Mr. HARSHA. Neither one nor both of these two benefits would affect the benefit-cost ratio materially, would they?

Colonel YOUNG. No, sir.

Mr. HARSHA. You would still have a favorable benefit-cost ratio? Colonel YOUNG. Yes, sir; I believe so. You see, the biggest part of the annual benefits is the recreational boating, which would still exist, as well as the commercial boating.

Mr. HARSHA. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

(The information follows along with statement of Congressman Bob Sikes:)

ESTIMATE OF HARBOR OF REFUGE BENEFITS

During storms, the inlet cannot be used by vessels fishing or cruising in the gulf to gain access to the sheltered harbor of refuge in Choctawhatchee Bay. The nearest access channels to sheltered waters are at Pensacola, 50 miles to the west, and Panama City, 50 miles to the east. Numerous accidents with not infrequent loss of life have occurred at the entrance to the pass; local interests reported at the public hearing that at least 20 to 25 outboard motorboats capsized and were lost in the pass during 1960.

Boats which venture into the gulf in calm weather quite frequently find upon returning that the wind has increased and conditions over the bar have become hazardous. There is always the danger of structural damage when boats strike bottom, but even the loss of protective paint caused by scraping the bottom can prove serious if not attended to properly. This requires drydocking and repainting, since marine borers quickly attach themselves to any part of the hull where the wood is unprotected. Records from Eglin Air Force Base disclose that during a 6-month period in 1960 watercraft assigned to the station sustained damages approximating $25,900 which were directly attributable to lack of suitable depths in East Pass, and that for the 5-year period 1955 inclusive, damages to Defense Department vessels aggregated $95,800, an annual average of $19,200.

Provision of a suitable, permanent access channel to a harbor of refuge afforded by Choctawhatchee Bay would provide additional benefits through reduction in the number of boating accidents with attendant boat damages or losses, and injury or death of the occupants. While it is difficult to place a monetary value on the project as an access to a harbor of refuge, in view of the large number of small craft of all classes, both local and transient, operating in the area, it is expected that such benefits would approximate $20,000 anually over the life of the project. These benefits are divided equally between recreational and nonrecreational boating.

STATEMENT OF HON. BOB SIKES, MEMBER OF CONGRESS FROM FLORIDA

Mr. Chairman, there is before you a recommendation from the U.S. Corps of Engineers for authorization of an improved channel at East Pass near Destin, Fla. The new entrance channel would connect the Gulf of Mexico and Choctawhatchee Bay. Boats that use East Pass have had a serious problem for years because of sea and surf conditions over the entrance bar and because of the limited depth of the channel. It is felt that the new specifications would eliminate the principal problems which now exist.

The pass is used by commercial fishing vessels, by sports fishing vessels, and by pleasure craft for civilian uses. It also is used regularly by crash vessels from nearby Eglin Air Force Base in connection with aircraft and space studies which are conducted on the half-million-acre Eglin Reservation and over the adjoining gulf waters.

This project has the endorsement of the U.S. Air Force which has a vital concern with ready access to the Gulf of Mexico.

The communities of Destin, Fort Walton Beach, Mary Esther, Wright, Ocean City, Shalimar, Niceville, and Valparaiso all are materially affected, in addition to the families at Eglin Air Force Base. At present many of the boatowners in the area have only limited access to the gulf because of the problems enumerated above.

Com

In the words of the Chief of Engineers, "The East Pass Channel improvement has a benefit-cost ratio of 2 to 10 so the project is well justified." There is a marked increase in the number of vessels using the pass. mercial fishing vessels and sports fishing vessels are larger in size as well as greater in number. The number of pleasure craft has increased manifold in recent years. The lack of an improved channel is a very serious matter and there have been accidents with much damage to property and even loss of life. It is felt that the corrections which have been proposed will eliminate much of the problem and I earnestly hope and sincerely request that the committee add its recommendation to the authorization request.

We have needed this channel for years. However, the recommendation of the Engineers for the new channel reached Congress after the last omnibus rivers and harbors bill was enacted. We have had to wait and suffer and we sincerely hope early correction and relief can be obtained.

The Federal share of the estimated cost of widening, deepening and jettying of the channel is $1,151,000. State and county participation are estimated to cost $493,000. The total estimated cost of the project by the U.S. Engineers is $1,644,000. I am authorized to say that State and local interests are prepared to assume their share of the costs of construction and that funds are now available.

Specifications and recommendations on the new channel have been filed with the committee.

Mr. JONES. The next report.

PERDIDO PASS CHANNEL, ALA.

Colonel YOUNG. Perdido Pass Channel, Ala., sir, is on page 55 of the Senate report.

Perdido Bay is a landlocked body of water along the gulf coast about midway between Mobile Bay, Ala., and Pensacola Bay, Fla. Access from Perdido Bay to the Gulf of Mexico is afforded through Bayou St. John and through Perdido Pass, a natural inlet lying between the mainland peninsula of Florida Point on the east and Alabama Point on the west. The principal difficulties to navigation result from inadequate depths across the ocean bar and continued shifting of the bar channel. The Chief of Engineers recommends improvement of the access channel and stabilization thereof by the construction of twin jetties at the ocean entrance at an estimated Federal cost of $625,000 subject to certain requirements of local cooperation, including a cash contribution of $471,000. Local interests have indicated their willingness to comply with the requirements for local cooperation. The benefit-to-cost ratio is 1.4 to 1. Comments of the State and Federal agencies are favorable. The Bureau of the Budget has no objection to the submission of this report.

