OUR WATER SUPPLY.

Feilding Star, Volume I, Issue 291, 14 June 1907, Page 4

OUR WATER SUPPLY.

TO THB KDHOB. Sir,—As the Borough Council will hare to face ihe problem of constructing settling ponds or reservoirs, repair, and perhaps reconstruct, the intake, also repair certain tunnels that are falling in, and provide filters, to filter the water to render it fit for human consumption besides the probability that any exceptionally high Hood in the Oroua river may leave them without an intake. In the face of this, would it not be well to consider the Kiwitea and its possibilities Anywhere above the biidge at the Cheltenham cross roads, an intake could be constructed which would be higher than the present one on the Oroua River, and only a little more than half the distance from the existing clear water reserve. The pipe line would be an ideal one presenting no engineering difficulties. In the case of the Oroua there is the intake to be repaired, settling ponds (or reservoirs) and filtering plant to be provided. In the Kiwitea, intake to construct, settling reservoir, and filtering plant, and the necessary maius t«» connect with the existing clear water •cservoir, but as there is more fall in. about half the distance, smaller mains than used on the Oroua scheme would serve. Some two .years ago, seeing the Council were drifting towards trouble, I spent a day inspecting the works, with the result that I came to the conclusion that a huge mistake had Dean made in trying to use the Oroua; in a friendly report I wrote the Council, I strongly advised them to consider the Kiwitea and employ an expert: I also gave it as my opinion that the plant at the intake would not collect filtered water, and that souio of the tunnels were unnecessary; I also gave sketch of what I considered a solid and substantial intake for the Kiwitea. The one day I spent, showed me that the water of the Kiwitea, at the Cheltenham cross roads was 25ft higher than the Oroua water, at the present intake; that the Kiwitea was confined in a space of about 1J chains at the bridge, and had been for the last 20 years; and if it could be confined be-, tween the bridge piers, it is quite practicable to confine it between good stlid concrete walls, and wing walls, further protected by railway iron vring walls; this done, floor the bel with concrete, and construct a weir. We should now have a weir through which the whole of the water must ps»ss. In my former sketch, I show ad how, what water was required c«mld be conveyed in an open channel to the settling ponds, from there to filters and finally to the existing clear water reservoirs. . As we would have the wl»oie of the water in hand, the remainder or what was necessary, could be carried in a race to a wator whoel to generate power for electricity, and after it had left the wheel and run far enough in a second race, to gain sufficient fall, foiild be applied to a second wheel to give more power if required, and finally returned to the stream lower down. Of course the first thing to do would be to gauge the flow ol the stream, and find how mauy cubic feet of water was being discharged a second. I had intended to have devoted a couple of Saturday afternoons to this, but unfortunately I have been in the East Wairarapa ever since the spring, i'lid so missed the driest time of year; my opinion is that for nine months in the year, there is a great power going to waste; during the three dry months in the year power could be supplied by steam, and as less light is required in summer than winter, less power would bo required. —Yours, etc., C. ADNAM MOUNTFORT.