Were the Marlborough canals constructed by the Chinese?
· These canals lie approximately six miles from Blenheim and on average about 2 miles from the seashore.
· They are unique in the topography of the surrounding ‘Mud Flats’ near the mouth of the Wairau River.
· The total aggregate length of the canals is over 12 miles.
· It would have taken years of hard toil to excavate such a canal
· They are constructed with enormous care and precision with many of them 10ft or 12ft wide, by 2ft or 3ft deep.
· A large canal connected the Upper Lagoon with the Raupo Swamp (which was likely a lagoon at the time) is over four miles in length, 10ft – 12ft in width with an average depth of around 8ft.
· The whole of the excavation would therefore have been over sixty thousand cubic yards of soil.
· Great skill in engineering and enterprise is here displayed in these clearly cut canals.
· We believe that this was the work of the Chinese whose power of sustained work is something that they can be proud of today.