RIVERS COMMISSION.

Press, Volume LV, Issue 16585, 26 July 1919, Page 7

RIVERS COMMISSION.

SITTINGS AT WAIAU. The Rivers Commission, consisting of Messrs F. W. Furkort (chairman), A. J. Hunter, and P. C. Hay, sat at Waiau on Thursday, to take evidence in respect to encroachments o ® Waiau river. . Mr William Hill. Annan Settlement stated that ne had lived in aia -V ° f | lortv-one yeais. On the south side ot Waiau the river had about 25 acres of laud* worth £8 and £9 an acre. Lnder the bridge , tho river had silted up. A Board, under the control of the Amu County Council, had been set up, an average rate of i<l in tho £ was paid by ratepayers in the \ position at present was satisfactory. j iiad seen the river, wuen in flood, the top of the piles of the Mr Frederick Foster, of Hawkes wood road, Annan Settlement, said he had experienced trouble from the tor twelve years. . Auout nine vears ago the Canterbury Land Board pro mised a £ for £ subsidy up to protective works. Groynes put in, but th# were not a success. Altogether about £70 was spen ._ •» that timo he was the only settler in tne locality affected. He considered that he had lost about 14 acres, ton ot which had gone during the last twelve months. He had employed eight men to put in tho groynes, under the supervision of an enginoer, but now all tne groynes had been carried away. J- j wero 30ft bv 10ft, and 10ft high. Me thought that they should have been put in up stream instead of down, u land recently lost had produced up to 41 bushels of wheat per acre, and was worth from £25 to £50 per acre. The chief danger came from the old course, which ran through the adjacent properties, and ho fully expected that m the next high flood the river would break in and convert a portion of Mr Colo's farm into an island. The river at highest was about 6ft above normal, and tho current at the rate of 10 miles an hour. He would advocate having a Board to control the river. A further £25 had been offered for the construction of protective works, but no ; -ii'd not consider tho stipulations satisfactory. . In reply to questions, Mr Foster said that willows would hold below his farm but not above. It would take at least ClCflO to niako an efficient job and operations should start above his land. TTo did not think that settlers unaffected by tho river erosion would consent to pav interest on loans. Mr W. H. Cole said he would advo"ate a rate on the whole of the Annan Settlement, superintended by the Government, tho rate to be graduated in or'oportion to the benefits derived. If the district wore made secure from river erosion, the value of much of tho land would be increased by £20 per acre. . , Mr W. Shaw stated that lio had resided on tho Annan Settlement for seven years. His land was above Mr Foster's. He would advocate a Board of Control, the whole district to be • ated. He did not consider that the land could bo irrigated. His land was now in danger, tut so far ho had. lost very little. Mr R. corro'boratod tho evi--innco of tT'o previous witnesses. . He '■id paid for the goodwill of his i "•urn. of which 90 aeros wero on the I lit, and the rest was hill country. Ho, ras in favour of Government control. | Mi' Thomas Chapman, a resident of: tlotherham for 42 years, said he had ooen the Waiau river over the present iite of tho railway at Rotherham, and uio rabbit-fence flattened down. Ho ,could advocate the Government cleaning out the gorse from the river-bed, as it was helping to dam up tho river. Some 450 acres of land at Rotherham would bo increased in value by £5 per icre, if it were secured against flood. Ho thought the best way was to form a lliver Board —one Board in preference — out each section of the district should

.aise iuuds for local expenditure. Several places along the nvor required attention. Ho was chairman.of tho Rabat Board, which was elected by ratepayers'every three years. They repreajiitcd übout 100,000 acres, and; spent CIBOO gor year. This Bum was raised l>y rates which were. assessed at 5-10 d per 100 on sheep, and l£d per, 100 on cattle, making £930,' per annum, which, with tho Government subsidy of £ for £, gave £1860. They' had 170 miles of rabbit-fence, and soven caretakers. All the fence was paid for. Nft had been up 27 years, and was lasting very well. Near Cheviot about £50 worth of netting had bsen washed away on land worth from £30 to £40 per acre, and about 3000 acres of land wore in danger. To ensure the safety of the rabbit fence it wou'd be necessary to re-erect about fiv« niles on a new line at a cost of £200 per mile. They had no nower to rn'«o a loan or to increase the rates, would advocate inn; the Rabbit Act, so as to enable to ra"=e loons or increase Tates.

Mr D. T. Dalzell, county clerk, stated that' he "had been 10i years in the district. Above the ferry, towards Glen Wye, the Council had lost road and fences,. and had spent large sums of money on groynes. The groynss were placed at right-angles to the stream. The netting lasted ten years, and after this, willows took its place. The willows were planted inside the groynes, i The Waiau river had washed away some 500 acres, worth from £5 to £7 per nrre, at Stone Hut. He had seep th© river strike the Main North road, but had never seen it over tho road, though very nearly so. At Lyndon, the late Mr T>. D. Macfarlane had spent several , thousands of pounds on protective ; works. Lately, £490 lind heen spent +hore, nnd charged to tlir» Lyndon riding. The groynes had been made of trees and boulders, but no netting had been used. Willows were planted behind tho groynes, and wero growing well. A big flood some 15 or 20 years ago had carried away some 500 acres on , the Culverden side. Twenty years ago there was very little broom or gorse j in the river-bod,,but now it was grow-] ing there in large quantities, and this] should be cleared away by the Govern-! ment, and interested parties should pay I in proportion to the benefits derived. I On the Hawkeswood road there was not nearly enough money allocated to mak9 a substantial job. He would advocate willows beinsr planted near the river, with pine forests immediately behind, which would be invaluable for protective purnopes. About £60 per year was spont on the M^ c on river. _ The Commission later inspected tho river at the points where the encroachments were most pronounced.