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Show 214 WAR FOR THE COLORADO RIVER was little more than a rock sieve.256 In sharing this startling intelligence with Congress, he stated: "When the reservoir (behind the dam) is being rilled, the water will seep out into these parched sand- stones for miles. "No one can tell how long it would take to fill the porous sandstones nor how many millions of acre-feet of water might thus be consumed before any water could again flow down the river. "The reservoir might never be filled, nor ever be usable for major power development. The country might be stuck with the most enormous white elephant in history." Soon Hosmer found another subject which fascinated him.257 He gathered statistics, statements from experts, and other material to show that atomic power would soon produce electrical energy cheaper than conven- tional water or steam power. Hosmer gave Congress a formidable array of evidence to support the assertion. It came from the British government, from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Consolidated Edison of New York, the Atomic Energy Commission, Columbia University engineering department, and many other outstanding sources. "Thus, the problem is facing us squarely," said Hosmer, "and we cannot dodge it in connection with the Upper Basin proposal. The Bureau of Reclamation and the Congress must have their eyes open to these facts of life. There must be a clear-cut determination as to whether or not nuclear-electric energy development will turn this proposed multi-billion dollar expenditure into a dead loss. We cannot inflict such an enormous new burden on the nation's taxpayers for generations to come." |