[Annual Report of the Secretary of the Interior, Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1951]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]
3S3.3
I
1951 Annual Report
OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Annual Report
OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1951
UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Osca r L. Chap man , Secretary
Docs.
iASI
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Resources for
Defense
THIS NATION is engaged today in an entirely new
kind of defense program, which has an immense impact on our natural
resource base. As a result, America is facing a problem whose
proportions and implications are unlike anything we have ever faced
before.
Our immediate responsibility is to build up the military machine.
Our survival as a people may well depend on our ability to turn our
great potential strength into military striking power on short notice.
In our great economic mobilization program the primary object is to
make our economic strength mean immediately available military
power.
Yet that is only half of the story.
While we do that, we are also obliged to build up our basic economic
strength. It is by no means enough for us to become strong enough
to meet the possible international crises of the next 2 or 3 years. In
the long run, we have to make America a richer and more productive
Nation—not just for the next 2 or 3 years, but for coming decades or
even generations.
We could make no greater mistake than to assume that we could
meet the immediate challenge at the cost of our long-run development.
In the last analysis, the fate of this Nation will ultimately depend
on the condition we are in after the immediate challenge has been met.
The real question is not whether we shall meet the challenge. Every
American is confident that we shall do that, whether it takes 2 years
or 20, and whether it is met peacefully or in all-out conflict. The
real question is what shape we are going to be in after the emergency
has been passed.
If we come out of this time of trial weaker and poorer than when
we went in—less able to provide our people with the goods and services
they need, weaker in all of the fundamental things that go to
make up national strength, enfeebled because we have dissipated our
basic resources in order to produce the planes and warships and bombs
and other armaments that we need, saddled permanently with a lower
standard of living and a harder, more despairing struggle for existence—
then we shall find that we have actually lost the struggle, no
matter what has happened to the totalitarian regimes which now
threaten our existence.
in
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Indeed, the final test of victory will lie in the answer to the simple
question: Is America richer, stronger, better able to provide her people
with a good life and to assume her position of world leadership
than she was before the challenge was first raised ?
If the answer is “Yes,” then we shall have won, and if it is “No”
then we shall have lost. It is just as simple as that.
This compels us to examine our position in respect to our basic resources
of land, water, and minerals with the most extreme care and
the clearest intelligence.
It means, for example, that in this emergency period we dare not
treat our resource conservation programs as expendible luxuries.
They are not programs that can be laid aside because we have something
more important to do. On the contrary, these programs—which
at bottom mean that we are determined to plan ahead, to provide for
our future well-being by developing to the fullest utilization all of
the great resources with which nature has endowed us—are at the
very heart of the “something more important” which is now engaging
our attention.
In his Economic Report to the Congress last winter, President Truman
properly expressed the case when he said:
The rapid expansion of the defense program must be the first objective in all
that we do. But military strength does not depend upon guns and armed forces
alone. These forces must be equipped by our industry, fed by our farms, and
supported by all the people. There must be a continuing balance between the
buildup of military strength and the buildup of economic strength.
In a total war, this balance would be very different from what it should be now.
In a total war, we would have total military mobilization, accomplished by considerable
depletion of other kinds of strength. In the current situation, we must
place considerable stress upon economic strength, or run the risk of being weak
at some future time if total military strength should then be required. . . .
If we allow our agricultural and range lands and our forests to deteriorate,
and if we misuse critically needed minerals and supplies of water, we shall
become weaker each year instead of stronger. If we do not expand the use of some
of these resources—we cannot expect to reach the full potential of our industrial
strength.
The first point we need to realize is that the defense effort we are
making could easily become a devastating thing, disastrous to all of our
prospects, if we should concentrate solely on short-term goals.
It would be fatally easy for us to do this. The pressure to make us
do it is upon us every day that this emergency continues.
As an illustration, consider the case of iron ore—which is certainly
one of the basic resources for any modern nation.
Our immediate task is to expand our production of iron ore in order
to meet the current needs of our defense program. We are expanding
our capacity to make steel, and it is of the first importance that we
expand our ability to produce iron ore in pace with that expansion.
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE + V
But if we stop there we could easily put ourselves on the high road to
ultimate ruin. For if we do that and nothing more—if we simply
increase the rate at which we use up our irreplaceable resource of highgrade,
easily accessible iron ore—we bring closer the day in which
we would not have enough iron ore to support our normal, peacetime
industry, let alone a great defense program.
Consequently, as we increase our production of iron ore we must at
the same time spend a certain amount of money, energy, and material
in making certain that our continuing, long-range supply of ore
remains adequate to meet all future demands upon it. That means
increasing the research on the metallurgical processes by which lowgrade
ores can be used. It means doing the things that are necessary
to make new deposits available: such things, for example, as constructing
a Great Lakes seaway, so that rich deposits in Labrador and elsewhere
can be brought speedily and economically to our steel-producing
centers. It means a sustained attack all along the line, so that we can
always be sure that our immense steel industry can meet all of the
manifold demands which a wealthy, powerful, and prosperous country
may place upon it.
Another case in point is provided by electric power.
The great tendency at the present time is to refuse to devote any
critical materials to an expansion of our electric power supply unless it
can be shown that the expanded capacity will contribute directly to
national defense within the next couple of years.
If we give way to that tendency, we might indeed find that at the end
of 2, 3, or 5 years we had met our purely defense needs to the last kilowatt
of installed capacity—and, at the same time, had left ourselves
hopelessly crippled because we did not have enough electric power to
meet the normal demands of our ever-expanding industry. Our total
requirement for electric power then would vastly exceed our total
ability to produce that power, even though we had made every increase
demanded by the defense program itself.
In both of those two cases—iron ore and electric power—we could
meet our defense goals and still find ourselves in worse shape than we
had been in before, either because we had nearly exhausted an irreplaceable
resource, or because we had failed to make provision for the
normal growth of the country. As a result, we should be poorer than
we were before the emergency began; permanently poorer, less able
to survive in prosperity and happiness in a world at peace.
The second great point to bear in mind is that the immense demands
of our defense program have come on top of a great, continuing expansion
in our domestic economy.
That expansion is the very essence of our development as a Nation.
Even before the Korean crisis was thrust upon us, it was obvious
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that our expanding economy would place continuing increased demands
upon our resources. To put it in another way, even by 1950
we could see that we would be obliged to develop our resource base in
order to support a greatly enlarged economy.
The new mobilization plan, accompanied by the threat of a possible
all-out war, came on top of that expansion. There was no slack for us
to take up—no reservoir of unused productive capacity waiting only
to be tapped.
In normal times, the interplay of supply-and-demand factors might
adjust the situation. But during the defense program times are far
from normal. We are conducting neither a peacetime economy nor
an all-out-war economy, but one which is a singular blend of both.
In doing this we are trying to meet two sets of demands at once—
the demands of our military program, on the one hand, and the demands
of a constantly expanding civilian economy on the other. The
result is that the basic utility type operations—power, mining, land
development, and the like, the things which create the foundation upon
which the entire economy rests—inevitably get caught in the middle
and squeezed. Their requirements tend to get a low rating, and the
materials which are needed for their development simply do not get
delivered.
If we let matters continue in that way we run a grave danger of
saddling ourselves with a straight military economy.
If that happens we shall find that the old economic freedoms which
give American life so much of its richness have disappeared. We shall
be supporting an enormous budget, with a huge proportion for defense,
and yet find ourselves poor as church mice where our great basic
programs are involved. Yet those programs—irrigation and land
development projects, proper care for our national park system, intelligent
development of our river systems, and so on—are the things
which make the difference between the rich cultural society we are used
to and a pinched, Spartan existence which is inevitable under a
straight military economy.
For instance, we are nearing the ceiling on the growth and stability
that can be achieved by our Western States without increased, broadscale
irrigation and related water resources development. For the
extent of water resources development rigidly sets the limits to which
the western economy can expand and thrive, and with direct and extensive
effect upon the economy of the entire United States.
Of course, all of us will be willing to endure a Spartan existence if
that should become necessary in the course of a world war. But it
would be simple folly for us to condemn ourselves to such an existence
unnecessarily simply because we failed now to develop our resources
so that they can carry the increased load which we are placing upon
them.
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE + VII
The third great point which must be borne in mind is that while we
may face limitless demands upon our resources, those resources are
not in fact unlimited.
An absolutely essential part of this vital program of developing our
resources is to make proper provision for the use of resources from
beyond our own shores. In the long run, we shall have to realize that
the entire world is our resource base—just as we ourselves are part
of the world’s resource base.
Do what we will, we cannot survive by building a Chinese wall
about ourselves—not unless we are willing to accept a permanently
lower standard of living, which will become progressively worse instead
of better.
Ultimately, we, more than any other people, need the kind of world
in which there can always be a free movement of goods and services
from country to country.
What we are looking for from beginning to end of this time of trial
is, to repeat, a situation in which we can meet all of the requirements
of our growing, expanding, vigorous population, and carry the great
responsibilities which inevitably come to a free society which has been
placed in a position of world leadership.
