CENTRAL OTAGO IRRIGATION.

Otago Witness, Issue 2928, 27 April 1910, Page 12

CENTRAL OTAGO IRRIGATION.

DISTRICT ENGINEER'S INSPECTION

_ Those interested in the question of the irrigation of Central Otago will doubtless remember that some two months ago the Clyde branch of the league made a reQuest fci ■• a survey of Shepherd's Flat on the Fraser River with a view to determining its suitability as a reservoir site. This area has always been considered by local residents as offering exceptional facilities for the storage of a large body of water and a condemnatory reply from the Hon. R. M'Kenzie, Minister for Public Works, was naturally received with a certain amount of surprise and of scepticism. In that reply the Minister stated that the site mentioned had already been examined by an engineer of the department, who expressed the opinion that a dam at that site would be expensive to construct, and that no extensive reservoir could be obtained. This reply was far from satisfactory to the local league, who considered it simply an attempt to evade the issue. Consequently representations were made to Mr Furkett, district engineer and officer in charge of irrigation matters in Central Otago, asking that he should make a personal inspection of the site and judge for himself as to what wer-3 the possibilities. These representations resulted in that gentleman arriving at Clyde on the sth inet., and next day a party consisting of Messrs Furkett, A. C. Iversen, and S. A. Stevens started for the Shepherd's Flat site, with the idea of also inspecting- another area in the top basin near the head waters of the river. Shepherd's Flat was reached easily enough and [Several levels and measurements taken. The party also went some distance clown the gorge in the hope that an easier site would be found for constructing the retaining wail. A place was found where the gorge narrows to close on 40ft in width at the bottom with fairly precipitous walls. By this time, however, some 40ft of fall have been lost, so that it is questionable whethar the facilities are any better than at the intake of the gorge where the

bottom width is about a. chain and a half. The expert was not prepared to express any decided opinion, but said that it appeared as if a fairly large body of water could be stored on Shepherd's Flat at a reasonably low cost. Until a proper survey was made, however, it would be difficut to make any decided pronouncement on the suitability of the site. Mr Doboon had not made a report on this site, as far as he (Mr Furkett) was aware, the only olio on it having been made by Mr Perham a good few years ago. —Dunstan Time?.