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the McKenzie River or alternate reservoirs on tributaries of the McKenzie River depending on the results of the additional studies now under way as well as for the bank-protection works along the Willamette River, and the provision for the fish facilities.

AMAZON CREEK, OREG.

The CHAIRMAN. The first individual project on the schedule that has been submitted since the Flood-Control Act of 1944 is the Amazon Creek project in Oregon, Senate Document No. 138, Seventy-ninth Congress.

As shown by this document, the report was transmitted by the Chief of Engineers to the governor and the Secretary of the Interior, as required by the Flood Control Act of 1944. The report thereon states that the work is economically justified, and the improvement is recommended. The Chief of Engineers recommends favorable consideration of this project with a rather high ratio of benefits as

to cost.

Amazon Creek, for this record, rises in the steep hills of western Oregon and flows about 24 miles generally north to its junction with Long Tom River, a tributary of the Willamette River, and its course extends through the small Clear Lake, which is about 9 miles above

the mouth.

What is the drainage area involved?

STATEMENT OF COL. E. G. HERB, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, CIVIL WORKS DIVISION, OFFICE, CHIEF OF ENGINEERS

Colonel HERB. Amazon Creek flows through Eugene, Oreg., and then northeasterly to its junction with the Long Tom River, as the chairman just informed you.

The drainage basin contains about 56 square miles, of which the lower 44 square miles is flat agricultural land devoted to the production of fruits, berries, small grains, pasture, and hay.

The CHAIRMAN. Is there a flood hazard and do floods occur?

Colonel HERE. Floods occur several times annually and inundate from 800 to 900 acres of agricultural lands and affect about 50 city blocks of the residential section of the city of Eugene, Oreg. Large floods occurred in November 1941 and December 1942, and inundated 3,000 and 4,900 acres of land, respectively.

The future average direct flood damage in the basin, based on developments existent in 1943, is estimated at $28.760 of which $17,660 will occur to agriculture along the lower 11 miles of the stream and $7,730 to agriculture, and $3,370 to urban, municipal, and utility properties in the upper section of the basin.

The proposed plan consists of channel improvements from a point above the south limits of Eugene through the city to a diversion structure 11 miles above the mouth of the creek, thence a diversion canal about 311⁄2 miles long to the Fern Ridge Reservoir on the Long Tom River; channel improvement of the lower 9 miles of the creek from Clear Lake to Long Tom River; and a drainage ditch to drain the area north and east of the airport.

The CHAIRMAN. What is the population of Eugene, Oreg.?

Colonel HERB. Eugene, Oreg., in 1940 had a population of 20,000. I was out there about 3 months ago and the people told me that city now has a much greater population.

it.

The CHAIRMAN. Will the improvement proposed protect that area?
Colonel HERB. This improvement will protect that area, sir.
The CHAIRMAN. The ratio of costs to benefits is 1 to 1.8, as I recall

Colonel HERB. That is correct, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. And the cost of this project is estimated to be what? Colonel HERB. The total estimated cost is $284,000, sir, of which local interests will bear about $58,000. The Governor of Oregon, by letter dated September 11, 1945, officially endorsed and approved the proposed improvements on Amazon Creek as a worthy project.

The CHAIRMAN. They are to furnish the rights-of-way?
Colonel HERB. The usual cooperation; yes, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. Any questions by members of the committee? If not, Colonel, is there any further statement you desire to submit with respect to this project? Any person here opposing the project? Any other advocates?

Mr. DIXON. We have comments on several projects. Would you rather have us discuss them as we proceed?

The CHAIRMAN. We have referred already to the report. Have you any comments with respect to this project?

Mr. DIXON. None other than those contained in the original report.

STATEMENT OF HON. HARRIS ELLSWORTH, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM OREGON

Mr. ELLSWORTH. I would like to make a general statement on this project in connection with the hearings you have just had.

The CHAIRMAN. We will be glad to have your statement.

Mr. ELLSWORTH. On March 14 I introduced H. R. 5771 to authorize the construction of flood-control work on the Amazon Creek for the protection of Eugene, Oreg., and downstream agricultural areas. This project is recommended in the report of the Chief of Engineers, United States Army, in Senate Document 138 of the Seventy-ninth Congress. The total estimated cost of the project is $284,000, of which $226,000 is the Federal cost. The report of the Army engineers sets forth ample justification for the proposed project.

