Senator OVERTON. Well, we shall have to leave that to the Federal authorities, and it might be getting in trouble on that. Senator AIKEN. All right. Senator AUSTIN. Thank you very much. Senator OVERTON. You are perfectly welcome. Very glad to have heard you. TUOLUMNE RIVER, CALIF. Senator OVERTON. All right; now California. The meeting will come to order, gentlemen. STATEMENT OF HON. RICHARD J. WELCH, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE FIFTH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA Senator OVERTON. Will you give your name and what district you represent? Representative WELCH. Congressman Richard J. Welch of California, Fifth Congressional District; and for further identification, Mr. Chairman, I am from San Francisco. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, San Francisco has spent more than $200,000,000 in the development of its water and power system. Because its water supply comes from the Tuolumne River, it is particularly interested in any legislation affecting that area. In developing its water supply San Francisco found it necessary to reach out nearly 200 miles into the Sierra Nevadas to impound the waters of the Tuolumne River. Such an enormous investment was made necessary to guard against the repetition of such a disaster as that which overtook us following the earthquake and fire of 1906 when 5 square miles of the city was totally destroyed. This development was not projected overnight or over a short period of time. It was carefully planned and worked out over a long period of years in the closest possible collaboration with both the Congress and the various departments of Government. We desire to continue that cooperation, particularly with the War Department in the furtherance of its water control program, which can best be accomplished by the present engineering plans of the War Department now before your committee. It is in the spirit of this cooperation and because of our closely allied interests, that Mr. James H. Turner, manager and chief engineer of the San Francisco Water Department, is here and will present to the committee all necessary detailed information with reference to the city's plans, which support the recommendation made by the War Department. Senator OVERTON. Thank you very much. Representative WELCH. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (Representative Welch withdrew from the committee table.) Senator OVERTON. How about you, Congressman Elliott? Representative ELLIOTT. In am going to wait until the Department witnesses testify. Senator OVERTON. If we have a Department witness up here it will take some time. Representative ELLIOTT. After the Department testifies I have six or seven gentlemen to put on the stand after they testify. Senator OVERTON. They will take all morning tomorrow? Senator OVERTON. We shall be running behind schedule. Representative ELLIOTT. O. K.; we will come back in the morning. Senator OVERTON. Very well. The committee will stand recessed until 10 in the morning. (Whereupon, at 4:10 p. m., an adjournment was taken until tomorrow, Friday, June 2, 1944, at 10 a. m.) FLOOD CONTROL FRIDAY, JUNE 2, 1944 UNITED STATES SENATE, SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, Washington, D. C. The subcommittee met at 10 a. m., pursuant to adjournment on yesterday, in the Capitol, Senator John H. Overton, chairman of the subcommittee, presiding. Present: Senators Overton (chairman of the subcommittee), Burton, and Cordon. Senator OVERTON. The subcommittee will come to order. The Chair has a leter from Senator Johnson of California under date of June 1, 1914, suggesting two amendments, and the letter will be made a part of the record: Hon. JOHN H. OVERTON, Subcommittee, Senate Committee on Commerce, JUNE 1, 1944. United States Senate, Washington, D. C. MY DEAR SENATOR OVERTON: I present the following two amendments for consideration of your subcommittee and its inclusion in the rivers and harbors bill. "The project for the Folsom Reservoir on the American River, California, is hereby authorized substantially in accordance with the plans contained in the report of the district engineer, Sacramento, California, dated January 15, 1944, on file in the Office of the Chief of Engineers, with such modification thereof as in the discretion of the Secretary of War and the Chief of Engineers may be advisable, at an estimated cost of $18,474,000. "The project for Farmington Reservoir on Littlejohn Creek, enlargement of Hogan Reservoir on Calaveras River, and related protection works are authorized substantially in accordance with the recommendations of the Chief of Engineers in House Document No. 545, Seventy-eighth Congress, second session, at an estimated cost of 3,868,200." Thanking your subcommittee for their attention to these amendments, I am, Sincerely yours, HIRAM W. JOHNSON. The Chair also has another letter from Senator Johnson of California in regard to flood protection reservoirs, including a statement in support of legislation pertaining to flood control of the San Joaquin River and its tributaries in California, with particular reference to the Tuolumne River. The letter and accompany document will be made. a part of the record. 