RECLAMATION.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 543, 25 June 1909, Page 6

RECLAMATION.

THE PETONE WATER-FRONT. A "SWITCHBACK WHARF." DISCUSSIONS AT THE HARBOUR BOARD. .v> The Wellington Harbour Board was occupied for some time yesterday in considering matters relating to Petono. A reclamation Bchomo to cost £015,000, tho sunken wharf, and a request for a weighbridge, were successively under discussion. : The.chairman (Mr. T. M. Wilf ord',' M.P.) roforred to a plan of the proposed reclamation of Petono foreshore, prepared by .Mr. W'. H. Cook, Petono Borough engineer, and handed in by Mr. M'Ewan. He had submitted tho plan to tho board's engineer (Mr. J. Marchbanks), who now reported Sβ 'follow?*— ■-.'■' Engineer's Report. "Ih&vo to report on a scheme submitted by tire Potano Borough Council for reclaiming an area of approximately 200 acres ..of land near Petone, and providing a wet.basin of about 12 acres, around which breastworks are proposed to be constructed, the entrance I to too basin being protected from southerly gales by a mole or breakwater, as-outlined on a tracing famished by Mr. M'Ewan,. Mayor of Pctone. , "To enablo the proposed reclamation to be carried but,/and, when made, to be protected from heavy seas, it would be necessary either , , to construct a concrete wall or a rutbio bank,, faced above low water with heavy stono, .around the area proposed to bo reclaimed. The bottom at this place is soft and unstable, and it would be difficult to obtain a solid foundation for a concrete wall. I haro, therefore, estimated for a nibble bank. Tho base of the bank is 20 feet below low.water, .'Aid-1 have allowed five feet below this depth for sinkage. The bank proposod would slope li to 1 from tho. base to 4ft. below low, water, 3 'to 1 to low water Wei, and H to 1 to 8 feet above high water. Froni 4ft." below low water to the top of tho bank would require to be faced with hoavy stone; the remainder could be built of moderately large rubble, deposited at random. The cost of this portion of the work I estimated at £258,475., Reclamation Might Cost £200,000. "A mole to protect the entrance to the basin could bo built somewhat similarly to the enclosing wall, but of heavier stone, and faced on each side..' The length is 950 feet, and tho approximate cost I estimato at £36,652. The reclamation is assumed to cover 200' acres, and to average 18 feet in depth. It would, probably; be largely made by pumping mud and silt behind the enclosing rubble wall, with poworful suction dredgers, directly from the bed of the harbour. 'Allowing ■ for waste and sinkage, 6,678,000 cubic yards would be required. The portion pumped directly would , cost about 6d. per cubic yard. The probable cost of the -reclamation would be from £170,000 to £200,000. ••••....■■

"The .breastworks scheme aggregates 8790 square yards, and would cost approximately £43,950.

i "Nothing has been charged for dredging out tho basin, as it has been assumed that tho whole of the material dredged would bo pumped into the reclamation.

.Total Cost of Works, £815,000., ; , "The total aproximate cost" of the works outlined would be :-t- :.'-'i ■'■■■■■■- ■ ■■■■•. ■■ ' ■ , '■ , ': •■ ■"' .'■ ■■;.. £. ■ Enclosing wall .„ .;. ... 258,475 Breakwater, ....... ... 36,652 • Reclamation, say... ... ... 185,000 -~ Wharves ... ..; > ..; ' ... 43,950 ■ '•■•■■■■ .;'■>■ • ! £524,077 Pins allowance for interest on , :. construction during con-. ; . . structiori, engineering • con- / ' • tingencies, etc., say :;. >80,923 ■-~;.■'■;;',, :" ,.': " '■'■'■ -■"■>■■ :. .£6i^opo; ■'■. 'This ia exclusive of the coat of providing buildings, roads, water supply, drainage, or lighting, for. which no allowance has been made.- The area to bo reclaimed has been taken at 200, acres.', If the 250 acres' shown on tho plan were. to be reclaimed, the total estimated, cost would have to be increased by about ' ', . ' ' "It is, of course, impossible to make a closo estimate, unless general plans of the proposed works are made, and reliable surveys of tho ground obtained, but I hardly think that fie board : would authoriso any expenditure for this purpose, and have therefore, framed, the above estimate on the information available." / ■'/,;. Mayor of Petono Explains. ' Mr. Fletcher: What is' tbo idea .of aJI this 'work?■..:■;'. ;,-.■ ; The chairman: It is Mr, M'Ewan's scheme, Mr.;Fletcher. . . .;' . ' ' . . -~ . Mr. M'Ewan. remarked that the report had been brought forward as,-the ■■result of .a resolution proposed, by the. chairman. In order to give the board some idea of the possibilities of the scheme he had bulk mitted a plan of the proposals. Ho naa little to say.regarding the figures, but would point out that,; although they proposed to spend, a largo- sum of money, and ■ a ; very large acreago was being dealt with, it comld be carried out at a cheaper cost per acre than the Evans Bay reclamation. It would cost about £3000. per acre. . •'., : '-.;, ■■'■'■'■'. Mr. Fletcher made a remark on the influence of the Gas Company. , ■ Mr. M'Ewan: "Is it necessary to'haev a large company like the Wellington Gas 'Company behind you before' you tako up any extensive public work? I hope not." He went on to say that if was not his desire ,that. the board should, rush hurriedly ■ into any work-of this kind; : .'•.'■■ . ....: .

