Section 18: Interpretation of “nuisance”

18. Interpretation of “nuisance” Without prejudice to any environmental law, nuisance includes— (a) a vessel or other conveyance in such a state or condition as to be injurious or dangerous to health; [Issue 1] P49 – 8 Revised Laws of Mauritius (b) a failure to supply or an inadequate or defective provision or employment of drain, watercloset, privy or cesspool accommodation, and any other matter or circumstance whereby premises is rendered injurious to health; (c) a street, road, stream, pool, ditch, gutter, watercourse, sink, watertank, cistern, watercloset, earthcloset, privy, urinal, cesspool, soakaway pit, septic tank, cesspit, soilpipe, wastepipe, drain, sewer, garbage receptacle, dustbin, dungbin, refusepit, sloptank, ashpit, and manure heap so foul or in such a state or so situated or constructed as to be injurious to health; (d) a stream, canal, pond or water in which animals, utensils or clothes have been washed or into which water used in the washing of clothes has escaped, or has been discharged and which from that or any other cause is in such a state as to be injurious to health; (e) a well, tank, pond, reservoir, canal or conduit— (i) the water of which is so tainted with impurities; (ii) which is otherwise so unwholesome as to be injurious or dangerous to the health of persons living near or using that water; or (iii) which is calculated to promote or aggravate epidemic diseases; (f) a stable, cowhouse, pigsty, or other premises for the use of animals which is in such a condition as to be injurious to health, or any animals so kept as to be injurious to health; (g) an accumulation or deposit of water, manure, dirt or other matter, wherever situated, injurious to health; (h) a factory, trade or business so conducted as to be injurious to health; (i) premises so overcrowded as to be injurious to health; (j) a churchyard, cemetery or place of burial, so situated or so overcrowded with bodies, or otherwise so conducted as to be injurious to health; (k) a public or other building which is— (i) so situated, constructed, used or kept as to be unsafe, dangerous or injurious to health; or (ii) deficient in air space, floor space, light or ventilation; (l) a factory or trade premises— (i) not kept in a cleanly state nor free from offensive smell arising from any drain, privy, watercloset, earthcloset or urinal; (ii) not ventilated so as to destroy or render harmless and inoffensive, as far as practicable, any gas, vapour, dust or other impurity generated; or P49 – 9 [Issue 1] Public Health Act (iii) so overcrowded or so badly lit or ventilated as to be injurious to the health of those employed in it; (m) a factory or trade premises causing or giving rise to smells or effluvia which are offensive or injurious or dangerous to health; (n) a vegetable growth and other impediment— (i) along the banks of a lake, pond or river course; (ii) in a lake, pond or river course; or (iii) along a dyke and dam in any river when so situated as to be injurious or dangerous to health; (o) a collection of water, sewage, rubbish, refuse, ordure, or other fluid or solid substance which— (i) permits or facilitates the breeding or multiplication of animal or vegetable parasites of man or domestic animals or of insects, or of other agents which are known to carry those parasites; or (ii) may otherwise cause or facilitate the infection of men or domestic animals by those parasites; (p) — (q) a cess pit, latrine, urinal, dung pit or ash pit likely to be inj us or dangerous to health; (o) a collection of water, sewage, rubbish, refuse, ordure, or other fluid or solid substance which— (i) permits or facilitates the breeding or multiplication of animal or vegetable parasites of man or domestic animals or of insects, or of other agents which are known to carry those parasites; or (ii) may otherwise cause or facilitate the infection of men or domestic animals by those parasites; (p) — (q) a cess pit, latrine, urinal, dung pit or ash pit likely to be injurious or dangerous to health; (r) an act, omission or thing which is or may be dangerous to public health; (s) a dwelling or premises of such construction or in such a state or so situated or so dirty or so verminous as to be, in the opinion of the Sanitary Authority— (i) injurious or dangerous to health; or (ii) liable to favour the spread of any infectious or communicable disease; (t) a dwelling or premises which is— (i) so overcrowded as to be injurious or dangerous to the health of the inmates; (ii) dilapidated or defective in lighting or ventilation; or (iii) not provided with, or is so situated that it cannot be provided with, sanitary accommodation to the satisfaction of the Sanitary Authority; (u) an accumulation or deposit of refuse, offal, manure or any other matter which is offensive, injurious or dangerous to health; (v) an accumulation of stone, timber, or other building material which, in the opinion of the Sanitary Authority, is likely to harbour rats or other vermin; (w) premises in such a state or condition and a building so constructed as to be likely to harbour rats; [Issue 1] P49 – 10 Revised Laws of Mauritius (x) an area of land— (i) kept or permitted to remain in such a state as to be offensive; or (ii) liable to cause an infectious or communicable disease or injury or danger to health; (y) a chimney emitting smoke in such quantity or in such manner as to be offensive, injurious or dangerous to health; and (z) an animal or bird, or any carcase which is so kept or allowed to remain as to be dangerous to public health. [s. 18 amended by Act 34 of 1991; s. 99 (9) (b) of Act 19 of 2002 w.e.f. 1 December 2003; s. 4 of Act 30 of 2006 w.e.f. 23 December 2006.]