structed by the Corps of Engineers is $49,760,000 of which $3,500,000 has been authorized by the Flood Control Act of June 30, 1948. The Department of the Army has no objection to the enactment of Senate bill 1392. This report has been coordinated among the departments and boards in the National Military Establishment in accordance with procedures prescribed by the Secretary of Defense. The Bureau of the Budget advises that there is no objection to the submission of this report. Sincerely yours, GORDON GRAY, Under Secretary of the Army. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, Washington 25, D. C., May 23, 1949. MY DEAR SENATOR CHAVEZ: The committee on Public Works has requested my views on S. 1392, a bill authorizing appropriations for the comprehensive plan for the Rio Grande Basin, N. Mex. I recommend enactment of this bill. The Flood Control Act of 1948 (Public Law 858, 80th Cong.), approved the comprehensive plan for the Rio Grande Basin as set forth in the coordinated reports of the Corps of Engineers, Department of the Army, and the Bureau of Reclamation of this Department, and authorized the sum of $3,500,000 to be appropriated for the partial accomplishment of the comprehensive plans by the Department of the Army. S. 1392 would authorize the appropriation of an additional sum of $38,000,000 to be expended by the Department of the Army, and the sum of $15,000,000 to be expended by the Department of the Interior for the prosecution of the approved plan. Enactment of this bill would not only authorize appropriations sufficient for partial but orderly undertaking of the task contemplated in the comprehensive plan but it would also put beyond doubt that authority of the Secretary of the Interior to proceed with work under the plans. The cost of the part of the comprehensive plan which was assigned, by the agreement approved by the Secretary of the Army and the Acting Secretary of the Interior on November 21, 1947, for accomplishment by the Department of the Interior, is now estimated at $30,179,000. This part of the plan includes, among other things, rehabilitation and extension of irrigation and drainage works (including El Vado Dam and Reservoir) for the purpose of irrigating approxi mately 85,000 acres, channel rectification in the middle Rio Grande Valley (including the Espanola Valley and Hot Springs area) and dredging from near the south boundary of the middle Rio Grande Conservancy District into Elephant Butte Reservoir, aid in the financial rehabilitation of the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District and rehabilitation or construction of irrigation and drainage works on Indian lands, the cost for which is nonreimbursable under reclamation law under the approved plan, all of which work would be performed by the Bureau of Reclamation; measures for development of fish and wildlife resources, which would be undertaken by the Fish and Wildlife Service; and development of recreational resources by the National Park Service, provided agreements for their operation by State or local governmental agencies are secured in advance. The authorization contemplated in S. 1392 would enable all of this work to be put underway. However, the total estimated cost of $30,179,000 does not include the cost of land development work on Indian lands which would be performed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs with funds appropriated to that agency under separate authorization. Authorization for appropriation of the $15,000,000 which would be provided by the enactment of this bill would make it necessary for the Secretary of the Interior to seek authority later for additional appropriations in the amount required to complete the Interior Department's portion of the plan. When such authority would have to be sought would depend, of course, upon the rate at which appropriations are actually made by the Congress. The committee may wish to consider increasing the presently contemplated authorization of $15,000,000 to be expended by the Department of the Interior to $30,179,000 in order that it may not be necessary to burden a future Congress with further consideration of this same project. In view of my understanding that the Committee on Public Works of the House of Representatives is now considering a measure which includes the substance of S. 1392 and desires an immediate expression of the views of this Department thereon, this report has not been submitted to the Bureau of the Budget for review. I am, therefore, unable to advise you concerning the relation of S. 1392 and this report to the program of the President. Sincerely yours, Hon. DENNIS CHAVEZ, J. A. KRUG, Secretary of the Interior. United States Senate. Chairman, Committee on Public Works, ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION, April 7, 1949. Hon. DENNIS CHAVEZ, Senate Office Building, Washington, 25 D. C. DEAR SENATOR CHAVEZ: This is in reply to your letters of March 25 concerning S. 1392, a bill to authorize appropriations for comprehensive flood control for the Rio Grande River Basin. The Commission is, of course, vitally interested in the maintenance of rail, air, and road communications for both the Los Alamos and Sandia Laboratories. We have not gone into the numerous aspects and varied objectives of the proposed legislation. We believe, however, to the extent that one result of this program would be to reduce the possibility of damage to the railhead at Albuquerque in case of flood conditions, this program would contribute to reducing the likelihood of a contingency arising which would force the Commission to rely on currently available motor and air communications to its installations with an attendant inconvenience, expense, and delay. The Atomic Energy Commission has not been advised by the Bureau of the Budget as to the relationship of this bill to the program of the President. Sincerely yours, UNITED STATES ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION, The CHAIRMAN. Any more witnesses who care to be heard? 