We cannot do that by relying on a blind belief in our own selfsufficiency,
nor can we confine ourselves simply to an attempt to meet
the immediate goals of military preparedness. We need to realize
our own place in the world—a world in which the free nations must
to a large extent share a common fate, each developing its own resources
to the utmost in order to broaden the base upon which free
economic institutions rest. As we meet our military goals we must
forever remember the need to expand our reserves and to make the
best possible use of the resources which are available to us, whether
those resources lie within our borders or in the lands of nations with
whom we carry on a mutually beneficial exchange of goods.
As a Government agency which is primarily concerned with the
conservation and development of our basic resources—the soil, minerals
and water and the energies and riches that come from them—
the Department of the Interior is intimately involved in this effort.
Consequently, when the President decided to delegate certain duties
under the Defense Production Act to existing Government agencies,
a number of specific responsibilities were charged to this Department.
These have to do with minerals, electric power, solid fuels, petroleum
and natural gas, and fisheries.
As a result, five defense agencies were set up under the Secretary
of the Interior—the Defense Minerals Administration, the Defense
Electric Power Administration, the Defense Solid Fuels Administration,
the Petroleum Administration for Defense, and the Defense
Fisheries Administration.
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Each of these agencies was built around a nucleus of personnel,
experience, and peacetime duties in the Department of the Interior.
The Defense Minerals Administration, which is responsible for the
important domestic minerals exploration program, was developed
around skilled people drawn from the Bureau of Mines and the
Geological Survey. The power agencies in the Department contributed
to the staff for the Defense Electric Power Administration, and
the Petroleum Administration was built around the Oil and Gas
Division in the Office of the Secretary. The Fisheries Administration
was organized around trained personnel from the Fish and Wildlife
Service, and the Defense Solid Fuels Administration developed logically
around departmental functions normally concerned with coal
and coal mining.
Thus the agencies which are directly concerned with programing
and providing the Nation’s supply of certain critical materials and
energies during the emergency work closely with the agencies which
in ordinary times of peace deal with the industries and resources
which are involved. The work is tied together through a small Defense
Production Staff in the Office of the Secretary; and through
all of these means, the Department works to get an adequate supply
of our basic resources for military needs and to bring about an adequate
expansion of production in these fields.
MINERALS
Metallic and nonmetallic minerals are raw materials vital to this
Nation’s economic strength and to its military might. Although we
are very far from a have-not Nation, our resources in the field
are by no means so great that we can afford to waste them. In this
defense emergency, we need more than ever to practice the wisest sort
of conservation—which means, not simply locking our resources up
and keeping them untouched for use in some indefinite future, but
using them in such a way that we get the greatest value out of them
while at the same time we make certain of our future supply.
Because of the scientific and technical knowledge and skills in the
Bureau of Mines and the Geological Survey, the Department was able
to move rapidly in the past year to attack the complex problems which
are raised in this field by the existence of the defense emergency
program.
Minerals differ from other natural resources with which this Department
deals in that they are wasting assets. Once a deposit has been
mined out it is gone forever, except for scrap recovery. This means
that it is precisely in a time like the present that it is most important
to intensify long-range programs designed to promote their
conservation.
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE 4- IX
It is important to realize that today’s producing mines are the fruit
of planning, development, and preparatory work begun many years
ago. The production of a decade hence must be planned today. Development
of mineral resources requires large outlays for systematic
exploration, for mining and metallurgical machinery, for the extension
of transportation into remote areas, for the recruiting and training
and housing of workers, and for the development of technologies for
the treatment of low-grade ores. Only on the basis of forward looking
planning is it possible to work today’s operating mines at a given level
of production with confidence that a future generation will have
adequate sources of production from which to draw its essential
materials.
In 1951 a careful balance was necessary between immediate and
long-range planning. Even though the Defense Minerals Administration
was set up to handle immediate defense needs, it was not possible
to recess much of the established work of the Bureau of Mines and
the Geological Survey, because that work is a necessary part of the
emergency program. It has also been necessary to bear in mind that
the Nation might eventually face an unlimited emergency in which
plans must be ready for the exploitation of submarginal ore bodies
without regard to cost.
One part of the Bureau of Mines work which is extremely important
in time of emergency is its conservation of trained manpower
through the prevention of injuries in the mines. For 41 years the
Bureau has been striving to make mines and plants safer, and its efforts
have borne fruit. In 1950, for example, there were about 28,500 fewer
injuries and only half as many fatalities in the mineral industries as
in 1940. Passage of the Coal Mine Inspection and Investigation Act
of 1941 gave the Bureau a new weapon in its war upon coal-mine accidents,
and in 1950 the fatality rates in bituminous and anthracite
coal mining reached the lowest point in the statistical history of
American coal mining. In recent months, however, the favorable
trend was reversed, and there is need today for an intensification of
accident-prevention work by State and Federal agencies and by management
and labor.
Comparing the current minerals position with that which existed
just before World War II shows a heavier production of most metals
and minerals, together with increasing dependency upon imports and
accumulated strategic stocks. During and after the last war, tremendous
drafts were made upon known mineral reserves. However,
a long-range program of exploring for new ore deposits, delineating
undeveloped and submarginal ones, and advancing mining and metallurgical
knowledge to make formerly submarginal deposits commercial,
has done much to maintain the balance between reserves and
production.
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It is of the highest importance to maintain the country’s reserves of
essential minerals to as great an extent as possible. This requires the
discovery of new deposits and the exploration and development of
known ores. The defense exploration program has far-reaching implications.
It may yet show that industry and Government, working
together, can restore our mineral reserves as rapidly as even the present
expanding industrial economy can consume them.
A complete inventory of our mineral deposits would be meaningless
without an equally complete appraisal of the technology for recovering
and utilizing the contained metals and minerals. Continued research
lowers the cost of mining and processing ores, and at the same
time increases the utility of the end products. Hence it is vital, in
time of emergency, to resist the temptation to drop long-range studies
on the improvement of metallurgical techniques and work exclusively
on projects that will increase current production. We dare not arrest
our progress in mineral technology.
Thus the search for feasible methods of using low-grade deposits
of manganese, chromium, and other strategic minerals, which has
been emphasized in recent years, has done much to reduce the danger
of critical shortages. Pioneering research on the production of ductile
titanium and ductile zirconium as new industrial metals, which already
are supplementing the inadequate supply of heat- and corrosionresistant
metals, is assuming great importance. Here, incidentally, is
an excellent example of the best sort of mineral conservation, since it
points the way to wider use of resources which previously have had
only limited utility.
Owing to the importance of aluminum in aircraft manufacture, the
demand for this metal is especially responsive to military and defense
activities. One of the Department’s first actions under the Defense
Production Act of 1950 was to launch a large aluminum-production
expansion program, and in cooperation with other Federal agencies
contracts were arranged for new construction to increase industry’s
capacity by 60 percent. Plans are also being made for providing additional
hydroelectric power, new sources of bauxite and other ores,
petroleum coke, soda ash, fluorspar, and other raw materials to supply
the further expansion that is likely.
The critical situation of the United States in its supply of copper
in a period of high world-wide demand was abundantly emphasized
during World War II. When the present copper program was drawn
up, no financial incentive from the Government was needed to bring
about capacity operation of domestic and foreign properties of American
copper-mining companies. It was recognized, however, that for
the long pull it would be unwise to try to force these mines much
above their most efficient operating levels, and the program therefore
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE + XI
looked to the development and exploitation of certain deposits that
are now idle and for a vast expansion of our purchases of copper
overseas.
Long-term purchase contracts have provided the incentives, and
within a few years both domestic and foreign copper production
should be increased substantially. The situation remains grave, but
much has been accomplished, and when the full program is completed
it is hoped that we can minimize the inevitable restriction on the use
of copper for other than military and defense-related purposes.
It is interesting to note that the first and biggest copper pro j ect on
this program is based on a deposit whose development stemmed from
an exploration project of the Bureau of Mines and Geological Survey
begun in 1943. The project was such as to offer no prospect of production
in less than 5 to 10 years; nevertheless, despite the pressure of
World War II, that project was pushed, with the result that our
present copper stringency may be substantially relieved by a major
new source.
When Russia sharply cut manganese shipments to the United States,
about a third of the supply on which the domestic iron and steel industry
relied from the end of World War II until December 1949, was
cut off. Our manganese program for 1951 emphasizes the need for
new sources of usable manganese ore, the importance of research, and
the exploration and development of new manganese reserves. The solution
of problems relating to the conservation of manganese will
continue to be an important part of this work.
It is extremely important to bear in mind that, although the
United States is more richly endowed with mineral resources than
most nations, we are becoming increasingly dependent upon imports
for an ever-broadening list of essential raw materials. These come
from all over the world—tin from Malaya, nickel from Canada,
manganese and chrome from Africa, oil from Venezuela, copper
from Chile, lead from Mexico, to mention but a few.
The picture becomes clear when statistics for 1950 are compared
with those for a period as recent as the 5 years from 1935 to 1939.
In the earlier period, domestic petroleum production was 9 percent
greater than domestic requirements; last year it was 9 percent smaller.
In 1935-39, domestic mine production was 7 percent greater than
domestic consumption of primary copper; in 1950 it was 39 percent
less. In 1935-39 we imported only 7 percent of our lead and 5 percent
of our zinc; in 1950, we imported 49 percent of our lead and 46
percent of our zinc.
