The times-news. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1927-current, 1933-08-02
OUR VALLEY
By S. P. WERNER


The relation of rainfall to near
ly every phase of this subject is
vital and fundamental. AS one of
the great engineers of the Panama
Canal once remarked to the writer
I'VE may dig and dam, but it
is rain that will make the Canal. "
How the little Chagres river. not
as large at its mouth as the French
Broad at Asheville, manages to
furnish the water for that great
link between the oceans, creating
and keeping full lake of more
than 7, 100000 acre-feet of water,
supplying water for the daily
lockages and leaving some to give
a steady flow at the hydro-electric
plant at the spillway, is trulv one
of the wonders of the world. 1t
does that, too. in eight months
rain per year, since there are
about four dry months, The 5a-
sin of the Chagres is about five
hundred square miles in area. The
annual precipitation may be taken
at about ninety inches. If all this
rain remained in stu with no
evaporation and no outlet, it will
be seen that it would produce. in
one year, only about five million
acre feet-not enough to fill
Gatun lake. AS a matter of fact,
it did not fill the lake in one year.
But once full, it has managed to
keep it full and Overlooking.
The rainfall over our Valley is
not as heavy as that over the
Canal Zone, although the area is
only about half, it would probably
require considerably more than a
year for a $50 foot dam at Ashe-
vile to fill the reservoir to ca
pacity. But once full, the rain
would produce a volume of water
of tremendous flood-capacity on
occasions, unless the reservoir be
kept low enough, at least much of
the time to provide room for the
volume created by protracted sea-
sonal rains. SO the level of the lake
would be hardly ever constant; it
would be dangerous to keep it so.
If the purpose should be to con-
troll floods below, it is evident that
it would have to be kept at low
level to absorb the precipitation
in heavy rains; but on the other
hand. if the object should be to
supplement the failing supply at
Wilson Dam, it ought to be kept
pretty full in order to be of any
practical service there. A possible
conflict of function appears mere,
and the reconciliation of it would
involve a degree of skillful man.
agement of the highest order. A
complete reconciliation at all times
would be practically impossible.
In Panama there was only one OBJ
ject-the maintenance of high
level; there is no criterion there
for such a double function as that
envisaged in the proposed Long
Shoals Dam. The net result would
be that such a Valley reservoir
would never be a real lake, with
scenic and aesthetic attractions,
with value for fishing and boat
ling. The fisherman would never
know where the shore line would
be on given day, or whether his
boat might not be drowned by
the receding waters, or sucked
down by them; the boating party
would be liable to get stuck in the
mud. or lifted up by a swelling
tide. There have been several
cases of loss of life on Gatun
Lake when boats were sucked
down to the subway after the
Igates were opened to allow floor
waters to escape, but with a draw
down of any value to Muscle
Shoals, the suction for miles above
the Dam on the French Broad
would be terrific. If AShevillians
Ishould be lured with visions of q
tourist-drawing lake at its doors
let them reflect that they would
never be able to count with Ger.
tainty upon being able to go upon
its waters; nor would the govern,
ment be pleased at the task OF
rounding up loving couples off in
the corners in their out-boarC
canoes when Muscle Shoals should
lperemptorily call for a draw
down or Gloucester hone that E
lfour-inch rain is sending it's tor
rent down to the Dam. MOREOVER