OTAGO EXPANSION LEAGUE

Otago Witness, Issue 4033, 30 June 1931, Page 6

OTAGO EXPANSION LEAGUE

NEEDS OF THE PROVINCE. The annual meeting of members of the Otago Expansion League for the purpose of conferring with the local parliamentary representatives prior to the forthcoming session was held in the Somerset Lounge last -week. The president (Air G. J. Errington) occupied the chair, and there were about 40 present, including members of Parliament, members of the league, and representative citizens. Several matters of importance to the province were placed before members, including the Dunedin City Post Office, tourist traffic, unemployment and reproductive works, afforestation, irrigation, Haast Pass road, Harbour Board affairs, < and opossums. In connection with the development of power from Lake Hawea and irrigation. Air E. J. Iles showed a plan of Lakes Hawea and Wanaka. He dealt, in some detail, with the Hawea power and irrigation scheme, and emphasised the flexibility of the proposal. At the outlet economical and efficient power could be supn'i.'d in units of from 10. 100. 1000, or 10.000 horse-power, as required. Where was there another scheme of such magnitude where such a thing was possible. At the outlet the market began at the power site, and extended for hundreds of miles continuously. Larger units, as required, ( up to 80.000 horse-power, could be installed. At present 70,000 acres in the dis'rict were producing nothing—land that was extremely adaptable to any class of farming. At present this area was going back, but this scheme would make possible the correct rotation of crops. After the feriility of the soil had been restored by judicious irrigation and rotation of crops, only a little water would be required for the growing of crops. An area of 5000 acres could first be dealt with, after which they came to 55.000 acres, which were at present not only useless but worse than useless. The high winds sweeping across these plains were removing the soil, and in a few years thousands of acres would be swept bare to the gravel. This liberated sand, which at times was a great inconvenience to Cromwell. There was no reason why large stretches of these flats should not be made as productive as Hawea Flat. Now that the railway had reached Cromwell, and by the use of modern means of transport, the whole of the country would immediately be made valuable, by the development of Hawea power, for the production of grain crops and fodder and for the production of wool, lamb, and mutton. A water supply from Hawea would be available not only for the area he had referred to but for Bannockburn, and for large areas round Alexandra and Clyde that eould not possibly be supplied by any other means. The speaker laid before the meeting other facts in connection with the Hawea scheme, speaking on the lines of the information communicated to Expansion League members in their recent visit to Otago Central. In reply to a question, Air Iles said that from Cromwell to Clyde a transmission line would be necessary, opening out into the Earnscleugh and Dunstan flats. At present the Tcviot power reached Cromwell, and the Wanaka power could be tacked on to it there to supply districts lower down.

Air W. Scaife, a member of the Upper Clutha Irrigation and Hydro-electric Committee, speaking from the point of view of the farmer, said he was deeply interested in the question of irrigation in the Upper Clutha. The farmers wanted water, but, of course, it had to be supplied at a reasonable cost. They all knew that the big hydro-electric scheme —by the “ neck ” —had been abandoned, and the Government had decided to go on vyitti Waitaki. He therefore thought the minor scheme, as outlined by Air Iles, would meet a long-felt want, so far as supplying water for irrigation purposes to the district was concerned. The water would greatly increase the productivity of the land in the vicinity, ano the work of installing the powe r might help to absorb the unemployed. He thought the settlers, before signing up for water, would require a definite idea of its cost per acre of land. The land in the locality would respond well to irrigation. He was not sure that all the 72,000 acres at Hawea could be profitably irrigated, but there were nevertheless many thousands of acres that could be. The settlers wanted the Government to go thoroughly into the scheme and let them know where they were. They knew that in some cases the cost of the water in the irrigation schemes in Otago had been too high, and the schemes had not as a consequence been an unqualified success. Then again, the supply of water contracted fop had not always been forthcoming. He could not quite agree with all Air Iles had said regarding the return from grain under irrigation in the Hawea district, but. on the other hand, the land could be profitably cultivated to produce other crops. The settlers would like to see the scheme taken up as a State scheme. If the Government could not see its way to take up the scheme then private enterprise would be willing to take it up, and he was sure it would receive the support of the settlers in the district. — (Applause.) REPLIES TO AIEAIBERS.

Sir James Allen, AI.L.C., said that many demands were being made on the Government for money, but he would ask, where was the money to come from? Where was extra taxation to come from? Why should not private enterprise undertake some of the large irrigation schemes, such as that at Hawea? —(A voice: The Government won’t allow it.). “Well, the Government ought 'to allow it.”— (Applause.) He believed that the unemployed should be placed on work that would be a benefit to ‘the community. This would allow the workers to retain their self-respect, and the public would applaud their efforts. Air J. A. Hanan, AI.L.C., said they should not forget that no country had so far evolved a scheme to overcome the unemployment problems. They could only be solved, by experiment. The problem was a national one, and everybody should co-operate to solve it. The greatest difficulty was, of course, to find the necessary money. .There was also the great need for sacrifice. The great responsibility in meeting the problem rested really on the members of the Lower House, and he

hoped they would work shoulder to shoulder. ‘ Air W. Downie Stewart, AI.P. (Dunedin West), said he w’as pleased to hear that the Expansion League had been for over 10 years advocating the establishment of a Railways Board, and had now seen such a board set up. They would all watch with interest what success the board had. It was difficult to remove the railways out of politics so long as there was any remnant of parliamentary control or any opportunity of bringing up the actions of the board in Parliament. The only logical way to remove the railways completely from politics was to sell them to private enterprise or to lease them for a long term of years. Public opinion, however, was not ripe for that. At any rate, it was a step in the right direction of removing the railways from some of the disadvantages of parliament- . ary control to set up a board, and the Government was to be congratulated on having gone so far as it had. As for the new Post Office at Dunedin, a citizen had called on him that evening and urged that an alteration should be made in the plans. It was isaid by this gentleman that the towers completely destroyed the beauty of the architecture. He (Air Stewart) advised his interviewer to call on the Alayor on the following day.— (Laughter.) If members of Parliament were to urge an alteration of the plans they would probably find the plans held up for another 12 months. A voice: Twelve years. Speaking of irrigation schemes, Air Stewart said he had been told that the Alanuherikia scheme was more important than the Hawea, but that was a matter for the experts. He agreed that the unemployed should be placed on works of a reproductive nature. Air J. W. ATunro, ALP., said he did not think that there had been anything put before them that night which he could not support. He thought that some of the money could be expended by the Unemployment Board in the direction of works of general utility—of a more economic nature. Air W. A. Bodkin, AI.P., said that Central Otago had always been grateful to the Otago Expansion League for what it had dortc. The Hawea irrigation scheme was considered one of the big things for Otago. The speaker referred to the fact that the people had been attracted from the country to the cities,

and said that they were now unable to find them work. The only way to obtain relief was to get the country to absorb these men in the primary industries. The Hawea scheme had grept possibilities and so had the Alanuherikia scheme. There could be no real prosperity for the province of Otago until these works were carried out. Acre for acre there was no land in New Zealand that could give better returns than the favoured areas in Central Otago. Whatever money was to be expended in unemployment, none would give the return which would be obtained from irrigated areas. They’ should irrigate their dry lands in Central Otago. He would not support the carrying of the Haast Pass road beyond the Alakarora, because he wanted the Government to spend all the money it could On introducing water to the lands in Central_Otago. He thought that arrangements could be made to get more economic work for the unemployed, and that would help to meet the problem. — (Applause.)