197 (The letter under date of June 1, 1944, from Senator Johnson of California, and the accompanying document, are as follows:) Senator JOHN H. OVERTON, UNITED STATES SENATE, Washington, D. C., June 1, 1944. Chairman Subcommittee, Senate Committee on Commerce, United States Senate, Washington, D. C. MY DEAR SENATOR OVERTON: Referring to H. R. 4485, the flood-control measure now under consideration by your subcommittee, permit me to quote to you the following letter that has come to me from E. G. Cahill, manager of utilities, city and county of San Francisco: "I am informed that House of Representatives bill No. 4485, Seventy-eighth Congress, second session, introduced by Judge Will C. Whittington of the Flood Control Committee, is now under consideration by the Senate. This legislation is of vtal importance to the people of central California and the people of the city and county of San Francisco. "Attached hereto is a statement prepared by J. H. Turner, manager and chief engineer, Hetch Hetchy Water Supply, Power, and Utilities Engineering Bureau, supporting legislation mentioned above. This report was prepared prior to the issuance of the bill; however, the facts contained therein are still pertinent. "As reported out of committee, the bill provides for authorization of $8,000,000 for the flood-control program on the San Joaquin River and its tributaries. This sum should have totaled $15,885,000, plus $30,000 annual operation, in accordance with the report of the United States Army engineers. The Tuolumne River allotment, per the United States Army engineers' report, was $5,800,000, and it is the desire of the city and county of San Francisco and the Turlock and Modesto irrigation districts that this should be increased, the reasons being as follows: "The city and the districts have a total reservoir capacity now constructed of 726,000 acre-feet. It is proposed to use the Federal contribution for the construction of the Cherry River Reservoir, which will have a capacity of 250,000 acre-feet, which, with the installation of spillway gates on O'Shaughnessy Dam, will bring the total capacity of reservoirs on the Tuolumne River close to 1,000,000 acre-feet. It is proposed that the city and the districts operate these facilities to give the Government all the flood control desired on this river; that is, the flow of the river will be regulated at all times to maximum necessary to provide ample flood protection. "The amount of $5,800,000 proposed by the Chief of Engineers, War Department, as mentioned in the attached report, is considered insufficient compensation for the degree of flood protection which will be provided, and certainly the reduction of this amount as reported out of committee is unsatisfactory. It is highly desirable and important that the sum of money contributed by the Federal Government should be in an amount close to $10,000,000. At such a sum the Government would be getting full value for the investment and at the same time the city and the districts could proceed immediately with the construction of the Cherry River Reservoir, the installation of drum gates on O'Shaughnessy Dam, and the necessary changes in outlet gates on Don Pedro Dam. In other words, this work could be prosecuted as soon as manpower and materials are available, without recourse to long and doubtful bond issue procedure." I also attach a statement from the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission in support of legislation pertaining to flood control of the San Joaquin River and its tributaries in California, with particular reference to the Tuolumne River. I shall very greatly appreciate the subcommittee's consideration of these communications in connection with the provision in the rivers and harbors bill dealing with them. Sincerely yours, HIRAM W. JOHNSON. STATEMENT IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION PERTAINING TO FLOOD CONTROL OF THE SAN JOAQUIN RIVER AND ITS TRIBUTARIES IN CALIFORNIA, WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO THE TUOLUMNE RIVER (By San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, Turlock irrigation district, and Modesto irrigation district) The Flood Control Committee of the House of Representatives, Judge Will M. Whittington, of Mississippi, chairman, has under consideration a report to the Secretary of War made by the Chief of Engineers, War Department, recommending certain flood control on the San Joaquin River and its tributaries in