will really protect us. It requires more expensive work than we can pay for. The Corps of Army Engineers have designed in coordination with our own flood-control departments, a splendid system of flood-control works, and Congress has authorized $70,000,000 for that purpose. We are now nearing the end of that authorization but the estimated total cost of the work to be done is far in excess of that. We hope for consideration in the extension of this authorization so that we may go ahead with our work. In my own district we have the entire head waters of the Los Angeles River and a portion of the San Gabriel River. Of that part of the Los Angeles River Basin project which lies in my district, the Hansen Retarding Basin is practically completed, and work has commenced on the Sepulveda Basin. Both of these basins are designed to control the floodwaters of the Los Angeles River, by retarding the flood crests. There is another basin very badly needed, designated as the Lopez Retarding Basin. This basın lies near the city of San Fernando, and is designed to control the floodwaters of the Pacoima Wash and thereby to protect the city of Van Nuys and the communities lying between it and the basin, in addition to aiding in the control of the floodwaters in the Los Angeles River. All of these works, and the communities mentioned lie within the city limits of the city of Los Angeles. Of the San Gabriel Valley project, that portion which lies within my district, is designated as the Rubio Canyon Diversion Channel, and a portion of the Eaton Wash Channel. These two are highly important developments, and particularly the latter bears a very high ratio of annual benefit to annual cost-being in the neighborhood of 6 to 1. The Eaton Wash is in a very dangerous condition at the present moment, as the channel has scoured so deeply that it has undercut the foundations of a number of bridges, and one of these already has had to be replaced. I think that if the committee will take into consideration the fact that we in Los Angeles County not only have done, but are still doing a great deal of this work-certainly all we can afford to-and greatly need the help and cooperation of the Federal Government. As our authorization is nearly exhausted, we sincerely hope that an additional authorization of $130,000,000 will be included in the authorization bill pending before the committee. The CHAIRMAN. We are glad to have your additional statement. Any other member who desires to make a statement? The chair recognizes Mr. Jennings. STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN JENNINGS, REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF TENNESSEE The CHAIRMAN. What is the project that you appear here on? Mr. JENNINGS. The project which I desire to call your attention to calls for flood control on the waters of the Obed and Emory Rivers in Tennessee. I desire to file with the committee a statement prepared by the Harriman Flood Control Committee and also a petition addressed to Senator McKellar and Senator Stewart, Senators from Tennessee, and to myself by the officials of the city of Harriman, of Roane County, and of Kingston in Morgan County, and the city of Oakdale. I also have here photographs showing the character of floods which occurred on these rivers in 1929 in which 22 people lost their lives and in which damages of about $3,000,000 were inflicted on the industries and other properties in Harriman. The CHAIRMAN. You have introduced a bill for an examination and survey? Mr. JENNINGS. Yes. The CHAIRMAN. What is the number of that bill? Mr. JENNINGS. I don't recall at the present moment. The CHAIRMAN. You would like for that to be included in whatever bill the committee reports? Mr. JENNINGS. I would. The CHAIRMAN. May I remind you it is H. R. 8158. The bill provides for what? Captain REBER. For a preliminary examination and survey for flood control of the Emory River and tributaries in Tennessee. The CHAIRMAN. One of those examination surveys is already authorized. Captain REBER. On the Obed River. There is an authorization for that river by a resolution of your committee. The CHAIRMAN. So that would be provided for. Now, it is fair to call your attention, inasmuch as you are present, to the report of the Department of War on the Emory River. That report states that it is not in accordance with the Budget to recommend a favorable report for their examination. I assume that that is on the theory that your river is located in the Tennessee Valley Authority. This is not the first report of that kind that has been brought to my attention in connection with the preliminary examination and survey. Mr. JENNINGS. I understand there has been a report filed. Captain REBER. On the Obed River the preliminary report has been completed and is now before the Board of Engineers for Rivers and Harbors, sir, but not on the- Mr. JENNINGS. The Obed River, of course, is one of the main tributaries of the Emory. The CHAIRMAN. That is right. We are glad to have had your statement and I think you are entitled to an examination and survey myself. Mr. JENNINGS. I would like to have these communications made a part of my statement. The CHAIRMAN. It is so ordered. (The documents referred to by Mr. Jennings are as follows:) Maj. BERNARD SMITH, DECEMBER 29, 1939. District Engineer, Major, Corps of Engineers, War Department. The flood-control committee of Harriman, which is a committee appointed by the mayor of Harriman to endeavor to secure flood protection for Harriman and Emory River Valley, wish to present the following statements as to past damages caused by floods on the Emory River and need for flood protection and suggestions as to what this committee thinks might be done for protection