Great Southern Lakes Raped, Meeting Told

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32220, 12 February 1970, Page 17

Great Southern Lakes Raped, Meeting Told

(N.Z. Press Association) NEW PLYMOUTH, Feb. 11. “I am going to tell you about the rape, the multiple rape of our great Southern Lakes for electric power,” Dr G. Moir told a meeting of the Taranaki branch of the Royal NewZealand Forest and Bird Protection Society in New Plymouth at the week-end. Dr Moir, who lives in New Plymouth, has been familiar with the Southern Lakes area for 50 years. His handbook,

“Moir’s Guide Book to the Great Southern Lakes." is; well known among climbers and trainpers. “Manapouri is not the only one—Lakes Tekapo. Pukaki and Hawea have already been raped," he said "A further attack upon Pukaki is being planned on , a tremendous scale. Lake Ohau may be next and the fruitlands of the Clutha Valley. “Where do you find the ogre with these nefarious ideas? Probably at the Ministry of Works. If you go 'looking there for him he has 'very likely slipped away to |the State Electricity DepartI ment. If you don't find him jthere he has probably got 'into the Treasury to make sure he gets a liberal share of your taxes." Dr Moir said the technical planning of the Manapouriproject had been very poor.' This was shown by its staggering rise in cost from the first estimate of Ss9m to nearly 8180 m. He also criticised the plan’ning of the Manapouri tunnels. “Whatever hydraulic reasons there may have been i for requiring so much tunnelling below sea level it has ; been a grossly expensive ' business," he said, r “It has emphasised how . little the planners understood ( the geological structure of I the mountains they were - dealing with." i Dr Moir said it had been - repeatedly alleged by those who for so long had planned | to raise the lake level that! the protests should have been made long ago. ; ! “But, in fact, early protests ;’ in 1959 were suppressed by ' the Minister himself,” Dr • Moir said. “If the lake level is raised , a foul deed will be recorded I against the names of those • who plotted and authorised • it, beginning with the name ; of the Minister of Works who ; took the plan to Australia and offered it to Comalco and 3 his Prime Minister and col-! , leagues, together with their > successors when the Govern--I ment changed. “Those names will go down yin history as those who have . sold New Zealand's magnifi-' I cent birthright for a mess of . aluminium pottage " i He said the Ministry of . Works was now beginning to . spend Sim on the road from Pukaki village to the Hermitage. This would not producei Fewer Priests In Training P A.-Reuter—Copyright) i VATICAN CITY. Feb fl ! The number of young men ! in Western countries training to become Roman Catho- , lie priests has fallen by about ' 20.000 in only three years. ; according to figures published by the Vatican in the yearly ! publication. “The Activity of ; the Holy See." A survey of 41 Western nations showed that the num- ! ber of Roman Catholic semin- , arists at the end of 1968 was' 146.996. compared with more ; than 166.000 in 1965. , Rome observers say that ’ the decline reflects the growing dissent among the clergy. J! particularly on the celibacy . issue, which has made the Vatican increasingly unattrac-! tive to young people. The publication says that.' on average all over the world there is one priest or minister to about 2000 Roman Catholics, and that the number of Roman Catholics in the world rose by about 13 million to 507 million.

:one unit of electricity. It: object was to raise the leve of the road so that a bighei darn could be put on Lakt Pukaki. “This water storage wil flood valuable lowlands," ht said. “The results will be 'that high country runs wil: [be deprived for all time ol pastures that are essentia [for wintering their flocks anc herds. Agricultural produce from Canterbury is thereby to be sacrificed to watei i; storage.”