set-up, in that every piece of land in that valley, including every foot of highway, all the churches, fraternal organizations, and even the cemeteries are assessed for construction benefits in that valley.

There is only one area throughout the entire district that is not assessed, and that is the United States post office, and somehow or another they got by under the original assessment.

Constant aggradation of the river bed since the completion of construction has imposed an undue burden upon the people of the valley. We have been able to meet that through some fortunate financing. We were able to refund our bonds and reduce interest rates from 4 to 2.7 percent in 1946.

We took the additional assessments we were able to put on operation and maintenance in lieu of interest rates to increase the amount of money available to maintain the district and the levee system.

Due to the constant aggradation of the river bed, operations and maintenance costs throughout the district have been doubled within the past 7 years.

The constant filling of the canals with silt from the river has made the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District one of the largest dirt movers in the world. We figure that annually we will be compelled to remove or transport in the neighborhood of 2,000,000 yards of silt. That is being piled out on the sides of the canal, the sides of the drains. and still we are fighting a losing battle. Each year, the amount constantly increases.

Our drainage system is deteriorating due to the rise of the river bed and no longer allows the free flow of the drains into the main channel. The water level is rising, and approximately in the same proportion that the river bed is rising.

Another way it affects the people of Albuquerque is throughout the entire year there is a constant period of floods. The most intense dread is, naturally, during the spring months when we expect the snow run-off. During that time all real estate activity ceases throughout the valley. There is no transfer of property. Bond values drop And each year the Weather Bureau comes out, the Army engineers, and the conservancy district, puts patrolmen on the river, and that would be a good time for an investor if he had faith in the Government project in the future to buy farms, because a lot of people get scared. They are worried about their property values and their lives

Mr. Chairman, I think that covers the situation except one thing I do not believe it has been clearly explained just how the transportation system is located through the valley.

The CHAIRMAN. Will you take that pointer and go to the map ove there and show us, please?

Mr. BALL. The Santa Fe Railroad comes into the valley at abou this location right here. That is the main line of the A. T. &. S. F coming through from Topeka, Kans., to the west coast. It goes dowi the valley to a point below Albuquerque, or about 50 miles, and prae tically the entire 50 miles in that area is below the level of the rive bed.

It is subject to constant flood damage.

Then, there is a branch line from Albuquerque down along Elephen Butte to El Paso which extends through this region that they work ef constantly. Each year they suffer, especially in the San Marcial are

Then, what is known as the Belen cut-off, a portion of the G Coast Line, comes into the valley south of Albuquerque at Belet

crosses the valley on the bridge there, and ties in this area to the A. T. & S. F.

That cut-off and the line at Albuquerque are equally subject to damage in the case of floods.

The Santa Fe Railroad has large shops at Albuquerque and Belen, and all their installations are very vulnerable to flood damage. They are considerably below the level of the river.

Highway 66 crosses the river at Albuquerque. It is almost a straight east and west line across the valley. That traffic line artery would be cut in the event of a serious flood through Albuquerque.

Highway 85 enters the valley at approximately the same location as the Santa Fe Railroad and follows the Santa Fe in the valley throughout its entire length of over 100 miles.

Highway 60 enters the valley at Belen and goes south to Socorro, and then goes west.

So, a major portion, not a major portion but a considerable percentage of the traffic across the United States is carried on those highways, and the freight by the Santa Fe Railroad, and all are particularly subject to considerable damage.

The CHAIRMAN. Point out, Mr. Ball, if you will, the gas line between Albuquerque and Los Alamos.

Mr. BALL. The gas line between Albuquerque and Los Alamos comes up the river from Albuquerque, pretty well follows the valley up to Santa Fe. Then, there is a line coming across from Santa Fe to Los Alamos, which is located about where they have the Chamita Dam site.

All traffic to Los Alamos, with the exception of some very much unimproved road travel, must travel these highways that go through Albuquerque and Santa Fe.

I think that is correct, is it not, Colonel, that there are no improved highways to Los Alamos that do not have to cross the Rio Grande? Colonel KILLIAN. That is right.

The CHAIRMAN. You spoke about the troubles of the Santa Fe Railroad down around San Marcial. Will you state to the committee briefly their experience last spring?

