Glenmark Catchment Film Impressed Americans

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30267, 21 October 1963, Page 12

Glenmark Catchment Film Impressed Americans

A locally-made film, showing the working of the Glenmark catchment scheme in North Canterbury, had a very big impact on soil conservation people in the United States, the district sod conservator of the Department of Agriculture, Christchurch (Mr D. R. Wilkie), said yesterday. Mr Wilkie had just returned from a two-month tour of sod conservation work and catchment schemes in the United States. . American organisations which saw the film had said the scheme was of a very similar design and principle to the Great Plains scheme in the United States, which has been operating for some years, he said. Mr Wilkie has been in charge of the Glenmark catchment since its inception. Compared with the United States, he said New Zealand was very backward in flood control measures, water retention and land control by dams.

On land where dams were needed tor flood control, water retention and soil conservation purposes. the Americans fully utilised the area for sport, tourist and recreational facilities By these methods they made some conservancies self-fin-ancing. On areas such as these, which consisted of catchments up to 250,000 acres—or about the size of the Selwyn catchment—the Federal Government provided the capital for the dam only However, to qualify for this financial aid, the residents in the catchment area had to have completed 75 per cent of the land conservation work required After the dam was erected, the catchment then was solely responsible for the up-keep—and if they so chose, the further development of the area.

This meant that all those in the area, not only the farmers. but the whole community. had to co-operate to get the work done. Permanent houses were built round the edges of the man-made take and the sites leased. Rental and leases for a wide variety of things, such as boot-hiring, cabins and camping grounds,

paid for the upkeep of the dam.

Mr Wilkie said this system was working very well. In the western part of the United States, an agricultural livelihood was dependent largely on irrigation, which amounted to a major capital outlay. The main flow of this was carried through a system of underground pipes and surface fed on to the ground where and when required. “Pick-up drains” recollected any excess water and fed it back into the system. Fertiliser was metered into the pipes. The population “explosion” in the western states, particularly California, was causing considerable concern. One town had increased its population from about 3000 eight years ago, to 46,000 now and was still growing at the rate of 1000 persons a month. In this area, the spread of the urban community had buried much of the good agricultural soil and caused quite a problem of watershed control, Mr Wilkie said In the eight-year period, it had increased the run-off by 300 per cent. The cost of watershed control for a “50-year flood” eight years ago. had been estimated at about 300,000 dollars, but it was now 2m dollars, he said. During toe course of his visit. Mr Wilkie inspected catchment and soil conservation schemes in Oregon. California, Nebraska. Wisconsin, Ohio, Washington. Virginia. Tennessee. Oklahoma, and Hawaii. He gave talks and addresses to many organisations throughout his tour and was very impressed by the co-operation and friendliness of the people.

Two Injured.— Two youths were injured when their motor-cycle and a car collided at toe corner of Wainoni road and Colac street early on Saturday afternoon Gary Nicholl, of 13 Rochester street, Linwood, was admitted to the Christchurch Hospital suffering from head injuries and lacerations to the legs and arms. Rodney Owen Shorter of 109 Bower avenue. New Brighton was treated at toe hospital for leg and chest injuries.