PART VIII. REPORT by Councillor James Brown, Mr. J. D. Marwick, Town Clerk, and Mr. James M. Gale, C.E., Engineer to the Commissioners, under remit to them to report on the statutory obligations on the Water Commissioners as regards the area of water supply, and the past proceedings of the Commissioners in reference thereto. See Sect. 82 of "The Glasgow Corporation Waterworks Act, 1855," p. 28. 2nd April, 1874.-Of this date the Water Commissioners remitted to the Water Committee to consider and report on the following motion :— "That there be no farther extension in the area of water supply without the concurrence and approval of the Commissioners.' 20th April, 1874.-Of this date the Water Committee remitted the above motion to the Sub-Committee on Works, with instructions to give it their consideration and to report. 27th April, 1874.-Of this date the Sub-Committee requested the reporters" to investigate and report on the statutory obligations of the Commissioners as regards the area of water supply, and the past proceedings of the Commissioners in regard thereto." The statutory obligations on the Commissioners as regards the area of water supply are contained in the 82nd and 86th sections of "The Glasgow Corporation Waterworks Act, 1855," and the 35th Section of "The Waterworks Clauses Act, 1847," which are appended hereto. See sections 82 and 86 of "The Glasgow Corporation Waterworks Act, 1855" (pp. 28 and 30), and section 35 of "The Waterworks Clauses Act, 1847." Appendix, p. 160. The first of these defines the limits of the Glasgow Corporation. Waterworks Act as comprising and including the city of Glasgow and suburbs thereof, and districts and places adjacent, including the royal burghs of Rutherglen and Renfrew, the burghs, towns, or villages of Partick, Pollokshaws, Govan, Barrhead, Nitshill, and Hurlet, and places intermediate and adjacent; and by the 2nd and 3rd of these sections the Commissioners are bound to cause pipes to be laid down and water to be brought to every part of the places and districts within the limits of the Act beyond the limits of compulsory supply, whenever they shall be required by so many owners or occupiers of houses, or parts of houses occupied as separate dwellings in such part of the district, beyond the limits of compulsory supply, as that the aggregate amount of water rate payable by them annually, at such rates as may be fixed by the Commissioners, shall not be less than one-tenth part of the expense of providing and laying down such pipes. The Commissioners are further bound to provide and keep in the pipes so laid down a constant supply of water at such pressure as will make the water reach the top story of the highest houses within the limits, subject to the exceptions specified in the local Act.1 1 See section 13 of "The Glasgow Corporation Waterworks Amend- The limits of the Act of 1855 are so indefinite that it is impossible to lay down any arbitrary line within which the Commissioners are bound to give a supply, and beyond which it can be said that they are under no obligation to go. The reporters have, therefore, felt themselves constrained to inquire(1) What districts intermediate and adjacent to the burghs, towns, or villages mentioned in the 82nd section of the Act are supplied with water otherwise than by the Commissioners? And (2) What are the physical limits of the distribution of the water at the disposal of the Commissioners ? These have been laid down on the accompanying map prepared by Mr. Gale, which shows in blue the portions of Glasgow supplied and proposed to be supplied by the high level system of pipes; in pink, the portion supplied by the low level system of pipes; in yellow the portion of Glasgow and the adjoining districts supplied from the Gorbals works; in brown, the districts having water supplies of their own; and in black, those areas which are too high to be supplied by the Commissioners from their existing works by gravitation. As regards these last, the boundary is, as might be expected, irregular, and represents the level to which the water will rise during the day to the surface of the ground. Houses placed on this line will get water on the ground only during the day. At night, when the quantity of water drawn from the pipes is greatly reduced, and the pressure consequently increased, the water will rise higher. The boundary line of the portions coloured black is not level; it has a continuous fall of 12 feet a mile, reckoning from the top water level of Mugdock reservoir, on the north side of the Clyde, and from the Gorbals tanks on the south side, and at that part which passes to the south and west of Barrhead from the Barrhead tank, which is supplied from the highest of the three Gorbals reservoirs. It may also be mentioned that the fall of 12 feet per mile is arbitrary. The water must have some fall to attain the velocity in the pipes, and 12 feet a mile has been taken, that being the least fall at which it was proposed to work the mains when the Loch Katrine works were designed. The fall or "loss of head" could be made less by laying larger pipes, and the proposed new main from Mugdock for the supply of high levels within the limits of compulsory supply may be worked at a "loss of head" of 7 feet a mile only. But for outlying districts a fall of 12 feet a mile is thought to be as little as ought to be calculated on. With these observations, explanatory of the principles on which Mr. Gale