authority to provide the necessary financing and the local people are responsible for acquiring easements and carrying out operations and maintenance responsibilities.

Heavy rains which fell in northern Mississippi following hurricane Audrey have caused renewed interest in flood prevention. The performance of completed retarding structures during this storm convinced many of the local interests of the effectiveness of these measures. Two floodwater-retarding dams were completed in 1957 and 15 other dams are now under contract for construction. About 15 additional dams are scheduled for construction during the fiscal year 1958.

EMERGENCY MEASURES

Section 216 of the Flood Control Act of 1950 authorizes the emergency treatment of watersheds impaired by fire or other natural elements to prevent serious sediment and flood damage to life and property. Seven such watersheds involving 87,200 acres of newly burned forest and range land were treated during fiscal year 1957 at a total cost of approximately $344,540. Local beneficiaries contributed about $288,430, and the Federal Government financed the remaining $156,110 from flood-prevention funds for emergency measures.

Four of the seven areas were located in southern California, two in Arizona, and the seventh in Colorado. Approximately 398,000 pounds of rapid germinating rye grass, mustard, brome, and other grasses were sown by airplane or helicopter to provide an immediate protective cover over most of the burned areas. The seeding generally was successful. In addition, 11 debris basins and stabilizing structures were installed, some 7 miles of clogged channels were cleared, 10 miles of terraces were constructed, and 24 miles of fire-control lanes and trails were stabilized.

PROGRESS IN BASIC DATA COLLECTION

Work was begun by the Forest Service Southern Forest Experiment Station late in the 1956 fiscal year on the collection of basic runoff data and erosion conditions as related to slope and vegetative cover in the Little Tallahatchie and Yazoo watersheds in Mississippi. Information of this nature was badly needed by technicians for the design of adequate and economical structural measures and effective conservation treatment of watershed lands in that area. A group of three small subwatershed units selected for instrumentation consisted of abandoned, actively eroding, formerly cultivated lands, which were reverting to forest. Stream gaging and standard and recording precipitation gages were installed and provisions were made for sediment sampling. Another group of three subwatershed units in depleted upland hardwoods were also selected for instrumentation and the instruments were installed in the 1957 fiscal year. Actual measurements will be begun in the 1958 fiscal year. This work will be continued until sufficient data has been accumulated to establish patterns from which technicians may make proper determinations as to adequate watershed improvement measures. Some data already available to the experiment station will also be analyzed in connection with this study.

In addition to the above installations the Department is conducting similar studies in other flood-prevention watersheds. Reimbursements totaling $21,417 were also paid to the United States Geological Survey for stream gaging and collecting rainfall and runoff data in the flood prevention watersheds for use by field technicians during the 1957 fiscal year.

Mr. WHITTEN. In connection with water conservation utilization projects, I would like to have pages 248, and 250 through 252 of the justifications included in the record at this point.

(The pages referred to follow :)

Water conservation and utilization projects

Appropriation Act, 1958 and base for 1959.

Budget estimate, 1959_..

$350,000

335,000

Decrease (due to reduction in program level for 1959 at the Eden Valley project)

-15,000

STATUS OF PROGRAM

EXAMPLES OF RECENT PROGRESS

Status of project development

Nineteen water conservation and utilization projects were originally authorized for development and settlement under the Department of Interior Appropriation Act of 1940 and the Case-Wheeler Act of August 11, 1939, as amended and supplemented. Six of these projects are no longer planned for development due to inflationary land prices and other changes since they were authorized. Twelve projects have been completed. The only remaining project of the original authorization, located at Eden Valley, Wyo., is scheduled for completion in the fiscal year 1962.

Eden Valley project, Wyoming

Land development for irrigation on the Government-owned land on this project was begun in the spring of 1954. At that time there was before the Congress a proposal to authorize the exchange of certain Federal land on the project for public-domain land held by the Department of the Interior and for lands belonging to the State of Wyoming that were found to be better suited for irrigation farming. The Congress enacted Public Law 377, approved May 28, 1954, authorizing these land exchanges. The transfers from the Department of the Interior to the Department of Agriculture were completed during the 1956 fiscal year. The land exchanges between the Department of Agriculture and the State of Wyoming were completed during the 1957 fiscal year.

Project land development by the Department on this project is continuing in accordance with the revised development schedule adopted in the 1956 fiscal year which provides for a period of development, settlement, and sale of farming units extending into the fiscal year 1962.

The first sale of newly developed irrigation farms was made in December 1956. The second sale is planned prior to the 1958 cropping season. It is expected that the remaining irrigation development and sale of lands on this project will be completed in accordance with the presently planned project development schedule.

Obligations by projects

The following table shows the actual obligations incurred under this program in 1957 and estimated obligations for the fiscal year 1958 and 1959.

Development accomplishments and workload

The following table shows some of the more important items of development work planned, the amount completed to date, and the amount remaining to be

done:

Status of land development and farm sales as of June 30, 1957

1 In addition there are privately owned lands within a number of projects on which development work is done. Projects closed, no further development work contemplated.

1 Net obligations after deduction for residual value of equipment is $186,545.