PUBLIC WORKS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 61, 6 December 1918, Page 6

PUBLIC WORKS

[.ANNUAL STATEMENT |;' V- A SMALL YEAR .. j DEVELOPMENT OF WATER !; «POWER I THE LACK OF LABOUR K' ~— j' The Public AYorks Statement was pre- •' spntwl to tho House of Representatives 1 . last night by the Minister in charge of ,'• ■ tho Depnrtment (Sir William Eraser). !!' Following is an abridgment of the ! Statement r— : ' The difficulty 1 anticipated of being ; | able to procure a sufliciont supply of ; i labour whilst tho war lasted was. t regret j■ to say, only too manifest during last j, year. Indeed, as time when en it be- ! , came increasingly accentuated. The fact j j that on March 31, 1918, the unexpended ! [ authorities in the hands of local bodies ' '. and of the officers of my Department I amounted to £209,962 for roads and I bridges alone clearly proves that it was ; ' the scarcity of labour and material, and ! not of money, which accounted for only j £135,642 having been expended during j the financial year on such work. j . Happily tho war is now brought to a 'victorious conclusion, but'a considerable | period must almost necessarily, elapse ! ./before wo can hope to see any hppreci- ; able number of our soldiers back in New ! . Zealand. Should this period piove -to f i bo shorter than is at present anticipated -, I have made ample provision, both on i . tho estimates and in the Public Works [ J'und, to.ensure that work will bo nvnili.Jnble for all who need it. In tho nicani time no appreciable increase, of rate of > expenditure win be expected. J'.'V I regret to say that the damajro r-'tusod ! to roads and bridges bv Hood during ; • the past year has again b?en very serij'.'oiis. In every instance, however, subi stantial assistance has been given to the ; local bodies whose districts were affected. ;'! The financial results for the past year j • from the operations of the lake Cole- ; ridge electric works are particularly sat- ; isfactory. Notwithstanding the fact ; that this undertaking is still incomplete ' the revenue earned during the year from i.i+he sale of electric power has more than ■■; sufficed to defray all costs of admiriisI: tration, including interest on capital out- : lay, as well as providing a portion n f tho , amount required to be set aside for a ;/. depreciation fund. This work has ! passed beyond the experimental stage, ; ; and is now an exceedingly valuable asset. : The above result is an object-lesson as to ; what may be expected from similar un- • dertakings in other part* of the llominf ioru The sum of .£150,000 is provided for i iinitiatory work on the'proposed Auckland i and Wellington schemes, details of ' which win be found in the Chief Elpr- ., tricnl Engineer's snecial report on this ; Bubject.