has constructed the map, it may be stated, on the assumption that the limits of the Act are to be determined by the limits within which the Commissioners can supply water by gravitation, that the limits on the north are defined by high grounds; on the east, commencing at the north, by (1) the valley of the Kelvin (limit undefined); (2) high ground; (3) the valley of the Clyde (limit undefined); (4) the water supply district of Cambuslang; and (5) high ground. On the south wholly by high ground. On the west, commencing at the south, by (1) high ground; (2) the valley of the White Cart water, south of Paisley (limit undefined); (3) the Paisley water district; (4) the valley of the Clyde (limit undefined); (5) the water supply district of Duntocher; and (6) high ground. There are thus two places on the east and two on the west where the limits of supply are not defined either by the levels or by the boundaries of other water districts. As regards the first of these undefined places, viz., the valley of the Kelvin, it will be for the Commissioners to consider what should be the limit in this direction. Possibly this might be defined by a line drawn in a north-westerly direction from Cadder Parish Church to the stepping stones across the Kelvin, then by the Kelvin westward till it is joined by the Allander water, and then by a line drawn due north from that point till it joins the high grounds on the north above described. Certain Agreements have been entered into between the Commissioners and the Local Authorities of various special water supply districts which have now been formed for the purpose of supplying water to the high levels to the north and north-east of Glasgow beyond the municipal boundaries. See p. 90. As regards the second undefined limit across the valley of the Clyde, it may be noticed that the Airdrie and Coatbridge Water Company have power under their Acts to supply the whole parish of Old Monkland, and that the Company have pipes laid, and compete with the Commissioners in the Mount Vernon district. If the district east of Mount Vernon were given over to that Company, the limit at this point would be defined. An Agreement has been entered into between the Commissioners and the Airdrie and Coatbridge Water Company for the purpose of adjusting the limits of their respective areas of supply. See p. 29. As regards the undefined limits north and south of Paisley, it appears to the reporters that, having regard to the probable extension of the town, it would be desirable to have an arrangement come to with the authorities there, under which such an extension of their boundaries might be made as would provide for a subsequent extension of that burgh; and that, while its authorities should undertake the supply within those extended districts, the Commissioners should undertake not to carry any pipes. An extension of about a mile around the boundaries of the present water supply district of Paisley would close up the present undefined boundary of the valley of the White Cart water south of Paisley;2 and the White Cart and Black Cart waters, till they join the river Clyde, would form the natural limit north of the town. 1 An Agreement has been entered into between the Commissioners and the Paisley Water Commissioners with the view of carrying out the arrangements here suggested. See p. 29. An Agreement has also been entered into between the Commissioners and the Busby Water Company in order to circumscribe the limits of their respective areas of supply. See p. 29. As regards the past proceedings of the Commissioners in regard to the limits of supply, the reporters have to state that the Commissioners have acted in strict accordance with the provisions of Section 86 of their Act of 1855, except in cases where it appeared to the Water Committee that there was an immediate prospect of houses being erected to such an extent as to secure that the laying of pipes would be remunerative, in which cases the Committee have not considered it necessary to insist on a guarantee for a return of 10 per cent., as provided by the Act of 1855 and the General Act of 1847. Confirmation Order. PART IX. THE GENERAL POLICE AND IMPROVEMENT (SCOTLAND) ACT, 1862, ORDER CONFIRMATION (GLASGOW) ACT, 1877. AN To confirm a Provisional Order under "The General Police and 40 AND 41 VICT., CAP. 128. (Royal Assent 23rd July, 1877.) See Sec. 8 of "The Glasgow Corporation Waterworks Act, 1855,” p. 5. WHEREAS the Secretary of State for the Home Department, being one of Her Majesty's principal Secretaries of State, has under the provisions of "The General Police and Improvement (Scotland) Act, 1862," duly made the Provisional Order which is contained in the schedule to this Act annexed, and it is provided by the said Act that no such order shall be of any validity unless the same has been confirmed by Act of Parliament, and it is expedient that the said order should be so confirmed: Be it enacted by the Queen's most excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: 1. The Provisional Order contained in the schedule to this Act of Provisional annexed shall be and is hereby confirmed, and all the provisions thereof shall, from and after the passing of this Act, be as valid and have the like force and effect as if the same were specially enacted in this Act. Short title. 2. This Act may be cited as "The General Police and Improvement (Scotland) Act, 1862, Order Confirmation (Glasgow) Act, 1877." |