WESTPORT

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2159, 27 May 1914, Page 16

WESTPORT

JVestport Harbour of to-day dates back to 1880, when the late Sir John Coode outlined a scheme for improving the entrance to the Buller River'. The * average depth of water on tho bar at the mouth of the river was then about 11 feet. The entranco was constantly changing, and on one memorable occasion tho river took a new course ,and swept the v/hole business portion of old jWestport right out to. soa. When Sir John Coodo made his report the coal tiado was in its infancy. The river in its'. natural. state was easily, the most workable on tho coast, but even so- shipping was much hampered bv the-vagar-ies of tho bar. . * . . .": For the improvement of the port Sir ' John Coode advised the construction of < two breakwaters or moles'at .the'. entrance of the river, with internal training banks. The present works at the ' port aro substantially on .the lines laid down in this report*. The entrance-is 100 feet wider than was originally proposed, tho stone- for the works was drawn from a different locality, 1 and the lines of tho internal training walls were, slightly altered. In the estimate' accompanying his report,: ;SirvJohn Coodo dealt only with the cost of tho east and west breakwaters, which ho put as under:— ■West breakwater £266,400 East breakwater _ 172,366 ' Total L....:.;...... £438,766 The Wcstport Harbour Board was incorporated in 1884, and tho work of port improvement was immediately put in hand. The result of tho board's' efforts has been that tho depth of water at high water spring tidos is 24 feet on tho bar and 24 feet in tho river. Vessels have left the port drawing 20 feet IS inches at spring tides, and frequently load to 19 feet at neap -tides. Spring tidos rise 10 feet; neap-tides 5 feet ti inches approximately. ' ' Tho board has constructed the - west breakwater to the point'in the sea as originally designed. The east-break-water has been constructed to a point 600 feet further to sea than designed by Sir John ■ Coodo, and raised to full height for 1300 feet. In a recent report the secretary of the board, Mr. C. N. Greenland, stated that tho total cost' of these two breakwaters was £310,452, or £128.314 less than the original estimate. The internal training walls have been built at a cost of £102,959; making the total cost of theso works £413,411. In addition the board has spont £00,833 on tho railway to the quarries at Cape Foulwind and.£ls,ooo on the bridge carrying the lino across the river. Before the board came into existence tho Government had construsted a line of, railway to the Ngakawau River, 19 miles from AVestport, to tap tho coalfields, and had also equipped the port with wharves nnd coal staiths. ■ The board was endowed with tho proceeds of th(! railway, less working oxpensos. By a special Act of Parliament mado in 1880 it was empowered to continue the railway from its terminus ■ at Ngaltawau, and this was done, the lino being taken to tho Mokihiiiui, at a cost of . £37,287. Tho plant; and equipment of tho whole lino has cost £163.292; tho wharves, Btailhs. ek'., £107,ol8; or a total of £308,097, on which sum the board has been, nnd is now 'ijaying, interest. The railway, which has a total length of 31

miles is opbrated by tho Railway De-. partment. ,Tho expenditure on its construction by tho. Government up to the constitution of tho board was £145,511, and this amount is being gradually paid back to tho from a special rate on coal shipped from the port. The amount collected since the imposition of this rato in 1902 to December, 1912/ n-a5,£18,983. The board's revenue from tho Westport-Jlokihinui railway in 1912 amounted to over £67,000. Besides this substantial endowment, the board also owns the freeholdof all the land on tho west sido of Wcstport'e main thoroughfare, Palmerston Street. Its total revenue from its endowments runs into something "over £100,000, having gradually increased from £8000 odd in 1885.

.. Tho works as carried out have.resulted in a greater increase in the depth of water than was anticipated by Sir John Coodo in his report of 1880. The actual •results us compared with tho etsimato

compare as under:— *■ .' ■ Depth at Entrance. , Sir . ..- ', '••' ' J. Coode's Actual , , ', ~','■ estimate, result. ' ;'•' ■; . . ft. in. ft. in] Low water spring. tides 12 0 15 6 Low water neap tides 15 0 17 0 High water spring tides 23 4 25 6 High water/ neap tides 20 6 21 G Tho figures, it will bo noted, in every, instance show, an improvement beyond that expected. . , ■•'. ~ ' '.. The port and railway- equipment at the present-time is equal to an outpiit of 30,000..t0ns per week,, or-1,560,000 tons per,year... Theexport of coal last year was 638,755 tons,. and" in 1912 821,511' tons". The hoard, however, is looking towards the' future development of the Buller. coalfields and the appearance of, a large'.class' of .vessel visiting the pdrt'fbr trade beyond Now Zealand.

It recently procured another up-to-date coal-loading crane at a cost ot £3500; it has built the eastern breakwater to bring its end 250 feet in advance of the end of tho western breakwater; and it has started work in connection with the floating basin mentioned in his report by Sir John Coodo as desirable for the accommodation of vessels, out of harm's way in flood time. The recent Royal Commission did hot, however, see eye to eye with tho board on this and a number of other points, and the future of tho work is at the present moment a matter of some uncertainty. Tho floating basin when completed will comprise an area of 43 acres, with a depth of 26 feet at low- water spring tides. Tho portion of the ' work .which the board has begun is intended to give .room.to deal with six large steamers drawng 24 feet'loaded. ':,'-.

The extenson of the eastern breakwater has not been as successful as was anticipated, and the , board like-lately been considering '.the. advisability of extending the .western breakwater 250 feet bo-as, to''bring it level with the other. In a. report on the subject, Mr.'G.B. Sinclair, tho. present acting-engineer, 'said'the'extension of the east wall had '.'not ■materially increased tho depth on the bar, and an outer bar, at least 1000 foot seaward of the west-tip head, has been formed, with only about a foot more water, than is found on the inner bar, which is usually just outside the west tip.-The prevailing westerly seas havo also -full play against the river side of the east wall, and are reflected up the river to the inconvenience of snipping in heavy weather, and to tho hindrance of dredging operations. Mr. Sinclair recommends that the 'extension of tho wall should bo put in hand at once, and estimates the cost at £40,906. The board's gross revenue in 1912, including a balance in hand of £133,354 at the oponing of the year, amounted to £234,939. The expenditure was £122,001,- thus leaving a credit balance- of ■£112,878. ' ' ■ Tho Harbour Board at present is composed of tho following membere: — Messrs. F. F. Munro (chairman), H. Gillen, J. H. Greenwood, G, Griffiths, J. H. Powell, J. Scanlon, and W. K. Simpson. Mr. O. N. Greenland is secretary and treasurer; Mr. 6. B. Sinclair, acting-engineer; and Captain 11. Punieaiix, harbourmaster.