SWAMP DRAINAGE.

Auckland Star, Volume LII, Issue 21, 25 January 1921, Page 7

SWAMP DRAINAGE.

jIACHItfERY FROM AMERICA. GOVERNMENT OFJFICEIVS iU^rORT. The increasing importance of swamp drainajTC in -New Zealand and the desirability of obtaining the best available machinery f»r the works undertaken by Iho <;overmucnt caused the Minister of Uui-d-s lust year to instruct the chief drainage engineer (Mr. J. 15. Tliompsfn' to visit the United States am l taiiiula. and other portions of America vvlure larjro drainage works arc being cinuluvted. The engineer was directed to study the methods adopted by the engineers in those countries, and also t« inspwt the machinery used there, with the object of selecting the latest and most effective type. Mr. Thompson left here last April, and he has spent six or seven months in the work of inspection. He is due back in New Zealand within the next few weeks. After sutinfyiiig himself as to the best classes of ilrc-dges anil machinery, ilr. Thoinpou placed orders to the extent of over £70.000 for machines, that in his opinion would give the best results in New Zealand. This new plant will be used on tilt- Government draiuag-e works in the near future. One result of the engineer's visit stated the Minister of Lands (Mr. Outline) on Saturday lias been to prove that the methods adopted in New Zealand are not behind the methods adopted in the countries he visited. His reports show this clearly. 31x. Thompson has been much impressed with certain styles o f dredgin" machinery, and he believes that the°de" velopment of swamp areas in this country will be expedited by the use of the plant he procured. " The Lands Department has very large drainage works in progress in both islands at the present time. Mr. Thompson commenced his American tour in British Columbia, where he found that no bur works were in progress; but in Alberta land drainasrp was about to be seriously taken' in" hand. There dipper dredges were in favour. The siva-nip lands were much firmer than those in New Zealand. In Canada Mr. Thompson had a very friendly reception but found that in the matter of land drainage. New Zealand was in advance of Canada. Here as elsewhere the question of the maintenance of the drains was the difficult problem. I n his first report from the United States Mr. Thompson wrote, that there also the question of maintenance had not been solved, and •n-e in New Zealand were not behindhand m that respect. At every turn he saw engineers wrestling with the same problems as in New Zealand—eroded banks, silted up channels, etc, "So far "he adds, "I feel proud of our Dominion's work, and consider it will take a lot of 'beating." Maintenance, says Mr. Thompson, is practically a dead letter in all the States, and no machine lias vet been de vised to cope with it. The practice is to dig oversize ditches, and re-din- them some lew years later. This practice however, was now thought to be unsatisfactory. Practically all the drainage projects throughout the States were being recast. Mr Thompson's last report is dated from New \ ork on October 1. He had during the time he was in America! travelled a great deal, and had acquired most valuable information both in regard of machinery and the v-irim,----™£t\° f ™ rkin " r " °ne part oHh 1 ; States he saw muHi ,'and fthat was being further drained. Generally he says all open laterals are "ivintj place to large tile drains up to 3 6 \& ° diameter Land was becoming too raluaoie for open ditches> and g » method maintenance was being avoided He considers that similar practice tie adopted eventually in Xew Zealand.