THE OHAU RIVER.

Shannon News, 7 March 1922, Page 4

THE OHAU RIVER.

EFFECT OF RACES AND LEVIN WATER SUPPLY.

At the meeting at Ohau on Thursday night, Mr Saint said he wished to mention a matter related to tiie water supply scheme. This scheme was going to take a lot of water out of the river, and some of the owners on the banks below the works were afraid their riparian rights were being interfered with already. For a number of consecutive years now in the summer the river had dried up in the lower reaches, and he suggested that it was the water taken out by the water-race system that was responsible. The land-owners felt that something should be done to relieve them. If the Ohau scheme was going to still further lessen the water m the river the position would be worse in future years. He wished to know whether this point had been taken into consideration by the promoters of scheme. ’

The Mayor said it had not cropped up before, and he quite appreciated the importance of it. However, at the present time, 4 per cent of tiie available water in the Ohau River was being used for the borough service. It supplied a population of 3000 people, and it was not going to take very much more water to supply Ohau—so little in fact that it would not be noticed. The borough had acquired an area of 600 acres of diush, which was being preserved as an aid to water conservation, and the effect of that must be taken into consideration as a set-off. As long as he could remember the Ohau had gone dry in summer.

Mr Saint: Since the water races were put in. He said he quite realised that with high-pressure water carried through pipes and controlled by ba'Jl-eocks there was no waste, but with the' water-races there was- constant- soakage. If the Ohau'River water could reach Lake Horowhenua by means of the water races, why could it not reach the railway bridge by its natural channel? He had heard that twice when the water races were turned off, the wate'r reached the bridge, and he intended to inquire into that matter.

Mr Harkness said it was well known that there was a subterranean channel into which the river disappeared in dry weather and re-ap-peared below the bridge.

The matter was not further dis cussed.