94522-49-pt. 1—23 FLOOD CONTROL-RIVERS AND HARBORS WEDNESDAY, JULY 20, 1949 UNITED STATES SENATE, SUBCOMMITTEE FOR FLOOD CONTROL AND IMPROVEMENT OF RIVERS AND HARBORS OF THE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC WORKS, Washington, D. C. The subcommittee met, pursuant to adjournment, at 10 a. m., in room 412, Senate Office Building, Senator John L. McClellan presiding. Present: Senators McClellan and Holland. Also present: Senators Stennis, Malone, and Long; and Lt. Col. H. Gee, Office, Chief of Engineers, Department of the Army. Senator MCCLELLAN. We will come to order and the committee will proceed with further hearings on H. R. 5742. Senator McCarran, you have introduced some bills that might properly be made an amendment to the pending bill. If you wish, we will be very glad to hear from you, Senator. STATEMENT OF HON. PAT McCARRAN, UNITED STATES SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF NEVADA Senator MCCARRAN. I am very grateful to you, Mr. Chairman, for the opportunity to present these matters. They are of minor importance, perhaps, to the larger things that you are dealing with, but they are of major importance to the locality in which they exist. PINE AND MATHEWS FLOOD-CONTROL DAMS Senator MCCARRAN. I think Colonel Gee will recall the fact that the Corps of Engineers is now making a survey of that. Colonel GEE. Yes. Senator MCCARRAN. I am informed that the interim report of the Corps of Engineers on a survey of Meadow Valley Wash and the lower Muddy River is to receive attention by the Bureau of the Budget in the very near future and then will be transmitted to Congress. I respectfully request that this committee take all steps possible to see that this project may be included in the pending bill before it is reported to the Senate. If this is done, it will insure that this project will be considered for an appropriation in the next session of Congress. So that the committee may be informed, I request permission to place in the record a copy of a letter sent to the Chief of Engineers by Mr. Alfred Merritt Smith, State engineer for Nevada. Mr. Smith gives this project the very highest of recommendations and pays high tribute to the Corps of Engineers for the thorough job they have done on this survey. I ask leave at this time to insert the letter of Mr. Alfred Merritt Smith with reference to the project in the record. Mr. Alfred Merritt Smith is State engineer of the State of Nevada. Senator MCCLELLAN. The letter will be made a part of the record. (The letter referred to above is as follows:) Maj. Gen. LEWIS A. PICK, Chief of Engineers, United States Army, STATE OF NEVADA, Washington, D. C. DEAR GENERAL PICK: Herewith at the request of Gov. Vail Pittman, of Nevada, I submit on his behalf, as designated by law and as his representative, comments on the proposed interim report of the Corps of Engineers, on a survey of Meadow Valley Wash and lower Muddy River, Nev. I have carefully reviewed your report, together with the reports of the Board of Engineers for Rivers and Harbors and of the district and division engineers covering the said area and after so doing I wish to commend the work of the Corps of Engineers on this project in the highest terms. In accordance with the desire expressed in your letter of transmittal to Governor Pittsman dated June 16, 1949, we have prepared and are forwarding our comments without delay, and I hope in ample time to permit consideration of your report at this session of Congress. We find the descriptive matter relative to the area to be concise and accurate, denoting careful observation and study. From our local viewpoint, we might stress a little more the present and rapidly increasing value of the special agriculture on the relatively small proportion of irrigated land within the project which is located in Moapa Valley, where a subtropical climate and favorable soil conditions have combined to create and promote the production of special crops of plants and seeds. Fear of floods has retarded more rapid development there. Some of the intangible benefits which may have been considered by the district engineer under the heading of community morale will consist in the elimination of constant fear of the destruction of both valuable crops and land in Moapa Valley, as has happened in past years. The steadily increasing value and acreage of special crops, has made the people there more apprehensive and articulate as to danger of loss from flood than they have been in the past, and this will continue until protection from the danger is assured. This fear is a strong deterrent to full development and reduces property values. During the season of 1949 the Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the State legislature were appealed to for help by the people of Moapa Valley for protection against an anticipated flood similar to those frequently suffered in the past. Fortunately, due to favorable weather and dry soil underlying snow-covered areas as a result of preceding drought, the flood did not occur. We note that the great value of the varied mineral production of the area has been considered. The maintaining of uninterrupted transportation to insure continuous production and marketing of strategic metals is, in our opinion very necessary. Mining is the major industry of the area and gives employment to many people. The necessity of protecting and safeguarding the Union Pacific Railroad main line, the two Federal highways, the town of Caliente and the Moapa Valley and its towns from disastrous flood damage and interruptions of transportation service has been very carefully analyzed and evaluated, and the history of the frequent destructive floods of past years, is well described. We note that the district engineer has investigated four plans of improvement which are a channel improvement plan, a multiple-purpose reservoir plan, and two types of reservoir-control plans. As a result of these surveys, a flood-control plan is recommended providing one reservoir in Pine Canyon and another in Mathews Canyon, major tributaries to Clover Creek in which the greatest floods originate. This development provides more benefits in proportion to cost than other plans. It is interesting for us to note that this plan is essentially in accord with preliminary investigations and recommendations made by the Nevada State engineer several years ago. The district engineer finds that the intangible benefits resulting from the project are of great weight, and are enumerated as hazard to human life, elimina |