NORTH SHORE WATER SUPPLY.

Auckland Star, Volume LIII, Issue 104, 4 May 1922, Page 8

NORTH SHORE WATER SUPPLY.

CONTROL BOARD'S INSPECTION, j A tour of inspection was paid yester- j day by the members of the Lake Taka-, , puna Board of Control to Lake Taka- j puna and its environs, and also to the ( back districts whence a further supply i ; might be provided. Referring to the , visit, the Mayor of Birkeiihead, Mr. J.'] \V. Court informed his Council last , night that the board realised the. urgency of the provision of an adequate i water supply for the districts of the ; ] North Shore" generally. The board hav-' f ing inspected available possible sources,'] the next step was to employ experts to ( make' a thorough survey of the districts . j and report. ■ ( Mr. K. C. Walton said he had noticed ( the health authorities, whom he under- ( ] stood had no legal authority to super-. 1 vise the purity of Lake Takapuna, had 1 stated that the present state of affaire ', 1 constituted n menace to the North 1 1 Shore inhabitants. It was unwise to i unduly scare people. On the file in the i j office were three reports from compe- 1 * tent engineers. He considered these; supplied all the information required for ' immediate action, and so allay any 1 anxiety of anything serious occurring ' at any time. i 1 The Mayor said the board had to go i into the matter carefully, as a tremen-. '• dons expenditure wag involved. ' Mr. Phil Hayward said frequent an- < nlysps would establish greater confi-;< dence in the minds of the population. ) > The Mayor replied that an analysis ; had been pressed for. and promised at the last board meeting, and a sample of the water had been taken for the 1 purpose. ; I Mr. Wnlton said the board met in- j ' frequently. ' The Mayor: Every month. j Mr. Walton said that in between no ' one appeared responsible till the next . meeting. Steps should be taken to place | the matter of the purity of the water ■' in the hands of the health authorities. ' The Mayor saw no reason why the | health authorities should not have jurisdiction. There had been no un-1 ' favourable report of_the condition of;, the water itself, but of the unfavour- i [ able jx>sition which might be created, ; ns there were acres of weed in the lake, and there was the possibility of build-, . ire around the lake the drainage from j which might percolate into the lake. On the motion of Mr. E. C. Walton, seconded by Mr. A. Hadfield, it was unnnimouslv resolved: "Thnt in the; opinion nf thin Council the health j ■ authorities Rhould have control of mat- ] ters aflectine the nurity of the water r of Lake Takanunn." i STANDBY SUPPLY TO NORTHCOTE. The Northeote Borough Council in- ' quired upon what terms the Birkenhead • I Borough Council was prepared to supply , ( I water for the higher levels of North-1 cote, the Northeote Council providing ; the meter and laving the necessary con- j necting main. The proposal wae refer-i red to the Council-in-Committee, the re- ■ commendation of which was adopted, viz.. that the price be one shilling for each thousand gallons, with a minimum j monthly charge of £20, this proposed: , arrangement to be for twelve months, if accepted. ERADICATION OF WEED. The Lake Takapuna Board of Control ( ' wrote that two men were to be em- j ployed to clear the weed in the lake,'' the cost to bo limited to £50. The ' Mayor said there was now a possibility ' nf getting a suitable weed-cutter to deal with the weed, which it was felt constituted a danger to the supply.