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Metrication Act

LAWS OF TONGA


1988 Revised Edition]


CHAPTER 52


METRICATION ACT


Arrangement of Sections


Section
1 Short title.
2 Interpretation.
3 Object of the Act.
4 Application of Act.
5 Committee.
6 Functions of the Committee.
7 Employees of the Committee.
8 Income of the Committee.
9 Privy Council may amend Schedule.
10 Regulations.
11 Savings.


SCHEDULE 1
UNITS


SCHEDULE II


SCHEDULE III
DESCRIPTION OF UNITS


-----------------------------------------


METRICATION ACT


Acts 34 of 1978 and 22 of 1984


AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE ADOPTION OF THE METRIC SYSTEM OF MEASUREMENT


Commencement [28th September, 1979]


1 Short title.


This Act may be cited as the Metrication Act.


2 Interpretation.


In this Act unless the context otherwise requires:


"Act" includes any regulation, rule, order, ordinance or other law;


"Appropriate Metric Statement of Quantity" means a statement of quantity expressed by a simple number and a unit of the metric system of measurement; (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)


"Committee" means the Metrication Committee established under this Act;


"Legal Unit of Measurement" means a unit specified in accordance with Section 5 of the Weights and Measures Act; (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)


"Metric System of Measurement" means measurement in terms of:


(a) the units comprised in the International System of Units (SI) for the time being approved by the General Conference on Weights and Measures and as listed in Schedule I hereto;


(b) units decimally related to those units by the addition of one of the prefixes for the time being approved by the General Conference on Weights and Measures and as listed in Schedule II hereto;


(c) the units listed in Schedule III hereto;


"Minister" means the Minister responsible for Commerce or such Minister as the Privy Council may appoint to be responsible for the time being for the performance of duties under this Act; (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)


"Non-metric" means the same as in Section 2 of the Weights and Measures Act; (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)


"Physical Quantity" includes


(a) a quantity stated in terms of


(i) two or more physical quantities referred to in association with each other; or


(ii) one or more physical quantities referred to in association with a stated amount of money; and


(b) a quantity expressed in terms of gauge, mesh or size in a context which implies a statement of physical quantity;


"Statement of Quantity" means an expression of an exact value of a physical quantity in terms of numbers and units of measurement. (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)


3 Object of the Act.


The object of this Act is to bring about progressively the use of the metric system of measurement in the Kingdom as the sole system of measurement of physical quantities.


4 Application of Act.


(1) All legislation that contains references to statement of quantity for whatever purposes is subject to the provisions of this Act.


(2) In making Regulations under this Act, the minister shall take notice of the original intent of the legislation as to whether a maximum, minimum or exact value was imposed or inferred by the statement of quantity. (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)


5 Committee.


There is hereby established a Metrication Committee which shall consist of:


(a) the Minister of Labour, Commerce and Industries or such other person as His Majesty in Council may appoint, who shall be the Chairman; and


(b) such other members whom His Majesty in Council may appoint.


6 Functions of the Committee.


The Committee shall do all things that it shall consider necessary and desirable in order that the metric system of measurement may be gradually and progressively introduced and adopted in the Kingdom, and may for those purposes conduct and carry out education and publicity programmes in such manner as it may deem desirable.


7 Employees of the Committee.


The Committee may employ or engage any person or persons and pay such remunerations as may be approved by His Majesty in Council, to such person or persons and to its members. Employment of any person by the committee shall not be a bar to membership of such person in the Committee.


8 Income of the Committee.


The income of the Committee shall include such moneys which may be approved by the Legislative Assembly in the annual estimate of the government.


9 Privy Council may amend Schedule.


It shall be lawful for His Majesty in Council, by regulation to add to, vary or amend the Schedules to this Act in accordance with any addition, variation or amendment of units approved by the General Conference on Weights and Measures as being within the International System of Units (SI).


10 Regulations.


The Minister may with the consent of Privy Council make regulations which have the effect of substituting an appropriate metric statement of quantity for each non-metric statement of quantity in any legislation referred to in section 4, provided that the appropriate metric statement of quantity does not differ from the exact metric equivalent of the original (non-metric) statement of quantity by more than eleven per cent. (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)


11 Savings.


Anything that was completed in a lawful manner prior to the coming into effect of this Act or any of its pursuant Regulations shall not become unlawful by virtue of this Act or its Regulations. (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)


____________________________


SCHEDULE I


UNITS
Units
Symbol
Units
Symbol
Ampere
A
Lux
lx
Becquerel
B
Metre
m
Candela
Cd
Mole
mol
Coulomb
C
Newton
N
Farad
F
Ohm
**************
Am

pascal
Pa
A
G
radian
Rad
He
H
second of time
S
Hertz
Hz
siemens
S


steradian
Sr
Joule
J
tesla
T
Kelvin
K
volt
V


watt
W
Lumen
Hn
webber
Wb













SCHEDULE II


Prefixes
Symbol
Prefixes
Symbol
Alto
A
Kilo
k
Centi
C
me a
M
deci
D
Micro
u
deka
Da
Milli
m
exa
E
Nano
n
femto
F
Peta
P
giga
G
Pico
p
hecto
H
Tera
T

SCHEDULE III


Units that are not within the International System of Units (SI) but are, by section 2(c) of the Act hereby defined as being within the metric system of measurement.


DESCRIPTION OF UNITS
Physical
Quantity
Name of Unit
Symbol
Definition in terms
of other metric
units
Restrictions
as to Use of
Unit
plane angle
degree
.....°
II
none



180


minute
.....'
II
none



10 800


second
....."
II
none



648 000

area
hectare
Ha
10 000 m
none
volume
gigalitre
GL
1 000 000 m
none

megalitre
ML
1 000m
none

kilolitre
kL
1 m
none

litre
L
0,001 m
none

millilitre
mL
0,000 001 m
none

microlitre
/uL
0,000 000 001 m
none
time
day
D
864000s
none
interval
hour
H
3600s
none

minute
Min
60s
none
velocity,
kilometre
Km/h or
3,1/6 m.s -1
none
speed
per hour
Km.h-'


mass
megatonne
Mt
1 000 000 000 k
none

kilotonne
Kt
1 000 000 k
none

tonne
T
1 000 k
none
density
tonne per
t/m or
1000 k .m
none

cubic metre
t.m-3



kilograme
k /L or
1000 k .m
none

_per litre
k .L-'


temperature
degree Celsius
°C
The Celsius temperature is such that °c = °k -
273,15 where °k is
the thermo-dynamic temperature in Kelvins
none
temperature interval
degree Celsius
°C
1K
none
length
international
n mile
1852 m
marine and

nautical mile


aerial




navigation,




meteorology
speed
knot
kn
1852 m.s'
marine and



3600
aerial




navigation,




meteorology
linear density
kilotex
ktex
0,001 k .m'
measurements
(mass per unit
tex
tex
0,000 001 kg.m'
of filaments,
length)



fibres, yarns,


dtex

cords and

decitex

0,000 000 1 kg.m-1
cordages

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