PROSPECTS OF TARANAKI.

Taranaki Daily News, 2 April 1917, Page 4

PROSPECTS OF TARANAKI.

ironsand industry and elkctrical development.

INTERVIEW WITH HON. G. W. RUSSELL,

In an interview with a News repw» sentative, the Hon. G. W. Russell stat* ed that he noted much evidence of substantial progress in New Plymouth, showing that the town is on the up grade. If the present experiments in connection with the ironsand were successful—and he knew quite a number , of Canterbury gentlemen who were interested and had the utmost confidence in the venture—a very few years would see New Plymouth one of the loading places in the Dominion.' The requirements of our own country for iron and steel were enormous, and he understood, hoped, and .believed that under the new method there was every prospect of an export trade. He was confident that if this initial effort proved successful, there would be many more foundries established for the aaqSe purpose. Be regarded the iron Industry as of such importance to New Zealand that in the event of a successful initiation of the work he was prepared, as a public man, to übb his whole Influence in the direction of establishing the industry, even though it might be necessary for the State" to take an kc- / tive part in the establishing of the workß. Important as our producing industries were namely, those dealing with the products of the sbil, wool, meat, butter, cheese, etc., it was of equal importance that the primary and secondary industries of the Dominion should be strengthened by the development of such industries as the iron industry, which practically lay at the foundation of all other industries, including railways, shipping,' etc. Once the raw material was prepared, tho manufacture of that raw material into articles of commerce must follow, and New Zealand, when once that was accomplished, would become the main centre of the Pacific. That waa the ideal to which as a nation we must look. ,

He did not know what facilities there were in the' Taranaki district for thedevelopment of hydro-electric power. In Canterbury the Government had harnessed Lake Coleridge, and Christchurch was no* being supplied with electric power as cheap aa any place in the world. This will certainly act on Christclmrch as an industrial centre. The' same policy must 1)a carried out in other parts of the Dominion. Cheap power derived from hydro-electric sources must not foe a perquisite of any particular part of the Dominion. The use of water for generating electric current has practically superseded the use of coal, and bearing in mind the fact that our coal supply is limited and that the cost of transport la heavy, and that there are otUer causes which create an clement of doubt in connection with the supply, the neecssity for developing all hydro-electric sources of power is apparent. To illustrate the point, he stated that the whole power availablo in New Zealand at present for all kinds of power-driven machinery was 100,000 horse-power. On*the other hand reports prepared by the electric branch of the Public Works department showed that were all our rivers and lakes harnessed for generating electric power, we would have available 3,500,000 horse-power. In concluding, the.Hon. G. W. Russell said that he considered the possibilities in connection with the ironsand industry were huge, and his advice to Taranaki people was that in view of the growth of the ironsand industry, they •should combine for the purpose of seeing where electrical power could be obtained, not only for the s use of the present industries in Taranaki, which were very large, but for the huge amounj of power which would be required in the development of the iron industry.