We habitually import 75 percent or more of our supply of such
strategic minerals as tin, nickel, cobalt, chromite, manganese ore,
industrial diamonds, mica, asbestos, and platinum. We import from
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25 to 75 percent of our supply of such minerals as bauxite (the principal
ore of aluminum), tungsten, and fluorspar.
Such figures graphically illustrate the impossibility of any attempt
on our part to live in self-sufficient isolation from the rest of
the world. They also help to underline the importance—from a
point of view of sheer self-interest—of the attempt of that part of the
point 4 program which undertakes to assist other nations to increase
their production of such strategic minerals. When we help underdeveloped
areas to help themselves, we help to relieve ourselves and
the rest of the free world of the current pressure of minerals shortages.
These figures also indicate the importance of providing ourselves
with full current information about foreign minerals sources. At
present our information on such sources lags far behind our information
on domestic sources. Since we can hardly afford to operate our
mineral economy without full knowledge of all the factors affecting
it, a major expansion of the foreign statistical and informational
activities of the Bureau of Mines is strongly recommended.
Indeed, we need more of the basic information on which our own
domestic mineral sources are developed and exploited. The demand
for geologic maps and geologic information presses heavily upon
the Geological Survey, and if the ever-increasing demands are to be
met, its resources studies and systematic geologic exploration for
new deposits must be accelerated.
For a long time the Survey has been engaged in research on mineral
deposits and in assembling and analyzing pertinent resources data.
These data have been furnished to various Government agencies
concerned with national defense, and to the Congress. The Survey’s
functions in this field have been extended by delegation of the authority
vested in the President by the Defense Production Act of 1950,
and the Defense Minerals Administration in its effort to encourage
expansion of minerals production makes full use of the Survey’s
facilities.
If the economic strength of the Nation is to be maintained for the
future, the activities of the Survey in the minerals and fuels fields
must by all means be continued and speeded up. Private industry
depends in large part on the Survey for comprehensive geologic data
on which to base exploration programs, and for new and improved
geologic, geochemical, and geophysical prospecting techniques. To
be fully effective, the search for new deposits will require the acceleration
of both research and geologic mapping.
Also of importance are the topographic mapping activities of the
Survey. Soon after the outbreak of the Korean war, the Department
of the Army asked the Survey to expedite its topographic mapping
program throughout the United States, and, specifically, to comRESOURCES
FOR DEFENSE + XIII
plete the mapping of certain areas considered critical in national
defense. In recent months the Survey has been reorganizing its mapping
program so as to meet these requirements, fulfillment of which
will mean several years’ work. It should be added that, aside from
their military importance, these topographic mapping activities are
of substantial value in connection with the Nation’s long-term economic
expansion.
LAND AND WATER
The most fundamental of all our resources are the simple ones of
land and water. In the long run our strength and prosperity rest upon
them. Nothing in our entire program is more important than the task
of making certain that these resources do not fail us.
In the old days we assumed that these resources were literally inexhaustible.
A people who had a virgin continent to exploit—a continent,
moreover, which was uncommonly rich in its soil and its forests
and its lakes and streams—would naturally reach such a conclusion.
No matter how much new soil was brought under the plow, no matter
how many forests were cut down, no matter what damage was done
by flood and erosion and stream pollution, it always seemed that plenty
more lay just beyond the horizon.
As a result we used these resources with prodigal abandon, and the
inevitable consequence was a great wastage.
This wastage we have begun to correct; for we have at last been
forced to realize that this “inexhaustible” bounty is not in fact inexhaustible
at all. On the contrary, we are pressing very hard upon
these resources now. If we do not do our utmost to make the best use
of them, and to plan for their wise conservation and development, we
shall ultimately find that we lack the foundation for continued growth
and prosperity.
The immense acreage owned and administered by the Government
is what remains of a tremendous stretch of land from which 29 States
and a Territory were carved and upon which millions of privately
owned homesteads were provided. This remainder still offers present
and potential resources of inestimable value to the Nation. These resources—
many of them renewable if properly administered—include
timber, oil, forage, coal, uranium, and many other strategic materials
urgently needed not only for national defense but in the normal development
of our expanding economy.
Proper administration of these lands begins with cadastral surveys
and land classification programs. These surveys, which are basic to all
of the Bureau of Land Management activities, enable timber sales to
be made on intermingled private and public lands. They establish
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boundaries on oil lands so that private companies can lease from the
Government and keep a supply of petroleum flowing. They pave.the
way for power and irrigation projects in all of the western States,
help to meet the needs of agriculture and the livestock industry,
straighten out private, State, and Federal boundary lines so that
States can get revenues for schools and roads, and—not least important—
help to keep land records straight so that future generations of
private citizens may have clear title to their holdings.
Such surveys and studies not only meet the demands of private interests,
but also make possible proper handling of hundreds of requests
made by defense and other Government agencies for withdrawal of
public lands for bombing ranges, for atomic energy sites, for wildlife
refuges, for reclamation development, and so on.
Soil and forest management programs are important in the administration
of these public lands. Under the Taylor Grazing Act, livestock
can be fed upon approximately 180 million acres of federally
owned range land, while soil conservation activities open up new reserves
of forage and provide for protection of valuable watershed
areas, through a concerted program for rebuilding long neglected
range lands. Approximately 158 million acres of commercial forest
land and woodland come under the jurisdiction of the Bureau, and
a cardinal principle of management on these lands is that a perpetually
sustained yield of timber must be achieved. When so managed,
forests supply the economic foundation for a permanent wholesome
community life for local communities, and in addition produce an unfailing
supply of necessary forest products for the Nation as a whole.
It is interesting to note that on a straight dollars-and-cents basis
the management of these public lands is carried on at a substantial
profit to the Nation. During the 1951 fiscal year, $8,300,530 were appropriated
for management of public land and resources, and State
and Federal treasuries received an estimated $49,082,331 in receipts.
In other words, $5.90 were returned for every dollar of appropriation.
This, of course, includes only the tangible cash benefits and does not
take into consideration the immense long-range values which come
from proper management of our public lands.
Yet publicly owned lands are, after all, only a part of the great land
resources which must be conserved and developed.
We are still an expanding country, and our population continues to
grow. The Bureau of the Census predicts that the population of the
United States will total 190 million people by 1975. To feed and
clothe these people will require the equivalent of 99 million acres in
new agricultural production.
That figure is basic to any consideration of America’s handling of
its land and water resources. It measures the urgency of the job—a
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE + XV
job, be it noted, which has no connection whatever with the defense
emergency but simply indicates the increased load which normal expansion
of our economy is thrusting upon us. Any increased strain
which arises from the defense program comes on top of that.
In addition, there is especial pressure for expanding irrigated croplands
in the West, where population is growing faster than the national
average. The Nation’s population rose slightly less than 15
percent in the 1940-50 decade, but the population of the 17 western
States went up nearly 25 percent. Despite the extensive reclamation
work done in that decade, we are not meeting increased water and
irrigation demands anywhere in the west today. The population of
the three Pacific Coast States—Washington, Oregon, and California—
showed a 47.5 percent increase in those 10 years.
What all of that means is that our population is beginning to press
heavily on the basic source of our food supply. The pressure will
continue for the next quarter century. The only feasible methods for
relieving it involve bringing new lands into production through reclamation,
and increasing production from land now in farms—or
relying upon the importation of food from foreign countries. Obviously,
we cannot relieve the pressure unless we make and carry out
large plans for reclaiming presently unproductive soil.
An example of such planning is to be found at Grand Coulee Dam
on the Columbia River in Washington, where on June 15, 1951, one
of the most spectacular reclamation undertakings of all time began
operation. On that date the first of a series of the world’s largest
pumps began lifting water higher than a 47-story building to flow
into the dry ice-age channel of the Grand Coulee, ultimately to irrigate
more than a million acres of now arid land.
Full effects of this operation will not be felt at once, of course.
By the spring of 1952 it is expected that approximately 87,000 acres
of land in the Columbia Basin project area will be available for irrigation.
Ultimately, however, more than 1,029,000 acres—an irrigated
area the size of Rhode Island—will be under cultivation. There
will be more than 1,000 miles of canals and laterals on the project,
and approximately 6 percent of the flow of the Columbia River at
Coulee Dam will be diverted to irrigate the now dry land.
Fundamental to this sort of planning is the requirement that no
amount of potentially useful river water be permitted to flow wastefully
to the sea. It is for this reason that the Federal reclamation
program calls for multiple-purpose use of these natural water resources—
flood control, silt and sedimentation control, generation of
hydroelectric power, preservation of recreational and fish and wildlife
resources, and other conservation benefits. Practically all of Reclamation’s
274 million dollar construction outlay in 1951 was devoted
to this multiple-purpose type of project.
XVI + ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Yet even that horizon, by itself, is not broad enough. The principle
must be broadened to embrace entire river systems if we are to reach
our objective of the maximum beneficial use of our water resources.
Consequently, comprehensive plans for river-basin development of
the natural resources in several regions of the West is now a major
feature of the Department’s program.
Near the close of the year, a carefully integrated schedule for
multiple-purpose development and use of the waters in the Upper
Colorado River Basin, consisting of a team of 10 major storage reservoirs
and power plants, and 14 participating projects in Wyoming,
Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico, was completed and referred
to those States for approval, prior to submittal to Congress for
action.
