RIVER PROTECTION.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 97, 17 January 1908, Page 11

RIVER PROTECTION.

' IMPORTANT CONFERENCE. tDI TELEGRAM—BI'EOIAI, COBBESrONDEXT.)., ,T : ~.v. Palmsrston North, January 16/. •A: coijferenco of delegates appointed by tho djfforent local bodies relative to the control / of the Manawatu and Oroua rivers was held at<. ' Pilirairston - : .yostorday. ■ Mr. R, Esseiy.-'-o Mayor r- of-'.PalmorEton, prosided'/ ,In. his opening: remarks I-Mr. Esswcf-.-'.said . that every local, .1; in the district' iti'u6t have in recent years l>«.*n struck with the. urgent importance or proper'system of controlling tho rivers. They would ' agreo with-vhim ;tbat there >ww no better; l&nd itu the " Dominion - thaiy' that povRecently Drainage. Board had-. done its, , best" to '-raise ■ funds.fbr' straightening . this , Mangaone River. Valuable land, both hero arid in. outside districts, had,;been washed aft'fty,.and within. /recent- • years • Palmerstpn ••iWijtfttp.- had .lost IQO acres .by driver Erosion. •He would urge.,upoiv tho ; d.elogates ; presont.,t6 sirilcvall'r selfisl):>:raotives> as colleetivoly -,they were all a interested. 'It must - appeal ' to. everyoney'.tfrst the' beds of the river.";- had ris&l■ considerably during : the l - last-foiy.'/ears. Within: thp last ton years the" bed Manawatu had rison.five foet.,, Naturally; tlie banks? were .carried away) and the water spread fover- the" surrounding country; Mr; :Fitzherbert (FoiWing) • desired-: to re-" '"the;:'impressioh 'that tho' towns ffero tfylija to 1 from ..outside He' a> .a,-inembor of. the Feildirig Borough Council,"'that there was no" power - giveiv under:the Act to.protect private property. In! his opiniqfif;tho:;first step required . was legislation andr'it wouW' jbe .necessary to prtss'-ifora Governmerii: s.ubs'idyL... Ho gefcted"oife Board' should;control'-'the, wholbr ;oroUa and --Manawatußivers, arid¥thisvißoaf§. should". have-sub-JBoaids. . A |Board ' , io obviate*certain oompli&^ons4hai%oi^'''^^/i{^tii'o (rare.; appointed; and"a|am' : a saving," would be effected in only.-having to maintain ono staff. They would Kavo to consic'-r tho andv in* his- opin on tho ratirib ' ShbiiM--Be •ba'scd.. , ;upon' the ,-, benefit derived. ; -"Hrli : had. beofilsa'id that the' Oroua: Uivet/ did >Ealmorston,i and it iW;rals^j]^^-;'ffl4.' l iiiifd, others hit. ib'er?' , possibility 'of . tho; .Oroua liveri.by^floWjng.its l banks and; coming down . :toPalmeriton. •Apart"from the object of ;'ie' p^sent s 'coiiferoiico; there. was the. ques.Yon of water power tojbe considered,." as eventually-' , wator power' would- v ' : ' t required and:the Board <x -■ ' probably arrang&'to, receive;' the -royalty ,me. y ' ■ Pohaiigina- 7" ■ (JounciU felling; in v<ch. ill -.the bacfe' cbuWry did npt. contrioi mi ./ more tp the -destruction by rivers felling of bUBH'. r in3Ke''cQUntcy .around -Ml&.iwatu. Mr! i FtaSklantl, tFo'xtbii' Counrilj, .sajd, ho was. in.'sympathy .with the mbypr'.ant* as-out-lined 'bv Mr. . jitzhejbert, and considered that ft<would do a groat'; deal to. ss "eguard. the interests .'of xepidents of his lr. / lity. :• Mr^'jKbwftr,-/May'or.'of ;;FpSvi ~said that Toin'o '.twelve mqiiths sagq..;Mr,/Hay,.,Gqyeni-nent-.-'Engiixeer,. made, a /'report on' ' the river . m;.tW;Foxtbiii;)6calil;y 7 had 'not had an" opportunity',of ■; seeing thateport.'-•••-Ho thought if. it was' available i 1 j>'iight assist thisvconf^rencer. '.^v, . -, •' said tho rcport referred to had'beCn' htihded .in to the Mi.Jstcr. : 1 ,-jMr.i Wheeler said it would'' oe unfair to 'jn.-thb remote parts of tho 'district towards the benefiting the'lGoVerniaent lands selling at £40 'Biid £45 per acre in the lower reaches. ' Mr;;Cftrhian,";Kiwitea Conn f _/ Council, en-' dorßed r -Mr.-;Wheoler's'romarks[' • - , Mr.-M'Kenzie, Manawatu County Council, said that they would have to v be very careful in the' 'c/diistitntion of the Bojrd. Thera ivcre > twa>classes .iif, lands, interested—the' land .in the' upper readies that rliad.' been /washed . away, and those that were' 'subject to flooding.' -TOey should .confine; the rating . .