HYDRO-ELECTRICITY.

Taranaki Daily News, 12 August 1921, Page 5

HYDRO-ELECTRICITY.

THE POSITION IN ELTHAM. At a meeting of the Eltharn Chamber of Commerce this week Mr. Carman stated that what had, in the first place, promised to be a help in promoting the interests of the whole of Taranaki had now become a “Taranaki” League in name only, it being dominated I by the views of the Stratford Borough ' representatives. As the meeting was ’ probably aware the Hydro-electric Comi mittee originally set up by the Chamber of Commerce had met Mr. L. ernment electrical engineer, and on his advice had called a meeting of representatives of all local bodies and dairy companies in the Stratford, Eltharn, Inglewood and Whangamomona Counties, and i Eltharn and Inglewood boroughs, and Kaponga Town Board. A representative meeting was held at Stratford, and the result was the appointment of a committee with instructions to endeavor to form an electrie power board comprising Eltharn County and Borough, Stratford. Inglewood and Whangamomona Counties. Considerable opposition, led by the members of the Stratford Progressive League 'Executive, had been shown to the proposals, the league advocating one large board for the whole of Taranaki. This, said Mr. Carman, was impossible, as New Plymouth absolutely declined to allow their works to be taken over, and the Kaponga Town Board, which had a very up-to-date little plant, and was adding to it, objected to being included. Inglewood Borough had already contracted with New Plymouth for the supply of electricity, which left Stratford with a worn-out, antiquated plant, as the only advocate of the “one big board scheme.” Of course the league was getting a certain amount of support from certain other portions of Taranaki; but, owing to their attitude to the committee who had the formation of the proposed board in hand several local bodies and dairy companies had withdrawn from the league, feeling that they should not find the money for the league to use in opposing tlie formation of a board that they were supporting. Further south, Hawera and Batea, were in negotiation with the promoters of the Karioi scheme, and in the end would probably join with that board. The proposal of the present committee was to take current from New Plymouth, reticulating and deliver ing all the way from Inglewood to the Eltharn County south boundaries. The board at first would be purely a purchasing and distributing one, and it would depend on the report of their engineer if development works were undertaken. It was intended that the fairly large board proposed should be the nucleus of a much larger board as electrical energy, either by development or purchase, became available, and with that idea in mind the committee were

asking the authorities to allow them to be known as the “Taranaki Electric