MARTON WATER SUPPLY.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XXXIV, Issue 9424, 21 April 1909, Page 2

MARTON WATER SUPPLY.

SIR,— As there has bee*,» d;al of discussion about the Marton water supply, or rather the of a supply. I thick the following particulars will be interesting and probably useful. In the first place I may say that I have been much against going ih for an expensive scheme, |but having gone into the matter, I believe, thoroughly. X have come to the conclusion that after an if we are to have sufficient water of ■ a decent quality we will have to go to the Rangitikei ;River for it. ; There can be no question that the present [catchment area is lar too small to collect enough water for our present ineed, and, unfortunately, there are no streams [about the district that could be utilised so that there is positively no alternative but to pump water either into the present reservoir or construct a new one on top of the hill to give a higher pressure as [set forth in tjb following scheme. Many people seem to have a great objection to pumping, but when the matter _ is considered in every particular the -expense is not nearly so great as most people imagine, and the rate would not he as heavy as it would be if we got a gravitation supply from a longer distance —if it got here. My scheme is here given in particular: —To supply 2000 inhabitants with 60 gallons per day each, 43,800,000 gallons per annum.

% miles Sin. spiral steel pipes 2970 Laying pipes •• Bends, valves, etc. .. sou Engine, ptimp, shed, etc. .. lopu Infiltration • • Reservoir • • Town service ... otoo £11,985 It will be remembered that Mr Reynolds’ Rangitikei scheme amounted to nearly £IB,OOO, bnt by the above it wrljl be seen that by olioosing a different route and pumping through the main into the reservoir, using the oastiron 6-inch pipes, the present main, forjsome of the side streets, etc,, practically the same supply can be secured tor £12,000. This scheme provides as good—practically the same—town service as Mr pressure would be 65 pounds per square inch in Broadway, and the mains would all be steel and iron pipes, whereas Mr Reynolds’ scheme only provides for wooden mains. The reservoir would be a concrete.tank on the top of the hill by the present reservoir to hold three hundred thousand (300,000) gallons (sufficient to last four or five days) and in case of emergency the present reservoir could be turned on. The pumping plant would be capable of supplying seventy million gallons per annnm and would thus be large enough for a good number of years to come. The upkeep and cost of* running would be £360 per annum which, with interest at 5 percent, would be £960, providing a sinking fund of 1 par cent. As an offset against tins the Railway Department would pay at least £350 for their share,, and the factories, stables, etc , would make it at the lowest estimate £3OO a year, reducing the amount to be raised by the ratepayers to about £660, for which a rate of in the pound would have to be struck on the present rateable value of the borough. ~ • The first question that the new Council will have to face, I suppose is, how to supply the present need and provide a water supply in the meantime until a permanent scheme has been carried out. I would suggest that the cheapest and biggest \ supply could he got from the Sash and Door Factory. This firm have a most up-to-date power house and are prepared to pnmp any quantity of water that can be got at the factory. All that would be necessary would be to excavate a sufficiently large wall gand provide a pump which altogether would cost not more than £3OO. If this plan were adopted the reservoir dam oonld be raised five feet at a cost of £350, and that wonld give an additional nine million gallons (about) and would be sufficient for Marton for two or three years until the permanent scheme was • completed. This plan works out as follows :—■ £ Raising embankment five feet 350 Pump and excavating, etc. .. 300 Town .service ' - £6405 Pressure in Broadway 451ba per square inch ; cost of running £IOO a year; yearly expense £420, which leaves only £l2O per annum to be raised from rates after deducting £3OO which the Railway Department would provide. It might seem to some that the water from the Sash and Door Factory wonld not be good enough because it is on the lower side of the town, hut it would be filtered through 20 feet of metal or sand beds into the storage well which wonld give comparatively pure water . The second scheme to improve the present would be much better; it would give higher pressure, and being filtered through quartz sand, pure water. The following are the particulars The pumping station would be placed at the present reservoir gate, or thereabout ; of course it would he pointed out that there would be no water in the summer months; the intentions are that it should be pumped (in the winter time, and the capacity of the reservoir most be made large enough to be capable of storing sufficient for six months, so as to carry us through the summer months, and I believe if there was a large enough well made there might be water long after the Tutaenoi stopped running. This plan work&ont as follows: — £ Pipe lines and town servi.ee' .. 5755 Pumping engine at reservoir gate - - _3oo - Reservoir 100,000 gallons on hill 450 On'e filter . - Halt mile 6!n. pipe line 400 Pumping rams -• Sited and foundation .. -too Pipe connections and extras .. 150 Raising present dam sffc. ... 350 8765 Pressure 701ba, cost of working per annum £2OO, interest and labour per annum £635. Alter taking off the amount the will require the rate would not come to more than 6d. A party of na inspected the socalled Tutaenni scheme last Saturday. and I was rather disappointed with the general appearance, hirst of all we measured the stream, and . found only 650 gallons per hour, that would be 13,200 gallons for 24 hours, so that would not count for ■::v-./Hi P(?fctxi9 to.that. tO' g btiy all tnc ■.c ;■I . ■,/ 1 ■ ,

laud required would cripple the sohe&e; the ground is v&fy rough, and would a good deal ot clearing, and if stock were not to graze on it, it would he an annual expense to keep the grass and undergrowth down, and this scheme would require a man in charge to keep the filter clean, not that that would take mnob time each day—about 15 minutes each day, is about as long as is required for that—but still a man would have to be there all the same, so the working expenses would nearly he as much as a pumping plant. These particulars are as follows £ 300 acres land say at £ls .. 4500 Six miles pipe line 9in. at £l2 buuu Dam and clearing land .. 2000 Town service • ■ Settling tank °OO One filter • £19,855 Man’s wages • • Interest at 5 per cent .. 1050 £l3lO Less railway requirements say 300 £9lO would require a rate of Is Id. I fear I am encroaching on your valuable space, still I think there are a great number of ratepayers who may be interested. —I am, etc., J. L. ZAJONSKOWSKI. Wellington Road, April 18th.