NEW PETITION ON SOUTHERN LAKES

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30206, 10 August 1963, Page 10

NEW PETITION ON SOUTHERN LAKES

A new petition, asking that the Ministry of 1 Works make public without delay all facts and figures relating to the hydro-electric resources of Lakes Manapoun and Te Anau and show cause why it should not prefer an alternative scheme whereby the lakes need not be raised, is being prepared Jointly by the New Zealand Scenery Preservation Society and the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society. ' In ■ letter to the annual meeting of the Scenery Preservation Society, the Prime Minister (Mr Holyoake) said various alternative stages of 'development at Manapouri were being studied, and their ’comparative costs were being established r Regret that the Prime Minister had declined to disclose the contents of die new ’agreement with Comalco before signing was exoressed bv | 'the chairman (Dr. P. S 'Cook). 1

The meeting received from the Minister of Works (Mr Goosman) a report—marked "confidential”—of the Bechtel Corporation. The report was originally promised to the society in response to requests for an independent investigation of schemes to establish the aluminium industry without raising the lakes.

In his letter, the Prime Minister said while he fully supported the society's contention that the public should know all the facts on Manapouri, he was by no means sure that the report now reflected the facts as they existed today. Dr. Cook said it was difficult to see how many of the figures in the report could incorrect since the geographical facts on which it was based were unchanged and tt was unlikely that the Bechtel Corporation had made a mistake.

The society hoped the matter could be clarified as soon as possible, he said.