of petrol by rail tankers and although Dr. JeacQcke agreed, he said that 'it was a difficult problem to deal with owing tQ the fact 'that British Rail had their own particu}iar and byeIaws relating to suoo conveyance.

At the end 'Of the discussion a vote of thanks was given to Dr. JeacQcke by Mr. G. J. Hannibal, Nottinghamshire Oounty Council, for his most interesting and informative talk to members. The meeting was 'then concluded by Mr. J. Bant'Oft, Derby, whQ thanked the Leicester CIty Fire Brigade for their kind hospitality and fadlities proVlided at the meeting.

Legal Proceedings

DARLINGTON A call of fire was received to a private dwelling on 21st November, 1973 at 2029 hours. On arrival it was discovered that the rear ground floor room 'of the dwelling was well alight, and that firemen had to wear breathing apparatus to make an entry. The occupier of the house, a Mr. A. Morgan, stated that petrol was kept in the cellar, which proved to be 'On examination a rather deeper than normal foundation area below the ground floor, access being gained :thereto via a floor hatch and raking ladder. The fire was under control at 2106 hours.

The incident of fire was occas'i'Oned by the occupier Mr. Morgan visiting the basement area within the foundation where he kept the petroleum spirit and where therein fractured a glass container (bottle) of petroleum spirit, the vapours of which were eventually ignited by an adjacent gas fire, which was Ht lat :the time. Mr. Morgan was extremely fortunate to escape injury.

The petroleum spirit removed from the premises and placed ,in a properly constructed store for safe keeping, consisted of a " jerry-oan" and 11 glass bottles, nine of which contained approximately two pints of spirit and the remainder one pint.

The 'Occupier, Mr. Morgan, was successfully prosecuted by the Licensing Authority, for contraventions of "The Petroleum-Spirit (Motor Vehicles etc.) Regulations 1929" (S.R. and 1929 No. 952) and was fined £30 by the Town's Magistrates at Darlington 'on 29th January, 1974.

EASTBOURNE At Eastbourne Magistrates' Court on 20th July, 1973, John Edward White, of 206 Nightingale Vale, Woolwich, SE18, pleaded guilty under No. 12(2) of the Petroleum Spirit (Oonveyance by Road) Regulations 1957 to delivering petrDI from a tank wagon with the cap to ,the filHng opening unlocked. Fined £20.

ST. ALBANS At St. Albans Magistrates' Court on 16th October, 1973 and 25th October, 1973. 1. Pickfords Tank Haulage Limited, The Cross, High

Street, Stroud, Glos.

Offences:

Did not lock the six manhole covers on top of road tanker, registration number DLK 555 J, contrary to

Regulation 12 of the Petroleum Spirit (Conveyance by

Road) Regulations, 1957, made under Section 6 of the

Petroleum (Consolidation) Act, 1928. Fine £50. Did not carry an efficient fire extinguisher on vehicle, registraHon number DLK 555 J, contrary to Regulation 6 'Of the Petroleum Spirit (Conveyance by Road) RegulaHons, 1957, made under the Petroleum (Consolidation) Act, 1928. Fine £50. Did not mark vehicle, reg.istraHon number DLK555 J, with a sign stating "Petroleum Spirit", contrary to Section 5 of the Petroleum (Consolidation) Act, 1928. Fine £50.

Costs £10.

2. City Petroleum Company Limited, Mercury House,

Hanger Green, London, W3 3BA.

Manager: Mr. D. P. Wigmore.

This case arose as a result of an explosion at the licensed premises of City Petroleum Company Limited, at 220 London Road, St. Albans and both the Company and the Manager were prosecuted and convicted on the following charges: (a) Offences: City Petroleum Company Limited

Failure to maintain fire fighting equipment, Section 1

Petroleum (Consolidat:ion) Act, 1928. Fine £75.

Failure to take all due precautions regarding petroleum overflow, Section 1 Petroleum (Consolidation) Act, 1928.

Fine £100.

Not marking dipstick with same number as storage tank, Regulation 16(3) of Petroleum Spirit (Conveyance by Road) Regulations, 1957 and Section 6 'of Petroleum (Consolidation) Act, 1928. Fine £75. Aiding and abetting Wigmore who failed to secure tha:t petrol did not overflow, Regulation 16(6) of the 1957 Regulations, Section 6 of the 1928 Aot and Section 35 of the Magistrates' Court Act, 1952. Fine £50. Costs £10.

(b) Mr. D. P. Wigmore

As person in charge of a storage tank signed his name to a certifiaate under Regulation 16(7) of the 1957

ReguIations without complying with the requirements of Regulation 16(6), contrary to Section 6 of the 1928

Act. Fine £50.

Fa'ilure to secure that no petrol overflowed from a tank by faiHng to test with a dipstick, Regulati!on 16(6) of the 1957 RegUlations and Section 6 of the 1928 Act. Hne £50.

Telephone 021-2360347

w. J. FINCH (Installations) Ltd.

Steaming out and de-gassing petrol tanks; issuing gas free certificates Complete petrol and fuel oil bulk storage tank installations Petrol and fuel oil tank cleaning service Pressure testing tanks and pipe work

Heaton House, Camden St., Birmingham BI 3BZ

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