THE NEW ZEALAND 
JOURNAL OF SCIENCE 
AND 
i 
TECHNOLOGY. 
VOL. III. WELLINGTON, SEPTEMBER, 1920. No. 3. 
NITROGENOUS MANURES IN NEW ZEALAND. 
The Proposed Utilization of the West Coast Sounds for 
their Manufacture. 
By E. Parry, B.Sc., M.Inst.C.E., M.I.E.E. 
Introduction. 
The following opinions and observations on the subject of nitrogenous 
fertilizers were submitted in 1917, at the invitation of the Chairman of the 
National Efficiency Board. Attention has been called to the suitability of the 
West Coast Sounds for carrying on electro-chemical or electro-metallurgical 
works on a large scale. Milford Sound was instanced as an example of 
a deep-water harbour with water-power in the vicinity which could be 
cheaply developed, and where a plant could be established for the manu¬ 
facture of nitrogenous fertilizers, either by the Government or by a 
company utilizing the Bowen Falls under license. 
The proposition opens out a wide field of inquiry, and an adequate 
treatment of the subject involves an inquiry into the demand for this 
class of fertilizer and the extent of the market, also an inquiry into the 
existing sources, their adequacy to meet the demand, and the amount of 
competition from present sources as well as from prospective sources. An 
attempt is made in the present report at a comprehensive survey of the 
situation with a view to providing reliable guidance to the Government 
in any action which it may take in the matter. 
Comparative Cost of Water-power Development in Norway and in 
New Zealand. 
The statement that there exist in the western fiords and sounds of 
Otago large water-power sources which can be cheaply developed, and 
situated alongside deep-water harbours, is almost self-evident. The more 
important of these were dealt with by the lat? Mr. P. S. Hay in a 
comprehensive and masterly report entitled “New Zealand Water-power,” 
presented to both Houses of Parliament, and dated 16th September, 1904. 
The Bowen Falls have been cited as an example. These falls are referred 
to on page 29 of Mr. Hay’s report, but no particulars are given, The 
9—Science. 
