LAKES CONTINUE TO FALL

Chronicle (Levin), 11 April 1947, Page 8

LAKES CONTINUE TO FALL

WELLINGTON, April 10. Efforts to conserve water in Lalce Taupo and Lalce Waikaremoana are not meeting with success. Lalce Taupo which has been falling at the rate oi .05 feet per day for some time, dropped by double that amount yesterday and at Lalce Waikaremoana a fall in level of .1 feet was the lirst fall for some time. To m-eet the demand for power j^he , State Hydro-Eleetrfc Department has had f.o recommence siphoning at Lake Waikaremoana and . at the same time has not been able to give desired relief to the generation at Arapuni. Tuesday was the lirst occasion that siphoning had been, neeessary for more than a weelc. There was no rain yesterday at Lake Taupo and the .08 inehes that fell .at Lake Waikaremoana was of no more use. than a heavy due. "We are t lying to give relief to Arapuni and to store water at Lake Taupo but we are not able to do so with the present demand," the official stated.' "We have, in fact, had to recommence siphoning at Lake Waikaremoana to increase the power output due to the demand." Mangahao 's Dry Spell The official traced the necessity to eontinue to draw so niuch water from Lalces Taupo and Waikaremoana to the continued long dry conditions at Lake Mangahao, the lack of water there being a big' contributing faetor in the general shortage. "With a good slipply. of water Mangahao is capable of producing 8,000,000 units a week but from the end of January to the end of Mareh that station has given. only slightly less than 750,000 units awoelc," he said. The coal stations at King 's Wharf, Auckland, and Evans Bay have had improved coal deliveries but neither station is able to produce to its maximuni output. "WUen Karapiro is on test the power | generated is fed into The North Island s^ystem but that supply is intermittent and srnail at present," said the official. "Karapiro will be of no material help to the situation until it is able to operate on full commerciui load at the conipletion of ail tests. At present .it is not known when that will be."