OCR Text |
Show total cost of about 50 million dollars, of which only $269,000 is non-Federal cost. Nearly all of this cost is for various phases and joint costs of the Mid- dle Rio Grande Project. The economic analysis of the flood control phase of this project by the Corps of Engineers included the unauthorized Chiflo Dam and Reservoir. The economic analysis for the in- tegrated system of Chamita, Jemez Canyon, and Chiflo Reservoirs and Rio Grande floodway showed the following results: total cost, 82.5 million dol- lars, of which $181,000 would be non-Federal; annual carrying charges $4,013,000, of which $48,000 would be non-Federal, and annual bene- fits $4,871,000. No evaluation with Chiflo ex- cluded has been made. The relatively small Bluewater floodway, which provides for control of flood discharges through the Bluewater-Toltec Irrigation District, is estimated to cost $275,000, of which $75,000 is non-Federal. The annual carrying cost of this project is estimated at $12,000 with $4,000 being non-Federal, and an- nual benefits are computed at $36,000. The local protection works at Creede, Colo., are estimated to cost' $236,000 with $13,000 of this amount being non-Federal. Annual carrying costs were estimated at $10,000, of which $1,000 is non- Federal, and annual benefits were computed to be $13,000. In the older Rio Grande Project of the upper sub- basin, 1.5 million dollars was allocated for flood con- trol purposes from National Industrial Recovery Act funds. And in the San Luis Project, now un- der construction, the Bureau of Reclamation is au- thorized to allocate 40 percent of construction costs to flood control. The estimate for the part under construction is 1.7 million dollars. All of the allocations to flood control are non- reimbursable except the small amount contributed in required local participation. Hydroelectric Power In the Rio Grande Basin the only Federal hydro- electric plant is at the Elephant Butte Dam. Of the total cost of this multiple-purpose project (23.4 million dollars), 6 million has been allocated to power and will be returned to the Treasury with interest. In addition, power revenues will repay 3.4 million of the cost of the project allocated to irrigation. The Falcon Dam, now under construction by the International Boundary and Water Commission, will have two generating plants of 31,500 kilowatts each, one of which will supply power to the United States. There may be some surplus energy avail- able for sale, but no cost allocation has been made to power repayable from any such revenue. Other Functions In two projects nonreimbursable cost allocations are proposed for recreation: in the Carlsbad Proj- ect, the small sum of $85,000; and in the Valley Gravity Project, 1.6 million dollars. The latter project is the only one in the basin to date that has proposed an allocation of costs to fish and wildlife. The amount proposed is 1.7 million dollars, out of estimated total project costs of 125.5 million. Any allocation of costs to this purpose is also nonreimbursable. Annual benefits for the above purposes have been computed as follows: recreation-Carlsbad $13,000, and Valley Gravity $40,000; fish and wildlife at the latter project, $83,000. Conclusion A review of the economic and financial aspects of Federal water resources projects in the Rio Grande Basin indicates the need for a reexamina- tion of the methods and criteria of project selection and of reimbursement policy. Under present ar- rangements the costs of irrigation projects, includ- ing the portion of joint costs allocated to irrigation, are fully reimbursable without interest. Nearjy one-half of the total cost of existing and authorized projects in the basin is allocated to irrigation and is reimbursable without interest by the water users. The only other reimbursable development in the basin is hydroelectric power which accounts for only 4 percent of the total water development costs, with one-third of this power allocation being irri- gation costs allocated to power for repayment. In other basin areas where hydroelectric power is important in connection with water storage, irri- gation costs per acre may be exceptionally high, but the projects can meet these costs from power rev- enues-the interest component on the power invest- ment or additions to the rates-and the water users may repay only a small fraction of total construction costs. Although irrigation costs per acre may be no higher in the Rio Grande Basin, projects cannot 315 |