BOROUGH WATER

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 8, Issue 79, 8 June 1945, Page 5

BOROUGH WATER

QUESTION OF SUPPLY ENGINEERS* REPORTS -SUGGESTIONS PUT FORWARD In a further effort to procure a better water supply for Borough a meeting was held on Tuesday when Mr Ralph P. Worley ? Consulting Engineer of Auckland met Councillors to discuss the position. A full 'discussion on the subject ensued andl many interesting facts were brought to light. the situation with regard to the water supply is as follows: — The origin of the present supply is the river and. although this water is quite fit for hunnn consumption, it is turbulent and dirty on occasions, and the vegetable matter in suspension renders chlorination not so effective as it would otherwise lie. .The Borough Council has for some time recognised the desirability for a system of filtration which would give the townspeople clear water at all times, while the necessity for additional storage tanks has also -come to the fore. The Council has previously had reports from outside experts as well as 'its own officers -on this matter. Gravity Supply Suggested Mr Rupert P. Worley, then Engineer to the Hamilton Borough Council and now Auckland gasworks 'engineer } reported comprehensively to the Council in 1939 on the question of using the water from the Wainui te Whare (Maractotara) Stream for a Borough gravity supply. This matter was also reported >on by the Borough Foreman and Electrical Engineers, followed by a further detailed report this year by Mr D- B. Mansergh, Engineer and Manager to Candy Fiiters Ltd. This latter engineer's estimate respecting

the harnessing of this supply was. £17 000 were the supply to run directly into the present mains and £20,500 were the scheme ol' supply to include a reservoir of live hundred thousand gallons capacity. The estimated cost for necessary -alterations, additional pumping plant and filtration of the present pumping scheme including a 500 UjO gallon reservoir at the Borough outskirts was £23 450. This scheme 5 would involve double pumping thi't iis ? would involve the pumping o! "the river water to the low-level settling tank and a further high level -pumping of the settled anil filtered water. The whole question was discussed by the Council at a special meeting last month when it was apparent that however necessary or desirable the proposals submitted, the cost might be found beyond the present resources of the town. Accordingly ; •with the view to finding if possible, a cheaper method towards the desired end, the Council, at that inciting decided to as'k Mr Ralph W«..rley to meet it and discuss the pro)-. Jems presented. As stated the meeting took place on Tuesday evening when after a full discussion it was decided that Mr Worley should' report further to the Council. Engineer's Report Mr Worley indicated that it was -possible that an expensive scheme •of filtration, might be avoided. He had in mind, the application to the Borough supply or the scheme of settlement similar to that which he was at present installing in the Whakatane Paper Mills- This comprised the addition to> the water in a settling tank of a solution containing alum. The alum floculated and sank to the bottom of the tank, the floculations taking with them any foreign matter in suspension.

The manufacturers of the equipment guaranteed that th; system would reduce the foreign matter in suspension to less than twenty parts tgt one million parts of meaning that any remaining after treatment could not be even under microscopic examination. Mr Worley is to report to the Council on the proposal to harness the Wainui tc Whare and also on the proposal to treat the water at the present pumpihg station. It is anticipated that he will