■The chairman said ho thought , that rather than tako np the scheme that had- been suggested, the : board should set to work to give tho Potone people better, wharfage accommodation/and help them in regard totheir desiro for a ■ weighbridge near the wharf; The board could not, at present, contemplate the suggestion of an expenditure of £615,000, a fact that he was rare Mr. M Ewan appreciated. The Sunken Wharf. The Wharves,and Accounts Committee recommended, tho board: to restore the decking of tho Potone wharf to its original level at an approximate cost of £125. '.•'.. Tho chairman recommended that the work should bo deferred. -From reports ; in the newspapers, it appeared that further alteration in the.line of:level had occurred during the past few days. The engineer Had again viewed the wharf, and had drawn up a sketch ,plan showing the alterations.. Al-, though ..the snbsidentie wes not serious, so far as the extent of the movement was concerned, the fact that there was any alteration in the position of the wharf, was a grave;circumstance. The board would have to adjust the matter, and, rather than ex-pend-the sum of £125 for the .temporary placing of the wharf in order, he would recommend that no action betaken at present Now that further change, had taken place in the leVel of tho wharf, he thought it desirable that the whole matter should be reconsidered by tho Wharves and Accounts Committep aftor'they, had received information from the engineer as to the changed circum-' stances. . ' . ■ > Mr. Fletcher said that the whole undertaking had been .very unsatisfactory, and in order to keep, faith with the Petono people a searching inquiry ought .now to be mado. Potone residents , had come to them and asked for a railway wharf, but thdro was trouble in connection with; the Hutt Park railway. However, tho prosout wharf had boen erected at a cost of £9800, and the board considered that they- were treating Potono very fairly. A thorough inquiry should, be made ns to what hod brought tho wharf into its present and why it had not had the proper foundations required in a wliarf of this nature. Statement by the Engineer. Tlio engineer, at tho. request of the chairman, stated that a heavy load of timber had been : placed on. tho outer end, and tho wharf sank approximately 18in. on tho eastern side, and 15in. or 16in. on the western. Further motion of the wharf had been reported a day or two ago. Originally, tho line of tho wharf hod been practically

i straight, as when built. Now it was found Jthat the centre of tho wharf had moved to- | wards the east about 3in. Some slight motion had taken place, and cvidontly was still going on. The greatest depression on the western sido was now 13in., and this was evidonco that the wharf had rison slightly since the first subsidence. The ground upon which it was built seemed ,to bo unstable, i and-thero would be some difficulty in making the wharf secure. If the ground turned out to bo a quicksand, it would bo a very difficult matter to deal with. He suggested that information regarding the foundations should bo obtained by putting a series of borings along the whole length of tho wharf. Dr. Newman snid tho Gear Company had had_ a wharf at Petono, which had snnk in a similar way, but after a while it became stable, and, ho believed tho board's wharf would do the sanio. Petono Unsatisfied. . Mr. M'Ewan said when the movement in favour of a wharf at Petone was started, it was hoped that it would be a railway wharf, and strong representations on that behalf were made. The Hutt Park Railway Company had expressed its willingness to 00-ope-rate in tho matter. He was sure that the present wharf, even if strengthened, would not meet the requirements of Petone, and the board would not get the revenue from it that it ought to have. . .• •■ _The wholo matter was referred to the Wharves and Accounts Committee. A Weighbridge Wanted. Thei Potono Borough Council wrote requesting the board to erect a railway weighbndgo adjacent to the Petono Wharf. Tho letter ■ explained ■■ that the weighbridge was wanted, because it was proposed to land coal for local consumption at the wharf, i The chairman said there was a mistake in the letter, inasmuch as it assumed that tho board was bonnd to erect a weighbridgo whon required. The deed merely stated that tho board was "entitled to erect a weighbridge," and tboro was no deed stating'that tap Doard undertook to do flo when it was neoded. Ho believed the board would be prepared to meet the Borough Council, and. perhaps the cart weighbridgo now in hand for tho Clydo Quay Wharf could bo utilised for the present, and if a railway weighbridge was required later on, the matter could then be reopened. '.'"'■'■ Mr. C: W. Jones asked whether the Petone Borough Council was prepared to guarantee a minimum revenue from tho weighs bridge. ' . . , . : Mr. M'Ewan said that would be asking too touch. The council'had put up ' £4000, and had got very little for it as j'et. Mr/ Fletcher: You've got a switchback wharf.-' (Laughter.) . Mr.'M'Ewan said tho wharf belonged to the board, which must bear the resjxmsibil-' ity. for it. Ho contended ■ that the trnio was opportune for tho installing of a weighbridgej.but he could not undertake that.the council would pay anything .towards it. The council had carried out its part of the agreement with -the beard, and now tho board should do its part. ' . • - Tho matter was referred to the Wharves and Accounts Committee for consideration. .