THE SEWERAGE OF THE CITY.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 227, 15 January 1876, Page 20

THE SEWERAGE OF THE CITY.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE NEW ZEALAND MAIL. g IB When I came up the harbor to the anchorage some few years since I could not help exclaiming, " What a splendid site for a city, how easily drained, how healthy it must be surely. Zymotic diseases must be the exception not the rule in such a place." But when I landed and smelt the perfume of the gutters I was disgusted with my simplicity in trusting to outward appearance.

In your report of the meeting of the Council on Thursday last, Councillor Gillon is said to have asked for explanation relative to the survey of the city, and the preparation of plans for its drainage. The quesr tion of sewerage has been mentioned in the Council so many times, only to be shelved sine die, that I have no faith in their expressed desire to carry out a system, of drainage on a comprehensive plan. The Council some two years since paid Mr. J. H. Wallace £SO for an essay on the best plan of draining the city, but I have never heard that it has in any way promoted the desired end, and the money was thrown away. In preparing plans for draining the ciiy the first consideration is the disposal of the sewage. That once decided on, I have no hesitation in asserting that there is no city in the world where the sewerage may be so easily accomplished. Presuming that the sewage must all be brought to the Te Aro end of the city, I would commence the main drain at or near to the present railway station, with an egg-shaped 4t inch brick drain, set in cement mortar of 2ft. 10m. by Ift. 6in. inside measurement. The crown of the drain to be level with high water mark, and connection to be made with the sea for flushing purposes. This sized sewer may be continued to the end of Mulgrave-street, and provision must be made throughout the whole length of the sewer, by the insertion of socket pipes, &c, for con nections with the different properties and streets intersected in its course, so that the brickwork will not be required to be broken up. At Mulgrave-street, the sewer should be increased to 3ft. lin. by Ift. 10*111. —4Mn. brickwork, and continued to the end of Mofesworth-street, where provision must be made for a much larger part of the Thorndon sewage, and for a portion of the land at present being reclaimed. (I wish here to point out that this sewer is not intended to take off the storm water, which can be provided for by the drains at present in use.) At Molesworthstreet, the sewer should be increased to 3ft. 9in. by 2ft. sin—9in. brickwork, and continued on to Wood-ward-street, where the Terrace sewage would be intercepted, and the sewer enlarged to 4ft. 6in. by 3ft. Continued on to Manners-street corner, where provision must be made for Upper Willis-street, and streets to the west of that street. The sewage from the reclaimed land to enter the drain at the corner of Lambton-quay. The sewer, still the. v same size, maybe continued on to Cuba-street. Here provision will have to be made for that street and for the streets intersecting it on the west, and the sewer should oe enlarged to 6ft. by 4ft., and continued to the end of Courtenay-place. provision being made for the interception of the sewage from Taranaki-street, Tory and other streets, at the end of Courtenav-pl'ace. The crown of the sewer would be 6ft. below high-water mark, and the sewage should be discharged into a covered penstock capable of holding 200,000 gallons at least. Owing to the small rise and fall of the tide, which would prevent the sewage being discharged by gravitation, a steam engine or engines must be erected to elevate the sewage and pump it through iron pipes to the place of discharge. This main drain once complete, the lateral drainage is a mere bagatelle. And for the life of me I cannot imagine how an expensive survey, extending over some twelve months, was required for laying down plans on which to call for tenders to construct the main drain, which by this time ought to have been completed. I would, and I know another of the profession who would, have been prepared to take the levels from the point indicated to the penstock, and furnished working drawings and specifications in one month from the time of commencing. Unfortunately, not one member of the Council has any practical knowledge of the subject, and their. Surveyor is an engineer only on paper—an imported draughtsman, one of those gentlemen aptly described by Mr. Bunny as sucking engineers, who style themselves C.E., and are content to be rewarded with the munificent salary of £350 per annum, a rate of pay that any man of standing in the profession would decline to accept.—l am, &c, An Engineer.