Numerous complaints have been filed with the Commission alleging unsatisfactory domestic or fire service both on the part of munic.i.p.alities and water companies. The source of dissatisfaction seems to be the lack of foresight on the part of the munic.i.p.al or water company officials, as a result of which they have obtained an inadequate supply or insufficient pressure. There are many instances of this condition in the State. There are also many consumers who object to excessive rates which they claim are imposed upon them by water companies. On the other hand, some of the companies themselves have attempted to secure legislation to provide that the State shall be the arbitrator in the adjustment of water rates. These conditions seem to point to the conclusion that in the comparatively near future the State will have to a.s.sume control over these matters. A certain degree of this sort of control is exercised in an indirect way at present in the case of applications which are before the Commission for consideration, but no jurisdiction lies with the Commission unless the acquisition of lands for a new or additional source of supply is involved.
_River Improvement for Health and Safety_
A number of river-improvement pet.i.tions presented to the River Improvement Commission and still pending at the time that Commission"s powers were transferred to the Water Supply Commission involved the construction of storage reservoirs in the Adirondack forests. The River Improvement Commission had considered the const.i.tutional questions involved in the utilization of State forest lands for storage reservoir purposes, and had reached the conclusion that the force of a clause in the Const.i.tution prohibiting the removal of timber was paramount to all exercise of the police authority of the State to protect the public health and safety; and it had declined further to consider any pet.i.tions involving the utilization of State forest lands for reservoir purposes.
The Water Supply Commission on the other hand has held that the statutes relating to river improvements in the interest of the public health and safety are not sufficiently comprehensive to afford a proper basis on which to advance systematic water conservation involving water-powers.
The existing river improvement law has the health and safety element as its basis, whereas the carrying out of a comprehensive conservation policy would be of greatest financial value to the existing and new power developments, owing to the regulating effect of storage reservoirs on the flow of the streams. For this reason the Water Supply Commission has not urged the execution of river improvement projects involving water storage, under existing statutes, and has recommended to the Legislature that the advancement of such projects should await the determination of a definite State policy and the formulation of a thoroughly comprehensive plan by means of which the storage reservoirs shall const.i.tute a source of income to the State, even after the bonds are retired. Several projected improvements therefore await the enactment of a more suitable statute.
Meantime, however, an important project calling for rather different treatment had arisen in the proposed improvement of the Canaseraga creek, the most important tributary of Genesee river. This project originated with the River Improvement Commission, and the Water Supply Commission inherited and actively carried on the consideration of the problems involved. For the last 22 miles of its course this creek flows through a broad, fertile valley. Owing to the steep declivities of the upper water-shed and the resulting suddenness and severity of floods in the valley, a large portion of these flat lands were submerged two or three times a year, and the channel had gradually become filled with silt which raised the prism to such a height that the stream itself and its banks were actually higher in places than the adjacent land. In times of flood the stream overflowed and the water would stand for several days at a time over the low areas, in a large measure destroying such crops as were in a growing condition and effectually deterring the farmers from cultivating the lands thoroughly and systematically. The project of improvement which, after due course of public hearings and consideration by the Water Supply Commission received the official approval of the Legislature, contemplates the straightening, widening, and deepening of the channel of the stream, so as to afford a much more capacious flood prism and to shorten the length of the stream through the flooded district by about six miles. At the same time lateral ditches are proposed to be constructed to carry off the overflowing waters from the lower adjacent lands in order to protect them permanently from any serious or protracted inundation.
This project did not involve the use of any State forest lands, nor did it affect any water-power developments. The fact was readily established that the proposed improvement was of great importance to the public health and safety of the community, and also of great importance, from a financial point of view, to the prosperity and general welfare of the community on account of the benefits that would accrue to agriculturists from the protection to be afforded by the proposed improvements against flood damages. The machinery involved in the working out of the project was put in operation and from time to time various obstacles were encountered which had to be surmounted by amending the law. Gradually the statute has been so moulded that it is now thought to be in practical working order, and the proposed Canaseraga creek improvement is actually provided for and financed; the bonds having been sold at a good premium. The actual work of the construction of the proposed improvement will probably be begun in the near future.
