WATER FROM BORES

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume 52, Issue 3254, 19 April 1943, Page 5

WATER FROM BORES

DAMAGING PLAINS DRAINS MINERALS ROT BOTTOMS HAURAKI BOARDS DISCUSSION The damage done to drains by soda water from flowing bores on the Hauraki Plains was the subject of discussion at Thursday’s meeting of the Hauraki United Drainage Board when members expressed the opinion that these should be concreted up or controlled now that the district was reticulated by the Hauraki Plains County Council’s West Water supply. The chairman, Mr C. K. Fox, said that during the month he had been on one farm on which six bores were operating with three flowing into the board’s drain. The resulting damage to the drains was serious and in his opinion the time had arrived when the board would have to take steps to stop the "nuisance. He pointed -out that the mineral water was causing a mess in the drains and the dampness w&s causing more growth than normally as well as depositing silt in the drain. The bottoms of the drains in which the soda water was running was rotten.

No Need for Bores

Now that the water supply was operating on the Hauraki Plains the bores were not needed and the board should take steps to make farmers doaway with the bores. Mr C. W. Schultz said the flow could easily be stopped by raising the pipe. \ Mr Fox said farmers were loath to permanently wreck the bores because they were frightened of a break in the county water supply- He considered the bores could be concreted up. Most farmers were using the county water supply with the result that all the bore water is running into the board’s drains, aggravating the position,’? added the chairman.

Instances of bores on various properties were quoted and in most cases the water was running into the board’s drains. Members discussed steps which should be taken and later in the meeting it was decided to write to all offending, advising owners that the bores must in future be controlled and prevented from discharging directly into the drains. -