Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1927-12-15
EXTENSION OF FORESTS AN
ESSENTIAL PART OF FLOOD
CONTROL, SAYS FORESTER

CONTROL, SAYS FORESTER
Extension of public forest owner
ship, intensified protection from for
est fire, and aggressive reforestatiOn
of denuded lands are declared out
standing necessities in the program
for flood control by Col. william B.
Greeley, chief of the Forest Service,
United States Department of Agricul-
ture, in his annual report.
The great flood disasters which oc-
Cured this year have called into
question the adequacy of our public
program of forestry, Colonel Greeley
declares. While the. main reliance
for the control of destructive floods
must be placed upon engineering
works, the improvement or extension
of forest cover is an essential supple
ment, and must be taken into account
in any far-sighted program for flood
prevention. Forests aid in the regu-
lation of streams by holding the soil
in place and holding back rain and
snow water more effectively than any
other form of vegetative cover. In
the vast drainage system of the Mis-
sissippi, which extends from south
western New York to Idaho and from
Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, the
condition of the watersheds of the
innumerable feeder streams bears a
significant relation to the total vol
ume of water poured into the main
channel.
ITO attain the most complete con-
troll of floods" says Colonel Greeley,
prevention of the rapid movement of
water and silt at the source of rivers
| is necessary no less than structures
for controlling the results of such
| movements in their lower channels.
Forests cannot prevent floods, but can
reduce them. They retard the melt
| ing of snow. They retard surface
run-off both directly and through the
| greater porosity of the underlying
soil which they maintain. They re-
| tard erosion and reduce the silt bur-
den of streams. Their relative in
| fluence in these respects may be
greater or less in comparison with
| the many other factors which affect
the regimen of streams. 1t can not
| be separated and measured in exact,
quantitative terms. Nevertheless it
is an influence which should be
brought into play in the progressive
betterment of conditions which con-
tribute to destructive floods
in applying forestry to the flood stu
alton, the Chief Forester says:
"a need will undoubtedly appear
| for the extension of public forest ow-
nership under the Weeks law or the
| Clarke McNary law in the mountain
Gus drainage where the natural bal
ance between topography, soil, and
cover is easily upset and surface con-
ditions augmenting flood discharges
are easily brought about by destruc-
tive numbering, forest fires, or tempo
rary and shifting agriculture. Need
will undoubtedly also appear for in
tensifying the protection of forests
from fire on critical drainages of the
Mississippi through enlarged cooper
alton between the states and the fed
eral government under the Clarke
McNary act. Forest planting should
undoubtedly be promoted aggressive
ly on abandoned or eroding farm lands
and denuded forest lands where ero-
sion and run-off are now serious
National leadership and the need
| for national action should be fully
recognized, Colonel Greeley declares,
| but the fullest measure of co-opera-
| ton with the states and landowners
| Immediately concerned should be Sc
| cured.
ITO sum up the situation" the
Forester concludes, "the behavior of
our great rivers and the plans pro-
| jected for their control can not be
separated from the use of land Be-
hind the great floods in lower Missis-
sippi lie SOO,OOO,OOO acres of land
| farms, pastures, ranges, and forests.
The conservation and productive use
| of this large part of the soil of the
United States fully justify on it's own
account all of the foresight and ma
tional and state action that can be
brought to bear. The loss of farm
soils and farm fertility through ero-
sion is national loss greater in the
long run than the property damage
created by destructive floods. The
creation of productive forests and i'm
proved pasture lands will pay divi-
dends on their own account greater
| than the aid thew will render tO the
regulation of rivers. The main point
to be borne in mind is that just as
the condition and use of the land
have a part in flood prevention, so
is the protection of streams one of
the inseparable national benefits OBJ
i tai oh .,oliaxr a. Land