The practicability of the method having thus been established the Water Supply Commission believes that the State now has a method by which floods may be mitigated if there are no water-powers or State forest lands involved. On the other hand, the solution of the problem where these complications do exist, is much more difficult. In the cases of the Genesee, Hudson, and Raquette rivers, pet.i.tions for the improvement of which have been filed under the public health and safety statute, very little real relief can be afforded by straightening or enlarging the channels of the streams. Water storage appears to be the only practicable solution, and the water-powers which would be improved could afford to bear a larger share of the cost of improvement than those who would benefit from flood control.
_Water-Power and Water Storage_
The most recent extension of the jurisdiction of the Commission, under which it is investigating the water resources of the State, contemplates three princ.i.p.al lines of operation. These are: (1) To collect information relating to the water-powers of the State; (2) to make plans for such specific developments as the Commission deems available; and (3) to make such other investigations and studies as will enable it to devise a comprehensive and practicable plan for the general development of the water-powers of the State for the public use and benefit and the increase of the public revenue under State ownership and control. In accordance with this statute, the Commission has proceeded to investigate in great detail the conditions governing rainfall and run-off of streams within the State, and has maintained a number of observation and gaging stations in cooperation with the United States Weather Bureau and the United States Geological Survey. A detailed investigation was also made by competent engineering employees to determine the number, capacity, equipment, and other material information relating to practically every water-power in the State. A general investigation of topographic conditions has also been made and practically all promising storage opportunities have been located and their approximate possibilities determined. A number of great reservoir projects have been surveyed and mapped in great detail. In many instances borings have been made to determine the character of foundations for dams, and complete detail plans of the dams and other structures have been prepared. The financial phases of a number of these great projects have been gone into in detail, and an exhaustive study of the const.i.tutional and other legal aspects of the problems involved has been made by the Commission, and the required comprehensive plan has been prepared.
In spite of the great natural advantages which New York State possesses in its interior streams with their enormous possibilities for power, developed and undeveloped, the fullest utilization of these possibilities can never be realized under existing conditions. Every river in the State exhibits such irregularity of flow that the water-power which may be economically developed from the present minimum flow is far below the average which can be attained by means of scientific regulation. The difference between maximum and minimum flow of most of our streams when stated in figures is startling to the layman. The Hudson, which is more or less typical of the streams of the State, has a maximum recorded daily discharge of 100 times its least daily flow. The Genesee, which is much more flashy, has a maximum daily discharge about 400 times the minimum daily flow. On the other hand the Oswego, which is naturally more or less regulated by storage in the "Finger Lakes," has a maximum discharge about 20 times the minimum. The yearly discharge of some of the rivers in a wet year is nearly double the yearly flow of a dry year. On a great many streams as much as three-fourths of the volume of yearly flow usually runs off in the spring and early summer months. These remarkable fluctuations of stream flow are princ.i.p.ally attributed to the uneven distribution of precipitation through the year, which unfavorable conditions are undoubtedly aggravated by the varying conditions affecting evaporation, which is generally greatest in the months of least precipitation. Over a large portion of the State, the greater part of the annual precipitation occurs in the winter and spring months. Considerable water is temporarily stored in the snow banks, and is usually reduced to the equivalent of rain simultaneously with the customary heavy rainfall of the early spring months. It is quite common for millions of cubic feet of water to run over the falls and dams in the streams during these spring freshet periods which, if it could be stored until the drier summer and fall months, would be of wonderful utility in not only maintaining a higher rate of flow in those dry months, but also doing away largely with the damage and inconvenience incident to the sudden run-off of flood waters in their natural condition. These conditions point to the necessity for large water storage reservoirs as the only practical means of accomplishing any considerable degree of regulation.