Construction work on the broad-scale Missouri River Basin project,
and particularly on those elements in the work schedule which would
quickly provide additional hydroelectric power and farm irrigation
water, went forward apace.
Meanwhile, another giant project came into operation in the great
Central Valley of California—one more striking example of the kind
of planning that is needed if our expanding resources are to keep
pace with our expanding needs.
Shortly after the close of the 1951 fiscal year, Sacramento River
water from Shasta Dam, the world’s second highest, began moving
southward into the San Joaquin River Valley, to effectuate a 500-
mile transfer of irrigation water supplies for the region’s fabulously
productive farming area. This is the longest mass movement of irrigation
water ever attempted. It has already added 454,000 kilowatts
to the Nation’s installed power-generating capacity, and it is now
beginning to stabilize and to expand irrigation in one of America’s
richest and most highly developed agricultural and industrial areas.
Full operation of these works, when completed, will provide water
for 500,000 acres of irrigated lands now inadequately supplied. Water
will also be available to bring another 500,000 acres of dry land under
irrigation.
The vast benefits arising from such projects emphasize the soundness
of the warning—“make no little plans.” We have the resources
of soil and water to meet our expanding needs, if we have the intelligence
and the energy to develop them properly. It might be pointed
out that during fiscal year 1951 nearly 5% million acres of land in
the 17 Western States were furnished with either new or supplemental
supplies of water, and the approximately 100,000 full-time or parttime
farms provided with irrigation water by the 62 Federal reclamation
projects or divisions thereof now constitute an important element
in the Nation’s agricultural economy. It should be emphasized that
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE + XVII
revenue to the Federal Treasury from the sale by the Bureau of
Reclamation of electric power developed by Government plants came
to approximately 37 million dollars during the year, an increase of
about 4 million dollars over the previous year’s revenue.
Water is a resource important not only to agriculture, however,
but to industry as well. Here again we have a resource which until
comparatively recently was taken for granted, but which we have
been using so heavily that we cannot afford to take it for granted
any longer.
The Nation’s industry requires far more water than is generally
realized. It takes about 270 tons of water, for instance, to make
a ton of highly finished steel, 1,300 tons of water to make a ton of
aluminum, 2,500 tons of water to make a ton of synthetic rubber, 200
tons of water to make a ton of smokeless powder, and 24 gallons of
water to refine a gallon of aviation gasoline.
During the last war, the Geological Survey supplied more than
13,000 ieports on the availability of water for the war program, many
of them based on rapid investigations made for the immediate purpose
of the report and usable in an emergency on a calculated-risk
basis. Similar studies can and probably will be made in the present
emergency. However, the water available at any location usually
varies so much from time to time that the dependable long-term supply
can be determined only after many years of collecting information.
Records exist for numerous places throughout the Nation, but
the apparently insatiable demand for water has made it imperative
that the program of collecting water information be stepped up.
Recent history, moreover, has changed the pattern of thinking. All
water records that have been kept over a period long enough to be
satisfactory were begun at a time when the expected course of national
development was quite different from what it appears to be now.
The new problems of the dispersal of industry in an atomic age, with
relation not only to atomic bombs but also to the disposal of radioactive
wastes from atomic materials used commercially, mean new
water supply problems. Programs must be planned and carried out
in keeping with current trends.
ELECTRIC POWER
An adequate supply of electric power lies at the very heart of the
defense program. Any reduction in the supply of materials and equipment
needed by the electric power industry will directly and immediately
threaten the success of the whole defense production effort. In
addition, if the living standards of the American people are not to be
impaired by the defense effort there must be provision to meet the
973649—52-------2
XVIII ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
normal expansion in our economy’s requirement for electric power—an
expansion which takes place, year in and year out, wholly aside from
the defense production program.
The Defense Electric Power Administration is undertaking to
mobilize the Nation’s electric utilities for the emergency effort. It
coordinates the activities of 4,000 private and public electric power
utilities, including rural cooperatives, having a total approximate
worth of more than $25 billion.
In its effort to analyze and formulate the Nation’s electric power
expansion program, and to provide material and equipment to keep
that program on schedule, this Administration has called for an increase
of approximately 27 million kilowatts of electric energy by
the end of 1953. Of that total, it is expected that 2,811,000 kilowatts
will be installed in Federal projects, which at present have under construction
some 3,800,000 kilowatts of generator capacity.
It needs to be emphasized that this 27 million kilowatt program is a
bedrock program drawn up to meet actual defense program requirements.
It is not keyed to the normal expansion in the country’s requirement
for electric power, which goes on rising year by year without
reference to the present emergency. It is solely a program to
enable us to meet our immediate defense production requirements.
What this means is that even though that program be met in full,
our economy could nevertheless come out of the emergency period
badly handicapped for lack of adequate power facilities.
This danger hears with particular weight on the economy of the
Western United States, where the expansion and strengthening of the
economy is peculiarly dependent on full-scale development of western
water resources. The extent to which the West can grow food and fiber
and maintain industrial production depends squarely on the extent to
which projects for irrigation, hydroelectric power, municipal and industrial
water, flood control, and other multiple-purpose benefits of our
great river systems are developed.
Ever since the end of the last war, the Bureau of Reclamation has
been racing against time to catch up with the phenomenal growth of
western population and industry, which have sorely strained developed
water resources. The expanding defense program simply creates a
greater urgency.
At the present time, we are not yet meeting demands for water and
power anywhere in the West, despite rapid progress with Reclamation
development.
In the Pacific Northwest specifically, it needs to be borne in mind
that development of the area’s rich mineral and forest resources depends
almost entirely on present supply and future potential supply
of hydroelectric power. Coal and fuel oil are inadequate to support
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE + XIX
any substantial industrial development there. Natural gas from
Canadian sources has not yet reached the Northwest, and wood wastes,
formerly available as a fuel supply, are rapidly finding new and more
profitable uses as fabricated wood-waste products. The industrial
economy of the entire region, therefore, rests upon its vast undeveloped
hydroelectric power resources. The Pacific Northwest possesses 40
percent of the total potential hydroelectric power in the United States,
and its resource development will be increasingly dependent upon
this type of energy.
During the last war the supreme importance of low-cost power in
the development of light metal industries was strikingly demonstrated
in the Northwest. Production of aluminum requires electric
energy on a scale that 20 years ago would have seemed beyond comprehension.
Because of the production of huge blocks of power at
Bonneville and( Grand Coulee, the Northwest was able to develop a
huge primary aluminum industry. In 1939, it produced none of this
metal; today, thanks to low-cost power, it produces 45 percent of the
primary aluminum produced in the United States. During fiscal
year 1951, Bonneville Power Administration supplied directly 6,545
million kilowatt-hours to the aluminum reduction and aluminum
fabrication industries. This represents 90 percent of the industrial
energy served directly by Bonneville.
In addition, the Administration serves other important industries
which require large blocks of low-cost power. These include plants
producing calcium carbide and the ferroalloys. The Hanford Atomic
Energy Works at Richland, Wash., is also dependent upon Bonneville
Power Administration for large blocks of power. All in all,
by the spring of 1951 Bonneville supplied more than a million kilowatts
to industries.
It is worth noting that essential defense industries in the Northwest
rely heavily on what is called interruptible power—power which
is available whenever water runoff exceeds a minimum year runoff.
When minimum water conditions occur, of course, as they did in 1951,
this power vanishes. Nevertheless, during a great part of the time
it provides important defense production. As an example, 11 percent
of the Nation’s primary aluminum production is produced with interruptible
power.
Also noteworthy is the fact that the installation of stop logs at
Bonneville Dam to raise the height of the pool from 72 to 78 feet
added approximately 40 million kilowatt-hours of power to the system.
To translate this into concrete terms, this is the equivalent of a
2% percent increase in United States aluminum capacity.
For the long-range defense program, the Pacific Northwest can
increase its industrial capacity, in those industries which use large
XX + ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
amounts of electric power, by 300 percent if power is made available
by 1959. Long-range possibilities for this area include the following:
I_n d, ustry: Percent increase (1951 to 1959}
Aluminum reduction________________________________ 116
Aluminum fabrication------------------------------------------------ 177
Calcium carbide and ferroalloys------------------------------------523
Chlorates, perchlorates, and caustic soda------------------------ 492
Abrasives__________________________________________ 622
In addition, alumina, magnesium, elemental phosphorous and titanium
can be expected to emerge as new industries in the area. A magnesium
plant and an elemental phosphorus plant will be in operation
by the fall of 1951. The titanium and alumina plants probably will
not be build before 1954.
To achieve such an industrial expansion, additional hydroelectric
capacity will be needed. The present January peaking capability
(based on median-month water conditions) of the Bonneville system
is 2,321,000 kilowatts. The short-range program to 1954 requires an
increase of 690,000 kilowatts, while the long-range program would
require an addition of 5,621,000 kilowatts to the January peaking
capability by 1959. This program includes 10 dams constructed or
under construction and 9 additional dams proposed for construction
in the Columbia River System.
All in all, the Department today is marketing power from plants
in the western States totaling about 4,600,000 kilowatts—about 26
percent of the installed capacity of all hydroelectric plants in the
United States and nearly 7 percent of the total installed capacity for
all types of plants in the Nation.
