Hearings of the International Joint Commission in re remedies for the pollution of boundary waters between the United States and Canada

by International Joint Commission

Dr. Clark. I am not able to speak for the council of Tonawanda or North Tonawanda, but I think that suggestion is a very good one, and they might cooperate in that.

Mr. Powell. Mr. Hill, you and the commissioner of public works were authorized to speak for the city in that regard.

Mr. Hill. I believe we were, informally.

Mr. Powell. The only point is that we have been so long over this there will be a good deal of criticism in regard to it. Now, we want a matter of hard and fast business. We do not want to hurry you at all, but to have some definite understanding.

Mr. Hill. In regard to that, after Mr. Tawney made some remarks to Capt. Norton, I thought perhaps I should say, speaking for myself, and indirectly for the council, I would not want it understood, so far as I am concerned, that we are committing ourselves to a possible modification of the plan that has been suggested.

Mr. Tawney. It is not so understood by me or anybody else. I used that merely as an illustration.

Mr. Hill. I wanted to avoid any possible misunderstanding.

Mr. George Clinton, Jr. The last remarks made brought to my attention something that has been running through my mind during this hearing, and that is that it might be of some assistance if the city officials clearly understood the scope of this investigation. I have no doubt perhaps they might, but I confess I have not been able to get it clearly.

Mr. Tawney. We were just going to call on Prof. Phelps, our consulting engineer, to make a statement.

Mr. George Clinton, Jr. I wish to ask one question in regard to it, and I will be through. The sanitary experts of the commission have determined that the city pollutes the water of the Niagara River by the discharge of sewage, and they have recommended certain means of stopping that pollution. Now, is not the province of this commission to determine the result that is to be obtained—that is, the cessation of that pollution—leaving it to the city authorities to determine the means of putting a stop to it, with the advice merely of the commission? Is that statement correct?