IRRIGATION

Press, Volume LXXVII, Issue 23362, 23 June 1941, Page 9

IRRIGATION

Sir,—After seeing the results of water seepage on the Seadown lands, farmers in the Ashburton district may well be disturbed. There are 4000 acres of wheatgrowing land destroyed for cropping at : Seadown; but if water is turned on in the Ashburton irrigation are l ;, 40,000 acres of arable landmuch of it has taken 50 years to drain —may be thrown out of cultivation. NO drainage works look likely to benefit the Seadown: fanners if irrigation is continued; and it seems like adding insult to injury to ask them to contribute to any more schemes. They-on the face of it appear justly entitled to compensation from the Government for having ruined their land. In' vie,w of Mr Armstrong’s attitude and his evident want of sympathy, I as a fanner in Ashburton County who is menaced by irrigation water, suggest that the chairman of the Ashburton County Council arrange for a public meeting in Ashburton, requesting the Cabinet Ministers . and the engineers responsible to attend and let them hear what the farmers think of these semi-political schemes. They will no doubt demand that no more public money be spent meantime on the Ashburton irrigation wprks.— Yours, etc., , . J. MONTGOMERY. June 21, 1941.