Power production on Federal Reclamation projects set new all-time
high records during the year. More than 771,000 additional kilowatts
of generating capacity were installed in project power plants during
the 1951 fiscal year, among them being four more of the giant 108,000-
kilowatt generators at the Coulee Dam plant on the Columbia River.
During the year, Coulee Dam generators turned out more than 12 billion
kilowatt-hours of energy—the largest single hydroelectric producing
plant in the world.
The installation of five 45,000-kilowatt generators at Davis Dam
on the Colorado River between Arizona and Nevada provided 225,000
kilowatts for this new plant in 1951, while the Estes hydroelectric
plant on the Colorado-Big Thompson project in Colorado was provided
with 45,000 kilowatts of generating capacity for the power-short
industries, communities, and farms in that area. During the year,
installation of 24,000 kilowatts of generator capacity was added in
the Kortes Dam plant on the North Platte River in Wyoming, bringRESOURCES
FOR DEFENSE + XXI
ing that plant’s total to 36,000 kilowatts. Kortes was the first power
plant authorized as part of the Missouri River Basin project to go
into production. The Anderson Ranch project, Idaho, aggregating
27,000 kilowatts, was also added during the year.
Thus in order to provide the power urgently needed in the Defense
program, construction of new Federal plants by the Bureau of Reclamation
went forward under forced schedule in 1951.
Much progress also was made during the year in solving the problem
of distribution of electrical energy.
In some Western States, power is transported over the Reclamation
Bureau’s 4,520-mile network of Government-built and owned
transmission lines. In other sections, where Federal lines have not
yet been provided, private utilities have entered into “wheeling agreements”
under which the private companies carry federally produced
power to Government preference customers over their own lines. In
turn, most of the agreements provide that the private companies may
augment their own production with power from Federal plants, if
desired. Approximately 40 such wheeling contracts between the
Government and private utility companies are now in operation, 7 of
the more important having been negotiated during the 1951 fiscal
year.
This integration of power sources and systems wherever feasible
brings an economy and a flexibility in serving power and energy to
essential industries and increases the efficiency of the Nation’s productive
plant. The plan not only effects economies for the ultimate
consumer, but also readily adapts itself to the defense program and
permits delivery of large blocks of power almost overnight to any
production center which needs a new and relatively large source of
electric power.
The Southwestern Power Administration is selling the power from
three multiple-purpose dams, two of which are connected by a highvoltage
transmission line. Two important new projects will be tied to
this transmission grid in 1952 and a third in 1953. Although this
main line totals only about 500 miles, plans for integration with other
power systems will permit the movement of the new power to practically
any part of an area which, at its longest and widest, is roughly
1,000 miles by 1,000 miles.
This integration of power sources becomes increasingly valuable in
a time of emergency, when productive capacity and supplies of raw
materials and finished products must be expanded swiftly for an
emergency whose duration cannot be foretold. Under this system
the power supplies of an entire area can work together in planning to
meet the area’s needs for electric energy. The Department is committed
to a program of encouraging the most widespread use of FedXXII
+ ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
eral power through close arrangements with rural electric cooperatives.
Ultimate goal of the Department of the Interior is to make
electricity available to every rural resident, with assurance that the
supply will be available 24 hours every day. This program assumes
especial importance in a time of manpower shortage, like the present.
Equally important is the policy of granting preference in the sale
of power to public bodies, including municipalities which own their
own generating or distribution facilities. Many of these cities were
unable during the last war to obtain generating equipment to supply
the needs of their expanding economies, and they are able to contribute
more to business and manufacturing concerns because of the
Department’s marketing program. This is particularly important
because the Nation’s economy as a whole will be the gainer if the rich
deposits of minerals in the southwestern area, for instance, can be
processed in the region where they are mined.
In the Southeast, the Southeastern Power Administration recently
completed its first full year of operations with substantial contributions
of power to defense establishments of the 10 Southeastern
States. This power comes from generation at Allatoona hydroelectric
plant on Etowah River, in northern Georgia, the output of which
is sold to Georgia Power Co., and the generation at the Dale Hollow
and Center Hill projects in the Cumberland River Basin, the output
of which is marketed by the Tennessee Valley Authority. The Wolf
Creek project is scheduled for initial power production during the
fall of 1951.
A temporary rule curve was recently put in operation at Allatoona
which raised the top elevation of the power pool several feet for further
storage of water during the summer months, the effect of which
is to store wTater valued at several million kilowatt-hours, primarily
to be used by TVA in Tennessee during the fall and early winter
peaks of atomic energy plants. Southeastern Power Administration
is working with TVA and the Corps of Engineers for a similar raising
of power pools at Dale Hollow, Center Hill, and Wolf Creek Dams
in the Cumberland River Basin as an additional source of energy for
TVA toward meeting the fall and winter peak loads. The raising
of these power pools emphasizes the critical and expanding need for
additional power and energy in the Southeast, where defense needs
may bring about a curtailment of the civilian power requirement.
From Federal Power Commission studies it is evident that generating
plants now scheduled will not be able to provide the accepted 15 percent
margin in reserve capacity until 1953, which means that additional
power is greatly needed to meet the load and to provide adequate
reserve capacity.
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE + XXIII
During the fiscal year 1951, the agencies above mentioned-—Bureau
of Reclamation, Bonneville Power Administration, Southwestern
Power Administration, and Southeastern Power Administrationmarketed
24,764 million kilowatt-hours of electricity, produced by
plants having an installed generator capacity of 4,910,000 kilowatts,
for which about 67.5 million dollars was received in revenues at
an average price of 2.72 mills per kilowatt-hour sold. In marketing
this power, the Department continued to carry out congressional
policies (1) to give preference to public bodies and cooperatives and
to prevent monopolization, and (2) to sell power at the lowest possible
rates which are consistent with sound business principles and which
will return the investment plus interest and assure the widest possible
use.
FUELS
One of the most fundamental of our natural resources is fuel. It
is the source of the greater part of the energy that activates our
industry, keeps public and private transportation systems moving,
heats our homes, and cooks our food. Thus far we have met all of
the demands which our expanding economy and the immense defense
program have put upon our supply of solid and liquid fuels, but it is
imperative that we make every effort to insure ourselves of adequate
supplies for the future.
America is fortunate in the richness of its endowment in these
resources. Even if we no longer talk glibly about inexhaustible supplies
of coal, oil, and gas, we still have very great reserves and the
principal problem to date has been to mobilize them properly so as
to meet increased demands.
We have now reached the point, however, at which we must carefully
program the development of our fuels to make certain that we
shall always be able to have enoughs Every year our consumption
is greater than the year before, and it seems probable that that condition
will continue indefinitely. Our reserves may be adequate to
meet any imaginable needs for centuries to come, but only if we
prepare to make the proper use of them. If we simply coast along,
we shall very quickly find ourselves severely pinched.
Coal generates about half of our electricity and supplies about 42
percent of our total demand for energy. Industries which are rapidly
expanding because of defense requirements are heavily dependent
upon adequate and steadily increasing supplies of coal. Steel cannot
be produced without coking coal; and in addition, the coking process
supplies the basic materials for more than 200,000 chemical products
XXIV + ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
which, are vital both in war and in peace, ranging from dyes and
solvents to explosives and plastics. Enormous tonnages of coal are
used in many types of military production. To make a 1-ton bomb,
for instance, requires the equivalent of 2 tons of coal. Making a
modern tank requires the power equivalent of 225 tons of coal.
In cooperation with other Government agencies and the coal-mining
industry, the Defense Solid Fuels Administration is working to solve
problems created by the rearmament program and to prevent the
development of shortages in solid fuels. In an emergency period
any number of factors, ranging from transportation bottlenecks to
shortages of equipment and manpower, may disrupt the flow of coal
to consumers, and the Defense Solid Fuel Administration has focused
attention on these immediate problems.
During the first 6 months of 1951, bituminous-coal production totaled
nearly 266 million tons, an increase of 13 percent over production
during the same period in 1950. In the 1952 fiscal year the production
of bituminous coal is expected to rise significantly. There will probably
also be a rise in the output of Pennsylvania anthracite, used principally
for space heating in the Northeastern United States and
Canada.
Expansion of the steel industry will put especially heavy demands
on our output of metallurgical coal, and the demand for coke will
be particularly pressing. New coke ovens with a capacity of close
to 11 million tons will come into production by the end of 1952, but
since some 6 million tons will be required for replacement purposes
this will mean a net additional capacity of only about 5 million tons,
and DSFA is attempting to stimulate new coke-oven construction.
The Bureau of Mines investigation of coking coal reserves is showing
the amount and quality of recoverable reserves of coking coal in the
eastern Appalachian coal fields that can be developed to supply heavy
demands for metallurgical coals.
A coal-transportation shortage is expected to develop during the
winter of 1951-52, and the supply of coal-carrying railroad cars
during that winter is not expected to meet the needs. To cope with
this problem, DSFA is working with other Government agencies,
with the railroads and with coal producers, in an effort to reduce
car turn-around time, to keep bad-order cars at the lowest possible
minimum, and to increase production of new cars. The DSFA has also
supported a summer fuel-buying program and voluntary fuel stockpiling
by consumers. No widespread fuel shortages are expected in
the winter, although the full cooperation of the coal and railroad
industries and individual consumers will be needed if spot shortages
are to be prevented.