i/' Total Expenditure, ! I _The following table shows tho brief pnr--1 jticulars of the expenditure of the'year, ! and also the total under tacli class of ; work from the inauguration of the public ; Trorks-policy up to Marcli 31 last:— ! Expenditure Total for year Expen- ; ended ditu.reto i M'ch 31, M'ch 31, : Class of Work. 1918. 1918. ! Railways- £ £ ! New construction ...... 295 , ,009 23.471.955 \ Additions to op9n lines 200 162 9,739,008 : ; Roads ..'. .' 135,0-12 11,396,140 ji-'Public buildings 229,288 7,094,902 jl Immigration 3,856 2,342,128 v Purchase of Native lands — 2,061',900 ; Lighthouses, harbour works, and harbour' l' defences 2.976 1,143,051 ' Tourist and health resorts -■....'....'.-; '. 931 259.440 ■ Telegraph extension .'.. 117,266 3.324,938 i Development of mining 27 '889,496 . Defence works (general) 6,714. 1,043,691 ; Departmental 127,962 1,319,951 ;, Development of water i power : ; '.. — ' $ | Irrigation, and water i; supply : 11,650 '32,055 ; Payment to Midland j ; "Railway bondholders... — 150,000 ! 'Lands'improvement .... 1,838 139,605 ; :Minor works and seri'i vices — 312,607 1 riant, material, and ; . stores „ 6,811 91,007 ; Cost and discount, raising loans, etc 1 1,253,073 i' ! ~ 1,140,733 68,065,709 I. iWellington-Hutt Rail- ; way and Road Improvement Account— ;' Railway .....v.. - 228,374 j,'. Road ' - 101,658 J'l Railways Improvement :,... Account - 641,275 i i Railways '. Improvement Authorisation. Act, ;.':-19U, Account 111,721* 477,072 ; i Loans to Local Bodies ;;. Account—Roads to ,i\ open-up Crown lands — 697,408 !'Opening up Crown ;| -Lands for Settlement .'. ■ Account—Roads to ■ '''• open up Crown lands — 206,626 ! Land for Settlements ■ • Account—Roads to -■-open up Crown lands 43,396 209,675 i National Endowment !. Account—Roads .to :. -open up endowment !• lands - 53,401 ; !Ald to Water-power ; Works and Electric i Supply Account 9,835 387,518 \ Irrigation and Wateri,- supply Accoumt — 115,000 ['iWfljhou and Ohinemuri •. Rivers Improvement ,' Account 12,025 64,617 ' Telegraph Extension Acp count 08.689 300,000 1,414,999 71,548,333 * Including cost of raising loan. ;•■ J Now transferred to Electric Supply ' 'Account.. ; Ways and Means. ; £ On April 1, 1917, the available ways and means for publio works : purposes were .' 521,525 And further funds were rc- ' ceived as under:— i Under the Aid bo Public Works and Land Settlement Act, I 1914 :•• 45.100 i Under Finarjfcs Act, 1916, Section 49 700,000 ! Under Finance Act, 1917, Sec- ■ tion 77 125,000 . ' Othor receipts and recoveries... 44,648 I Making a gross total 0f... 1,436.273 i The ordinary expenditure- of : the year amounted to .431,140,732, I plus the expenses of raising loans ! £1, thus bringing the total dis- ■ i bursements up to 1,140,733 ' This left, ii balance to the i credit of Wavs and Means Ac- ;■ count at March 31, 1918. of 295,540 ; For the current year it .is pro- • posed to provide additional funds as under:— In terms of Section 77, Finance •-, Act, 1917 '. 725,000 Under Finance Act, 1918 2,500,000 • Jinking the total wnys and means for 1918-19 3,520,540

I The estimated expenditure for public works foT the current year (exchulinff separate accounts having their rvrn trays : nnd means) amounts to &AMAM: leavi Ing an estimated balance of Jil.flfilUSO to i be carried forward to next year (191!)-2<tt. | In addition fo the amounts described I above we have authority to raise the ' following sums:— Under the Aid in WaterPower Works Act. Win ,£7(1,000 i Under the Wuihou and ' Ohinemuri Hirers Jm- ! . prowmont Act, 1910 ... .K0..000 i: Railway Construction, ! ' Four short sections were opened for I traffic during the year, and construction i work has been carried on with all the i labour available at eleven different i places. Supplies of rails, steel, and ' hardwood timber for bridges have been ! practically unobtainable owing to conI ditions diie to tho war, and tho absence ! with tho Expeditionary .Forces of morb

than half of tho Department's engineers lias had the effect of delaying 6ome of the location and survey work, which must be done in advance of construction. Tho following sections were cirapletcd and handed over to the Railway Department for traffic during the past ywir:Paerntn to Patumahoo, 4m. <ch. ('Decern', her 10, 1917); Mntawni to Motuhora, 4m. 78ch. (November 26, 1917); Whangamomona to Kohuratahi, 4m. 53ch. (January 7. 1918); Ohnkune to Raetihi, Bm. 53eh. (December 18, 1917). Total, 23 miles 31 chains. Besides which the CulverdcnWaian Extension (13 miles) and Clyde ro Cromwell section <12-V miles) nr.p sufficiently advanced to permit of train services being run daily over their whole rcsnective lengths. Th total expenditure on railway construction and- improvement work during the last financial yoar amounted to £607,491, as under :- £ Construction nf new lines 2!)5,609 Additions to open lines 200,162 Railways Improvement Account 111,720 The following is a summary of the works'which have been in progress during the year j'k 1 : closed:—" Stratford Main Trunk. At the western end the length from Whnwrnmomona to Kohuratahi, 4 miles 53 chains, was completed and handed over to the Railway Department for traffic-on •January 7 last. Work has been in progress during the year over the 5lnile section Jo Tahora Station, earthwork being nearly finished, rails laid, and Hue partly ballasted to within dialf a mile of the'station site. Beyond Tahora the lino is being laid out with a view to the vigorous prosecution of construction work when financial and labour conditions return to the normal.

