LAKE WATER.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 87, 13 April 1933, Page 5

LAKE WATER.

DEVONPORT SCHEME.

ERECTION OF PLANT BEGUN.

DECISION" „ or COUNCIL.

A decision to proceed at once with the Installation of its" £5000 echeme for the purification of Lake Pupfee water for the.benefit of Devonport and Takapuna consumers was reached by the Devonport .Borough Council, following a discussion in committee last night. Excavation operations were commenced this morning on the pumpingfitation site, where the plant is to be Erected, and tenders for construction of the-, plant will be called within a few days. Explaining the scheme, the Mayor, Mr. H.',F. W. Meikle, said that. what ~ was being.provided was really an additional reservoir. It comprised a settling tank, in which the water from the lake would be super-chlorinated and held for six or e 'ght hours, and then pumped through spraying nozzles on to steps for aeration - purposes, being finally filtered through granulated carbon. It is understood that the question of the City Council's offer to the North Shore Water Board to supply water from the Waitakere Ranges was not discussed. A brief reference to the subject, however, was made before the council went into committee, the view being expressed by Mr. H. J. Hutchinga that the offer of the City Council might teopexi discussion on the entire question. The Mayor said that -the Water Board's discussion had been taken in committee, and for some»reason unknown to him the terms of the offer had been •uade public. He did not know who was jnaking capital out of the matter, but Be idid not propose to allow his council to make capital out of it. Mr. Hutchinss: It appeared in the fublic Press. The Mayor: It should never have been' published. Mr. W. D. Meiklejohn: ;Why should the information not be made available IM> councillors ■whaareto-Tote-on-it^

The Mayor: You are not voting on it. The monthly report of the borough engineer, Mr. A. T. Griffiths, disclosed that in the cleaning out of the reservoirs a deposit of organic silt to the depth of 2in had been found after seven months' use. That was much more than previous onservations showed, and was coincident with the lake water conditions. The. pumping station returns showed that the lake level was 49in below mean high water mark as against 27iu for the corresponding period last year. The , sanitary inspector, Mr. S. B. Wrack reported that he estimated 200 tanks for domestic use had been installed in the borough. Owners had been instrueted to chlorinate the water to prevent contamination.