THE WATER SUPPLY

Northern Advocate, 8 February 1913, Page 4

THE WATER SUPPLY

The natural impulse of the citizens just at. present will be to gird at the ' Borough Council for having so long delayed making provision to meet a contingency known by everyone to be \ inevitable. But though the Council , may richly deserve this censure the necessities of the moment are not met by grumbling, and we feel bound to remind the community that the common interests can best be served by rf acting upon a rigid determination to j. conserve such water supply as we / have. This can only be accomplished -'' by everyone being economical in personal use, and by giving assistance in, the detection of that illicit use of . water which makes such enormous inroads upon the storage basin. ,It is, of course, very hard and very deplor- * able that the community should have to restrict Itself in the domestic use of water, and to be robbed t of a reasonable supply for other legitimate purposes, but unless a conservative policy is followed by every householder for the next few days the town v/ill be either without water or compelled to fall back upon a supply of very doubtful purity.

The decision arrived at last night by the Borough Council—Related though it may be—was in the nature of the case the only one possible. The idea npwV is to secure an auxiliary supply from the right branch of the Whau Whau stream, which, it is estimated, will yield 50,000 gallons a day. This work can be completed within a week of obtaining the necessary pipes. If the present supply becomes exhausted in the meantime then It will be necessary to fall back upon the separate supply at present being utilised for pumping purposes in connection with the drainage service—a supply to be looked upon for domestic service with very cold suspicion. All this hurried arrangement is, however, a mere stop-gap, and must clearly be followed by a complete re-examination ot the water supply with a view to making adequate provision for the *'*i present and for expansion of the district. The importance of water to a town heed not now be insisted upon, nor do we suppose it is necessary to remind the Mayor and councillors that the citizens expect them ta now wake up to the obligations of office. The water supply question "has hitherto been deliberately shelved in order that another matter might be given precedence, but in view of all the circumstances now existing, there seems to be no reason why the more vital subject should not be restored to its rightful place In the scheme of municipal affairs.