The Portland daily press., 1894-11-02

Great Difficulties in the Way if the Coy
eminent Would Consent-Disposal of
Sewage Must be Studied for Deering as
Well as Portland.
Yesterday MIR. Herring, the engineering
expert who has been called here from
New York to consult upon the Back
Bay problem. was busy with City En-
gineer Fernald and Mr.. E. C. Jordan in
putting together the data collected in
Two days of observation. Besides view
ing the bay and the lands adjacent
thereto, Mr. Herring has met number of
the prominent citizens of Portland, who
have expressed opinions as to the extent
to which the city ought to go in solving
the problem.
When asked yesterday afternoon by a
representative of the PRESS for some of
the results of his observations.M Mr.. Herring
replied that SO far none of the details
of plan had been developed. He could
only speak in general way. And speak
ing thus he would say that first of all
the problem had been studied not for
Portland alone but for the whole terri
tory that Is now using and will in future
use Back Bay for sewerage purposes.
Deering as we'll as Portland is concerned
in the solution.
The first and imperative demand upon
any plan for solving the difficulty is
that it shall carry the sewage out of
Back Bay. Upon no other basis can a
suitable device be invented. The prob
lem can never be solved by any system
that allows sewerage OF any amount to
be deposited in Back Bay. A very little
might be allowed to run IN for places
too far from the main system to be con-
nected easily. Such might possibly be
the case with the present Charles street
sewer in Deering, which comes into
Back Bay on it's north side. But such
entries must be exceptions to the rule.
and must be as small as possible.
just how the sewage coming into the
Bay from the Deering system on one side
and the Portland system on the other is
to be conveyed out of the Bay and dis
charged into the harbor beyond Tukey's
Bridge cannot be stated yet.
This is one of the details which Mr..
Herring has not fully worked out. But it
is a profile m perfectly easy of solution.
presenting no difficult or unusual feats
of hydraulic engineering. 1t will I'M
dou btedly be accomplished by trunk
sewer which shall run parallel with the
D-v< I'll
contents of the smaller sewers which now
discharge into the Bay. How such a
sewer would connect with the Deering
system, how large and long it would be
and what it would cost are details yet
to be determined. Mr.. Herring could say
only this much, that the construction of
such sewer would present no difficult
ties of engineering. 1t would pro badly
cost per foot no more, perhaps not so
much, as the large sewers which are
built in the streets. But it would have
to be long sewer, and the aggregate
cost would be considerable.
Mr.. Herring was emphatic upon the
point that the sewage must be carried
out of Back Bay, reiterating it when
the representative of the PRESS asked
him if the problem might not..be solvedpy
damming the outlet at Tukey's bridge,
thus making deep bay all the time. In
the opinion of Mr.. Herring the outlet
might be damned, SO far as the engin-
eering features are concerned, but this
would not relieve the city of the necessi-
ty of carrying Its sewage out.
In regard to the construction of dam
at Tukey's bridge, Mr.. Herring said that
any such action would have to await the
permission of the United States govern
ment. 1t is tide water channel and
under the control of the government en-
gineers. If they should give their con
sent the work might be done readily SO
as to raise the low water level tsix feet
and give permanent bay, unaffected by
The tides The dam required to do this
IF engineering, unless a lock should be
leemed necessary to allow two or three
eet of water to flow over it at high
Tide, couldsbe fitted with swinging gates
through which vessels could pass for
apout three hours on each high tide.
Under present conditionssit is said that
oaded vessels do not have much more
line than this.
The cost of such dam Mr.. Herring
would not estimate from such observa-
ions as he had made 1t might not be
necessary to have it over 600 feet long,
md it might not cost over an hundred
thousand dollars.
Mr.. Herring wanted it understood that |
he damming of Back Bay was, SO fer
IS his Investigations went, secondary
natter to the disposal of the sewage.
In connection with Mr.. Herring's visit |
he advantages which Portland possesses
n the way of public works have been |
Considered, and he expressed to Mayor |
Baxter yesterday the opinion that they |
re sufficient for city of ZOO people,
n other words, Portland's enterprise in
airing for the well being of the citizens
you'd do credit to a city of twice her
iZe.