Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-01-29
DOING NOTHING,
NOT CONSERVATION
need RESERVOIRS
WASHINGTON. Jan. %. 1924,

DeileFe j nave somewhat OF an
established reputation as con-
servationist: at least in some parts
of the West I've been accused. and
accused in language more vehement
than polite, of belonging to that
school of thought. But. like some
other people, when l subscribe to
the conservation articles of faith !
want to give my own definition of
conservation" Nonuse of natural
resources is not always conservation,
and nOnuse OF water power Is never
conservation: on the contrary, con-
servation and utilization of water
power sites go together. Conserya-
ton Is not matter of politics but
rather matter of economics. The
question involved in the conservation
of water power Is not SO much who
develops the power as whether or
not it is developed a, all ani to what
use 1t IS put if developed.
Putting our Maine rivers to their
best use. then. means developing
each power site to its full capacity
as soon as a market can be found
for the energy thus made available.
Thereby we will help to conserve
those sources of energy that, unlike
our rivers. are exhausted by use,
such as the coal mines and the oil
wells. Maine Is selfishly interested
in conserving the coal supplies of
Pennsylvania and West Virginia be-
cause with the gradual depletion of.
those supplies the price OF coal will
go up. The electricity generated
last year at the hydro of
the Maine public utilities alone saw
cd the burning of a trifie more than
half million tons Of soft coal.
With all our Maine water powers
fully deve!oped-and of course it is
not practicable to develop them all
today-the coal saved would be per-
haps 5k million tons Il year. This is
the measure of Names wealth in
white coal when it can be put at
work.
But leaving this discussion of
FUTURES let US come down to what
we are now losing by not making the
best use of our rivers. Possibly, in
an earlier letter, | failed to put
| enough emphasis on the need of
some added storage on these rivers,
at the present time. Last summer,
| Tor example, we needed more water
| TO turn the wheels already installed
on the kennebec. With certain facts
| of enforced idleness in mind, it can
! be shown that a do-nothing reser-
voir policy sounds more like politics
| than like economics or good bust
| ness. If anyone mistakes the lcgls-
| lative record of last year for con-
serVation of Names resources. | pre-
i Ter not to be regarded as u con-
| servationist of that type.
First, a few facts, and these near
| home: Last summer and fall there
was low water on the Kennebec, and
i mill operation was greatly inter
rupted. One large paper mill kept
! up its production only by means of
ITS auxiliary steam power; another
paper mill was able to run little
| during the day time, by reason of
the prior claims on the water by an
+ other manufacturing plant across the
! river. One pulp mill was shut down
! FULLY half the time and another had
( its capacity reduced 45 per cent.
! One cotton mill was able to run at
only 60 per cent of its capacity and
another suffered partial shutdowns
i from time to time.
As YOU remember. the first three
weeks OF October marked the climax
In this low water period, and as |
was spending a little time in Show
! hogan then l observed with concern
! It's direct effect on tine industries in
: the kennebec Valley. During these
three weeks forced idleness was all
) too apparent; in one mill alone 316
! was the average LAY OFF, during tie
! greater part of October, and tbs
| smaller plants dependent upon sec
ondary power from the public utility
! stations doubtless shut down to tie
extent of laying off $50 to zoe en-
ployces. In the half dozen industrial
communities extending from Madison
to Augusta probably not less than
| l,O00 wage earners, and possibly
| many more, lost n month or more of
! employment during the season of
| 1928.
This direct loss OF time by :llc
! workers is not the full measure Of
the loss to the State. To make
paper or cloth under conditions like
] those of last September and October,
! when choice must be made between
reduced output and the use of steam
power. means a higher cost of pro-
duction and consequent greater diff
| ficulty in meeting the competition of
mills outside the State or the United
States. We need to protect our
Maine industries by giving them re-
, liable as well as cheap water power.
. Next, as to the remedy: What
can be done to maintain n more
| regular flow on the Kennebec?
Nature has furnished in the drain
age basin of this river many ponds
and lakes which serve as storage
reservoirs free of cost, and sites for
other reservoirs at costs that are not
prohibitive. 1t would seem good
. public policy to encourage the
j creation of such added storage in the
near future in order to insure fun
utilization of the power sites already
developed and to stimulate the &C.
cupation of other sites.
Under the wise policy Of state
regulation of public utility rates,
| whatever is of advantage to the
advantage to the consumer, so that
every economy achieved by the seller
! of energy can be Passed on to
tie buyer. This public control
and the remarkable Initiative Of
those who are managing the
electric utilities of our country
together explain how it happens
that electricity is the one item
in the cost of living mat has come
down since 1914. 1t would therefore
have been public saving if the
Central Maine Power Company for
example, could in any way have cut
down it's quarter of a million dollars
OF steam expense last year. en-
ceptonal as that year was. There
Is no doubt that headwatel storage
on the Kehnebe might easily save Il
hundred thousand dollars a year 10
this company. but, what is uiore
important. increased storage there
would give assurance Of uninter-
rupted work to every operative IN
the Kennebec Valley-an assurance
that you and / surely regard as OF
much greater value to the State