MAINS DUPLICATION.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 798, 22 April 1910, Page 8

MAINS DUPLICATION.

DISTRIBUTING RESERVOIR. A "CONFIDENTIAL" REPORT DIVULGED. 1 A heated debate occurred at the City Council meeting last night, when the following recommendations of the Finance Committee were under consideration:—

"The committee have to report that they have received from the city engineer a report on the question of the duplication of the Wainui-o-mata water main, and they recommend that the report be printed and circulated to members of the council, with a view to its being considered at a future meeting. They have also to recommend that the council should approach the Government .by deputation to urge that the Orongorongo Forest Reserve be set apart as a Water Reserve for all time."

The Mayor (Dr. Newman) moved tho adoption of these' recommendations. For a long time, he said, the council been considering whether it would not be necessary to construct a second line of pipes to Wainui, for the conveyance or water to the city. ■It was felt that such a large city should not be dependent, for its water supply, on a single line of pipes. An estimate had been drawn up some yeaTs ago, and it w.as then considered that the duplication would cost £320,000. The scheme was now considerably modified, by the city engineer, and he (the Mayor) hoped that the council would agree to it. However, councillors would have an .opportunity later on of discussing the whole scheme. The engineer recommended that a 21-in. main should be constructed from Wainui Hill to the city.; It would not be necessary to duplicate the 30-in. pipe through the tunnel, and the proposed 21-in. main would be constructed alongside the present, main over the pipe bridges to the city. It was part of the engineer's proposals that, in-the vicinity of Nairn Street, -a reservoir should be constructed, to hold 2,000,000 gallons. The total cost of the scheme would be £80,000, which was a great reduction on' the previous proposal. There was one important difference in the two schemes. By building another , , reservoir,, the city, water supply, was, protected 1 against an' earthquake or other catastrophe. There would be the reservoir at Karori, aha subsidiary reservoirs -. at Northland, Wadesiown, Newtown. Kilbirnie, and other places. With the proposed new reservoir to store 2,000,000 gallons, the water supply would be protected in the event of a wash-out of the pipes. The reservoir could be filled at night. In his opinion, Mr. Morton had accomplished a very able work indeed. The Mayor dwelt oh the seriousness of a water famine, and the possibility that would -come with it of damage by fire, and stoppage of the sewerage system. / The water-supply question was' troubling all big cities, and London was about-to bring water all the way from Wales. ■: The. engineer had pointed out', he continued, that the amount of water to be.obtained from.:the -AVainui Stream was limited, and the time would come* when it would be necessary to go to Orongorongo for a supplementary supply. The engineer was at present engaged taking levels, for the purpose of tapping that river later on. It was highly desirable that a treaty should be entered into preserving the Orongorongo area as a permanent reserve. The whole life of the city depended upon a good water-supply, and he hoped the citizens l would snortly approve of raising an £80,000 loan. As interest' and sinking fund, £4000 a year would be required; but probably the council would be able to manage tho £4000 without increasing ,, the rates. Councillor Deviue .'• seconded the motion, and pointed out that the con- 1 tents of this- "confidential" report had been published in.the papers before l it had been circulated among councillors. If the practice was continued—a practice that had frequently been complained of —he would think seriously of retiring from-committees on which certain councillors sat, wJio, he believed, were disclosing the., information to the press. The next thing, he said, would be that false' statements would bo published of the remarks of councillors in committee meetings, and he would strongly object to any ■ misrepresentation. It . : was "low, and mean, and scandalous" for councillors to give these reports to tho press. Councillors denied that l they gave this-information, but how did tho facts come-to be published? Councillor Ballinger said that Councillor Devine had made an assertion and he had contradicted himself. He had said that councillors had divulged the report, and at the same time he admitted that councillors had not had the report in their possession. How, then, could they give it to the reporters? ■', ■

Councillor Devine: They gave the information. What appeared was not the leport, but the substance of it, which any councillor could easily carry in his head. He who excuses himself accuses himself. ' ■<

Councillor Cohen asked what would be the use of printing the report now that it had been published? . Councillor Trevor considered that iif councillors were to-blame their conduct was reprehensible. There- be some statement of explanation from councillors or from the. officers.

Councillor Fletcher did not think that any councillor would have divulged the contents of the report to the press. He expressed himself favourably on the engineer's proposals,, and hoped. . that the work would be undertaken without delay. = . . >.

Councillor Smith considered, that the scheme drawn up by the city engineer would be the salvation of the city. Councillor Fitzgerald said that .he had been surprised to, see in the papers a full report, which could not have been carried by any councillor in his head. Two days later he had received the same report marked "confidential." Hβ was prepared to say that the blame ought to be attached, not to a councillor, but to some officer of the council.

.Councillor Hindmarsh urged that a large amount of the matter, contained in committees' reports—such as tramway returns —heed, not be treated as confidential. Whether a councillor or an officer had been to blame he.could not say. He considered that more care should be used in marking the reports "confidential," and the press would discriminate, and would not publish anything the publication of which they thought would not be in the interests of the city. Councillor Frost considered that the town clerk", should hold an exhaustive inquiry into the divulging of the information and report to the council, because both councillors and officers were at present under suspicion. In reply, the Mayor said that he had been very much annoyed at the publication of committee matters, especially reports of the Finance and Tramways Committees, of which he was chairman. If he were not going out of office almost immediately he would be inclined to move in the direction of having no committee business regarded as confidential. "After a year in the Mayoral chair," concluded Dr. Newman, "I am prepared to say that I absolutely trust the officers of this 'council." (Hear, hear.) . The motion was adopted. ■'