RANGITAIKA SWAMP

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14898, 29 July 1910, Page 2

RANGITAIKA SWAMP

THE SCHEME OUTLINED. EARLY START TO BE MADE. A fertile" AREA. (Per United Press Association.! WELLINGTON, .July 28. Somo interesting particulars of the manner in which the Rangitaika swamp will be drained were furnished by Mr \Y. D. S. 'Macdonald!, member for that district. The Government has introduced a bill to authorise the raising of the money Which will be required, and if the'measure is passed the first contract will probably bo let in September, and the work pushed oil rigorously. In all about three years will be occupied ill tho work, and the cost will be about £120,000. ' The operation of greatest urgency is the opening of ii channel for the Rangitaika River, which goes off at right angles a short distance from the sea, and follows a very tortuous course'. About three-quarters of a mile of dredging will be required to give it a straight channel to the sea about eight miles from Mafrata. This operation, which is estimated to cost £5000, will lower the water in the swamp by about 6ft, and will give relief to a large number of settlers oil the upper part of the swamp. The principal streams draining the swamp are the Tarawera, Ranjgitaika, and Orini Rivers, and these will either have to be deepened or new channels cut. The greatest difficulty is presented by the Tarawera River, the course of which has been completely altered by deposits from Lake Tarawera. A new channel will have to bo opened for some distance in this case. The drainage operations are estimated to cost from v £l to £1 10s per acre, and .the niea to. be drained is 85,000 acres. Ten years ago this land was disposed of at 7s 6d an acre on the o.r.p. tenure. Five years after the drainage scheme is completed it will be worth, Mr Macdonald estimates, from £7 to' £25 per acre. It is worth about £1 per acre on the average at the present time. Mr Macdonald states that the bull: of the land is at present occupied by Crown tenants, but part is Native land. .The settlers have spent £6000 of borrowed money on .drainage works besides a good deal, of private capital. The amount of money that could be obtained was quite inadequate. The first loan fell due early this year, and the settlers were unable to liquidate the debt. The mortgagees put in a receiver, and struck a rate over the; whole drainage district. Part of this had; been' collected, but some of the settlers' had been hard pressed, and as a result of representations made :by him the Government came to the rescue. Mr W. C. Kensington (Under-secretary for Lands) visited the district, and placed two pro- . posals before the settlers(l) That the Government should' resume the whole of the land and allow the tenants preference in taking up their own sections after the land was drained;. or (2) that a special rate should be struck over the whole district to pay interest and sinking fund on the whole cost of drainage. The settlers ■had agreed, practicnlly unanimously, to the second proposal, but the bill which M been introduced to give effect to it would be' circulated amongst them, and any representations they desired to make would be noted.. There was a good fall, and the work would be easier than drainage of Hauraki Plains. The land would be very fertile, Mr Macdonald added, and would be valuable for pastoral' and dairying pursuits. It would also prow flax well. Before the Tarawera eruption altered the course of the Tarawera River '.the Maoris used to grow excellent maize crops on-the swamp.