Water rights move

Press, Volume CXIII, Issue 33189, 31 March 1973, Page 2

Water rights move

(A Z Press Association) NEW PLYMOUTH, March 30. The Minister of Electricity (Mr McGuigan) has applied to have the sea off the New Plymouth power station declared water of national importance. If granted, the application would give the Government control of the seawater near the station. No person or local authority would have the right of objection or appeal against the effects of the power station on the water and the marine life in it. The move would give the Electricity Department the right to take. heat, discharge, and in any other way affect the water, a Health Department spokesman in New Plymouth said today. Regulations due to come into force next year restricted temperature increases in natural waters to sdeg. F„ he said. Although the exact ef-

Ifects of the power station’s water discharge were not yet known, there was a chance I that this figure would be exceeded by a few degrees. A declaration of waters of national importance was esI sential in a project of this type. It would enable the Government to make full use of the sea-water for cooling purposes, he said. “If the discharge means that we will lose shellfish in the area, then this is a sacrifice that will have to be made. We need electricity, and must be prepared to ,’make such sacrifices." , According to information . released by the Electricity • Department. the cooling water discharged from the station at 250,000 gallons a minute will have a temperature up to 20deg F. above , normal. The likely effect of this on marine life in the area is being investigated bv the |D.S.I.R. The application made by the Minister must -first be considered by the Soil and Water Conservation Authority. The authority has referred . the matter to the Taranaki .Catchment Commission, which in turn has asked for comment from the New Plymouth City Council, the Taranaki Countv Council, and the Taranaki Harbours Board. The declaration of an area as a body of water of national importance must be done by the Governor-Gen-eral by Order-in-Council. 1 Only one declaration of'

(this type has been made in (New Zealand. It covers the ■ use of the Waitaki River. The New Plymouth application is one of two under (consideration. The other concerns the use of water from j the Waikato River to cool the [ proposed Huntly thermal power station. The Waikato Valley Authority has recommended against the application, but no decision has been made.