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Show table basis for final settlement of the cost of high- way relocations. Some of the State highway offi- cials contend that final settlement should be based upon actual construction costs instead of estimated costs arrived at before construction begins. Alteration of highway bridges and their ap- proaches to meet navigation needs.-Existing law prescribes that the plans of any bridge to be con- structed over navigable waters of the United States be approved by the Chief of Engineers and the Sec- retary of the Army before construction is begun and that, if the Secretary of the Army determines at any time that such bridge unreasonably obstructs free navigation, he may require any alteration needed to render navigation through or under the bridge reasonably free and unobstructed. There are cases in this basin in which alterations of highway bridges and their approaches were nec- essary to meet navigation requirements because water resources projects raised the water level to elevations that would not afford adequate clear- ances. Examples of such cases are the highway bridges and approaches crossing the Kanawha River in West Virginia. These had to be altered to meet navigation needs as the result of the construction of a series of dams and locks. Similar situations may arise if multiple-purpose dams are constructed in the Ohio River. Conclusions In this basin, as in other basins, close coordina- tion should be maintained between water resources agencies and Federal, State, and local road interests from the earliest stages of water project planning to insure integrated development of both public improvements. Modern design standards should be used in re- placing or relocating highway facilities inundated by water projects. The water project and the high- way interests should equitably share relocation costs. Where water improvements require altering of highway bridges to meet navigation requirements, the water project should assume an equitable share of the cost thereof. 5. Damages From Strip Mining The Problem Relation of strip mining activities to water and related land resources development. The Situation Strip coal mining is a rapidly expanding industry competing with agriculture for use of lands that are underlain by suitable coal deposits. The devel- opment of huge electric stripping shovels and drag lines in recent years permits strip mining of coal to greater depths. Strip coal companies are grad- ually acquiring title, leases, or options for future mining operations wherever land has coal of suit- able quality located not more than 75 feet below the surface. Coal mined by the open-cut or strip- ping process is an especially important industry in Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana, West Virginia, and Ohio. About one-sixth of the total coal produc- tion for the Nation is now coming from strip coal mines. Strip mining activities in the Ohio Basin account for more than two-thirds of the total strip mining operations in the United States. As the industry has grown, its operations remove ever-increasing areas from agricultural use. The conflicts in interest between strip coal companies and the local people are becoming increasingly evident. Problems related to acid pollution of streams from abandoned mines are treated in problem B-2 above; therefore, this discussion is confined mainly to those conflicts relative to agri- cultural uses of lands strip mined. Current stripping operations in the Ohio River Basin remove coal from 7,000 to 10,000 acres of land each year. By January 1, 1949, approxi- mately 187,000 acres of land had been strip mined which are distributed as follows: Indiana, 48,300 acres; Pennsylvania, 41,100; West Virginia, 40,000; Ohio, 39,400; Illinois, 10,000; and Kentucky, 8,200. The value of the land stripped varies according to the quality and uses of the land involved. Current prices for purchasing land for stripping range between $100 and $800 an acre if the entire farm is purchased. Generally, prices paid are about double the current prices for comparable land not underlain by coal capable of being stripped. When farms are not purchased, coal is generally mined on a royalty basis. Recent royalty payments average about 25 cents a ton, with a requirement that the land reclamation or rehabilitation costs be borne by the landowner. Sample studies for three counties in Illinois on the classes of land strip mined showed that cropland made up 54, 60, and 73 percent, and woodland and pasture made up 46, 40, and 27 percent, respec- tively. Considering this analysis, it is fair to as- sume that the cropland area strip mined in Illinois, 691 |
