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The Wingham Advance-Times, 1956-09-19, Page 10feet to tunnel under Morrishurg ship canal to the north shore of the St.. Lawrence river. f64 Cy f HIGH ON DYKE: Framed .agaii4 the sky on the crest of • Cornwall dyke is .one of the large 18scitbie-yard diesel acrapers.• ,Tapia .unissoal picture gives a good idea of .tie.. height of the massive Cornwall dyke in section three near the preSont ..Tell Gate .Roxid.': At this, place. the dyke is witlain 10 feet of its maximum height. The crest width is, 35 feet.' fc— 4 44f„.0-4°0-st Winsome Aavaner400es, NVe(1.11(1blIkl,)., .1!)•oti t. Lawrenco olive', Project Is Gigantic Undertaking for Ontario Hydro Weekly Publishers Inspect 37-Mile Ipternational ower, Shipping Site 'MORRI;SBURG WATER INTAKE: New water !alike/for Morrisburg is being constructed. Here it:Shal , ft is being sunk to go down more than 50 VFEW OF DYKE`: From the air, Cornwall dyke can be seen stretch:rig toward the ship canal and• the ;Ad of the powerhouse dam. The king stretch of dyke in the right foreground is section threes Some parts of this section are near maxi- mum height. By Barry Wenger On Friday of last week 1G weekly newspaper -editors from various points in' Ontario gathered at Cornwall as goods' • of Ontario Hydro for a 'conducted tour of the St. Lawrence power development and seaway project, The gigantic proportions of the undertaking provided the bobs for. One of the most interesting days I have ever spent. ' Details of thd actual work along the 87-mile stretch of the river from Iroquois at the west to Corn- wall on the rust, are so complicated that . the full intplieutiops• of the project are hard to grasp. The human aspect sof the undertaking were another matter, however and I was fisseinatad by the operntions which are in • progress as several towns and villages in the. flood area arc being moved bodily to new locations an higher .ground. Driving along 'the main street of the town of Morrishurg, the change which will take sbittee was graphi- cally illustrated by • one merchant who was conducting a sale. He had envie reason to do so, .for marked in brilliant yellow. paint• on` the steers window was a wavy line, and beneath 'it the words "water level". After dams airing the .river have been completed and water is allow- ed to' 'rise 'the Villages-a:if Mille Roche, Moulinette, Ferran Point and' Aultsville will be completely submerged. .Much of. the town :of Morrisburg• and • practically all of the village of Iroquois will suffer the same fate. Homes from the four first-mentioned villages are- being moved to itwo new sites im- mediately north, known no far simply as. New" 'Sown 1 and New Town 2. Complei e , new locations have been round .for .Marriabura and Iroquois. I had always thought. of moving even a small house an a major pro- ject, but along the St. Lawrenile they pick them up three or four every day atal . %Ivry them off to new locations: Ownera of the-homes often move out at:ten in•thc morn- ing and movb back -into the home three or font.. miles away, in time to copltstheir evening: meal. Frame houses spredeminate in the area, but many brick hoUses Mire beep moved without so much as a crack in the 'plaster. Workmen prepare for the move by. excavating tinder the house and placing large I-beams' in the ex- cavations. Then a. giant machinei moves in and a tremendous three- bided frame is bahked in around the house.- Ends of the beams arc secured to winch-powered' pulleys and the entire structure is lifted ,from its fot.ndations . and . carried off to the foundation which has been laid for it in the new town, Thu work of public relations with the people of the area must have beets a formidable undertaking, for problems by the dozen-per-day can arise when a whole town, includ: ing its houses is to be moved out, Ontario Hydro, of 'course, pays the shot for every inconvenience, in- cluding taxi fare for mother 4f she must go shopping before stores have •been- located close at hand. The new town sites will net look quite the game as the old ones, for they wilt lack mein streets as we know them.' instead of a:. street lined on both aideS with 'shops, the. Madness of the community will be done 'in shopping centres, with- all• stores under one roof, right hi step.. with. . the latest • merchandising. fashion, • • • • TWo years.. ago 'on -Aultist 10th; the first . sod .was turned .to !merit commencement of the St. 'Laws renee Power Project. Immediately :nfter that import- ant ceremony, 'the .Commission's work forceS went into action . on the preparatory stages of build- ing the 1,040,000 kilowatts (2;200,000. Isp.) power project being under- taken jointly by Ontario Hydro on the Canadian side of the Inter- 'national' Rapids section and the Power Authority of the State of New York on the United States' side. The first major work on the. de- velopment was to block the .north channel of the St. Lawrence and send all the water through the channel south of Barnhart. This was accomplished by coffer- damming the river in the upstream 'Portion of tile caannel betWben Shock and Barnhart Islands with a rock-filled dam.. Later, one of the world's longest steel cell cofferdams was constructed be- tween the Canadian mainland and the north-east