DRAINAGE OPERATIONS.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 5180, 19 September 1927, Page 4

DRAINAGE OPERATIONS.

REPORT OF LANDS DEPARTMENT. WORKS IN HAURAKI PLAINS. The nineteenth annual report of the chief drainage.engineer, Mr R- G. Macmorran, on the drainage operations in Hauraki Plains during the year ended March 31, 1927, was laid before Parliament by the Hon. A. D. McLeod, Minister of Lands, on Thursday.

The report comments that o w >ng to the increasing number of trading concerns handling the produce of the district it is becoming more difficult to obtain complete production returns for the reclaimed areas, but the available returns continue to show indications of progress. The. returns available, together with those of the previous year, are as, follows : .Cheese, 1235 (1081) tons) ; butter, 2300 (2042) tons ; hemp, over 1000 1 tons. Stock, sold exceeded £45,000 (£32,730), and river freight exceeded 8000 tons. On the earlier settled areas many of the difficulties which attend land settlement in swamp country are disappearing. The energies of Government departments and local bodies are resulting’ in improved drainage and flood protection, and the extension of good roads, telephone, and electric power throughout the, district. The great majority of the settlers are developing their farms into better-paying condition. Still, the fact cannot be too much emphasised, that, field drainage within occupied farms., will produce a greater increase per acre than any other form of development.

The annual rainfall for the year ended March 31, 1927, was 60.91 inches, the highest total in the l ast eleven years and 15.36 inches above the average annual fall in that period; but as there were no severe storms,, the drainage conditions generally have been satisfactory. Rain fell on 184 days. > DREDGIES. The principal feature of the year’s operations has been the progress made with the river improvement works. The three dredges engaged in improving the channel and erecting stopbanks along the Piako River have shifted 116,495 cubic yards. The beneficial effects of this work on the regimen of tine stream has been apparent this year, which was charJ acterised by the highest rainfall recorded since the commencement of reclamation operations on the Plains. The following figures show the quantities excavated by the dredges for the last seven years, amd the average unit cost.

The work, quantity, .'and cost P er cubic yard by the several dreilges are as follows: No. 1 Priestman, Piako River improvements, 36,102 yards, 11.07 d; No. 2 Priefstman, Maukoro canal and railway carnal. 72,196 yards, 6.62 d ; No. 6 Priestman, Piako River channel, 28,549 yai’dsi, 12.79 d .(tidal work increased cost, and dredge overhaul accounts tor small output) ; No. 11 Kingston,.Piako and Ngarua canal (tidal work), 50,481 yards, 10.04 d; No. 15 Bucyrus drag-line, Awaiti canal and stop-bank, 73,486 yards, 10.37 d; No. 16 Bucyrus dragline, Piako River stop-banks and reservoir canal, Bierepeehi, 10'7,503 cubic yards, 7.51 d; No. 19 Michigan walking dredge, excavating drains Awaiti district till December, when shipped to the Waihou on loan to Public Works Department, 47,203 ya/ds--5.22d ; No. 20 Rood la«ud dredge, Kei'epeehi Block and Awaiti canal stop'bank, 84,612 yards, 7.2 9d ; No. 24 American steam, dipper, W aitoa River and Kerepeehi Block, 147,050 yards, 4.9 d. WAITAKARURU-PIPIROA. In this district ‘ 7954 chains of drains were cleaned, 19,260 cubic yards of spoil was excava’ted for the improvement o:f 910 chai’ns of existing drains, and 3746 yardn for the improvement of 286 chains of stop-bank. CENTRAL DISTRICT. The principal under t akings in thecentral district in addition to dredging have been the cons truction of 886 chains of new drains, road formation and metalling cleaning 1883 chains of drains, widening and; deepening 481 chains of drains, andi repairing and improving s .top-banks,. A large ?,-oad embankment was constructed a t the river end of the reservoir cam 4.], and 434’6 cubic yards of clay war s carted for ballasking roads in peat are as. Good progres s has been made • svith the roading an, d drainage °f th' e Kerepeehi Block. About 250 chair 1S o f s top-banking hai s been comP le t' S d to date, and 430 cb .ainsi of preliminary ; constructed. At /out 250 chains of err ibankment is st .ill required to complei cely surround t Jiis block, and owing to the fact that there is from 3ft to 4ft of peat, some sections of the ornbaul ;ment will requirr. to be enlarged as , shrinkage oc- .• PATETONGA-AWAJ’ n-TAHUNA. In this district t,he usual maintenance works have bee n carried out, 6882 chains of drair 1 having been cleaned, 410 chains of drains widened and deepened, and 3748 ; cubic yards of clay deposited on the F ’atetonga tramway road. The usual fa ramway freight service on this road w as maintained, the charges collected amounting to £651 14s.