California which includes the Tuolumne River. The city of San Francisco (herein referred to as "the city") and the Turlock irrigation district and Modesto irrigation district (herein referred to collectively as "the districts") have extensive interests on the Tuolumne River, and this statement is made with the approval of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission and the board of directors of each of the districts, these bodies having jurisdiction over their respective properties on this river. The interest of the city in the waters of the Tuolumne River dates back to 1901 when appropriations of water were granted to it by the State of California on the Tuolumne River, Eleanor Creek, and Cherry River. These appropriations, together with the extensive rights of the districts on the Tuolumne River and its tributaries, dating from 1877, encompass all of the appropriative waters of the Tuolumne River above the La Grange powerhouse. The use of these waters by the city and the districts is prescribed by the Raker Act (or Hetch Hetchy grant) and under the requirements of this act of Congress and through cooperative agreements these agencies are making the fullest utilization of this river. The investment of the city as a result of the construction of the Hetch Hetchy water supply and power project totals, as of June 30, 1943, the sum of $143,000,000. In addition, the city has expended some $60,000,000 in acquiring and improving a local water supply and distribution system in and near the city. The irrigation districts have expended about $30,000,000 in developing their interests on the river for power purposes and for the irrigation of about 266,000 acres of farm land in the great San Joaquin Valley. Attached is a map showing the properties of the city and the districts and the relative location of the Tuolumne River to the San Joaquin River and San Francisco Bay. This map also shows present and proposed reservoirs. Briefly the Hetch Hetchy project (exclusive of the local properties) consists of the following: two major storage reservoirs; four diversion or regulating reservoirs; 66 miles of tunnels, over 10 feet in diameter; 71 miles of pipe line, 60 inches in diameter; one powerhouse of 80,000 kilovolt-ampere capacity; one powerhouse of 3,000 kilovolt-ampere capacity; 100 miles of steel tower transmission line. The major storage reservoirs are the Hetch Hetchy with a capacity of 340,000 acre-feet and Eleanor Reservoir of 26,000 acre-feet capacity. The Modesto irrigation district contains 81,203 acres of land of which about 76,000 are irrigated and the Turlock irrigation district contains 185,000 acres of land of which 170,000 acres are irrigated. The districts have three main reservoirs, the Don Pedro of 290,000 acre-feet capacity, the Dallas-Warner of 30,000 acre-feet, and the Owens of 40,000 acre-feet. The distribution system consists of several thousand miles of canals, laterals, and ditches. Two power houses are installed, one at La Grange of 4,300 kilovolt-ampere, and one at Done Pedro of 37,000 kilovolt-ampere capacity. Power is distributed directly to 22,000 consumers by the districts over their own transmission system. The irrigated lands of these districts are among the richest in the State of California, producing the following crops: 52,300 acres of fruit trees and vines; 185,100 acres of hay, grain, and legumes; 950 acres of melons; 7,650 acres of miscellaneous crops. The area of the watershed above the city's dams is 713 square miles and above the districts' dams (but below the city's watershed) is 797 square miles, or a total of 1,510 square miles. The Tuolumne River is the largest tributary to the San Joaquin River. Its effect on the San Joaquin River is obviously great, hence control of the floods of the Tuolumne River is necessary to prevent damage on that river and also on the San Joaquin River below the confluence of these rivers. The principal reservoirs now in operation on the Tuolumne watershed have a total capacity of about 726,000 acre-feet. It is the city's and the districts' ultimate program to increase the above capacities, either by enlargement or new construction, to a total of about 1,800,000 acre-feet. The taxpayers of the city and the districts have expended large sums of money in developing storage facilities on the Tuolumne River. The operation of these storage facilities now provides a high degree of flood control and to this extent these taxpayers have already made a substantial contribution for flood control to all the people of the State of California. Present structures are insufficient to provide ultimate flood control as prescribed by the United States Army engineers and such additional facilities as are necessary to provide ultimate flood control in the contemplated future development by the city and the districts, should |