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE + XXV
The pressure on petroleum and natural gas supplies will be even
greater than that on coal. The demand for petroleum and its products
has increased from a daily average of 3,981,000 barrels in 1940 to
6,803,000 in 1950, with an estimated daily demand of 7,439,000 barrels
in 1951.
Those figures do not tell the full story, however. Until comparatively
recently, the United States produced more petroleum than it
consumed, and as recently as 1940 our annual net exports of petroleum
and its products came to more than 46 million barrels. In 1950, we
had net imports of more than 198 million barrels. Our petroleum
imports last year amounted to about 17 percent of the total world oil
produced outside 'of this country.
Because we have become so dependent on petroleum and gas, the
question of assuring an adequate supply is one of the greatest responsibilities
of the Government and of the petroleum and gas industry.
To assure such supplies, the Petroleum Administration for Defense
was set up in the Department of the Interior in October 1950.
In addition, both the Bureau of Mines and the Geological Survey
have been hard at work on the problem of augmenting our supplies of
oil.
From the Geological Survey come data needed in exploring for new
supplies of oil and natural gas. In northwestern Colorado and in
Utah, the Survey continues to map rich oil-shale deposits which represent
one of our greatest potential sources of liquid fuel. In western
Texas, where large oil and gas reserves have recently been discovered,
investigation of the occurrence and distribution of reefs in the oilbearing
rocks has been started under the sponsorship of the Petroleum
Administration for Defense. In the Eastern United States,
studies of gas producing sands have been made which will help to
guide further exploration for gas in a highly industrialized region.
It should be emphasized that private industry depends largely on
the Geological Survey for data on which to base exploration programs,
and that an effective search for new deposits will require accelerated
research and geological mapping. Many productive districts have
not yet been adequately studied.
Of the 450,000 producing oil wells in the United States (on January
1, 1950) some 70 percent were “stripper wells” that produced an
average of only 3 barrels of oil per day. All other wells averaged 30
barrels a day. After these stripper wells have reached their economic
limit of production by present methods and at current prices, a large
proportion of the oil will remain in the ground. The Bureau of Mines
is conducting fundamental research to learn more about the forces
which hold this unrecovered oil in the ground, and it cooperates with
XXVI ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
industry to find ways to increase ultimate recovery. In addition,
the Bureau fosters secondary recovery operations which even under
present methods assure an additional 3 to 3% billion barrels of oil
in the United States.
An important part of the task of conserving petroleum supplies
comes in connection with refining. Much research on the chemistry,
physics, and thermodynamics of petroleum is necessary in order
that better refining processes may be developed, and in order that better
engines may be designed. At the same time changes in petroleum
economics must be studied, especially since the United States is increasingly
dependent on oil produced abroad, and it is necessary to
have more current information on all phases of the industry abroad.
Data provided by the Department of the Interior provide the basis
from which all Government agencies must develop policies concerning
petroleum.
Impressive as the growth of the petroleum industry may be, it has
been far outstripped by the rate of the growth in the use of natural
gas. Marketed production of gas rose from 2,660 billion cubic feet in
1940 to 6,198 billion cubic feet in 1950—an increase of 131 percent.
Even this rate was restricted by pipeline capacity, for demand exists
for a much greater volume. Since the Second World War, this fuel
has been brought in increasing quantity to the Central and Eastern
States, where it is largely displacing manufactured gas.
Proved reserves of natural gas at the end of 1940 were estimated
at 80 trillion cubic feet. At the end of 1950, this estimate had increased
to 185.6 trillion cubic feet, and marketed production during
that period came to slightly more than 42 trillion cubic feet.
These figures represent just one phase of the ever-increasing demand
for energy by American industry, and they help to point up the fact
that in the midst of this defense program we cannot simply sit back
and rely complacently on what we now know our natural resources
to be. Those resources are immense, but we are using them up at an
ever accelerating rate, and they are literally irreplaceable. And when
we have done all that we can do in the way of finding new reserves,
perfecting our means of getting these resources out of the ground and
finding more efficient ways to use them after they have been extracted,
it remains true that we must still take very serious thought for possible
shortages in the very near future.
In this connection the development of synthetic liquid fuels offers
a great opportunity.
At some time in the future—whether it be in 5 years or in 25—
we are likely to find that our steadily increasing demand for oil products
is outrunning our domestic Supply. It is, of course, true that we
can continue for some time to increase our domestic production, proRESOURCES
FOR DEFENSE + XXVII
vided that steel is available to permit drilling at an increased rate.
Nevertheless, we shall eventually find ourselves under considerable
pressure to make supply equal demand, and when that day comes it
will be necessary for us to place some reliance on a large-scale domestic
synthetic fuel industry based on coal or oil shale.
Fortunately, it appears that the possibilities in that field are
immense.
Enough technical and engineering data are now available to provide
a sound basis for proceeding with commercial development of
synthetic-fuel plants. Enough of the raw materials—coal and oil
shale—exists to meet all oil requirements for many years. Besides providing
a dependable source of gasoline and diesel fuel, these resources
could yield much needed supplies of benzene and other critical aromatic
chemicals used in manufacturing explosives, synthetic rubber,
and other important defense materials.
The coal-hydrogenation demonstration plant of the Bureau of Mines
at Louisiana, Mo., has produced thousands of gallons of high-octane
gasoline which has successfully undergone severe performance tests,
as has diesel fuel produced in the Bureau’s oil-shale demonstration
plant at Rifle, Colo.
The cost of mining oil shale has been reduced, and an improved
continuous vertical retort has successfully passed pilot-plant tests. It
is possible to produce completely refined, marketable products from
crude shale oil, and oil shale yields many scarce and useful chemicals.
Revised estimates of oil shale reserves in Colorado have raised the
total figure of contained shale oil to nearly 500 billion barrels, and
tests of known areas of Wyoming may double this figure.
Additional research on the production of oil from coal should
further reduce costs. At the request of the Department of the Interior
a survey of the synthetic liquid fuel potential of each State has been
made by the Army Corps of Engineers, and preliminary reports show
that many areas possess the required raw materials to support a domestic
liquid fuels industry.
It must be emphasized that the time is now at hand when we must
begin to move into commercial production of these synthetic fuels.
It is not possible to increase oil refining capacity overnight, and by
the same token it takes time to build synthetic liquid-fuel plants. It
is now highly desirable that commercial synthetic fuels plants be
started to bridge the gap between industry and the research and demonstration
plant work already done by the Bureau of Mines.
We do not need to worry about our fuel supply in this country, if
we continue vigorously to develop our resources in the midst of this
emergency. If we fail to do so we shall eventally find ourselves severely
pinched, as mounting demands press harder and harder upon
XXVIII + ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
presently available sources. The reserves are there, but they cannot
be brought into production overnight.
SCENIC, HISTORICAL, AND RECREATIONAL RESOURCES
A time of emergency like the present gives to the resources of our
National Park System an unusual value—and places them under an
unusual strain.
The need for places which, like these National Park areas, can provide
relief from physical, mental, and spiritual pressures is greatly
heightened during times of emergency. It is then that these great
recreational areas, scenic attractions, and historic shrines most
strengthen love of country, respect for our democratic institutions, and
determination to defend the rights and liberties which are part of our
American heritage.
Yet it is precisely at such times that demands are made upon our
parks which, if met, would use up their resources. Furthermore, the
emphasis which we put upon national defense and our insistence that
we devote our money and effort to strictly essential activities is likely
to starve the park system so that it cannot be maintained properly for
future usefulness.
Early this year, under authority voted by Congress, the Independence
National Historical Park project came into existence, when the
Secretary of the Interior formally accepted from the city of Philadelphia
the custody of Independence Hall and the associated buildings in
Independence Square. Responsibility for preserving and displaying
these history-laden structures now rests with the National Park Service.
One needs but briefly to observe the interest and reverence of visitors
in the presence of the Liberty Bell, for example, to know that such
places exert a profound, far-reaching and infinitely beneficial effect
upon the American people.
The Department has felt fully justified in recommending for the
National Park Service a budget which would permit it to provide both
protection and service on a satisfactory scale. All areas should be so
maintained and staffed that they could meet national needs. This is
not the time to subject the park system to another period of starvation,
as was the case during World War II.
We need always to keep in mind the phrase that was so wisely embodied
in the 1916 act which established the National Park Service—
“to leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.”
There might, of course, be times when supreme national need would
compel us to invade the parks to remove some resource which the
Nation simply had to have for its defense—something which could not
be obtained elsewhere. During the Second World War there were
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE + XXIX
two instances of that kind—one for the removal of salt from Death
Valley National Monument, and another for the removal of a single
tungsten deposit in a remote part of Yosemite National Park.
However, by the exertion of effort to uncover alternative sources, it
was possible to ward off many other requests, and the National Park
system came through the war with relatively little impairment except
that which was due to inadequate protection and maintenance. The
same necessity for preserving the parks exists today. It should be
noted that in this effort to safeguard the parks the work of other agencies,
such as the Geological Survey and the Bureau of Mines, is of
great importance in seeking and finding outside the parks the resources
which are needed for the defense effort.
