The Hawaiian gazette., 1911-08-25
LOSE FORTY Pen
GENT OF WATER
Some Irrigation bitches Very
Poor-Expert Gives
Some Advice.
lTrom weaneldayI. AdveTLIsaE.l

Sugar planters and the United States
Geological Survey are paying particular
attention just now to the water ques.
ton, and particularly 10 the fact that
there Is an enormous loss OF water from
irrigation bitches, due 60 seepage In
one Of the longest irrigation bitches in
the Territory The loss from this cause
Is placed ut no less than forty per cent.
w +. Martin, district engineer Of the
United States Geological Survey in
charge of the water supply investiga-
tions in the Territory, said yesterday;
"In addition to carrying on our regu.
lar work of making measurements of
the surface streams of the different
islands and keeping a continuous rec
ord of their flow, we are making, as
we have opportunities, measurements
seepage loss, which we find very heavy,
indeed
Very Valuable Work.
"It is probable that one of the most
valuable things we will be able to do in
the next few months will be to point
out the large losses which are occur
ring in many irrigation bitches through
out the Territory. Most of the plan
tations are very much interested in
this feature of the work and many of
them are ordering current meters "a
system for measuring water) for the
purpose of carrying on systematic
study of such losses in their own dis
tricts.
"It is gratifying to find the planta-
tions doing this because. if they take
mp the right kind of study of the water
supply, they will be able to find that
they can save much of thetwater that
is now leaking and which is going to
waste entirely.
Should Be Cement Lined.
"I believe the time will come when
practically every permanent ditch will
he cement lined in order to make it
watertight. Particularly is this likely
to come in cases where water is being
pumped at tremendous expense or
where the supply is insufficient for
present needs.o
Asked if he could give an idea Of
the extent of the loss by seepage, Mr..
Martin said:
can estimate of the losses naturally
can only be made in a general way. It
varies greatly. We have found the loss
to run as high as forty per cent in a
long ditch, but I should say this is ex-
'ceedingly high"
Mr.. Martin hopes to get detailed fig-
ures in the course of the work during
the next few months.
Systematic Study.
OF necessity we can not go into all
the detailed study required for exact
determination of the loss," he remark
cd, "because in long bitches they are
changing the flow from time to time
by diverting it into smaller bitches,
and if these changes in the flow are
made while the measurements are be-
ing taken they will lead to erroneous
conclusions.
However, as ] have said, we have
made enough measurements already to
show that the losses are heavy and now
the people who are directly interested
have realized this and will make a sys-
tematic study
Mr.. Martin added that the geological
survey is making measurements for
comparative purposes of the weirs in
the Territory, and it is found that the
welrs are good, bad and Indifferent
mainly indifferent. "There are very
few good weirs in the Territory and
many poor ones said he
The geological survey now has -four
trained men at work on the Islands
where formerly it only had two, and
Mr.. Martin states that as a result much
additional valuable work will be done
for the Territory.
VIII Publish Results.
/" At the end of the year the results
viii be published - he stated. ''Ths
first report will necessarily be frag
mentary because many records have re
! Gently been started aud will be toe
short to draw any definite conclusions
from. 1t viii, however, be beginning
of what will be series of reports
hereafter, to be issued annually, which
will give the results of our. investiga
tions during the year.
~ think the particular feature OF
our work, regarding measurements Il
determine the seepage from the drain
age bitches, will be one of the mos
important and valuable things we car
do for the next few mOnths.o