Mr. BALL. Last spring, before even the theoretical minimum flow which is required to produce damage arrived, they began to have trouble with their lines between Albuquerque and El Paso.

The Santa Fe Railroad undertook a program down there of raising the tracks. Before that could be done, the work trains began to slide off the tracks into the water down there. There were two engines lost, and I know there were three people injured. I do not remember a death. I believe one engineer was killed or seriously injured.

That is not an isolated case. The Santa Fe Railroad, I believe, has raised their tracks five times within the past 15 or 20 years in that area. And that is a good indication or example of what is happening on up the river.

The rise in the river bed is exaggerated there, because the backwater curve is moving up the river. At the time of completion of construction the effective height of the levees at Albuquerque was supposed to be 8 feet, or throughout the district. You can see the rise in the river bed has decreased that effective height now to an average of probably 51⁄2 feet throughout the district. And that loss of 21⁄2 feet in the sand levees to us is serious.

The State of New Mexico, the Army engineers, the Indian Service, the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District and other Federal and Government agencies, and local organizations all contribute each year enormous sums of money to an attempt to do emergency floodcontrol work. None of that work is of a permanent nature. The permanent work requires a much larger outlay of money than the people themselves are locally able to raise.

The CHAIRMAN. Could you estimate within a reasonable amount what you think was spent this spring by local people?

Mr. BALL. This spring, by local people, the State of New Mexico and local people, there was considerably in excess of $300,000 spent on the river.

The CHAIRMAN. That is outside of Government agencies like the Indian Bureau and Bureau of Public Roads and other agencies affected?

Mr. BALL. That is right, State and local agencies spent in excess of $300,000.

I would like to point out that although the situation is serious the valley is a very important center of national interest now due to the various Government installations, and that the plan very definitely points out the project is economically feasible. It will be repaid in national benefits.

We people of the valley have done everything we know to improve our own lot, and we will cooperate in any way that the Federal Government requires on a project of that type. We expect to repay the Bureau of Reclamation all that part that is reimbursable.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Mr. Ball.

Any questions, Senator Sparkman?
Senator SPARKMAN. No questions.
Senator KERR. No questions.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you very much.

Mr. BALL. Thank you very much. I want to assure the committee of my appreciation for having been invited to represent the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District and the local people here today. The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Murphy.

STATEMENT OF JOHN PATRICK MURPHY, EXECUTIVE SECRETARY, MIDDLE RIO GRANDe flood conTROL ASSOCIATION

Mr. MURPHY. My name is John Patrick Murphy, and I am the executive secretary of the Middle Rio Grande Flood Control Association.

I have been authorized by the board of directors to appear here in their behalf.

I left with the clerk of the committee 25 of the prepared briefs. and we have put a lot of thought in that to depict from a layman's viewpoint the hazards of the valley as well as the need for the recla mation. The map that we have here, in our brief, is prepared by expert engineers, and it will give you a legend showing the highways. the railroads, the water lines, and everything that is not depicted on this large wall map in the way of utilities. I would also like to make a few brief comments in addition to the material in our brief. First, with reference to the Middle Rio Grande Flood Control Association:

This association is made up of a voluntary group of farmers, business and professional men, housewives, school teachers, and other persons who have united in this manner to support this approved comprehensive plan.

Our membership numbers over 2,000.

Second, it should be noted that all affected interests of this project are united in their endorsement and support of the comprehensive plan as worked out by the Corps of Army Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation. Thus it is a joint undertaking by the two Federal agencies and has the complete approval of Texas, Colorado, and New Mexico, all of which are affected States.

Economics: The middle Rio Grande valley extends from the Colorado-New Mexico State line to the Elephant Butte Reservoir in southern New Mexico.

Population the greatest resource in the valley-is estimated to be 250,000.

Population of Bernalillo County, which is commonly referred to as Greater Albuquerque, had a population of 69,391 in 1940, and now that figure is placed at 116,000 by the bureau of business research of the University of New Mexico. This is a gain of 66 percent.

Valuation placed on the property in the flood-plain area is 400 million dollars.

