OPEN-CAST COAL

Press, Volume LXXXI, Issue 24679, 24 September 1945, Page 4

OPEN-CAST COAL

“41 PER CENT. ASH AND WATER” RAILWAY MANAGER’S ■ CRITICISM (P.A.) AUCKLAND, Sept. 23. “In the last financial year we used 93,000 tons more coal than we did in 1939 to run 900,000 fewer miles. You can think that over and lift your hats to it, if you want to,”" said the general manager of New Zealand Railways (Mr J. Sawers) at a jubilee reunion of the Railway Officers’ Institute. The Railway Department at present had only 7500 tons of coal in reserve for the whole of the Dominjpn. That was less than four days’ supply, and on one day a week ago the stock amounted to only 5600 tons. Speaking of the quality of presentday coal, Mr Sawers said consumpition increased from 641b to 801b an engine mile. - In the last year the proportion of hard or West Coast coal used was’ only 35 per cent., compared with 60 per cent, before the waf. None of it, even hard coal, was screened.. He had seen three trucks of coal at Dunedin from' the open-cast mine at. Ohai. It looked all right on ton, but underneath it was rock and muck. - “I am not talking politics, but opencast coal from Otoronanga and Waitewhena is 41 per cent, ash and water and the railways service is paying tor it.” added Mr Sawers. He said he was speaking not only for the benefit of rallwaymen but for the public. REFUSAL TO USE SUPPLIES PROTEST BY DRIVERS AND FIREMEN (P.A.) WANGANUI, September 23. Wanganui engine-drivers and firemen, at a meeting to-day, decided to refuse to work with open-cast coal as from October 21. It was reported at the meeting that similar decisions had been made at Hawera and New Ply* mouth. In a statement after the meeting, the branch secretary of the Engine-drivers’, Firemen’s, and Cleaners’ Association (Mr W. Work) said that repeated representations had been made to the Railway Department that coal being obtained by open-cast methods between Ohura and Taumarunui was particularly unsuitable for locomotives. The men understood it was to be used purely as a war measure and they carried on under that assumption. Now the war was over, however, they felt there was no need to work under adverse conditions. . • Apart from the conditions under which the men had to work to run trains on this coal, the public was being called upon to pay for many delays and being caused much inconvenience in travel. It was the intention of the drivers and firemen not to operate trains supplied with this type of coal after October 21—three months after hostilities ceased—which the men considered a reasonable time in which the department could obtain supplies of coal better- fitted to maintain steam pressure in locomotives.