| OCR Text |
Show 7. A complete service for forecasting water yields and flow should be placed in operation at the earliest practicable time. 8. Construction of reservoirs on sites where water storage is likely to endanger mine workings for stra- tegic minerals should be deferred until full assess- ment of the possible danger to the workings can be made. In the event that likely water seepage from a proposed reservoir into a given existing or poten- tial mine for strategic minerals is proven to be more than can be disposed of by reasonable installation of pumping equipment, filling of the reservoir to seepage levels should be delayed until the affected section of the deposit is worked out. 9. Construction of dams or other stream barriers which make important spawning grounds of migra- tory fish inaccessible to those fish should be delayed until the latter stages of the program. 10. Where construction of storage facilities for power generation or other primary purpose is under- taken, potential multiple-purpose aspects of the res- ervoir should be taken into account in design to the extent that further installations are not precluded, even though further development in the area to serve secondary purposes is not contemplated. 11. Action on collection of all data which may have important bearing on the planning of later stages of construction should be accelerated immedi- ately. This includes, for example, further intensive mineral exploration, determination of the likely levels of industrial activity in different parts of the basin, and information on the relationship between possible Canadian and United States developments. The Several Stages in Achievement of Full Development No determination of the time necessary for achievement of full development can be made in 1950. The rate of total progress will depend in part upon the success attained in promoting coordi- nate action in all phases, as well as upon external economic and political events. Because of the un- certain place of some phases in national develop- ment, achievement of some of the ultimate objec- tives may be many decades hence. Nevertheless several stages may be distinguished in the likely course of water resources development in the Columbia Basin. Stage I Establishment of a multiple-purpose program account for the basin; completion of projects authorized or in construction; accelerated ac- tion on collection of data essential to further plan- ning; elimination of legal and organizational obstacles to achievement of a unified plan; ini- tiation of projects essential to efficient operation and length of life of existing, authorized, or under con- struction major works. Specifically, these latter include: 1. Corps of Engineers under construction and authorized major projects. Major projects in this group include Chief Joseph, a single-purpose power project, Priest Rapids,1 John Day,1 The Dalles,1 and McNary multiple-purpose installations on the Columbia; Lower Monumental,1 Ice Harbor,1 Little Goose,1 Lower Granite,1 and Lucky Peak multiple- purpose projects on the Snake or tributaries; Detroit, Lookout Point, and smaller reservoirs on the Willamette; Libby Reservoir on the Kootenai; and Albeni Falls Reservoir on the Pend Oreille River. Completion of McNary, Chief Joseph, and Albeni Falls as soon as possible (as recommended), because of their contribution toward satisfying power demands. Postponement of Priest Rapids, The Dalles, Ice Harbor, Little Goose, Lower Monu- mental, Lower Granite, and John Day as long as is consistent with supplying regional power demands; construction of these dams in this order as they become necessary. 2. Bureau of Reclamation authorized and under construction major projects. Major works in this category are: Hungry Horse Reservoir on the Flat- head River (South Fork); the development of the land available for irrigation in the Columbia Basin Project of central Washington; Kennewick Division of the Yakima Project (Washington); Lewiston Or- chards Project and Palisades Project (Snake River, Idaho). 3. Authorization arid construction of: (1) Hells Canyon Reservoir (Snake River); and (2) one of the following reservoirs: Paradise (Montana), Kooskia (Idaho), Glacier View (Montana), or other suitable alternate. Early action toward a aIt is recommended that in determining the date of commencing construction of John Day, Priest Rapids, The Dalles, Lower Monumental, Ice Harbor, Little Goose, and Lower Granite Dams the progress of the Columbia fisheries program be fully considered, as well as the urgency of national need for electric power pro- duction. See problem B-l, chapter 5. 73 |
