SANITARY CONDITION OF THE BOROUGH.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8186, 18 July 1906, Page 5

SANITARY CONDITION OF THE BOROUGH.

REPORT BY THE SANITARY INSPECTOR. The Sanitary Inspector (Mfw!"K Cullen) submitted the following report on the sanitary condition of the borough to the meeting of the Masterton Borough Works Committee last evening:— The number of places visited in the whole of the borough, including all places of -business or private dwellings, total 1,045. The number of notices issued to abate nuisances and conform with by-laws is 145. Fowl-houses in most of the streets outside No. 1 distriot are built on to boundary fences, and in most oases a nuisance to the next neighbour, and where sued existed, they were ordered to be removed at once, and to conform with the same by-law as in No. 1 distriot. I also think it would be no great hardship on anyone that wants to keep fowls to have the same by-law in force, as in No. 1 district, over the whole of the borough. There are now, or were, thirteen different places where pigs are kept, and notices were given to have them done away with at once. I may say in most of the oases the pigs were no nuisance to anyone as they were a long way from any neighbour and on big sections and kept clean. The by-law might be relaxed in some oases. There are several stables in the borough not in accord with by-law. In every case notice has been given to conform with it; also where staoks of manure existed notice to have it removed at once was given, and in most oases complied with. In all oases where old tins, cases, and dry rubbish existed in back yards—not an immediate danger to health but uasightly—notioea were given to have the same removed; also in some to have the yards gravelled and filled up and made decent. In all oases of overhanging trees and hedges notices have teen given to have them cut back to fence line, and trees, wherß too high, to be out down to, say, 25ft from the ground, on the side of the road. That keeps the sun off the road. Where stagnant pools existed, suob as at sale yards, notices have been sent to have them filled uo with gravel. Incases where the earthen gully traps have been put in too low and no cement rims on top, notice has been given to have them raised for the reason that the waste outlets flow over the too and into the yard, or run under the houße, thereby creating a nuisanoe; also to illow of the yard being gravelled from time to time when required. These remarks apply to a number of the first that were put in. and not as now, all outlets being set to a proper guage so as no overflow can take place. Where down pipes of house* have been running into the borough sewer, notices have been given to have them removed at once. In all oases that came under my notice I saw that they were removed. We have, lam sure, found over one hundred leaky taps in the borough, and in most oases they were tenement houses and the landlord or agent had to be notified of same. But I may here state that the number is considerably reduced now, and by keeping them uo to it there need be no anxiety on that score any more than regular visit* to all places where b.p. water is on. In only one case of a blooked drain have I bad to send notice of this kind of breaoh, and it was remedied at once to, 1 believe, the satisfaction of the Borough Engineer. There is a considerable amount of rubbish deposited in and along the Waipoua River bed in places from one end of the borough boundary to the other, and it is a diffloult matter to detect the offenders unless a man is told off to watoh from time to tide. Notices are being erected in two of the most likely places for such to happen, also a sharp look-out will be kepc to see who does it. One case of diphtheria was reported to me. It was a child. One case of scarlet fever was ported.