WATER-POWER.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 14052, 24 July 1916, Page 11

WATER-POWER.

* THE NORTH 'ISLAND SCHEME. "Considerable progress has been made towards determining the best? methods of providing for a general snipply of f electricity throughout tho IfJorth Island," remarks ; Mr 'Evan Parry, Chief Electrical Engineer . ,-fpr the Dominion, " m the course of jiis . annual report em- ; bodied m the , . Publi c: Works Statement "Tjie siiccessiqn of dry, aeaspns. wjiich j has been, expetr^.enced.Jb^s caused serious shortage bf waiter to 'several of the snialler .wa(ter-pow;er ..schemes" which have t been .piit. m „by , yarious local . authoritiesj and previous estimates of the power available at vasrious sources m the ,"^orth.. lnland, haye had to; be modified, on, .this., account. A^ith .the , knowledge of" .the , flows .-iur/ing.-. the-, last two summers, the various schemes possible for,, a, general supply to. the- "North Island " outlined ih previous reports have been' revised, and, at' present; siirvjeys v and m- i vestigatiphs are^bejng ,made, to deoj.de the ' relative v meri£s, ,of two general *ys-.tem's-of.supply. , One system involves, the concentration of thewliole generating plant .in' one ' l.i rge station i at ] L^ke,"^aikarejnoana or ' one of. the- larger- Waikato, schemes. The . other prgposal is '• to ' supply \ \he w)iolo Island irom three smaller conveniently sources, for i^he time .being,'' ahd , ultimately, when the- capacity of these stations is exceeded, t6 link 4 up their various distriboiting f systems ./tfith one of, the large .central generating/ schemes outlined above. These three stations . would then- become standby plants,' and their possession would overcome the 'risk .of. interruption on^ the long transmission lines, ,,which is the chief objection to the adoption of the single generating station from the outset." -With this object iA view a survey of the Aratiatia Rapids and Huka Falls on . the , Waikato river has been made", a survey of the iMangahao river has just been completed, and. surveys are being organised for work on the Waikato river above Cambridge, and at Laka Waikare- t moana. In all ; these, cases the surveys are .being conducted on lines"" calculated I to give the exact information required to ou^ine a scheme m the most expeditious' manner and with the least possible expense These .surveys and investigations have indicated that -some of the schemes > previously outlined require modification, and tliat others whiqh had not been previously fully investigated 'are among the l best m the Island. Further investigation of tliese sources, and a good deal of survey work on transmission routes, is required before a definite pronouncement can he made as to the best scheme or schemes to be developed for the .most economical method of supplying electric power to th- North Island.