Lake campaign ‘in good heart’

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32459, 20 November 1970, Page 1

Lake campaign ‘in good heart’

Members of the Save Manapouri campaign were convinced they could save Lake Manapouri from being raised, in spite of the finding of a commission of inquiry that the Crown was contractually bound to raise the level, the national president of the campaign (Mr R. J. McLean) said in an interview in Christchurch last evening.

New economic arguments which showed it would be clear folly to raise the lake level would be put forward soon.

Mr McLean said he had just made a quick trip round the country meeting members of the branches of the campaign and the organisation was "now in mighty good heart.” It was now just a matter of increasing the pressure on the Government to get it to renegotiate the contract with Comalco so that it got the power it needed without raising Lake Manapouri. It had been said that the agreement must be carried out, but this was nonsense. There were precedents for altering ordinary commercial agreements and this must be done.

Comalco could get 96 per cent of the power it needed without raising the lake and the other 4 per cent could be produced elsewhere. Mr McLean said the cam-

paign had been unable to put its new arguments before the commission of inquiry because the terms of reference were too narrow, but they would be produced before the Parliamentary select committee hearing submissions on petitions put forward. A debate on the matter in Parliament had also been promised. "This is only the beginning of the fight,” he said.