The investigations of the Water Supply Commission have shown that there is an installation of water-wheels having a capacity of about 830,000 horsepower within New York State, of which amount about 200,000 horsepower is at Niagara Falls. The average daily output of the plants is about 620,000 horsepower, including 145,000 at Niagara Falls. There are in all more than 1,800 hydraulic power plants within the State, many of which are equipped with steam auxiliary power plants. The total capacity of these auxiliary plants is about 124,000 horsepower. The investigations have indicated a total development of about 1,500,000 horsepower to be economically feasible within the State. This would be uninterrupted continuous power, exclusive of Niagara river and the portion of Saint Lawrence river not under the jurisdiction of New York State. A considerable part of this amount is represented by that which would be added to the existing developments by the regulation of the flow of the streams. A number of individual opportunities exist for considerable new developments, some of the more important of which are a 30,000 horsepower on Genesee river at Portage Falls, a 30,000 horsepower on Sacandaga river at Conklingville, a 32,000 horsepower on Raquette river at Colton Falls, and many others ranging from 1,000 to 20,000 horsepower.
The investigations of the Commission have shown that the construction of large storage reservoirs for impounding flood waters may be beneficial in many ways. Probably not all of the possible advantages would result from the construction of any particular reservoir. The extent and variety of benefits may be summarized somewhat as follows:
(1) The equalization of stream-flow by storing the water during wet seasons and using the same to increase the volume of the stream through dry seasons;
(2) A consequent large increase in the power value of the stream, due to augmenting the low-water flow, and thus doubling or trebling the dependable flow for power purposes;
(3) A consequent decrease in the height of freshets, thereby reducing the great pecuniary damages caused by the periodic recurrence of floods;
(4) By increasing the low-water flow of polluted rivers a dilution would result which would improve the sanitary conditions on the stream;
(5) Navigation would be benefited by a higher stage of water on the lower reaches of the rivers;
(6) The extension of transportation facilities, often to an important and desirable extent, by navigation on the proposed reservoirs;
(7) The low lands of the river valleys could be made somewhat more tenable, and their agricultural products increased by reducing the contingency of floods;
(8) The perpetual submergence of extensive tracts of swamp lands, which are now unsightly and a menace to health, would be possible;
(9) The creation of extensive lakes with beautiful sh.o.r.es offering desirable locations for permanent homes and great attractions to summer visitors seeking recreation and health; and
(10) Inestimable indirect benefit to the State due to the stimulation of industrial enterprises, the increase in number and prosperity of the people, and the creation of taxable wealth by the progressive development of water-powers.
Among the more promising opportunities for the inauguration of a State policy in storage reservoir construction is that offered by Genesee river. The Commission"s investigations have shown that it is practicable to build a reservoir with a dam near Portage, which would be about fifteen miles long and over a mile wide, with a total capacity of about 18,000,000,000 cubic feet at a cost of about $4,500,000. The regulation of the stream by this reservoir would not only practically do away with disastrous floods in the Genesee valley, but would add power worth at least $200,000 a year to the existing developments at Rochester, and develop at least 30,000 horsepower in connection with the dam; the value of water-power at Mount Morris would also be greatly enhanced, and the nuisance created by the present polluted condition of the river below Rochester would be abated. Other opportunities are offered on Sacandaga river and other tributaries to the Hudson, on Raquette river, and on Black river, where a system of several reservoirs is proposed. Many smaller projects are also under consideration. It is estimated that $20,000,000 would be sufficient to build the reservoirs whose construction is justified under present conditions.
_Problems Involved With Water Storage_
There are in general two acceptable methods of reducing or preventing floods. The storage of the water which const.i.tutes the hood wave, or a considerable portion thereof, is doubtless preferable if there is a site for a reservoir of sufficient capacity and the construction is not too expensive. The other method consists of widening, deepening, and straightening the channel. In recent years, the public has been rather generally educated to believe that storage reservoirs const.i.tute the universal and easily applied remedy. There are many rivers in New York State on which this method may be used effectively, but on many others the absence of basins of sufficient capacity or the excessive cost preclude the possibility of complete flood control in this manner.