from floods. The city of Harriman has been in existence as a town something like 48 years and during that period the town has suffered from the effects of four floods of major character and several minor floods. The dates of the four floods of major character are as follows: The first one occurred in the year 1902 and the records as to losses sustained in that flood are limited, however, it has been stated by individuals residing here at that time that the damage in that flood probably amounted to $200,000. The second of these floods occurred on March 22 and 23, 1929, and in this flood there were 22 lives lost as well as property damage of something like $3,000,000. The third of these floods occurred in July 1936 in which there was a property damage of approximately $100,000 and the fourth of the floods occurred February 5, 1939, in which there was a property loss of approximately $250,000. These estimated losses are fairly accurate as they are made up from totals reported by citizens, various industrial plants and railroads, and of course represent only the direct property loss and do not include other losses such as soil erosion, loss of time in manufacturing plants, etc. The flood of March 1929 is of course the greatest of these floods and the loss in that flood probably exceeded the sum of $3,000,000 by some considerable sum but that represents actual losses as reported by various parties in the flood zone, and is made up about as follows: Total damage to the Southern Railway, Cincinnati, New Orleans & Texas Pacific Railway, Tennessee Central Railway, Hillsboro & Northeastern Railway, and Louisville & Nashville Railway, $1,250,000. This includes only actual damage to roadbed, track, and trestles as well as various kinds of equipment that was washed away as there were several hundred railroad cars that were actually washed away, some of them going down the river as much as 150 miles and were never recovered. Actual damage to industrial plants representing loss of buildings, stocks, and damage to stock on hand that was not washed away, $1,200,000. Actual damage to utilities, sewerage systems, water plants, etc., $200,000. Actual damage to residences that were carried away in the flood, personal property in residences and store buildings and stocks of goods therein, $350,000. This does not include various other damages caused by this flood, and in fact it was our understanding there was several hundred thousand dollars lost by ship pers who had merchandise in cars that were inundated with water and carried away by the flood and which was not reimbursed by the railroads because of the fact that the railroads took the position that this flood was an act of God and they were not responsible and thus this amount of loss which was suffered by shippers throughout the United States was not included in the railroad's total and there is no way of obtaining accurate estimate of this amount. This 1929 flood also caused the loss of three manufacturing plants to the city of Harriman as there were three industrial plants that were practically wiped out and they never rebuilt their plants. We have dwelt largely on the 1929 flood as it is the most serious flood of which we have record. Our estimation on damages sustained in the 1936 and 1939 floods are totals reported by various parties suffering losses and are damages incurred by industrial plants and railroads as there was very little residential property loss in those two floods. We feel that something must be done to control the flood waters on the Emory River as it is of vital importance to the city of Harriman as well as residents of the entire Emory River Valley that something be done, and it is especially important at this time since the operators of our industrial plants do not feel like expanding their plants on account of the fear of these floods, and it is impossible to interest other industries to come to our town because of this fear of floods since the best available sites for industrial development are in the level lands along the river. Furthermore, the construction of the Watts Bar Dam which will create approximately 20 to 27 feet of backwater at Harriman is also tending to increase the fears of owners of industrial plants in our city as they fear this backwater will increase flood hazards in the future, and so far we have been unsuccessful in interesting the Tennessee Valley Authority in developing the upper Emory River thus giving us flood control, although the Tennessee Valley Authority will undoubtedly increase our flood hazards here. The city of Harriman is located at a point where the Emory River comes out of the mountains, the river above Harriman being very swift in places and drops some 500 or 600 feet in the course of 30 or 40 miles thus causing a very swift river at times of flood, and we are told this river in times of floods such as the 1929 flood carries objects at a speed ranging from 30 to 40 miles an hour, and to illustrate the velocity of the flood at that time numerous steel coal cars were lifted up by the waters and carried 10 to 20 miles downstream before being dropped to the river bed. Not being engineers, we hesitate to recommend what might be done, but from information we have obtained from the War Department surveys which we understand have been made in the past and from Tennessee Valley Authority surveys as well as a survey made by private engineers several years ago, we would like to suggest the construction of two or three flood-control storage dams, one or possibly two of these being on the Obed River and one on the Emory River a few miles above its junction with the Obed River and about 2 or 3 miles northwest of Wartbury since from information we have received these