A WAR LEGACY

Hawera Star, Volume XLIX, 12 April 1929, Page 9

A WAR LEGACY

LATE EDITION

PROBLEM FOR CITY FATHERS.

DISPOSAL OF POISON GAS. MANY METHODS TRIED. A»oucluliuu-W Jl.cciiiu luicKluiji. OUjj} IIJJUI..J r’iimcs” Cauiea.j Received I p.m. to-day. LU.\ DON, April 11. Ihe Berlin correspondent. or " Trie Times” states: —“However proud, many Hermans nave been ot tire poison ga.s invention, the city fathers of Cologne have leiaimed to Junto the very uunie or it. They louiiit tnemseivets m possiesision of a large quantity alter fine. war in a munition factory near the city anil have, not vet iound a way to lows it. They hist ’tried burning it, but the fumes killed the rural vegetation and the farmers protested. Next they buried it a yard deep under the< factory, but when the fatter was subsequently dismantled tiie fumes caused grave ’uneasiness. Then they buried it. deep in sandy .soi‘, in the* expoetalioii that it would gradually sink into oblivion. Instead, it polluted; the water supply, and questions were asked iu the Prussian Diet. It was decided to enclose the gas in containers and sink them to the sea bed, but the railways pointed out that transport was dangerous, ;amd fishermen feared that the hsh would be poisoned. Burning was again attempted, but was abandoned, so it was decided to re-inter it where there was no water. A twenty feet deep mt was dug and floored with impervious day, also ia> six-inch. bed of reinforced concrete. Next a coffin way constructed of reinforced concrete, trebly insulated with tar aud other impervious substances. The coffin was lowered and packed outside with twofoot layers of clay. Twenty thousand containers, holding nearly two tons of gas, were dug up and placed in the coffin with a quantity of earth infected by broken containers. A reinforced concrete li.cl was then affixed to the coffin, which is ten feet underground., and the whole was covered with a thick clay. II n fortunately many containers were, overlooked, and the authorities are debating whether ±o re-open the coffin or to prepare another grave.