IRRIGATION

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 54, Issue 95, 1 February 1934, Page 3

IRRIGATION

MINISTERIAL INSPECTION. PROSPECTS IN S. CANTERBURY. (Special to the " Guardian.") TiMAIiU, This Day. After an inspection of the Levels Plain and the neaclworks of the Seadown water supply district below Pleasant Point, Mr IV G. Beck (Hydraulics engineer), who accompanied the Minister 'tor Public Works (the Hon. J. Bitcliener) for the purpose, expressed himself as being impressed with the irrigation prospects of the area. Messrs T. 13. Garrick (chairman), C. E. Kerr, and T. Black (engineer), of the Levels County Council, at whose request the inspection was undertaken, completed the party. The Minister, after the inspection, admitted that he had never seen the district looking, so well, and stated that its appearance did not cause one's thoughts to dwell on irrigation. However, if the drought of two years ago were considered, it would be realised what moisture meant to the land. He had no doubt that satisfactory results could be obtained by irrigation, and Mr Beck had been impressed by what he had seen. Before anything could be done to irrigate the land, however, it would be necessary to obtain a careful and detailed report. Mr Beck was busy investigating matters in the Ashburton district, but an effort would be made as early as possible to get bun to come to South Canterbury. In response 'to Mr Garrick, the Minister said that the cost of any investigation made would be borne by the Department. Asked what he thought of the prps : peets of irrigation in the Seadown water supply district, which embraces an area of 17,500 acres, Mr Beck said that from his short acquaintance of the district it struck him as being eminently suitable for the purpose. There appeared to be sufficient water easily obtainable,, and tho fall, slope, and porosity of the land were ideal. Many of the' difficulties that appeared . m other countries were not present here. There was no hard pan or impervious sub-soil which made it difficult to avoid over-irrigation. Another difficulty often experienced was uneven topography, but there the land was unusually uniform in slope. The benefits likely to follow irrigation in the area would be in the proportion to the need for water. They could see what nature had done for them in supplying moisture this season. Under . irrigation the returns would be better than this year, while under drought conditions, with more heat, crops would mature more quicker. . . Some persons were under the mistaken impression that through irrigation there was a tendency to waterlog lands lower down, but the modern way of carrying out irrigation involved also the problem of subsoil drainage. There were methods of dealing with the underground water problem which would place the ground water entirely under control. Any tendency for water-logging of lower lands would be entirely combated and land which to-day had a tendency to be too moist could be given the balanced water content by modern.methods of ground control. Mr Beck added that the problem of drawing water from shingly rivers had been very fully studied in other countries and there was a method in use to-dav which enabled a supply of water to be drawn from such rivers without any risk of damage to headworks or loss of supply due to Hood damage or moving shingle. Methods could' also lie adopted of producing artificial springs very like the natural ones which were encountered here and there on the plains. A careful investigation would"be necessary to decide the type of headworks that would be suitable and economical to determine the location of the many acres and to arrive at the duty of water that might be expected m their particulai area.