Mr. JONES. Are there questions?

Mr. BALDWIN. I do not have a question, Mr. Chairman, but it is my understanding that in order to expedite the hearings on these noncontroversial projects, the staff and the committee are informing those interested Members of Congress involved who might ask to testify, that we would suggest they simply file a statement for the record. I would like to ask unanimous consent, Mr. Chairman, that any Member of Congress who desires to file a statement in connection with any of these projects may be given permission to do so.

Mr. JONES. Yes. I intended to ask that permission at the conclusion of the hearing but, without objection, the statements will be received by the respective subcommittees and placed in the record at the appropriate point.

(The statements of Congressman Jack Edwards and Congressman William L. Dickinson follow :)

STATEMENT OF HON. JACK EDWARDS, MEMBER OF CONGRESS FROM ALABAMA

Mr. Chairman, I support the proposal for improvements to be made in the Perdido Pass Channel. On February 23, 1965, I introduced H.R. 5285, calling for these improvements.

The Department of the Army, in a letter dated May 6, 1965, to Chairman Fallon, of the House Committee on Public Works, confirmed the Army's approval of the project as stated in the favorable report of the Corps of Engineers on August 15, 1964.

The project would provide a channel 12 feet in depth and 150 feet in width stablized by twin rubblemound jetties from the Gulf of Mexico into Perdido Pass. It would also provide a channel 9 feet deep and 100 feet wide into Perdido Bay with a spur channel of the same dimensions leading into Terry Cove.

Perdido Bay forms the Florida-Alabama boundary at the Gulf of Mexico; and although the area is not in the First Congressional District, many citizens of the First District, particularly in the Mobile area, are directly interested in the economic and recreational activities involved.

Continued access from Perdido Bay into the Gulf of Mexico is vital to the general welfare of south Alabama and west Florida.

The Corps of Engineers estimates total Federal cost of the project at $625,000, with provisions that local interests would contribute approximately $471,000 and also provide the lands and right-of-way needed for construction and maintenance.

STATEMENT OF HON. WILLIAM L. DICKINSON, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF ALABAMA

Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to appear before your committee to urge the long overdue approval of the proposed Perdido Pass Channel, Ala. This past week the Senate passed the omnibus rivers and harbors and flood control measure which includes authorization of the channel, and I understand that the Corps of Engineers has again recommended the inclusion of this project in the House bill as one containing little or no controversy. I would like to add my firm support of that position and respectfully urge the inclusion of the Perdido Pass Channel measure in the committee's omnibus bill.

Conditions at the pass have never been worse and they present a grave danger to all boats attempting to navigate the pass. Charter fishing boats, recreational interests, and other related enterprises are all suffering and will continue to suffer unless and until something is done to improve conditions there. I might add that expert opinion has found that the digging of the intercoastal canal some years back contributed directly to the situation at the pass today. As I told the Senate Committee on Public Works, conditions have reached such a point that valuable homes are in imminent danger of being washed into the Gulf of Mexico. These shameful conditions cannot be allowed to continue. For an idea of just how bad things are at Perdido, may I again direct the members of this committee's attention to the May 13, 1965, edition of the Baldwin Times, a copy of which has been sent to the Members of this committee. In the words of the article, "This is a catastrophe."

My bill, H.R. 5282, was introduced early this session to remedy the situation at Perdido Pass by authorizing a permanent channel. Under the plan approved by the Corps of Engineers, a 12- by 150-foot channel from the Gulf of Mexico into Perdido Pass and thence a 9- by 100-foot channel into Perdido Bay with a similar spur channel into Terry Cove would be constructed. The cost to the Federal Government would be $625,000 with State interests pledging 43 percent of the original cost, or $471,000. The full support of the State has been pledged by our Governor as the local cooperator, subject to available funds.

Mr. Chairman, the district engineer has found that a stable channel "is essential for safe and unrestricted navigation by the large fleet of recreation, charter, and commercial fishing vessels operating in the vicinity." More than 1,000 persts derive their living from this activity. They need a permanent channel. They need this bill. I urge you to concur with the Senate and approve the authorization of Perdido Pass Channel.

Mr. JONES. The next project.

32-529-65-pt. 1 4

BAYOU LA BATRE, ALA.

Colonel YOUNG. Bayou La Batre, Ala., is on page 17 of the Senate report, sir.

Bayou La Batre is a small meandering stream about 10 miles long, flowing through coastal marshlands in southern Mobile County, Ala., 30 miles southwest of Mobile, Ala., and 18 miles east of Pascagoula, Miss. The major difficulties to navigation are the inadequate depths and widths in the existing channel. The Chief of Engineers recommends enlarging the existing channel generally along its present alinement and also easing the sharp bends in the upper part of the project at an estimated Federal cost of $262,000 subject to certain requirements of local cooperation. Local interests have indicated their willingness to comply with all requirements of local cooperation. The benefit-tocost ratio is 1.1 to 1. Comments of the State and Federal agencies are favorable. The Bureau of the Budget has no objection to the submission of this report.

