Drainage Boards.

Manawatu Herald, 10 July 1894, Page 2

Drainage Boards.

To deal with the drainage of the old Oroua Downs swamp, the rioh valley on the west of the Oroua river lying between the Oroua Bridge and beyond Gampbelltown, there are two Drainage Boards, the Sluggish River, and the Horseshoe Boards. At the last meeting of the first named board, correspondence was read which had passed between the two Boards which emphasises the opinion of Mr Pyke that the Horseshoe and Sluggish River Drainage Boards should amalgamate. It seemed foolish to have two Drainage Boards controlling the water from one watershed.

The correspondence was as follows : —

To the Chairman of the Horseshoe Drainage Board. lam directed by the Sluggish Eiver Drainage Board to bring under the consideration of your Board the matter of an outlet for the drainage of the two districts. Your Board, no doubt, is well aware that the present artificial outlet known as the Main drain is too small to remove drainage of both districts, and that the Sluggish Creek, not having any natural outlet, its waters partly escape by the main drain channel, and partly overflow the lands in this Board's district. The Sluggish River Drainage Board would therefore be greatly obliged if your Board would at an early date inform this Board what proportion of the oost of establishing and maintaining an efficient outlet for the drainage of both districts your Board would contribute. This Board, judging the area of the watershed drained, consider that your Board should contribute half off the oost.

To which the following reply was received :— The Horseshoe Drainage Board have held a meeting, and

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considered the subject of your letter of May 19th. .On behalf of the Board, I reply that they admit no liability to the Sluggish River Drainage District for payment towards maintaining or doing anything to the main drain, and therefore decline to make any contribution for doing so.

It was resolved to request the Minister of Lands to endeavour to get a clause inserted in the Land Drainage Act, authorising the holding of a commission to decide the liability of Drainage Boards in respeot to drains used by both, and to ask Messrs Pirani and Wilson, M.'sH.R., to assist in getting the amendment carried.

It wag also decided to at once take steps to raise a loan to carry out special drainage work in No. 1 district.