WAIKATO-MANUKAU CANAL

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 229, 24 September 1908, Page 5

WAIKATO-MANUKAU CANAL

j AX IMPOBTAMI PROPOSAL. i : Oneimnga is interested, in quite a | ■ number oi canal schemes. In the opin,'Cn. of some Afanukaurites the most un- , portant .to Onphmiga is ftu* one which. - wonld connect the iLamikau. Harbour ' and the Waikato Kiver. Matters concerning the route were | discussed at the a-n-mial meeting of the I •ocehanga-Mainikau Chamber of Comhktcp last aigrit. Towards the end of ]ast -July, the ' Onehunga Chamber wrote to the Hamilton Chamber asking if it \rai correct •far the latter body was moving in the Matter 01 thp canal, and if they would with in its endea- ■ touts to materialise the proposals. The ( Hamilton Chamber replied that all that , they had done was to ask Messrs. Lang i member ior Manukau i and Greensldde i member for Waikato tto Txse "heir best, endeavours towards securing a ! j vote of £100 for the purpose of a sur- : vev of the proposed canal route. "I can assure you.'" continued the letter from . the Hamilton secretary, "that we will ' Ibr only too pleased to work in conjunc- | i tien with your chamber towards reach- ; ins the end —water-carriage for the WaiI k-aro.-' j »r. A. B. Wright, road engineer, re- : , porting in June. 1002. =aid that he had i fallowed the iine originally taken for -nc - canul. but it one to on nude it would, perhaps, be advisable to adopt ; a more direct route. The report conI~t inued : — "'TTie srotmd irom tbe Waikato to 44-mOe peg is practically all level i =Ti-aaip, and tor a depth of 4 feet or 5 fe<"T is ppat and buried kahikatea roots and trees. From 4 miles 40 chains to ; V\~aiulcu is clay -ronnd. but probably at I r,'-; aTeat depth a sandstone may be met ■with. Mr. Vickertaan. district engineer, re-ported to tae Under-Secretary for ■ Public Works in upon the deepening- nf the '.Vi:uin Channel so as to give a depth of 7 feet during neap tides at thp Waiaku wharf. He reported that a c'rrimel 2 feet deep and 40 feet wide would hav e r o hp made to the sandspit, ! about a mile in Vngth, at a, cost estim- ! aied at £1.760. Ai; you will see, to obj ram a depth if water at Waiuku the i .-.iujp as at the mouth of the Awaroa, I 1 pQall have to excavate to a depth of 4 i feet, and this will necessitate carrying ; the excavation a= far as the Xeedles, j .ibcut a mile and a-ha!f further than ' proposed by Mr. Vickennan. I roughly e-timate the cosx of construcring the canal at a little over £100 000. made , up as follnrws: —Excavation in swamp. 2.i feet wide canai. 260 705 cjibie vartis. i> T l≤., £13,03o: excavation througb nign tan.l. taking shortest; route, 1.090.403 <:übjc yards, at Is. Sd.. £S 1.780; ; froirr Waiuku u-harf to Needles. 40 fppt. -tride. 4 tPPt depp. length about two miles and a-half. 75.222 cubic jards. at Is. 6d.. £j 366; total. £100.681." j In this estimate no alowance iras made . for bridges crossing the ranal or for probable compensation.* ?everal members of thp Chamber expressed the view that the puttieg through of the canal would be the best thing which could happen Oaebunsa>orne went so far as to say that as fax .is Onehunsra was concerned thp other canal routes did not matter at all. The resolved to collect as , mu-ch further information a-s possible on | i the Mibjeit, and to see \i anything, can j 'be done, and with that end in view the secretary was instructed to communieat*? < with, the Hamilton Chamber of Com- | merce md to make inquiries of Mr F. Lang M.P.. as ro whether or nor anything was beinir donp by Parliament. \v lien the intnrmanoTi souirnt comes to hand, the Chamber will asain disrnss the subject. A few particulars of what is required ; follow. No ireat depth is wanted. Barges, probably, would be used to takj* store.-, etc.. oioni; the route from the - Man;ika,u end. and act as conveyances of coal and produce on the return tnp. Thp co.il rjiini-i wiiirh would 'Of drawn ■ upon would be these at Drury and Hintly. •'Looking a" the vpnture." said a member of the Chamber of Commercp to 'a. •?tar" representative, •i.t seems that !it would pay. There should be a lot 'ai trade to up and down the river. It is very hard to say whether the Government will move in the matter, be-r-xasp they will do noihing likely to in- ; . juTe the railway. There is no doubt the ■ projpit is very feasible.." i