(The statements of Congressman Jack Edwards and Congressman James Martin follow :)

STATEMENT OF HON. JACK EDWARDS, MEMBER OF CONGRESS FROM ALABAMA

Mr. Chairman, I want to give my enthusiastic support to the proposal for improvements in the Bayou La Batre channel as proposed by Senator John Sparkman. I have introduced a companion bill in the House. It is identified as H.R. 5030.

This is the appropriate time for authorizing a 12-foot channel in my opinion. The present condition of the channel is such that considerable work will be needed to recover the 9-foot depth already authorized. It is my understanding that $110,00 is budgeted for fiscal 1966 for this purpose.

My position is that for a total of approximately $262,000 the channel can be dredged to 12 feet. By attending to this matter now, we can save the $110,000 required to clean out the channel and bring it down to the presently authorized 9-foot depth. Here is an opportunity for real economy in Government. The cost of completing the work at a later date would, in all likelihood, be greater.

Mr. Chairman, the Corps of Engineers in July, 1964, recommended the 12foot channel in House Document No. 327 of the 88th Congress, 2d session.

The 12-foot channel will bring solid opportunity for economic development along the stream and in the community of Bayou La Batre. The people of Bayou La Batre have been master boatbuilders for generations, but many orders have been lost because they cannot get the boats out to the Gulf of Mexico.

There are no better fishermen anywhere in the world than the citizens of the Bayou La Batre area. Their shrimp and seafood are marketed all over the Nation; and yet, when they come in with a successful catch, they must unload in Mississippi because they cannot get into their own port without tearing the bottom out of their boats. Mr. Chairman, to a historic and proud group of citizens, this is frustration of the highest order.

The improved navigational conditions will bring recreational opportunities also and will work to enhance the entire surrounding area.

Local interests are prepared to cooperate as required to the extent of furnishing needed easements for dredging and for spoil disposal. The project will be exceedingly welcome in the area.

I urge your favorable consideration.

DRAFT OF STATEMENT ON PUBLIC WORKS PROJECTS BY CONGRESSMAN JAMES MARTIN

Mr. Chairman, I sincerely hope this committee will approve two projects vital to the economy and development of the southern part of Alabama, and which will be helpful to the people of the entire State.

I refer to the Perdido Pass Channel project and the Bayou La Batre project. On both of these projects the local people have shown their willingness to

cooperate and to help bear the cost by accepting responsibility for the local share. The Corps of Engineers has completed its study of these projects and found them feasible. The Department of the Interior and the State of Alabama have both reported favorably.

Two of my colleagues in the House, Congressman William Dickinson and Congressman Jack Edwards who represent the districts directly involved have urged the approval of the projects as in the interest of the area.

With such unanimous support from all those concerned, I have no hesitancy in asking that the full amount of Federal participation asked be approved.

Mr. JONES. Now we go to the beach erosion projects, Colonel Young.

CLIFF WALK, NEWPORT, R.I.

Colonel YOUNG. Cliff Walk, Newport, R.I., is on page 72 of the Senate report.

Newport is located on Aquidneck Island near the mouth of the Narragansett Bay about 25 miles south of Providence, R.I. Continued erosion and retreat of the cliffs and bluffs for many years has resulted in destruction and loss of segments of Cliff Walk at a number of locations. The Chief of Engineers recommends construction of improvements which will provide shore protection for the area at an estimated Federal cost of $340,000 subject to certain items of local cooperation, including a cash contribution of $810,000. Local interests have indicated a willingness to comply with the requirements of local cooperation. The benefit-to-cost ratio is 1.3 to 1. Comments of the State and Federal agencies are favorable. The Bureau of the Budget has no objection to the submission of this report.

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J.

Mr. JONES. Atlantic City, N.J.

Colonel YOUNG. This project is on page 73 of the Senate report. The existing beach erosion project at Atlantic City, N.J., includes protective works on both the Absecon Inlet frontage and the ocean frontage. The project is completed except for part of the revetment, the outer portions of the Brigantine Island jetty, and initial beach fill. Completed increments of this project have resulted in substantial benefits including prevention of severe damage to property along the ocean frontage during the storm of March 1962. Completion of the initial beach fill and a program for periodic nourishment will insure continuation of the benefits from prevention of damages to public property and recreational benefits from the use of the publicly owned shores. The Chief of Engineers recommends Federal participation in the amount of one-half the initial nourishment in the form of reimbursement for work to be accomplished by local interests of which $205,000 would be the Federal share and the same participation in the amount of one-half the cost of periodic nourishment for a period of 10 years, of which the Federal share would be $138,000 annually, subject to certain requirements for local cooperation. Local interests have indicated their willingness to meet the requirements of local cooperation. The benefit-to-cost ratio is 3 to 1. Comments of the State and Federal agencies are favorable. The Bureau of the Budget has no objection to the submission of this report.

Mr. JONES. Are there any questions? (No response.)