For the past 5 years, each year has seen a new record total of visitors
to the 180 areas administered by the National Park Service. Unless
the needs of defense make restrictions on travel necessary, it is to be
expected that the number of visitors this year will exceed all previous
totals. That means more wear on the roads, which must be maintained
for comfort and safety; greater demands on camping facilities,
where a high standard of sanitation is particularly essential, as well
as some extension of the facilities themselves, where the demand justifies
it. It means an added load upon the interpretive facilities and
interpretive personnel which add so greatly to the visitors’ enjoyment
of a park visit.
The Department earnestly desires that the areas in the National Park
system again contribute to the constructive use of leisure time by members
of the Armed Forces. During World War II, more than 8 million
persons in the uniforms of the Army, the Navy, and the Marine Corps
visited the parks and monuments, all fees being waived for them.
Now, with increasing growth of the military, air, and sea forces, the
Service is trying to bring to the attention of all servicemen the varied
opportunities for enjoyable and constructive use of leisure time which
these areas offer. Following a meeting last May between National
Park Service officials and representatives of the Armed Forces, all
commands will be given full information as to areas within easy reach
of their forces and what kinds of recreation may be found there, and
are encouraged to bring this information to the men and women of the
commands. All superintendents have been instructed to explore fully
the ways in which the areas in their charge may be used most
effectively.
In the last war the Park system saw the introduction of other uses
moie directly concerned with national defense, such as overnight
bivouacking by military organizations on training trips, and special
training such as that provided for ski and mountain troops in Mount
Rainier National Park. As yet there have been comparatively few
XXX + ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
requests for permits for such uses, but there will probably be more.
The Service proposes to allow and encourage them, whenever this can
be done without damage and without material interference with use
and enjoyment by the general public.
There may be a few cases in which it may be necessary to discontinue
or restrict ordinary public use in order to permit needed use
by the Armed Forces which cannot be supplied satisfactorily or economically
elsewhere. That, too, the Service is prepared to do, but
only after the fullest exploration and investigation of alternative sites.
Both the present and the future have claims upon these priceless
possessions of the American people, and neither type of claim should
be slighted or forgotten. We will use these resources for the purposes
they best serve, and get the full portion of benefit they offer
in this time of emergency, and they will be just as good when we get
over this period as they were before. They will continue to serve
the people of the future as they were intended to do.
The great scenic and historic places of the National Park system
are living symbols of the things Americans cherish. Whether it be
Abraham Lincoln’s humble birthplace, the abyss of Grand Canyon,
the monumented hills and valleys of Gettysburg battlefield or the
incomparable valley of the Yosemite—these are scenes familiar to
every American; they are sources of relaxation, refreshment, and
inspiration. In times of emergency, when the spirit is troubled, these
areas take on added importance and many of them become focal centers
for patriotic and morale-building activity.
Through such commemorative observances as that which, at Independence
Hall, is to point up the one hundred and seventy-fifth
anniversary of the Declaration of Independence; through special
visits by organized groups; through civic ceremonies, as well as their
normal visitor use, both the natural and the historic areas scattered
across the Nation must contribute mightily to the understanding and
strengthening of the basic historical purpose of the republic.
We have no desire in our country to disown our past and to adopt
a totally different political philosophy. Thus each national landmark
which is preserved and protected strengthens and reaffirms the citizen’s
loyalty to our past and his determination to move forward to a
future rooted in our national traditions and aspirations.
TERRITORIES
The basic contribution which our Territories have to offer for the
defense and strengthening of the United States is a matter of human
resources. Along with these, however, it must be remembered that
the purely physical resources of such Territories as Hawaii and
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE + XXXI
Alaska are particularly significant to our current and long-range
national security programs. Properly developed, both the human
and the physical resources will be of inestimable value. Whether or
not that proper development takes place is entirely up to us.
In partnership with Territorial governments scattered over half of
the globe, the Office of Territories is working to extend the area of
freedom by encouraging self-government and the expansion of free
economic enterprise.
It must be emphasized that although geography itself has marked
several of our Territories and island outposts as bastions for defense,
the real effectiveness of the defense comes down eventually to a matter
of the loyal cooperation of every American—of all races, of all
colors, and of all creeds. In the Territories we must demonstrate to
the world that such cooperation is given with much more enthusiasm
and is used with much more effectiveness when it is based solidly on
American concepts of political freedom.
Communism can be best opposed by establishing in our Territories
conditions of political, economic, and social freedom under which
acute and enduring discontents cannot develop.
In the fall of 1950 a subcommittee of the Senate Armed Services
Committee sent a task force to Alaska to study defense activities. In
its report, this task force remarked that “the easiest country to defend
is one in which there is a fairly large population on a sound economic
program.” To this should be added that the existence of a stable and
economically sound population under the American flag depends upon
the growth of free and democratic institutions—upon the right of the
governed to control their government.
Consequently, one of the major points in the attempt to make the
best use of our Territorial resources must consist of the program to
provide statehood for Alaska and Hawaii, the two Territories which
are most fully prepared for that step.
In the case of Alaska, it is obvious that statehood would promote
a healthy feeling of local pride and self-confidence and would help
to increase the stable permanent population of this northern outpost
—a development which the military greatly desires.
In Hawaii the people are in every way qualified for the full privileges
of American citizenship which statehood would confer. Their
islands serve as the center for the Pacific operations of the Armed
Forces. They have developed industries which are of immediate
value to defense, and the casualties suffered by their youth in the
Korean War have been far greater than those of any State.
The Secretary of Defense has testified, in regard to statehood for
these Territories, that their ability to contribute to defense in case
of sudden attack would be greatly increased if they possessed the
XXXII + ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
customary State and local instrumentalities of law and order. He
added that locally elected governors, sheriffs, and the locally chosen
constabulary and civil defense units would also be of great value in
emergency, and concluded that “statehood for Alaska and Hawaii
would undoubtedly give a considerable added measure of strength to
the over-all defense of both areas in event of emergency.”
Statehood for these two Territories would not only provide direct
benefits to national defense but would also be an act of simple justice
to the peoples immediately concerned. It would also be of substantial
value internally by upholding a policy which has won for America
the good will and respect of millions of people in colonial and other
areas in the Far East.
Aside from the question of statehood, important defense considerations
are involved in the Office of Territories’ current development
programs in Alaska. Land transportation in Alaska is highly important
to the Armed Forces, and the vast military construction program
there would not have been possible without the work done by the
Alaska Railroad and the Alaska Road Commission. The railroad has
been rehabilitated and is now meeting transportation demands well
above the peak traffic loads of World War II, while essential defense
highways in the Territory have been constructed by the Road Commission.
The territorial section of the Alaska Highway is now a
high standard paved road, except for a 90-mile stretch from Tok
Junction to the Canadian border, and the Richardson highway has
been about half paved.
In the Caribbean, manpower reserves are highly important. The
government of Puerto Rico has developed a program of manpower recruitment
and transportation to help meet labor shortages in mainland
industry and agriculture. Puerto Rican workers have proven
highly successful and have been employed in substantial numbers in
agricultural work in the northeastern and east-central parts of the
continental United States, as well as in industry. The insular government
has also worked with the Armed Services and with private
industry in surveying the island’s industrial potential.
In the Virgin Islands the increased production of sugarcane, under
the program of the Virgin Islands Corporation, has helped to meet
the greatly increased demand for sugar on the mainland. The islands
have also embarked upon a food-production program calculated to
decrease dependence on continental food supplies during the defense
period. Human resources on these islands will be strengthened by a
public-works program which is concerned with improving health and
raising educational levels.
During the year, significant developments took place in our island
Territory in the Pacific.
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE XXXIII
On August 1, 1950, Congress enacted organic legislation for the
Territory of Guam, granting the people of that island United States
citizenship, a bill of rights, local powers of self-government through
an elected legislature, and an independent judiciary, and defined the
powers to the appointed governor. On the same day, by executive
order of the President, civilian administration under the Department
of the Interior was established, ending more than 50 years of naval
administration. These measures were strongly desired by the Guamanians,
who had been dissatisfied with their former restricted status
as nationals.
Civilian government under organic law has developed a new spirit
among them. They are meeting their enlarged responsibilities and are
displaying pride and confidence in their equal status as citizens. This
demonstration of enlightened territorial administration at the doorway
to Asia contributes to the international prestige of the United
States, and while much remains to be done a sound foundation has
been laid for the future.
In further fulfillment of the President’s civil-rights program, the
Office of Territories, with the cooperation of the Navy Department,
carried out plans for the transfer of American Samoa and the Trust
Territories of the Pacific Islands, effective July 1, 1951. The Navy
Department had administered American Samoa since 1900 and the
Trust Territory since its establishment under United States jurisdiction
following World War II. This transfer to civilian rule provides
a sound basis for the development of self-government in these areas.
The Department’s program for this island is based on the principle
that the interests of the inhabitants are paramount, subject only to security
considerations. The establishment of civilian administration
is only a first step in this program. Organic legislation has been
drafted for each territory and its enactment will be pressed. While
the resources of these islands cannot contribute significantly to the
national defense effort, their development will increase the islands’
self-sufficiency and will reduce their dependence upon the United
States.
FISH AND WILDLIFE
Today we face an increased demand for use of all of our natural
resources. This applies as emphatically to fish and wildlife as it does
to all other resources; there is a recurring pressure to make unwarranted
cuts in our stocks of fish and wildlife, to relax the standards
necessary for their protection, and to take untried short-cuts to management.