The problem of absolute flood control is, however, more complex than the foregoing simple statement would imply. One complication arises from the fact that the damage from floods in New York State is often increased by the formation of ice gorges. The formation of these gorges cannot be prevented by an ordinary system of storage reservoirs, although the temporary holding back of the ice in a reservoir would in a few cases undoubtedly be of some a.s.sistance. It seems that the most effective method of dealing with this condition consists of keeping the ice broken up on the reaches of the stream where gorges are most likely to form, and thus provide a clear pa.s.sage for ice brought down by floods. This method would probably work hardships or inconvenience to the ice harvesters on some of the rivers; but the protection afforded to property would doubtless more than offset the disadvantages. The State has entered upon a policy of protecting property in this manner along the Hudson below Albany.
Another condition by which floods are greatly aggravated is the obstruction of the channel by insufficient bridge openings and other structures. The cause may be ignorance as to volume of flood run-off, or in the struggle to realize a large ultimate income from a small present investment the possibility of occasional damages may be carelessly disregarded. This encroachment on the channels of streams should be a matter for official regulation, and deserves more public attention than has yet been given it in this country.
Perhaps the complication which involves the most difficult problems of construction and operation of flood-control works is that of combining adequate flood protection with equalizing of stream-flow for the development of power and other purposes. To materially ameliorate flood conditions on large rivers usually requires the provision of an enormous amount of storage; logically, the larger the proportion and the greater the capacity, up to a certain limit, the better the control. On many streams it is doubtless feasible to build systems of reservoirs which would entirely do away with destructive floods, provided the reservoirs be intelligently operated solely for flood control. It must be frankly admitted, however, that the ideal use of storage for flood control is not entirely consistent with the best use of the same storage for equalizing the flow throughout the year. For the purpose of ideal flood control, the reservoirs should be emptied of acc.u.mulated flood waters immediately after the flood has subsided and as rapidly as possible without swelling the stream to dangerous proportions, in order to have the storage available for another flood. On the other hand, for the purpose of equalizing the flow as completely as possible throughout the year, the reservoirs should only be drawn upon when necessary to supplement the natural flow in the stream in order to maintain the desired average flow. Theoretically, if the extremes both of the rate and volume of flow of the stream can be determined (which usually requires very long records of discharge), and if sufficient storage be provided for the absolute equalizing of the flow, the solution of both problems would go absolutely hand in hand, and flood control by storage would be synonymous with ideal equalization of stream flow. The most practical solution, where conditions will permit, seems to be to provide an excess of reservoir capacity so that the portion of the reservoir above a certain elevation may be reserved entirely for flood control while the portion below that elevation may be used for equalizing the flow of the stream. This plan has been proposed by the Commission in the case of the projected Portage reservoir on Genesee river.
Undoubtedly the greatest economic problem involved in a study of flood control is that of the adjustment of the relative rights of the residents of the upper and lower sections of the river valley. From the point of view of each the matter calls for different modes of treatment.
The up-river resident believes the solution of the problem will be found in facilitating the pa.s.sage of the flood by his district. This may result in discharging a great volume of water on the communities down-stream at a time when it would swell the crest of the flood in that section. The down-stream resident naturally has to contend with a much larger volume of water, so that to restrict it to a channel of moderate dimensions is out of the question, and he therefore prefers an arrangement whereby the surface waters from the upper stream may be at least temporarily stored in the basins containing the lands of his up-stream neighbor. The Water Supply Commission has held that the proper disposition is the improvement which will work the greatest good to the greatest number, provided there is a distinct economic advantage to the community in the river valley as a whole.
The matter of munic.i.p.al water supply is likely to be involved in some of the great storage projects, also the water supply for the ca.n.a.ls of the State. Several streams on which water storage is practicable are at present or will be in the future used as sources for ca.n.a.l water supply.