The heavy works on the IOJ-mile section from Ohokura to Matiere hnvo benn kept fairlv well manned throwrhout the year. The concrete work on the 'bridge which is to carry road and railway over the Ongarue River is finished', but some time must elnpse before the stpal superstructure enn be built, owing to the impossibility-of obtaining mnterinlß. The Okahu Tunnel was taken out of the contractor's hands on June 20. 1917, since When the excavation has been carried on by the Department with a small number of men. Better progress is looked for j.n the future. The other works on the section are not heavy, and will rrivo little concern once Hip oompletion of the Ongnrue Bridge and Okahu Tunnel is in sight. For the present construction work is not in progress beyond Matiere. Opunake Branch. The construction of piers for the large bridge which is to carry the line over the Wamgongoro Paver has advanced steadily after overcoming some difficulties with the foundations. Plant and concrete material Ins been brought on to the site in readiness for the resumption of construction. when suitable labour is availEarthworks are practically finished to ICanuni, seven miles from the junction point, but work was suspended at the ond of December last, and there seems to lie no immedinte prospect of its bnng resumed. The staff has benn transferred to other works for the present. Midland Line. Work at both ends of Arthur's Pass Tunnel has been in progress throughout the year with decreasing numbers of workmen, and after nearly eleven years of effort the bottom heading met on* Julv 20 last at a point 1 mile 37 chains from'the eastern portal on the Bealey side. It is to the credit of -the engineers under whose control the work was carried out that there vas a difference of only about lin. in the alignment, and somewhat less in the levels, when tho tunnel was pierced. I had the privilege of formally breaking the rock barrier at the meeting point on August 21, in the rres».iee of representative citizens from tho Canterbury and Westland provinces. The enlaraemont and lining of the tunnel is still far from completion, and while war conditions nrevail but little process can be made with the development of electrical energy for use in hauling trains through tho tunnel and over the mountain sections' on either side. Total Appropriations for Railway Construction. In addition to the votes for construction of specific lines of railway an appropriation of ,£SOO is required to provide for old land claims and other liabilities on construction account, £1000 for surveys of projected new lines of railway, and £80,000 for permanent -way material. The total vote proposed this year for railway construction amounts to £485,000. Other Railway Works. The expenditure out of the' Public \\ orks Fund under the heading "Additions to Open Lines" amounted to .£200,162. Of this sum, £149,081 was expended in the provision of additional rolling stock, Westinghouso brake equipment steam-heating gear, and workshops machinery. The balnnce covered expenditure upon improvements to station accommodation and yards; additions to workshops, tablet, telegraph, and telephone facilities, interlocking, improvements to whnves and bridges, and purchase of land. Minos, The total allocations under this head last year amounted, to £28,4-58, on account of which a vote of £20,200 was taken. The actual expenditure . during the year, however, amounted to £6912 only, as it was decided to hold over the expenditure or all vote except those for urgent works.

