The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-09-03
Hugh Friel Criticizes City Engineer Hendricks Plan of Drawing Water From
 the C00sa River
SAYS FIVE CITIES
 USE THAT SOURCE
 FOR THEIR SEWERAGE

NAdhCS sotAOHg OuppOIt
 of Mulberry Fork in Warrior
 River-Congratulate Con-
 mission on Conclusion
 As indicated Sunday morning in The Age Herald. Hugh Friel does not agree with Julian Kendrick city engi- neer, on the latter's plan to bring water to this city from the Coosa river. Mir Friel has investigated water propositions for years, and is thoroughly acquainted with the water problems in this city. He favors the bond issue, but intimates very strongly that he does not think the location as outlined by Mir. Kendrick will ever be acted upon. He says the Coosa supply which MT. Kendrick wants to bring here Is below Rome, Gadsden, Attalla, Cedartown and Anniston, and that the sewerage of those cities are emptied into the Coosa river. He also says the Coosa, where MT. Kendricl proposes to get water, is a lime stream and not considered good for water supplies.
 He says the logical place flor Bir- mingham water supply is from the Sipsey prong of the Mulberry fork of the Warrior river
 His statement requested by the Mu- nicipal Ownership league Is as fol- lows:
 Cheaper Water Possible
 \Ine cheapest place to get water is
 N the question to be considered, but
 best place and the best water. The
 'tion of where Birmingham will
 locate it's water supply need
 considered at this stage of the
 Ns the engineer has shown that
 ne had from the Coosa river
 appropriation authorized to
 while there are other sources W Eaff 'pply two of which can be af birmingham for less money 4 'drick estimated it would
 it from the Coosa
 s ps q suggested to me in the
 hat Birmingham could
 p5g f water from Little niles above Gadsden. oh an put mountain. This locs would be about SD or Birmingham and woulC s into Birming- ham, 1e the city of Gadsdei ling territory could b, aa .fA the same mains. water and free of lin avs be cor ralled and zH ted cond- tion. The Nt this Wa tershed is oN rui am peo- pie who are 1f 'ingham and to its nun aNn cause Above the fah tntf.a -er is owned by the t1F efta eom- pany. where they Ii Ncu- lated on building nd storing large quanti
 Two 36-inch n strength pipe would avfr gallons of water eve to the city of Birmingham J0 feet friction head This wo place the intake of water mains God feet above the city hall or 1250 feet above sea level. The pipe line for this scheme would cost more than the entire amount of bonds to be voted. For that reason have not given it serious con sideration, as I am of the opinion Bir- mingah would not undertake so ex- pensive an outlay at the present time.
 The Proper Place
 The proper place for Birmingham to obtain a water supply is from the Sipsey prong of the Mulberry fork of the Warrior river about one mile above the Maryland Coal and Coke company's mines on that river. The pumping station at that point would be in section B. township IA, range B. west This is in the district where the gov ernment has located the Alabama for est reserve. This land is being bought under the Newlands act for the pur- pose of protecting the floNv of the river. bus all it can possibly do is to protect the water supply for the city of Birmingham and that is one of the arguments that Senator Johnston ard m Al n V ernment to purchase the lands on the Sipsey prong of the Warrior river The government has already withdrawn from entry more than 10000 ages of land and is gettiNg contracts fbr the purchase of land to the extent of moro than 1c0,000 acres additional What effect the foreign war will have on the money available for this appropria ton remains to be seen, although there is considerable sum of this appro- priation now on hand. The water from this point can be brought to Birming- ham cheaper than from the Coosa river and is a pure water free of lime and other minerals. I will give the engi- neering features of this proposition to the public in a few days, and also one other which is still nearer to Bir- mingham than those mentioned.
 Coosa River Criticized
 "I do not favor obtaining water supply from the Coosa river for two or three reasons. In the first place Gadsden. Rome, Ga, Anniston, Talla- dega, Cedartown, and a great many other towns sewer into the Coosa river about the point designated by the engineer to top the stlhcam. More over the Coosa river is d lime water stream much like the lime water springs around Birmingham. and is not considered the best class of water for that reason.
 | 'As to the right of the federal gov rnment to object to the city taking tkA water from the stream on the gro1nd that it injures the capacity of the &jver for navigation, it would be greatkr on the Coosa than on the War rior river as the coosa gets very low in the dry season Last June, it was low. Boats were tied up for considerable time below Mont eomery, and also above Gadsden. and any amount of water taken out would he an injury to navigation to the ex tent that 1t would diminish the flow of the stream The government would have right to object although the