CORRESPONDENTS' VIEWS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 306, 28 December 1939, Page 6

CORRESPONDENTS' VIEWS.

DRINKING WATER.

(To the Editor.)

We hear a great deal nowadays tW : health and physical fitness, yet U,. in Takapuna we continue to put with the filthy water which comes fro* our taps. Why? Because the authggtl ties ('who are appointed 'by us) danaf or cannot, 'because of jealousy, or oppS tion due to other causes, take action'fil remedy the matter. There is a. k responsibility should an epidemic an| or other troubles occur. There are tkiii main causes of the bad water. (1) weed growth, due to continuous dear (2) Marine life. (3) Leaky mains ehoked with mud. Regarding the first, strong gales we have experience recently have probably disturbed % weeds "and mud near the edge of & lake. (A mere glance would ntvh anybody on this point.) As to flj, marine life, the process of chlorinatioa has .probably killed millions of orguiaa, and thus added another flavour, jlj j, leaky mains, at several points watir can be seen oozing from under the road, even through cracks in the concrete road. Extra demands are now made oa the lake water by reason of the military camp at Xarrow Xeck and the increaeed personnel at Devonport dockyard, it is therefore imperative that immediate steps be taken to have an adequate supply of pure water for the Xorth Shore residents and the military and jiaval men. The only satisfactory «m. elusion in my opinion is a supply fton the city reservoirs in the Waitaktu Ranges. Once more I say that Health Department, local bodies and % Water Board will have a very serioa case to answer should the health «f< those living on the North Shore become seriously jeopardised through tie present bad water. A temporary remedy would 'be to extend the pipe intake to the centre of the lake, supported oa. pontoohs. Chlorination might then fa unnecessary. C. MACKLEY. -r