SHORTAGE OF WATER.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20827, 20 March 1931, Page 10

SHORTAGE OF WATER.

POSITION IN HELENSVILLE.

URGENT NEED OF RAIN.

STRICT ECONOMY REQUIRED.

(Unless heavy rain falls shortly in Helcnsville, the town will ho faced with a serious shortage of water. A circular letter has been issued by the Town Board to all consumers asking for the strictest economy, and those outside the town area, who buy their Water, will have their supplies cut off within a few days unless the situation improves. The dam in the catchment area, with a capacity of approximately 1,000,000 gallons, is already almost empty, but there is still a considerable volume of water in the town reservoir, which has a somewhat larger capacity. ' It is estimated that, at the present "rat© of consumption and inflow, it will be two or P osSlbl y three weeks before this store is exhausted. The town will then have to depend on the actual daily flow of the stream in the catchment 1 area. * Tests carried out have shown that this flow has never in the past been less than 20,000 gallons a day, although it is not known to what extent the present dry weather has affected it. The present consumption is 60,000 gallons a day. " This quantity is absurdly high for the 1000-odd consumers in Helensville," said Mr. C. S. West, chairman of the Town Board, last evening. " With cooperation from all consumers in the matter of economy, a great deal of our troubles would be eliminated. Mr. West explained that several suggestions for improving Helensville's water supply had been made, but one, the Sandhills scheme, when submitted to the ratepayers, had been rejected by them. There was no doubt, however, that 20,000,000 gallons a year wer« available ill the catchment area if there were adequate dams to store it. Mr. West said that the dry weather experienced during the past month or two had not had a great effect on stock, although the pastures had naturally deteriorated and the milk supply had dropped. The streams were still flowing quite freely. While hoping for an improvement in cortditions, Mr. West recalled that' on one or two occasions during the past 30 years the worst conditions so far as prater supply was concerned had been experienced in May.