The expenditure under this head was quite small, viz., £72-and against this there was a credit of £45, thus leaving the net amount at £27 only. A vote of £1450 is proposed to be taken this year. ' Public Buildings, The total amount voted and expended on construction of public buildings during the last financial year amounted to.— New buildings (Class XVIII, -Public Works Fund), voted, £310,910; expended £229,288. Eor the current year an appropriation of £648,500 for new buildings is proposed. ■ . General. Slow but steady progress is being made by the contractors with the erection of tho new Parliament Buildings, parts of which have been prepared for occupation during the present session. No general Departmental buildings of any magnitude have been commenced during the year. Additions to the Government Printing Olfico were completed, and there was some expenditure upon the conversion of tho old post office building, Auckland, and Dunedin police station into offices for various Departments. Police Stations. ■ The new headquarters station at Wellington was completed, and is now occupied by tho Police Head Office staff and officers formerly located in' Lambton Quay Station, which has been converted for use by other Departments. Additions to tho Auckland Central Station were comploted, and the erection of new sta-, tions at Oamaru and Wairoa put in hand. A site for a new station at Lower Hutt was purchased. Prisons. At Auckland prison internal exercise yards havo been completed, a workshop built, and the excavation of building stono and road metal carried on as usual. At Waikeria the erection of an administrative division has been carried on vigorously, .dairy building and cottages erected. The formation of tho new road from Waimarino to Roto-Aira has been carried forward ns well as the inclement weather experienced in tho locality would permit. Tho erection of tho new prison at Paparua is advancing steadily despite tho difficulty of obtaining building material. A temporary cell block has been erected to accommodate tho prisoners employed on the permanent work. A varied programme of works lias been carried out at Invercargill, including boundary and internal' walls, the manufacture of concrete poles, erection of dairy buildings, and development of reclamation work in the estuary. Prison labour is utilised for all the works mentioned, and stono or concreto blocks produced by the prisons are largely utilised for the building works. Mental Hospitals. At Poriima the new receiving home and hospital, a separate building at some distance from the main institution, is 'completed, has been furnished and is now in occupation. The pipes arc being laid to convey the septic tank effluent of the institution into the harbour. Ths Mitchell property, a farm of 110 ncree, adjoining the hospital estate, has been purchased, with buildings, which have been adapted for staff accommodation. Hospitals. Owing to the great increase in tho cost of building works nothing was undortaken during the year beyond minor neces-

snry works and the acquisition of sites. New buildings for St. Helens hospitals are contemplated at Auckland, Christchurch, and Dunedin, but probably only that for Christchurch will be commenced during the current year. In consequence of arrangements made with the Dcfonco authorities in connection with the treatment of soldiers, extensivebuildings which were proposed at Otaki and Te Waikato Sanatoria are not now necessary, although some expenditure at both places will have to be incurred. Workers' Dwellings, There was an expenditure of ,£15,505 during the year under this beading, also a liability of £95 for dwellings in course of erection. Expenditure during the current year will bo on a similar moder-' ate sealo. School Buildings. Tho expenditure out of tho Publio Works Fund on school buildings was jeG3,OS2 out of a vote of £100,500. Of this amount, £55,000 was paid to education _ boards and other controlling authorities for the erection of new buildings, additions, etc., for the purposes of primary, secondary, technical, and university education. The balance, ,£BOOO, represents the cost of i-orks carried out directly under the control of the Government, iucluding native schools and industrial and special schools. For the current year a much larger sum will be needed. .During the past four years, the cost of buildings being abnormally high, cper.itions havo been confined to cases where extra accommodation was absolutely necessaiy to carry on, and as a consequence a largo sum is required to provide for buildings tho erection of which can no longer bo postponed. Increased votes are being provided for buildings for public schools, technical schools, secondary schools, and university buildings. Applications for sums amounting to over £400,000, including grants made during the current year, are now before the Education Department, and provision for this sum has been made. Telegraph Extension. Eeliable telegraph and telephone services havo been maintained turoughout the year. Tho telephone exchange system is steadily expanding. Thirteen new exchanges were opened during the yertr, and it was found necessary to provide additional switchboard accommodation at twenty-eight others. The work uf converting earth-working systems to metallic circuit is being systematically continued. The increase in the number of exchange connections for the year is 49-10. The telegraph and internrban telephone system has been extended by the erection of 121 miles of poles and 653 miles of wire. Included in the latter is 42 knots of submarine cable laid from Titahi Hay to Dieffonbach Point in Queen Charlotte Sound; JOS miles of poles and 12,330 miles of wire were added to the telephone exchange plant; 1735 miles of telegraph and intorurban telephone lines ii-sre overhauled and reconstructed. Twenty-six nev coin-in-tho-slot telephones were installed. This niakes a total for the Dominion of 263 machines. The policy of providing for telephone exchange subscribers' circuits by means of underground cable is being continued, and during the year cables were laid providing for 7930 miles of wire. Irrigation, Works in connection with the important sclieme to serve the Ida Valley, in Central Otago, were restricted to the improvement of two main races, and the old Bonanza race was put into working order. Water was supplied ,to settlers in parts of tho valley during the. summer, and temporary arrangements were made to supply several settlers on the Ualolway Flat from the Manorburn dam. The scheme .which is to supply the country between Alexandra and- Clyde from the Manuhorikia Kiver was advanced as far as the available supply of labour would permit. The tunnel at the intake in the river gorge is being driven steadily, and the headings are now only a few chains apart. Very little in -the way of race construction could be accomplished during the year, but it is hoped that better progress will be possible during the coining summer. • A small scheme to serve the recently subdivided Bcnmore run, between the Waitaki River and its main tributary the Almriri, was undertaken during the year and carried practically- to completion. Development of Water-Power. The general disorganisation of business caused by the prolonged war has to some degree affected the Lake 1 Coleridge powersupply scheme. The volume of business booh outgrew the capacity of the original 6000 horse-power plant, and in 1916 another unii of 2000 horse-power was installed, which helped to keep the supply level with the demand for a time. It soon became evident, however, that more generating machinery would he required, and in May, 1916, an additional unit of 4090 horse-power was ordered, besides steel plates for a third pipe line to feed the turbine. The turbine has been delivered, but there has been great delay in England over the manufacture of tho generator, an dhte latest advices ore that it may abe expected early in 1909. The steel plates for the pipe line have been held up by the Minister of Munitions in Great Britain and taken over for urgent shipbuilding purposes. Repeated attempts have been' made to obtain from the authorities in England a priority certificate to permit of the manufacture and export of the plates, but so far without success.

