The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1950-01-27
Factuol Data On Columbia Valley Administration

while new land is being put under irrigation.
In nature there is unity between land and water
This must be reestablished and preserved in deve-
opment work. Without conservation all down the
line, tOday's work toward wealth creation will
become only increased waste tomorrow. If the mis-
takes of hundred states and nations that have pas
sed away to be avoided resource develop
ment agencies must work together to common pur-
pose. The eva bill creates that opportunity. 1t
likewise creates the opportunity for the people of
the region to have part in the planning and control
of the projects with which they will live
Items For Development
POWER: SIS billion XIV hours per year of firm
power from 81 public and 10 private power plants,
is the present program Of this, eight plants to de-
veop 2.5 billion XIV hours of firm power will be in
Montana. In Columbia basin additional 1.6 bill
lion XIV hours later be developed by construction
of another lis small dams and plants.
IRRIGATION: 1874, 555 acres of new land to
be irrigated and 1,523,3OO acres provided with a
supplemental water supply. Total benefited is
5,367,855 acres of which 138,880 will be in
Montana.
RESERVOIRS: Total now contemplated 142
of which 35 will be pools without active storage and
102 reservoirs with active storage of e. 900
feet. Out of this Montana will have pools and
reservoirs with active storage of 400 feet
FLOOD CONTROL: Has been designed to pre-
vent overflow of 100000 acres, including three
large industrial areas Portland and Vancouver
One of the primary purposes of AZ reservoirs will be
regulation of stream flow to prevent floods Three
of these will be in Montana.
NAVIGATION: Various improvement plus
stream flow regulation will permit cargo ships to
ascend the Columbia to Wenatchee the Snake to 90
miles above lewiston Idaho, and to go shorter dist
ances up the Willamette, Yamhl and COwtz riv-
ers All this will bring traffic about 500 miles
inland.
OTHER ITEMS: An estimated $50, 900 900 tons
of top soil (enough to cover 1920 farms of 80 acres
each) went down the Columbia in the flood of 1948.
This kind of destruction is to be halted by soil con-
servation measures, better watershed management
and revegetation Revegetation will include an mi
tial 100000 acres of forest planting and 400000I
acres of reseedng on range lands Salmon runs are
to be saved by fish ladder access to old spawning
grounds other fish and wdfe will be rehabilitated
ment of industralization, in many forms, will be-
come primary part of the program The key is
greater production and more prosperity by applica-
ton of scientific and technical knowledge.
Provisions of the Bill
In general provisions the eva bills are modelled
closely after the very successful IVA Act 1t will
transfer direction of the functions being per-
formed by Corps of Army Engineers, Bureau of Rec
amation and Bonneville Power Administration to
public corporation to be known Columbia Val
ley Administration (CVA) Insofar as they will be i
concerned with Columbia valley development, func-
ions of about twenty other governmental agencies /
will be co-ordinated to the eva program by provi-
sion that funds for such activities shall be jointly
agreed on and submitted part of the annual eva
budget request to Congress.
Some of the principal agencies that will come
lnder this provision U.S. Weather Bureau u s.
Geological Survey, Fish & Wildlife Service, Public
Health Service National Park Service, Federal /
Power Commission Bureau of Indian Affairs Bur-
au of Land Management, Forest Service and Bur
au of Mines These, and other agencies that will be
oncerned, now get their funds by separate budget