During the year N essrs Murray, Walters, and SutherL and were appointed a . to investigate and report on the road: ing and drainage facilities of the Pa' tetonga riding of the county, and the difficulties in connection with the sett lement of the pejat lands in this area. These gentlemen, aftar going carefl illy into the various mtatters in detail , and the individual difficulties of 8 ettlers. submitted a comprehensive r eport, which will be of great assistant e in dealing with the problems involve 1 in the development of this district ■ The v?ork on the mail i drainage

scheme for the Awaiti-Elstow district has been restricted to thei operation of one drag-line excavator on the Awaiti canal and the completion of the drains! parallel to the cana.l stopbank. Good results have beqn obtained by the small drains constructed on the location of the Elstow canal for tho purpose of consolidating the swamp, and it should be possible to proceed with the construction of this canal as soon as arrangements are completed with the Elstow Drainage Board. ROADS. Roads metalled during the year were: Puhanga canal road (north end), 8 chains; Kaihere Landing road (westward), 10 chains; Maukoro canal road (west side), 2 miles 50' chains. The Maukoro canal road, west side, was formed for 37 chains, and two miles of formation work was, done on the Kerepeehi Block. Discing and grading was done on 8 miles 65 chains of clay roads, and 2 miles 13 chains of peat roads were ballasted with clay. DRAINAGE. The object of a large portion of the drainage activities of the past two or three years has been the, improvement of the drainage of lands actually occupied and farmed. During this year 38,159 cubic yards of material was excavated for improvement of 22 miles 40 chains of existing drains. Some 13 vestigations of previous years' were; constructed, and the total length of drains constructed on the Hauraki Plains to date is 602 miles 11 chains. Details of subsidiary drainage construction and maintenance carried out during the year ar®: Drains cleaned, 209 mile®; drains widened and deepened 22 miles 40 chains ; neiw drains constructed by manual labour, 11 miles 13 chains ; new drains, constructed by machinery, 2 miles 36 chains; stop-bank improvements, 3 miles 46 chains. SURVEYS. The surveys, hydraulic and soil investigations of previous eyars were continued and amplified this year. Levels totalling 136% miles were taken, and 14% miles of traverse and 19 square miles of topographical survey completed. Over 300 strem crosssejetions were taken, and 265 borings for determining the sub-surface conditions in peat land. Seven automatic gauges are in use to record the watersiurface fluctuations on the Piako and Waitoa rivers and Hauraki Gulf. Daily discharge diagrams for both, the Waitoa and Piako rivers under flood conditions furnish the basis for all investigations and conclusions relating to flood-control problems. LEASES. Nine flax leasee totalling 3095 acres have a rental totalling £1375 5s 6d. Fifty grazing leases totalling 9636 acres have a rental of £864 'ss 3d. RATES AND EXPENDITURE. The total expenditure w'as £57,489 7s 7d, of which day labour amounted to £31,860 10s lid and piece-work contracts £5178 2s 7d, The maintenance rate' struck totalled £7BBO 15s, and £5887 9s 9d was collected. FUTURE PROPOSALS. Works now in hand are to be, continued during the coming year- These arc principally Piako River improvements, flood-protection, drainage and roading in the Awaiti district and Kerepeehi block, continuation of the Waitakaruru-Maukoro canal, and subsidiary drainage] and roading on the western side of the Piako River.

Year Cub. Yds. Cost 1920-21 158,865 7.42d 1921-22 246,022 7.29d 1922-23 440,092 8.20d 1923-24 508,654 7.27d 1924-25 822,286 5.86d 1925-26 856,653 6.32d 1926-27, 647,182 7.42d