CLUTHA CATCHMENT AREA

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26541, 16 August 1947, Page 9

CLUTHA CATCHMENT AREA

Sir,—Before anyone can prescribe for the Clutha watershed he must have an intimate knowledge of its local conditions, and that can only be obtained by close observation over a period of years. Will Mr .Davey in his address at Balclutha on'August 22 tell his audience the full extent of his knowledge of the 95<0 square miles in the Clutha watershed, particularly of that portion known as Central Otago? Did he, as the farmers’ representative on the S.C. and R.C. Council, personally make a thorough examination on the ground of the Central Otago portion of the Clutha watershed before he committed himself to support the Clutha catchment district? With this information before them, ratepayers will be able to assess for themselves the value of Mr Davey’s opinion. It is naive to imagine, as some ratepayers do, that subsidies would be handed out " ad lib ” by the S.C. and R.C. Council to pay for all the work to be undertaken in the Clutha catchment district should We agree to its constitution. A rude shock would await such ratepayers. The recent treatment meted out to the Clutha River Trust tells its own story. Tire trust recently asked for a four to one subsidy to carry out a difficult and urgent job at the mouth of the Matau—unforeseen expenditure that probably had not been budgeted for by the trust. Tire S.C. and R.C. Council cut the subsidy to three to one, thus increasing the ratepayers’ contribution by 33 per cent. No wonder the trust had to increase substantially its rates.

It is reported that some councillors support the Clutha catchment district owing to their interest in the Clutha River Trust area. Now there are only 20,500 acres in that area, and 6,104,300 acres in the balance of the Clutha watershed. Is it reasonable that the interests of the farmers in this vast area should be subordinated to the interests of the comparatively few ratepayers in the trust area? Perhaps Mr Davey will give the answer, and also explain why he, a farmers’ representative, supports a Clutha catchment district, wherein the county ratepayers (mostly farmers) would be forced to find 80 per cent of all uniform rates, against 36 per cent, in an Otago catchment district.—l am, etc., John A. Robertson. , Evans Flat, August 13. [Abridged.—Ed., O.D.T.]