-.to' those ;whb - ere\ benefited by , tho -river'"im-. • prbvements. His .^seheirie' - 'of' protfectibn'-' was ,to'replant along the'banks'Where the natural' ! protofctio'n 'hadl.been away.;' '-' -v- Mr. Rongqtea, ■'.igree'd;'with, the 1 f ormation^bf. a;. Boaraj - lahfl 1 that";f or; the .. present all should contribute. ' r ■ . • Mf;v_-Gopdbehere, Feildirigj -said:?that, -in his ;opinion, 'the; sarao' amountof 'damage .in propprtiph.. was ,'being, .done,:all. ,alpn'jj the river.;: Ho[ thought the;' sohome' would be. more' effective with a - Board 1 fbr • each river. • Councillor Armstrong;; '• ■ wllo considerable' oxperienco in' dealin'g ■ with-.rivers, considered, that' it ' would ' would t.be,".necessary;■ to make, the ; whole watershed' contribute. If combined' action was'tate'n hp was confident'lthat they would ' get, •:considerable : support from the . Govern-' ment.-..-Ho suggested a system of. 'rating' aecording. to the number ,of residents ,of-the district.' - Mr. Pearce,, Oroua County. Council, said it was.not worth whilo discussing'the matter unless there was special legislation. If the intention was to protect j the property in the';UppVr reaches it would cost 'an',erior 7 hundredj. bf .acres 'had been •' waslietlj away, in' .the .upper r.each'e?.. of the , Oroua..: Sir. Wheelcp -movef l .-that all Drainage Boards bo.sh-u'clc;'out.of the Committee. . .■ This was puti'to tho meeting and-lost. • ; Mr. weedier; said that tho representatives from ■,up-country.' might. just as well with- • draw;' as;-they; stood np'.chance against., the' dup| : cation'of,...voting Vamoiigst- Draitiare Boai, ' ''' 1 0 Brown,. Pohangina,,. endorsed.,. ,Mr. Wheeler .j remarks. .Mr. Carman also sunported'Mf.'Wheeler: ■. - ■ um- by ■.Mr; ; • ; prior.'" to committing itsolf- to -nny donned courso of action,' appoints a committee to investigate tho whole question of tho -control of slanawatu and Oroua; rivers, and espec'ally the causes operating, their meins nf rolief, tho consequent .. financial position, ; and. generally to obtain by _ovidpnce and ;inquiry. that requisite amount of,knowledge which.will enable the Committee' to., frame; recommendations to place "before the' delegates appointed at 'an adjourned meeting; and.that.such committee ' consist-of one 'representative from each public body sending'delegates to this meet- : ing:"_ . . ; , " - , . , This .'.was ,carried, a;nd /a'' committee "'aiv' pointed..'.:,- . ...: , ' -" 1 , • It-was proposed by. Mr Wheeler that the i Pahiatua; ;_Woodville, and Dannevirke:'-"local xtdies be informed (;liat many at the'meetlng'considered that'the watershed area"'was the one that should be included in tho pro- '' tection scheme, and they he 'asked-/to sena;delegates to subsequent'meetings. The; motion" was lost. V It was also resolved .that-the Minister -be ?! asked to,,;furnish i the Committee with'.the ' Government Engineer's, report.' ■ ' HASTINGS NOTES.- . —^- - , (fboii 01-p. special corbespoxdsnt.) • _ . January 16. The _ postmaster (Mr. Haszard) has been .that the 'Government intend to resume Section' 5 adjoining the Post Office', ' y occupied by Messrs. Hartshorn and v\Vellwpod,,Geo. Ebbett, and the Silver •ill J? probabie the present Post Office wiil pe, shifted ou.« to this section,, and/businesfi carried on there pending the orcction of new premises ~on. the corner of Queen Street, and when the staff take possession of the new building; the old post office" will; be transformed, into general Govorinnent offices. A . deputation waited'on tho Mayor this ' afternpon asking him. to convene' a public meeting "with the objcct of arranging a guaranteo' against loss to the North°lsTand Brass Bands Association in case that body decidcd-to hold the annual contest in Hastiiags.next year. ' OBITUARY. ' ( Mro Jicliirt Kennedy, • who was bailiff of Tiinani for '31 yeai's,. is dead, at' the ago of «;• " the, Timaru Magistrate's Corn-t on Wed'fu'sd.iy. (rejiorts a' Press Association tele-n-am). wferpnfe wis made by the Stipendiary .itagislrate aiicl members of the bar to tlie ion?' aor) tiustworthy servico of the deceased. at his ileath and sympathy with '■U ji-l'i.l.ivf.-; uera exnressed.