[PHA 56] Certain nuisances may be abated summarily56 

56

For the purposes of this Act, but without limiting the meaning of the term “nuisance”—

• (a)any premises or part thereof of such construction or in such a state as to be a nuisance or injurious to health;
• (b)any street, pool, ditch, gutter, eaves gutter, pipe, watercourse, cess-pool, drain, ashpit, refuse pit, privy, dustbin, washing place, well, water tank, barrel, sink, collection of sullage water, receptacle containing stagnant water, so foul or in such a state or so situated as to be a nuisance or injurious to health;
• (c)any stable, cowshed or other building in which any animals or birds are kept in such a manner or in such numbers as to be a nuisance or injurious to health;
• (d)any animal or bird so kept as to be a nuisance or injurious to health;
• (e)any accumulation or deposit of any material wherever situated which is offensive to the public or injurious to health;
• (f)any work, manufactory, trade or business injurious to the health of the neighbourhood or so conducted as to be injurious to health or offensive to the public;
• (g)any house or any part of a house so overcrowded as to be injurious to the health of the inmates, whether or not members of the same family;
• (h)any school-house, workroom, shop, office, factory, warehouse or other place of business—
  • (i)so unclean as to be offensive to the public or injurious to health;
  • (ii)not so ventilated as to render harmless as far as practicable all gases, vapours, dust or other impurities generated in the course of the work carried on therein that are a nuisance or injurious to health; or
  • (iii)so overcrowded as to be injurious to the health of the persons therein employed; or
  • (iv)not provided with sufficient privy accommodation;
• (i)any offensive trade or business so carried on as to be injurious to health or unnecessarily offensive to the public;
• (j)any noxious matter or water flowing or discharged from any premises into any public street or into any gutter or side channel of any street, or the drainage of any town, village or building falling into any harbour, river, pond or ditch or upon any foreshore so as to be offensive to the public or injurious to health;
• (k)any churchyard, cemetery or place of sepulture so situated or crowded or otherwise so conducted as to be offensive or injurious to health;
• (l)any well or water supply injurious to health;
• (m)any chimney emitting black smoke in such quantity as to be a nuisance;
• (n)any premises which contain rat holes or rat runs or which are infested with rats or in which the ventilating openings are not protected by gratings in such a manner as to exclude rats therefrom,

shall be deemed to be nuisances liable to be dealt with summarily in manner provided by this Act, provided that—

• (i)any accumulation or deposit necessary for the effectual carrying out of any business or manufacture shall not be punishable as a nuisance under this section if it is proved to the satisfaction of the High Court that the accumulation or deposit has not been kept longer than is necessary for the purpose of business or manufacture and that the best available means have been taken for preventing injury thereby to public health and that no serious danger to health exists and
• (ii)in the case of an alleged nuisance under paragraph (f) it shall be a sufficient defence if it is proved that the offensiveness is not greater than might reasonably be expected having regard to the nature of the trade and also that the best practicable means have been used to minimise the offensiveness and abate any nuisance and also that no serious danger to health exists.

[s 56 am Ordinance 14 of 1939 s 8, effective 20 September 1939]