The plans contemplated by the Commission would result in insuring the sufficiency of these supplies, but the uninterrupted maintenance and protection of a constant water supply during the navigation season is undoubtedly essential to the proper operation of the ca.n.a.l system. In these times of extensive munic.i.p.al water supply systems, it seems reasonable to a.s.sume that there may be instances in the practical working out of a comprehensive plan of water conservation where the project of water supply for a munic.i.p.ality or group of munic.i.p.alities may be combined with a water-storage project to good advantage. At any rate the careful and prolonged study which has been made of munic.i.p.al and domestic supplies by the Water Supply Commission has given it a full appreciation of their prime importance, and the Commission believes that in any water-shed the question of munic.i.p.al water supplies should be given first consideration.
It has been believed by many that the State, in the exercise of its police power, could construct storage reservoirs which involved the use of some of the State"s forest lands in spite of the const.i.tutional provision that "The lands of the State, now owned or hereafter acquired, const.i.tuting the Forest Preserve as now fixed by law, shall be forever kept as wild forest lands," and that "They shall not be leased, sold, or exchanged, or be taken by any corporation, public or private, or the timber thereon be sold, removed or destroyed." The River Improvement Commission considered the const.i.tutional question thus involved, and reached the conclusion that the force of this prohibitory clause in the const.i.tution was paramount to all exercise of the police authority of the State to protect the public health and safety, and it declined further to consider any pet.i.tions involving the utilization of State forest lands for the construction of storage reservoirs. The Water Supply Commission has held practically the same view of this question and has accordingly recommended to the Legislature that the Const.i.tution of the State be so amended as to permit the flooding of State forest lands for the purpose of constructing storage reservoirs which are to be forever owned, maintained, and controlled by the State for the public use and benefit and for the purpose of providing a public revenue.
The conservation of the water resources of the State on a broad and comprehensive basis, which shall give practical consideration to the most favorable natural opportunities and produce the most beneficial results necessarily involves the flooding of relatively small areas of State forest lands in the Adirondacks. The surveys indicate that 55,000 acres of State land would be required for a complete system of water storage, including many reservoirs likely to be built only in the distant future, if ever. Even this total of 55,000 acres is only 3.9 percent of the State"s holdings within the boundaries of the Adirondack Park; of this amount about four-fifths is low swampy land or is under water, and only one-fifth, or eleven thousand acres, is of any considerable value for forest purposes. This question of the amendment of the Const.i.tution is under consideration by the State Legislature.
The drainage of swamp lands is another problem which tends to complicate rather than simplify the water-storage situation. There are within the State extensive areas of swamps whose owners would like to have them drained and reclaimed for agricultural purposes. Some projects of this character have already been carried out, but the questionable const.i.tutionality of most drainage laws has interposed to r.e.t.a.r.d any very widespread reclamation movement of this character. Here again the desires of the up-stream and down-stream residents do not harmonize. The down-stream riparian owner, especially if he operates a water-power, objects to the drainage of those marsh lands on the ground that they const.i.tute a natural storage reservoir which operates to steady the flow of the stream. His solution of the problem would be to build dams across the outlets from these great swampy tracts and thus increase their capacity for storage. In some instances it appears to be entirely feasible to do so, while at the same time it seems equally practicable to secure the necessary storage by raising the surface of some existing lakes and subjecting them to some fluctuation. The question enters as to whether it is not better to flood a comparatively small additional area around the sh.o.r.es of existing lakes in order to secure the required storage and then drain and reclaim swamp lands for agricultural purposes.
By special act of the Legislature in 1909 the Water Supply Commission was given jurisdiction over certain local improvements to streams which contemplated the betterment of both the sanitary and scenic conditions.
Certain lakes in the State are bordered with large areas of unattractive swamp and stump land which the local residents would prefer to have permanently submerged. It is claimed that the scope of improvement would include not only benefits to the conditions affecting the health of the community, but that such improvements would in a number of instances result in rendering the region more attractive, especially to summer visitors seeking recreation and health. It is also pointed out that in some instances the interior navigation on some of the lakes would be materially improved, and that the community would materially benefit from the improvement in this manner. The State has already carried out some improvements of this nature, and it seems quite probable that there are possibilities of a number of similar improvements. The problem does not appear to enter into the larger storage reservoir projects, and has not been given very extended consideration by the Water Supply Commission.
