WAIMAKARIRI RIVER.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20603, 2 May 1935, Page 11

WAIMAKARIRI RIVER.

Important Work Done by Tnut. An important work during the past year had been the deepening and widening of the pilot channel In the upper rut of the Walmakariri River, to carry a portion of the river continuously. Htated the chairman of the Walmal:*rirl River Trust (Mr J. H. Blackwell) in his annual report at a meeting of the trust yesterday. Mr Blackwell declared that thla had resulted in a greater volume of water being carried through the cut during floods, considerably lessening flooding of that portion of the Coutta Island Road that ran through the old flood channel. The biggest work undertaken during the year had been the building of the large groyne at Coutts Island. This work, which in its early stages was of a rather hazardous nature, had been successfully completed and had demonstrated its usefulness In stopplrg' the erosion that was threatening the safety of the main embankment on Coutts Island, and the channel was straightening itself out. Policy of Co-operation. In referring to the large amount of work that had been done during the year. Mr Blackwell said the satisfactory result had been substantially due to cooperation with the Unemployment Board. During the year full-time employment for approximately 100 men had been instituted on a subsidy basis. The cost of that labour was £8631, of which the trust found £4141. Apart from that, the trust paid out £39,016 on behalf of the Unemployment Board for men under tha No. 6 scheme. The engineer (Mr H. W. Harris) reported that the number of relief workers at present engaged under No. 6 scheme was 4 58, and the number of men on full time was 47. The Anal stages of erecting the lower end of the southern embankment had been reached.