and of Barnhart Island, sealing 'off that, 21S portion of the channel. just a little more than a. year ago, this VS mile section of the river was pumped out, with approximately .650,000,000 gallons• of water being diseharged• into the loWer river by huge electria pumps to dry- up the river in less Man five •ilays„ At this point, the project enter- ed- the first important phase of penanent tofistisettiOn. S Great activity commenced behind the steel cell cofferdam, with Me contractor excavating in the river bottom for the foundation of 'the main dam which is being built to include the powerhouses. Powerhouse Construction Work now. .is concentrated •on Willits this main power structure A total, of approximetely, 170,000 cubic yards of concrete (.'0.000 tons) has been pot to date into permanent installations; includins the "U" abutment, . wing wall, ise sluices, and; the bases for foss generating units. This affords real contrast with the work stage a year ago when first excavation. had just .commenced. At present, important founda- tion work is in progress in the north end of the main dam. Steel pier nosings are being put into place for the discharge end of draft tubes under the• generating. units. Erection of 'wooden frames' for the first two draft tithes has enabled concrete to be placed. • Out in the powerhouse excava- tion towards the international bor- der, all the earth excavation in the river bottom virtually has. been completed. This has reimirei the removal of • 1,500;000 cubic yards of earth.,Itocit excavation has been completed for. eight of the sixteen .eiterethig units. ••• • • ' Dyke Progress . Dyke construction has been pr- eceding at nn accelerated 'rate 'this summer with major activity . In sections 2 and 3 which extend from old No, 2 highway north and west approximately two miles. In sec' tion :one, stripping is in .progress to take the dyke to, prefient Mille Roches area where 4t will termin- ate. With fair weather conditions. some .14,000 cubic 'yards of -material are • being placed 'on the slyke each day. . The contractor building the Cornwall canal closure structure is making rapid. progress. with that ,contract' so that the ,-canal will, be ready 'tor 1057 navigation *. season. At tbe closure: structure 'for this I new conalseonerete has been plac- ed• In the' wing walls and the centre ,block. The .contractbr also is pro- gressing with excavation work in the west end section of the 'canal toward .Locks 20. The new access tunnel under the diversion canal was- completed and put into 'ser- vice this month. Tills gives a direct route to the posverlanise work area from. old Nos 2 .highway. In other parts. of 'the projett, channel- improvement Work is progressing favourably. Rock ex- cavation 'is being carried out by the . contractor. at. anions Island Near Chimney Island, four dred- ges are workIitg .on, channel ex- cavation work. Rehabilitation Advancing. • House moving, °poi:Atkins . at Iroquois have been essentially completed. Work is being con- centrated,' dre the' slieoning 'centre for the new village. House moving operations also 'have been pro- ceeding well in Morriaburg where- homes. are ' being moved to . make Way kir the new shopping centre there. - In new towns No, 1 end 2, pre- parations are being made for house moving operations from the adjacent villages .to be flooded• to these new ,townsites. Nearly all the construction of permanent roads,•setvers and water mains has been completed. in botli townsitos. VIEW OF POWER DAM: This unusual pietttre frames ,past Of the north section of the main power dam. To the right, the toWeringbiocks of concrete for the "U" abutment is seen, and le. the Snunediate left one of the' tall gantry cranes is 'shown erected' on steel rain. Abe. ice sluices and the •foundations for :the first two generating units"csisbe„ seen. DYKE BUILDING EQUIPMENT: This array of heavy equipment is used in dyke building oper- ations for' Ontario Hydro's St. Lawrence Power Project. Cornwall dyke. Equipment seen in this picture includes caterpillar tractors, 18-cubic-yard diesel scraper, rock rake, and several sheep's foot rollers. These latter machines are used for com- pacting material placed on the dyke. These rollers have a great number of steel studs which exert a foot pressure of 60 pounds per square . Inch and compact the till to the required density, ON WAY TO NEW TOWN NO. This concrete block dwelling is being transported by special float along old No. 2 Highway from the vicinity • of the pOwerhouse work area 'to new town No. 2. This was one of the first houses to be moved into the new town Site,. to be ktioWn as "Long Sault".• TOWN PRONr eititt; Streets inrthe new town ate seen 1 'but in this aerial view. Bose- Veva be tilt for varleat's liaises that are to be moved from bile villagre of Wile Roches and Moulinette and along the .river front. 'The house moving operations commenced in July. • 11 ILOAt) VAVING ACV/V/TY: This 'unusual Mi. tunnel, also asphalt spreading equipment, the ripen., houette shows paving activity on the road between logs Of the two tunnels Under the existing shin Cornwall 'Santa tunnels, Tile earittfahle,YE host canal, Mid the tope Of the high, power lihe towera. captured ' the roller framed the mouth 'of the I • ; ororwfigyi