THE RIVER ENTRANCE.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 14480, 15 December 1917, Page 8

THE RIVER ENTRANCE.

WATER EXT?ENSION. A suggestion that appears worthy: of 1 consideration by the Harbor Board authorities made to '& Herald repre- • sentative id-day .by Oaptain W. Giimming, who waav for 'many years harbormaster at ,thi3 .port. (Captain Cumming Said that tlffe vWet ponditions; were now practical as ba^'as when he came heYe first, yeai'ri agp, arid uhles^ • something .could be done to effect an imp.rovemenC'";tHi.'"p^tibft!^biil3- be ySry serious; as it was ' eVidfent' the diffichtty piS expense of^. iflWiiiftiiiing- the ;chanAel b^ l 'dfedgir|g' wai'g'o'ing ,tB J be Very hekvy. The mdst.' serioiis tr&tible; '-in his opliiiQn, Was at the i*ivel*^ ehtrahce, which for dredging operations was the' ihdkt < e'xpceed and place, for . the Maiii to work, aii,d. \tv-6m. avnaylg^tion, pojht of view, wa^ the most .4?i>gWous.' > „'.His idea was that the .exiejisiYe. siltiihg that occurred 1 at the entrance -had aiisen iii. .consequenpiß of ,, the, . extension bf the breakwater, which had. had tlie, eff e'.ct of creating'; s,iil\ ..water aiiid causing the silt and sflnd to ' : <Jep.qsrt. ', Previously, w.hen, : the gr.ojrKe, bv^rfapjie'o. tKe end oi' the breakwater, they had. experienced /considerable surge. a£ tlie/ entrance, but owing; to v this action,, there been no silting. To-day, it was possible, he was informed 1^ to walk at: low waf^r across ', froin v the. 'groyne^ ;'fo' the water. WHnt \yas : Wanted, . "K.e*Bh6ugHt, wrts some 1 schehie by which the water at the entrance- would be stirred up, and lie tHoughf" this would; be obtained •by~ making cuts through v the breakwrft^r extension:- He would suggest four cuts, say Ift wide on 1 the :seawfti'diside i aiid 2ft on the river side, ; and extending, jn 'depth from . ; high watefr . to. "Bft below low. water;. The' water wou]d suirge m and out ' through* these .-holes!.-.' cheating considerable stir. ..The suggestion ; .was based on .actual obsei-vations coii'ducted by lumself during lxis as harbormaster, when, m taking the sounding's, lie found there Avas. always deeper water near or abreast' of, the/ cracks or fissues through, the old breakwater. In „.. v the game way if cut^ were opened: through itlie '• e^i'efeipii/..' ; 't^'"..-wMer^^» > 'buld ,Ppur throtiiglv '^nyiiig a depiHecfly beneficial /effect. Wheilier the' su^gestea^ j cbiildCbe/niade or 110t '::■} it wds hot fbrliiijii io ■ say, but ne Suggested ttife JBoard might i experiment waj6h s "'pneVcu€' jnrit and' see the' effect" TH©^atiilifcy /of thf extension., need iibt ; be fjffebiedf.fie tKoxigiht, •as the c^ncrHe -ton could vbe preserved or replaced. . jncidentally Captaih Cumming pointed otit th'rit the fexte'iision of ' tlie breaikv^ater had brought about the actual conditions he iliad warned the Board of, arid) it would? be refcaJled he had strqngly.ctirgeH' the.adoptip'iy of - pile work filled "m with rubble to high'Wdt^r marJv... -This was "for precisely, th{> same purpose- *a# ../the. suggested,^ .' "c.uts" — to create ►af 'stir; and as he : had: I informed the Board; at .the time, he had, actually : seen places ■ where the .; construction of {-'solid'/, coricretepwork had had' to be discontinued and the pile and rubble method adopted. The. only alternative ;tp'. .'the cuts .'he could, see would be ■another extens^qn^. of tHe igi;oyne.