are probably the most logical sites for flood control storage dams, however, what we need most is protection from floods, and we are merely making these suggestions since we are willing to leave this matter up to engineers of the War Department if you will give us protection from floods. A. B. STOWERS, S. P. EVANS, H. T. ARMSTRONG, Harriman Flood Control Committee. To: Hon. K. D. MCKELLAR, Hon. Toм STEWART, United States Senators from Tennessee. Hon. JOHN JENNINGS, JR., Congressman from Second District of Tennesee. To the Congress of the United States: We, the undersigned, public officials of Harriman, Kingston and Roane County in Tennessee and public officials of Oakdale and Morgan County, Tenn., do hereby petition you to give us such protection as is necessary to prevent the destruction of the economic life of our communities. The cities of Harriman and Oakdale are located on the banks of the Emory River and Harriman is largely an industrial city and Oakdale is also dependent on industry since it is a railroad center and industrial town as well. There is a population of something like 25,000 to 40,000 people depending on the industry in and adjacent to these 2 towns. These two towns have suffered from numerous floods in the past, there having been major floods in 1902, 1929, 1937, and 1939. These floods have already caused the loss of considerable of our industry and we are now facing the probability of losing more of our industry. Also are finding it practically impossible to interest other industries to come to our section on account of this flood hazard. These communities will probably always remain industrial communities on account of the fact that there are large quantities of coal, minerals, and timber in this section of the country and the majority of the land is suitable only for the growing of timber and taking from the soil the minerals contained therein. In the flood of 1929 there was a loss of 22 lives as well as very large loss of property, and there was also large property loss in each of the other floods. The United States Army engineers in a report issued July 17, 1929, outlined a plan whereby certain improvements on the tributaries of the Emory River could be made which would protect the cities of Oakdale and Harriman as well as the balance of the Emory River Basin from future possible loss of life and property damage such as was incurred in the 1929 flood as well as other floods. The total estimated cost based on 1929 cost figures of the Army engineers' plan was $8,409,000. This work if completed would give a certain degree of protection to the city of Chattanooga as well as other communities located on the Tennessee and lower rivers since the Emory River is one of the large tributaries of the Tennessee River. It is our desire that such legislation be enacted as is necessary to carry out the recommendations of the Army engineers as stated in their report of July 17, 1929, and we hereby request that you introduce proper bills and take the necessary steps toward the enactment of such legislation as is necessary to fulfill the recommendations of the Army engineers' above-mentioned report. City of Harriman officials: H. M. Case, Mayor; G. W. Adkisson, City of Kingston officials: A. H. Stegall, Mayor; Rus Allen. The CHAIRMAN. We will recess at this time until 2 p. m. day.) AFTER RECESS the same The committee reconvened at 2 p. m., pursuant to the taking of the recess. The CHAIRMAN. The committee will be in order. We will next hear Judge Tarver. STATEMENT OF HON. MALCOLM C. TARVER, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF GEORGIA Mr. TARVER. Mr. Chairman, I appear in the interest of what is known as the Allatoona Reservoir project on the Etowah River in Georgia, House Document No. 674 containing the report. Before adding some additional remarks to what I said on Saturday, concerning this project, I think it is appropriate that I make brief reference to the report which has heretofore been made, and which is now in process of revision, concerning the development of the Coosa-Alabama River system for navigation, power development, and flood control. I think it appropriate to do this because that proposed development is interlocked with the project here under consideration. It involves the development of the river system from the proposed head of navigation at Rome, Ga., to the Gulf, which is 650 miles in length, having within its drainage area 22,280 square miles and 1,124,000 people, according to the United States census of 1930. The population at this time is very probably much closer to a million and a half. In the report which has been rendered heretofore by the Army engineers known as House Document 306, Seventy-fourth Congress, first session, it was developed that in the opinion of the engineers approximately $34,000,000, the exact amount being $34,239,000 would be needed in order to make this river navigable from Rome, Ga., to the Gulf, that is with a 9-foot channel. The tonnage which it was estimated would move over the system in the event of it being made navigable was estimated at 1,906,000 tons, and the probable benefits at approximately $1,500,000. In taking into consideration the tonnage which might probably move over the river in the event of its development for navigation, the Army engineers considered only the existing traffic originating in this region, and the proportion of that traffic which might resonably be expected to move by water in the event of the provision of a 9-foot channel from Rome to the Gulf. They did not take into consideration the possibilities of the development of this area in the event cheap freight rates were obtainable. Development of mineral production alone would be very considerable. |