Labour’s move on irrigation ‘inconsistent’

Press, 26 June 1984, Page 3

Labour’s move on irrigation ‘inconsistent’

The Labour Party’s announcement that it would not be obliged to support the Central Plains Irrigation scheme was “totally inconsistent with the party’s agricultural policy,” according to the National member of Parliament for Selwyn, Miss Ruth Richardson.

The development of the $lOO million scheme would give an enormous boost to farmers in the region, with widespread growth in Canterbury industry, said Miss Richardson.

She supported the wealth that would come from the river if multiple use were endorsed. Anglers and recreational users could still benefit from the river, while the irrigation scheme could develop alongside. The Labour Party was trying to devalue the importance of the worth of the Rakaia’s multiple use, she said.

Everybody with the responsbility of decisionmaking in Canterbury, including the North Canterbury Catchment board, the Canterbury United Council, and the Chamber of Commerce had made submsissions to the National Water and Soil Conservation Authority last December. They

all emphasised the importance of the irrigation scheme to the growth of the region, she said.

The planned area of the Central Plains Scheme was only about 60,000 ha, not 70,000 as reported in “The Press” on Saturday, according to a spokesman from the Ministry of Works and Development, Mr H. S. Morriss.

The figure of $lOO million quoted at the meeting last week was an indication of the order of the cost expected, not an estimate, he said.