The business is still growing, and applications for most of the 4000 horse-power of the additional plant have already been received. It is probable that in the near future the growing demand will call for the installation of still another generating unit at Lake Coleridge, which will about exhaust the capacity of the present headworks at the lake.

The capital expenditure now amounts to .£389,754, including £14,320 interest on capital during construction; the gross revenue during (ho year amounted to £32,092, and tho working expenses to £14,149, leaving a abalance to net revenue account ot £1/,6J3. Decluctini; interest charges amounting 0..£14,871, there remains _ a balance of £2772 towards depreciation. Having regard to tho fact that this is only the third year of working, and also that tho growth of the business has been checked for the last two years because of the difficulty experienced in getting machinery, the result is to bo regarded as a most satisfactory one. During the year investigations have been made of suitable sources of supply for current to haul trains through the Arthur's Pass Tunnel, the completion of which is now within measurable distance. Alternative schemes have been evolved for carrying th© train service through tho tunnel only, and over considerable lengths of the mountain section of railway on both eastern and western sides, but no definite decision has yet been reached as to which scheme will be adopted. The provision of an adequate general supply of power for the North Island has engaged tho attention of the electrical engineering staff throughout the year, and preliminary investigations of possible sources, as well as of prospective demand, indicate that tho most effective means of meoting tho requirements of the community will be the development of three main schemes in different parts of the island. Mangahao and either the Awapuni Gorge or tho Aratiatin Rapids, both on the Waikato River, offer prospects which make their selection practically certain, to be followed lalcr by linking up with Waikaremoann. Investigations as to the volume of power ,-ivaibible at all three locations have been made, and. surveys of routes for transmission lines from the sources to the main centre of demand aro in progress. Much valuable information is being compiled to facilitate arrival nt a definite decision as to the host order in which schemes for tho North Tsland niinuld bo developed when financial conditions i>»rmit of construction work being undertaken, Departmental. Tho total number of permanent officers and employees in this Department on March' 31, 1918, was 080, and of these 21 have been discharged from the Expeditionary Forces as unfit for active service and 136 are either in camp or serving abroad with tho Expeditionary Force. The total casualties suffered by tho permanent officers of the Department since tho outbreak of war aro as follow: Killed in action, G; died of wounds, 10 j died of sickness, 2; missing (believed to ho dead, result of Court of Inquiry), 1; wounded, 55; gassed, 1.. In place of permanent officers and em-> ployees who have joined tho forces tho

Department has taken on 50 officers, most of whom are employed in a temporary capncity. Conclusion. We havo every reason to rejoice at tlio victorious termination of this most barbarous war. New Zealand has done its share right robly. It may well bo proud of those who havo taken part in this strugglo for freedom. It remains now for all of us to bind up our wounds and exert our utmost energies in building up the prosperity and happiness of this Dominion. Good roads, railways, irrigation, and an abundant supply of cheap olectric power throughout the land are each and all important factors in this direction. May they 60on bo accomplished facts.