Land area aggregates 347,500 acres.

Albuquerque, the county seat of Bernalillo County, is the largest city in New Mexico, and one of the key commercial centers of the southwestern United States. Its growth to metropolitan stature has been brought about during the past generation because of its location near the center of the State, where the natural lines of traffic and human cross-currents meet.

The following business indices, 1930-48, reflect our dynamic economy. These data were compiled by the Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce:

Bank deposits: 1930, $12,490,468; 1940, $21,649,020; 1946, $81,629,061; 1947, $82,361,026; 1948, $92,551,503.

Bank clearings: 1930, $160,661,000; 1940, $213,499,700; 1946, $714,053,490; 1947, $795,072,983; 1948, $928,983,265.

Postal receipts: 1930, $224,530; 1940, $398,897; 1946, $712,171; 1947, $793,162; 1948, $939,076.

Gas service (number of users): 1930, 3,627; 1940, 10,083; 1946, . 15,812; 1947, 18,386; 1948, 22,122.

Water connections: 1930, 8,738; 1940, 9,055; 1946, 13,229: 1947, 14.829; 1948, 16,922.

Electric meters: 1930, 8,738; 1940, 17,037; 1946, 25,809; 1947, 29.536; 1948, 33,345.

Telephone connections: 1930, 6,569; 1940, 11,800; 1946, 19,735; 1947, 24,160; 1948, 27,489.

Building permits: 1930. $3,000,000; 1940, $2,355,930; 1946, $5.163,952; 1947, $8,889,527; 1948, $14,734,012.

In connection with building permits, I might say that a large amount of building in the metropolitan area is not reported because it is outside the corporate limits and does not include military construction.

Military construction reached $22,000,000, mostly for expansion at Sandia Base.

A new branch of the telephone company has gone into operation since May 1, and since that time approximately 3,000 new telephone connections have been installed.

Albuquerque is vitally important to the following New Mexico major industries:

Miscellaneous income from other sources exceeds $75,000,000. The United States Department of Commerce placed New Mexico's income at $576,000,000 in 1947 as against $190,000,000 in 1940. Our present income is well over $600,000,000.

New Mexico (gross area, 121,666 square miles) is the fourthlargest State of the United States, being exceeded in area by1. Texas, gross area, 267,339 square miles;

2. California, gross area, 158,693 square miles;

3. Montana, gross area, 147,138 square miles.

Indian pueblos: Santo Domingo, Isleta, San Felipe, San Juan, Sandia, Cochiti, Santa Clara, Santa Ana, and San Ildefonso Indian pueblos are all located in the Rio Grande Valley.

Agriculture, the principal economy of these 6,000 Indians, now being seriously threatened, along with their valley neighbors, would directly benefit and be assured of a continuance of such livelihood, with the proposed program of control of the floodwaters of the Rio Grande, detention of the large quantities of silt now being transported by its water and rehabilitation of their drainage canals and irrigation systems.

National-defense aspects: Extremely important defense establishments have been located in the valley, at and near Albuquerque. They are (1) atomic laboratory and special atomic-weapons project at Sandia Base in Albuquerque; (2) the Eighty-first Fighter Wing at Kirtland Air Base, in Albuquerque; (3) the United States Veterans Hospital, in Albuquerque; (4) Los Alamos Atomic Laboratory, near Espanola; (5) research and development laboratory for Army, Navy, and Air Force on time fuzes (and so forth) located at the School of Mines, Socorro; (6) rocket proving ground, at Alamogordo.

All of these defense establishments are located in New Mexico in order to take advantage of the natural protection afforded by the geography of this area. However, they are served by road and rail transportation, telephone communications, and by water, electric power, gas, and sewage-disposal facilities which are intricably nected with the general network of the middle Rio Grande Valley.

An exhaustive study by the most highly qualified engineers in our Government positively states that a flood in the middle Rio Grande Valley is inevitable if the present rapidly worsening conditions are allowed to continue.

This flood could come at a time of national emergency when our national existence may depend upon the atomic bases and laboratories served by the facilities in this valley. The interruption of these facilities by flood might mean a national disaster. Seriously, this condition should not be tolerated.