FLOOD DAMAGE

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21384, 20 April 1944, Page 4

FLOOD DAMAGE

COOK COUNTY WORKS APPLICATION FOR GRANT CONTROL OF DRAINAGE After the floods of last month, the Cook County Council submitted to the Public Works Department u provisional application for &ruhts by way of flood-damage relief. The amount of the damage was estimated at 119790. and at yesterday’s meeting of the council, the clerk, Mr F. T. Robinson, submitted correspondence from the district engineer. Mr E. W. Ennis, on Hie subject of the claim. The district engineer pointed out that main highways damage, where the highways were vested in_ local bodies, would be subject to a £3 for £1 subsidy basis, and he asked the council to indicate on what basis the grants for district roads were to be applied for, so that he could prepare a recommendation. The clerk stated that after discussion with the chairman. Mr. E. H. Baker, he had advised the district engineer that the council wished to secure subsidies for district road restoration cn the same basis as f.or main highways under the council’s control. 1 Reference was made to the trouble experienced by many settlers owing to the blockage of drains during the recent flood period, and Mr. C. Tietjen suggested that the time was ripe for a general survey of the drains ,in the county, with a view to noting the possible blocks, so that preventive work could be undertaken in good time. Catchment Board and Council Mr. M. T. B. Hall thought that this should be the duty of a catchment board, under the soil conservation ancl rivers control regulations. The chairman expressed the view that the council could hardly hand over to any other authority the care of its own roadside drains. After further discussion it was decided that the drainage committee make an inspection of several points at which trouble had developed. The acting engineer, Mr. J. Gunn, pointed out that the main trouble experienced recently had been due to the backing-up of the Taruheru Creek If that creek was properly cleaned out it would carry off the water much more quickly. One d the other sources of trouble was the faulty construction of flood-gates by private property-owners. The chairman commented that ine drainage committee could make a .field day for the proposed inspection, and endeavour to meet the settlers interested with a view to encouraging the formation of drainage areas. The chairman later submitted a report of representations made by him personally to the engineer-in-chief of ihe Public Works Department in Wei lington, and stated that the engineer-in-chief had promised the most favourable consideration to the councils claim for financial assistance. Railway Bridge Obstruction

On the subject of river control, Mi Baker reported that Mr Newnham had stated that a scheme was available for the opening of a new mouth for the Waipaoa River, provided the Poverty Bay River Board was prepared to do its part in the financing of the scheme. Mr Tietjen said that if progress with the scheme for the Waipa'oa River mouth depended on the river board rating the people who suffered most from the recent floods, there did not seem to be much chance ol getting anything done. . Mr F. S. Howell considered that trie council shdiild not encourage work at the river frtouth until the Whole problem was ta’ckled, and obstructions further upstream were dealt .with. Messrs Tietjen and G. V, Smith pointed out that the railway bridge at the Waipaoa Riyer held back a lot of water and caused extensive damage. It had been promised’ originally that the approaches to the bridge would be Wrestled, but that promise had not materialised. The opening of the bridge by means of trestles should be the hrst step m a large-scale plan to relieve flood pressure. The council had before it a telegram from the chairman of the Soil Conservation ancl Rivers Control Council, who is also engineer-in-chief of the Public Works Department, stating that the formation of a catchment board for Poverty Bay would be expedited as much as possible. The ’ council agVded to acknowledge this advice, and impress upon the authorities the urgency of the matter, in view of the tremendous damage being done by floods in the district.