It is my desire to present to the committee, additional reasons for the urgency and need of this flood-control protection to the city of Eugene and the agricultural lands downstream. About 20 years ago, the city of Eugene spent a large sum dredging and diking the Amazon to a point about a mile beyond the then city limits. This improvement provided considerable relief but the city has grown rapidly and the Army engineers are the only agency with authority broad enough to make the needed improvements at this time.

Amazon Creek runs north and west for about 211⁄2 miles through the most heavily populated part of Eugene. A flash flood is experienced in the Amazon area at least once every winter, and sometimes two and three times during the same season. These floods do not coincide with floods on the Willamette, since any heavy local rains flood the Amazon.

During these floods a lake, about 5 blocks in width and as deep as 4 feet in places, extends clear across the west side of Eugene. The creek will flood some 1,500 homes in the area and backs up water in the sewers into basements in properties half a mile away from the surface water. These floods usually cut off the. Willard School and the Woodrow Wilson Junior High School. Each such flood causes thousands of dollars of damage, in addition to the hazards to public health and safety.

As the floodwaters of the Amazon reach the lower Amazon, they become a vast muddy lake, and the waters linger for days and sometimes weeks. The result is that the agricultural lands in this area. are soggy and very difficult to handle except for limited forage crops. The principal industrial area of Eugene, bordering the Southern Pacific Railroad, Coos Bay branch line, is under water frequently. The Eugene Airport, which lives in the lower Amazon region, was converted into the first air park in the United States and is now being widely used by private flyers. However, due to Amazon floodwaters, the north end of this air park is often under water.

In addition to the foregoing, the present condition of the Amazon is a threat to, and has delayed, private, city, and country developments of great importance to the community. The city of Eugene is in urgent need of a new high-school building, and funds have been set aside for the first unit. The total cost of the entire project will be approximately $1,500,000. The architects cannot design the buildings, nor can construction begin, until the city knows definitely that the Amazon flood problem is taken care of. Adjoining the 93-acre high-school site is an area of 400 acres which the local Century Fund proposes to secure for the development of a central park and playground. Likewise, the city of Eugene has pending a new system of trunk sewers, and sewage disposal, which is predicated on the Army engineers levels for the Amazon, and construction cannot be undertaken until the Amazon project has been authorized.

Lane County has a well-developed, year-round program for the use of fairgrounds, through which the Amazon flows. The fairgrounds are used for recreational purposes, headquarters for the Granges, 4-H Club, Riding Club, Little Theater, and other civic and agricultural activities.

But the full utilization of this area is handicapped by the Amazon Creek floods.

During the war the city of Eugene developed a comprehensive program for postwar developments and employment. This program included public improvements such as schools, sewers, parks, streets, and other public facilities, expansion of local industry and provisions for new industries, and the opening up of additional areas for housing for veterans and the greatly increased local population. The University of Oregon, which is located at Eugene, is expanding its facilities under a State-financed program. The very essence of this whole postwar program of developments and employment is contingent upon the control of the Amazon Creek flood. It is a matter of great importance and urgency to the city of Eugene and Lane County.

I am sure that the members of the committee will readily appreciate the merit of this project in view of the recommendations of the Army engineers, and the above facts which I have given in brief detail. The proposed flood control recommended by the Army engineers is

a rather simple and inexpensive means of permanently relieving the city of Eugene and the agricultural communities along the Amazon from the recurrent flood hazards and damages. Because of the importance and merit of this project, I feel justified in urging upon the members of the committee their favorable consideration of this project for flood control on the Amazon Creek.

The CHAIRMAN. Are there any reclamation projects?

Mr. ELLSWORTH. No; it is a very short stream. This little creek is something of a freak of geography. It rises only about 412 miles away from the city of Eugene and comes down through the city at a level lower than the Williamette River, which makes it impossible to drain it off into the river, and then goes down through the basin of the Williamette and runs into a river called the Long Tom. It is a very short stream, but it is very disagreeable and troublesome.

The CHAIRMAN. It is a definite flood hazard?

