GOOD RESULTS FROM POLICY OF PRESENT HARBOUR BOARD

Wanganui Chronicle, 4 November 1950, Page 8

GOOD RESULTS FROM POLICY OF PRESENT HARBOUR BOARD

Support lor the policy of the pres- I ent Wanganui Harbour Board, which ! lie said now had an efficient and eco- I nomical dredge, and an engineer who j has fully justified his appointment, | wag expressed bv a member of the board who is seeking re-election, Mr G. G. Burgess, to a meeting of electors on St. John’s Hill. Mr Burgess, referring to the Mullins scheme, said that it was nothing more than a statement that a harbour could be made with river currents at no cost. He said that Mr Mullins claimed he could du ; what no qualified civil engineer had j been able to do in Wanganui for the ; past 50 years. ‘‘Three years ago the board was facing a very difficult position,” said Mr Burgess. “There was a serious break in the South Spit and perhaps one of the worst which has ever happened. With the help of the Ministry of Works’ advice and their engineers and the loan of various plant, a concrete wall was built, which very effectively sealed this breach. The sand which had been washed through by the sea was being carried down into the basin at Castlecliff, and at that time there was no dredge to cope with this. We had no resident engineer and had to depend on the advice of the Ministry of Works’ engineers and a consulting engineer from Greymouth. “Today the position is much different. The South Spit has built up and, in fact, the beach is still building and doe s not give any concern. We have a resident engineer who, in the year he has been with us, has fully justified his appointment, and we have a very excellent dredge. This dredge is doing good work, and during the months it has been working, it has shifted 105,000 tons of spoil from the Castlecliff basin, and the depths of water are now greatly improved. This dredge is very economical and well within the resources of the board. During the next year the position at Castleclift will be trmemendously improved.

“Now for this Mullins scheme. We I appear to have an expert in our midst who states he could create a harbour at practically no cost. I would say that with these powers he could make a fortune for himself in other parts c the world. He claims to be able to do something which no qualified civil engineer has been able to do in Wanganui for the past 50 years. His scheme is to use the river currents; but at the present time we have a strong current running past the town wharf, and yet shoals form and have to be cleared by dredging. “We have the river running past the Imlay wharf, and yet today the smallest lighter cannot get near it. The only way to clear this would be by dredging, as has been done in the past. “Many years ago at Castlecliff, before the basin was formed, the river ran past this wharf, and even then the small lighters lightering meat from the old freezing works were stuck at times, and this had to be dredged. So you can see that it takes more than river currents to keep these wharves clear. But, of course, Mr Mullins claims that he knows more about rivers than any engineer in New Zealand! “The harbourmaster has emphasised many times that if there is any current along the Castleclift* wharf he would be able to swing the ships at present using the port, and so it seems hardly feasible that any larger shiV that Mr Mullins claims he could bring in by using his scheme, would be able to be handled. “Another of the Independents—Mr Healy—recalls the time when large numbers of ships came to the town wharf. He, of course, does not realise that today coastal ships are larger, and that the same tonnage can now be handled by fewer vessels. The river channel today is much the same as it has been for years past. The m.v. Breeze came up last Saturday drawing 12ft. 3in., the deepest draft of any vessel to come to town over the last 15 years, and the deepest draft that, has ever navigated the river was about 13ft. “The present board has always followed sound engineering principles and the future of the port is brighter today than it has been for some years past—that is. of course, if the same policy of following the advice of pronerly Qualified engineers and not that of ‘street corner’ engineers.”