New York State and her citizens are justly proud of her scenic falls. Of these the American Falls of Niagara are doubtless the most widely known.
There are, however, other falls on streams within the State which const.i.tute local attractions of great interest in their respective communities. The Salmon Falls on Salmon river in Oswego County, the series of falls in Letchworth Park on the Genesee, and High Falls on the Ausable are prominent examples. The Water Supply Commission entertains a deep appreciation of the esthetic value of these beautiful masterpieces of the hand of nature, and believes intrinsically in their preservation.
This att.i.tude of the Commission is exemplified in the plans for the proposed Portage Falls power development, which provide for a flow greatly in excess of the minimum flow over the falls for a period of twelve daylight hours in each day. On the other hand, the Commission sees also the wonderful amount of quiet comfort which would be afforded to modern civilization by electric light and the many other applications of power which can be generated by the waters running over some of the falls of the State. The major part of the surplus water is wasted in the spring months of the year, and does not contribute in any appreciable measure to the scenic beauty of the falls; on the other hand, the natural flow of the streams frequently is reduced to such a low rate that the falls lose something of their attractiveness. It will doubtless prove practicable in connection with power developments at some of the naturally attractive falls in the State to insure a larger minimum flow in the dry weather as well as to conserve the great amount of power at present running to waste over the falls in the wet season.
In humid climates irrigation is admittedly more or less of an experiment. Its financial feasibility seems to depend on its being considered a matter of insurance against the failure of crops in seasons of low rainfall. There have been a number of scattered experiments carried on at different places in the State, but the plants used, especially in the older experiments, were comparatively complicated and expensive. The equipment for one particular set of experiments cost about $500 per acre. More recent experiments have been conducted in sections of the State where the precipitation is light during the growing months, and in fact throughout the year, and with a less expensive and a more generally practical equipment. In a few instances, which have been brought to public attention, the experimenters have been able to raise excellent orchards and garden products by means of a comparatively inexpensive irrigation plant, whereas other portions of the gardens and orchards of the same farms did not produce results nearly as satisfactory. One successful experimenter claims that he has made 20 percent interest on his investment by the installation of a small irrigation plant. The precipitation records show that there are portions of New York State where the rainfall during the crop-growing months does not amount to more than one-fourth or one-fifth of the water which is applied to the same crops where irrigation is conducted on a broad scale. The subject has not been entered into in great detail by the Water Supply Commission owing to the fact that its statutory jurisdiction does not seem to justify such a study, but it appears that the possibility of such use of at least a portion of the water supply of the State should be borne in mind and its development carefully watched in connection with the formulation of a general plan for the conservation of the water resources of the State by means of storage reservoirs.
_Need for Comprehensive Plan and Definite Policy_
The importance of a fixed policy establishing State leadership and control in the matters of water Conservation cannot be overestimated.
Without it, there is no place for consecutive and correlated action, either executive or legislative. In the past the State has had no policy of power development, either under public ownership or by encouragement and regulation of private or corporate development. Unlike many other States, New York has never, under general laws, granted the right of eminent domain to individuals or corporations for the purpose of flooding lands to create storage ponds and develop water-power.
Moreover, it must be conceded that in view of the doubtful const.i.tutionality of the "mill acts" of other States, and particularly in view of the strength of the modern sentiment demanding universal sharing in the benefits of natural resources, this State is not likely in the future indiscriminately to grant its power of eminent domain for this purpose. Unless the State shall define its policy and enter upon the work of carrying it out, this feature of its natural resources must largely remain in its present undeveloped condition, or be subject to the same haphazard and uncontrolled methods of utilization that have governed in the past. If we are to permit private interests to build storage reservoirs for power purposes on any broad and satisfactory plan, it can only be done by amending the Const.i.tution. As adequate reservoirs cannot be generally constructed for power purposes by private enterprise without const.i.tutional amendment, and possibly not then, the better way to accomplish this object is for the State itself to announce its policy and undertake its performance in the interest of all cla.s.ses and citizens.