Mr. ELLSWORTH. It is a definite flood hazard. I have some pictures here that were taken last November. The annual loss is substantial on the floods.

There is not any other way that the local interest can meet the situation other than through your flood-control program. There are not enough farmers involved to do it. The city cannot legally go outside its boundries to do the necessary work.

The CHAIRMAN. What is the population at the present?

Mr. ELLSWORTH. The population of Eugene at the present is about 23,000.

The CHAIRMAN. At the present?

Mr. ELLSWORTH. Yes.

The CHAIRMAN. Has it increased very much during the war? Mr. ELLSWORTH. It has no large industries. The increase in population in Eugene is due rather largely to the increase in the development of the lumber industry. The Douglas fir industry has moved south, starting a half century ago up in the Puget Sound area in the State of Washington. They have been gradually cutting out and now the lumber industry pretty much centers in Eugene, Ore.

The CHAIRMAN. We are glad to have had your statement. Any other questions by any members of the committee?

SPANISH FORK RIVER, UTAH

Colonel Herb, the next individual project, as I understand it, is the Spanish Fork proposal and the report is now with the Budget, is that correct?

Colonel HERB. We have received the comments of the Bureau of the Budget, sir, and the report has recently been submitted to Congress. The CHAIRMAN. Will you give us a synopsis of that project?

Mr. Robinson, you may proceed to ask any questions you desire with respect to it.

STATEMENT OF COL. E. G. HERB, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, CIVIL WORKS DIVISION, OFFICE, CHIEF OF ENGINEERS

Colonel HERB. The authority for this report was contained in the Flood Control Act approved June 28, 1938.

The Spanish Fork River is located in Utah and rises in the Wasatch Mountains in the southeastern part of Utah County, Utah, and flows northwesterly to Utah Lake, a component of the Jordan River system draining into the Great Salt Lake, near Salt Lake City.

The drainage area consists of 700 square miles. The upper 35 miles are rugged mountains, rolling foothills, and bench lands with flat alluvial lands in the lower 13 miles.

The flat lands are intensely developed for agriculture and are used either for growing crops or pasturing live stock. Irrigation water is diverted into the basin from Strawberry Reservoir in an adjoining drainage area and re-diverted from the river for use in the flat lands, Local interests request that the lower 13 miles of Spanish Fork River channel be cleaned, enlarged, and otherwise improved with levees to be constructed at critical points so as to prevent innundation. Floods occur along the lower reaches of Spanish Fork River about twice every 3 years as a result of melting snow or general rains or both.

The estimated average annual flood damage is $18,000.

The plan of improvement provides for levee and channel improvements in the lower 13 miles of the river, modification of diversion dams, revision of bridge and road facilities, and provision of necessary protective work at bridge abutments and piers within the limits of improvement.

The estimated total cost of this project is $98,600, of which the nonFederal cost is estimated at $24,100.

The ratio of costs to benefits is 1 to 2.9. The usual provisions of local cooperation are contained in this project, providing that local interests will furnish assurances satisfactory to the Secretary of War that they will provide without cost to the United States all lands, easements, and rights-of-way necessary for the construction of the works and bear expense of all necessary alterations of roads, bridges, utilities, and irrigation works; hold and save the United States free from damages due to the construction works; and maintain and operate all the works after completion in accordance with the regulations prescribed by the Secretary of War.

The river usually reaches flood stage gradually, and may remain at or near flood stage for 3 or 4 weeks. When floods occur during the early spring, planting is delayed and the crop yield is very materially reduced, sometimes to the extent that it is not worth while to plant the more productive crops.

This report was referred to the Department of Interior, and that Department in their letter dated October 19, 1945, stated that the plan of improvement was satisfactory to the Department. However, since that portion of the Spanish Fork River to be improved under the War Department's plan traverses the Strawberry irrigation project, thereby possibly affecting project lands and facilities with a possible reduction in irrigable area, the Department of the Interior would like to have the opportunity of making a further review of the proposed report when final plans are prepared, which, of course, we always give them in working out any of our detailed plans. Mr. ROBINSON. Is there any difference between your plans and the plans of the Reclamation Bureau? Have they suggested any changes?

Colonel HERB. No, sir; they have not suggested any change.

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