Port Junk Dealers Association vs Marine Environment Protection Authority – CA WRIT 220/2016-2016

In the case between Port Junk Dealers Association and others (Petitioners) versus the Marine Environment Protection Authority and others (Respondents), the court addressed the lawfulness of charges imposed by the Marine Environment Protection Authority on petitioners for ship-related waste services at the port. It was held that the impugned charges were not governed by the regulatory schedule relied upon by the petitioners, as this referred to a different service (bunkering), and the Marine Pollution Act No. 35 of 2008 empowered the Authority to outsource such services on a contractual basis at agreed fees. The principle was reaffirmed that statutory regulation applies only where expressly provided and that, in the absence of such regulation, parties operate on contractual terms. This deci