Development by the State ensures the fullest possible utilization of the power possibilities of each stream, whereas development by uncontrolled private enterprise often involves waste of resources. Private capital, seeking the greatest possible immediate return on the investment, naturally confines its attention to the most concentrated portion of a given fall. The less precipitous portions of the fall above and below, involving a large unit outlay in development, are consequently apt to be neglected, and in too many cases permanently wasted, because no other enterprise is likely to undertake their development afterward, even if the rights of the company already on the spot would permit this to be done. On the other hand, the State, with its greater power and scope, and with financial resources enabling it to defer the return on its investment, could undertake the construction of the more extensive works necessary to develop the full extent of the fall in the supposed case.
Without amplifying the point, it should be clear that the State is the only authority with sufficient power to ensure the complete development of each and every stream so that every foot-pound of energy represented by its falling waters may be given up when necessary to the service of man.
The prime inclusive reason for the exercise of State authority over the control of stream-flow for power development is that under modern social and economic conditions this step is necessary to ensure the equal partic.i.p.ation of all citizens in this form of natural wealth, which is peculiarly the heritage of the whole people. Some of the more particular supplemental reasons for State control have been mentioned in the foregoing. It appears that from all points of view the State is the proper authority to undertake and carry out the conservation of its own water resources.
The State Water Supply Commission is engaged in studying the subject of conserving the falling waters in the rivers and streams of the State. In a country where all of the streams both great and small fill their banks in the springtime after heavy rains, and then decrease in volume all through the dry months so that they become in most instances worthless as power streams and of but little value in many other ways, it is clear that storage reservoirs of large capacity, the size depending, of course, on the water-shed in each case, must be built, if wasted water and worthless streams are to be turned into valuable a.s.sets. The building of storage reservoirs requires available areas to flood, favorable sites for dams, and scientific knowledge to supervise the construction of such d.a.m.ns and reservoirs. There must be, also, some general head to locate and plan such reservoirs on a broad and comprehensive scale, so as to store the largest possible amount of water in each given case; otherwise opportunities for economic development will be lost and money wasted. The plan should be so feasible and comprehensive as to include every profitable storage possibility, be it either great or small. The plan must permit of doing the work by reservoir units, and at such places as make promise of early and satisfactory return. With such a plan all who are interested in using to the best advantages that which is our own, and saving and conserving for the future that which justly belongs to our children, can work in harmony. Such a plan will enlist the people of every locality in the possibilities of water storage in their own developments, and at the same time not interfere in the least with the developments of a similar character in other parts of the State.
A plan that will enlist such an interest and make possible such a systematic development of a great and wasted natural resource, the Water Supply Commission has been trying to devise. It makes no claim to perfection, but it does claim that it has devised a workable plan for saving and conserving this wasted energy for both public and private use and so as to provide a public revenue. The plan includes the building of storage reservoirs by the State which shall be owned and controlled by it. The scheme is to use the stored water to equalize the flow of each stream upon which it is built, and charge the users of the stored water for the additional power such stored water gives to mill owners further down the stream. This does not contemplate charging a mill owner anything for the power he now has, but only for the additional power he gets by reason of the equalized flow of the streams due to using the stored water when he needs it most.
The Water Supply Commission as a part of its last annual report to the Governor and Legislature submitted a bill providing for a systematic development of the water-power resources of the State under State control. This bill contemplated the return of a net revenue to the State and accordingly provided for the a.s.sessment of benefits upon individuals and properties benefited by reason of the construction and operation of storage reservoirs. Many of the provisions of this bill were new in principle, and it was to be expected that a measure of such far-reaching effect would meet with some opposition. Although the bill provided for contracts to be entered into with respect to payments for benefits to be conferred, and the power of a.s.sessment was only to be resorted to in order to forestall an unwilling beneficiary from blocking the progress of a great public enterprise, such a provision met with disapproval in the Legislature and the bill was not advanced. The Commission believes that as the Legislature becomes more familiar with the problems involved, it will approve of this policy. For these reasons, the bill with amendments in other respects will again be submitted to the Legislature in connection with the next annual report.
REPORT FROM NORTH DAKOTA