THE WATER WE DRINK.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 191, 10 February 1912, Page 6

THE WATER WE DRINK.

IS THERE NEED FOR BETTER FILTRATION? ' BOROUGH ENGINEER SAYS NO. Recently the water supply of the New Plymouth borough was subjected to some criticism. The suggestion was also made through the Press that there was an need for a better system of water filtration. A contrary opinion is held by the Borough Engineer (Mr. C. Skiprop), who, at the instance of the Mayor (Mr. G. Browne) has reported as follows to the Council:— "I visited the intake at the Waiwakaiho river and procured a bottle of water, marked No. 1. This water showed a very small deposit of vegetable matter. At the reservoir I procured another bottle, marked No. 2. TMb water shows no vegetable matter whatever, thus proving how effectively the filters remove it.. At the Town Hall, Fitzroy, Vogeltown, , Westown and ISt. Aubyn, samples were also procured, all of which are free from vegetable matter as far as the eye can I tell. j NOTHING WORSE THAN RUST. "Some of these samples were obtained from dead ends, before the mains were scoured, and' only show a small deposit of rust. Consequently the matter complain-' ed of must have been rust, as it is quite, impossible for any matter to get in from the river. "From the river the water has first to pdss through a screen at the intake, then" through another fine screen at the outlet of the tunnel, 1 " and, lastly, through the two filters. These filters each contain 450 small double screens. Above the screens are three feet of quartz, through which the water must percolate before it reaches them. The filters are cleaned twice a day. After the water passes through them it goes into' a valve chamber, the bottom of which is two feet lower than the reservoir entrance, and this chamber is also free from any sediment. • All the dead-ends are scoured every four weeks."