HARBOUR SURVEYS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 742, 15 February 1910, Page 7

HARBOUR SURVEYS.

PORT NICHOLSON'S ENTRANCE. . WHAT HAS BEEN DONE. The rebuke administered to tho Auckland Harbour Board by Sir. Kettle, S.M., as President of the Court of Inquiry into the Kaipara disaster, naturally suggests inquiry ns to what other harbour boards hove dono in' tho way of causing surveys to be made of the waters under their jurisdiction, and especially tho entrance to tho varipus ports. As far as Wellington is concerned, the story is succinctly told in certain of tho annual reports of tho board. The 1!)03 report states; "Tho board determined at its. January meeting to proceed with a careful survey of the entrance from Poucarrow to Ward Island. For this purposo a steam launch was purchased jn Auckland . (at a, total. cost to the board of £040), and tho survey was commenced, when in April H.M.S,Penguin arrived, under orders from the; Admiralty, to make a survey of that, portion of the harbour. Tho board's survey was therefore stopped, and steps have been taken to proceed with the survey of Evans Bay and other portions of the harbour. A copy of the chart, ns' re'ctcd by. H,M.S. Penguin, has been received, and shows the'same,depths,and extent of the fairway shoal as had'been previously, ascertained ,by ■ the board's staff. -. It is understood that a new chart will probably bo printed embodying ■ the survey made- by the officers' of the Pen-, guin. It will be a. pity if this is so, as it is. hoped that, by the aid. of thb ■Whaltarire, tho-felioaling will be. remedied shortly, when the chart would have .to be again amended, so as to ' give the depths obtainyl by dredging." .. ~ ' Mr. Ferguson'continued the story in his report for . the ensuing year;-T-"Th» board's survey of the harbour -has ;conlinued, the' portions: completed ; being Evans Bay and Lambton Harbour, .'and the coast line from Hfrntreyßaj-' to Pefonb, including the mouth-of the.Hutt River. Tho survey of tho water around Somes. Island has been completed, and the work is now being, proceeded with <rf.' sounding' in radiating lines from ' Somes Island to the-shore of the harbour." In t)ie report for 1905, it was' stated that the survey of the; harbour had been completed, and tlio taking of the','soundings forwarded,.to the Admiralty. ' Tlis results of .these surveys , were util-. ised in tho Admiralty charts; which havo been corrected down to 19W-..-. The least depth shown- by theso ■ charts' in", the entrance channel ,is six .fathoms "(3G feet); except on. the ..Falcon Shoal,' which has: since bean dredged,-"and is to bo dredged yet more. In this connection, Mr.- T.: M. Wilford (chairman of tlio. Harbour Board) said at a recent meeting;—" To-day the one, place in the-harbour'which specially needed treatment, the Falcon Shoal, hada channel 1200 ft. wide and 42ft. deep at low tide. 'At tho end of the present year the channel would-be 2000 ft. wide, and would bo well on to/ completion; which would enable Wellington to ■ receive a Dreadnought or a super-Dread-nought without difficulty, day or night,".