973649—52------ 3
XXXIV ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
It is also true that self-interested groups occasionally use an emergency
situation like the present to advance projects for exploitation of
some natural resource not actually associated with critical need.
Consequently the responsibilities of such agencies as the Fish and
Wildlife Service are greatly increased during a period of national
emergency. Both the organization and its program must be vigorously
maintained if we are to get both the maximum usefulness of these
resources and assurance that we do not needlessly destroy resources
that will be useful in the future.
This Nation’s fishery resources are of particular value as a source of
food, both in normal times and during the emergency. The fishery
resource of the Columbia River system alone is estimated to have a
capitalized value of some 500 million dollars, and an annual value of
more than 17 million dollars. Because the great dams for power and
irrigation which are being constructed on this river system threaten the
great salmon runs of the Pacific States, the Fish and Wildlife Service
in cooperation with the States of Washington and Oregon has embarked
on a program to preserve this fishery. Objectives of the program
include stream clearances, abatement of pollution, screening of
water diversions, construction of fishways, transplantation of upriver
runs to downstream tributaries, expansion of artificial propagation,
and the establishment of fish refuges in which conflicting development
will not be permitted.
The world supply of canned salmon comes from the fish which spawn
in the rivers flowing into the northern Pacific. The greater part of the
supply conies from the Alaskan fisheries, and the preservation of this
food resource requires continuing vigilance to prevent depletion by
unwise exploitation facilitated by advancing techniques.
The Alaska fishing industry—which is the backbone of the Territory’s
economy—in two world wars has shown its importance in our
national structure. It has unfailingly met the demands made upon it,
and it is responding to the present emergency as it did in the past.
There is no opportunity for further development of the salmon industry
except in the use of the huge cannery wastes which are now being
dumped into the sea. Exploitation must be curbed rather than
expanded, and it is in the still almost untapped ground fisheries of
Alaska that further expansion must be looked for. The Territory’s
thousands of miles of coastal waters contain myriads of flounders,
cod, pollack, and rockfishes awaiting the time when they will be needed
to augment the Nation’s food supply.
Consumer demand for fish and shellfish has been strong during
the past year. To facilitate under emergency conditions the production
of fishery commodities for defense purposes, the Defense Fisheries
Administration has been set up, closely allied with the Fish and WildRESOURCES
FOR DEFENSE + XXXV
life Service and having, for the most part, the same directorate. This
provides unified guidance for the conservation of fishery resources,
and production from these resources for defense needs.
On both the Atlantic and Pacific Coasts and in the Gulf of Mexico,
exploration of new fishing grounds and experiments with new and improved
methods of capturing fish are under way. Exploratory vessels
operated by the Service have located new shrimp resources in Alaska
and the Gulf. Two projects are under way to determine the abundance
and availability of Atlantic tuna and the best methods of catching
them. In various ways, the Service is seeking to achieve the
goals of increasing production with less cost in time, materials, and
manpower.
Management of waters in national parks, forests, and other Federal
lands is receiving more attention to provide a habitat for greater
poundage of trout to meet increasing sport fishing pressure, and the
Service works in close cooperation with the various State conservation
departments to attain this end. As population and industry continue
to grow, the problem of maintaining game fish in our inland waters becomes
more and more complex, and any lag in the effort to maintain
this resource will result in depletion of the fishery and perhaps in the
extinction of certain fishes.
Many reservoirs, ranging from small farm ponds to large lakes, are
being constructed each year, and there is a tremendous demand for
pondfish for stocking purposes. The Service is making every effort
to meet this demand, and a construction and improvement program at
various pondfish hatcheries is under way, and a great poundage of
highly nutritious food in the form of warm-water fishes can be produced
in the waters of this Nation if these waters are properly stocked
and managed.
While this country possesses many useful forms of wildlife it also
contains certain species of wild animals which, unless controlled,
would seriously reduce our production of food and fibers. Control of
these destructive predators and rodents enables American ranchers
and farmers to produce from 10 to 20 percent more food and wool
than would be otherwise possible. This extra margin of production
is of high importance, and the most modern approved methods of
predator and rodent control are worked out and applied in an integrated
program of States, counties, farm groups, and individuals in
cooperation with the Fish and Wildlife Service.
The Service also conducts certain projects primarily to solve military
problems. Extensive work is being done at the Patuxent Research
Refuge at Laurel, Md., in cooperation with the Office of the Surgeon
General, on infectious hepatitis, a malady affecting troops in the Far
East. In cooperation with the Office of the Quartermaster General,
XXXVI + ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
the Service for years has conducted research on methods of rodent control
and the prevention of rodent damage to packages. It is also cooperating
in studying points of specification for procurement of fur
ruffs for parka hoods, for use in cold climates by the Armed Forces.
Continuing the cooperation established during the last war, parts of
many wildlife refuges administered by the Service have again been
made available for purposes of natural defense. In the last war, some
2 million acres of refuge lands were used for bombing ranges, artillery
ranges, aerial gunnery ranges, chemical and war munitions plants,
training grounds, and so on, thus saving the expense of acquiring sites
at excessive costs. In many instances these refuges were the only areas
found acceptable for use by the military authorities. Then, as now,
the Fish and Wildlife Service was responsible for the protection of
wildlife on these areas, for the maintenance of facilities, and for protection
of the areas from fire, flood, and trespass.
The need for greater production of crops caused the farming of
much submarginal land, on which wildlife normally is the most productive
resource. Drainage of additional farm lands has been accelerated,
resulting in widespread and irreparable damage to the habitat
of waterfowl and other kinds of wildlife. Such programs have attempted
to reclaim many salt marshes along our coasts, seriously reducing
the chief wintering grounds and feeding areas for the major part of
the migratory waterfowl stocks of the continent.
Considering all of the pressures which the emergency puts upon our
fish and wildlife resources, it is obvious that permanent damage could
be done to them unless unremitting vigilance is exercised. A proper
care for these resources is one of the elements that make up our boasted
American standard of living, and their preservation is essential for
the future growth and happiness of this country.
THE AMERICAN INDIAN
American Indians have participated in every war in which the
United States has engaged. In World War II, they put 25,000 men
into the uniforms of our armed services, fought on all our battle
fronts, and won 206 decorations for valor—including 2 Congressional
Medals of Honor. Today, they are serving everywhere there are
troops—in Korea, in Alaska, in the Marshall Islands, Japan, Okinawa,
Guam, and other Pacific islands, in England and in Germany. The
tribal roll call of those serving in the Armed Forces would be almost
as long as the historical list of our treaties with the Indians.
During the last war the Indians at home had a record that matched
that of their fighting men. More than 40,000 left the reservations
during each of the war years to take war industry jobs—in ordnance
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE + XXXVII
depots, aircraft factories, on railroads, and in other war industries,
chiefly in the Western States. They invested more than 17 million
dollars of restricted funds in war bonds, and their individual purchases
probably amounted to twice that amount.
Today the same story is being told. In the Southwest, in the plains
area, in the Northwest, on the West Coast and in other parts of the
country, Indians are performing essential jobs—in copper, iron, lead,
and zinc mines, on the railroads, in manufacturing plants, in ordnance
depots, and on various Armed Forces installations. (It is noteworthy
that more than 1,000 Indians are employed at Tinker Field, which is
named for General Tinker, an Indian who fell in the battle of Midway.)
The point of all of this is that the Indians have faithfully served
America in critical times in the past, and are doing the same thing
today. Their human resources are being put at the Nation’s disposal,
and are being put to work. The same is true of their natural resources,
whose potential is being brought up to their maximum sustained productivity
so that they can make their rightful contribution to our
defense effort.
Indians live in all 48 States and have extensive land holdings in
27 States. Their lands, although greatly diminished during the past
century, and lying largely in arid and semiarid regions, are still of
great importance to our country. They are a basic economic resource;
from them come meat, oil, gas, coal, timber, and other products of
value.
Beginning a few years prior to Pearl Harbor, the Indian Service,
in cooperation with other Government agencies and the Indian owners
of the minerals, turned from the peacetime emphasis upon husbanding
natural resources to a policy of more active encouragement of discovery,
increased production, and simplified procedure in making
available the mineral deposits needed by our war industries—all
within the framework of sound conservation principles. This policy
has been adhered to.
This has resulted in increased development. During the fiscal year
ended June 30, 1950, approximately 2,000 oil and gas leases were approved.
More than 20 million barrels of oil were produced from
slightly more than 11,000 producing wells on Indian lands. Gas production
totaled more than 13 billion cubic feet. On the Osage reservation,
where it appears that the peak of production has passed, there
is a strong interest in secondary recovery operations.
The approval of the ore commingling plan on the Quapaw reservation
and the increased price for ore have served to increase the production
of low-grade lead and zinc ores and isolated high-cost ores.
XXXVIII -4- ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Since the first discovery of petroleum on the Navajo reservation,
around 1924, income from oil has totaled more than $3,700,000. During
the last fiscal year, Navajo income from sale of oil and gas leases,
from annual rentals on existing leases, and from royalties on production
came to over $480,000; and from 1942 to 1950 the Navajos total
income from vanadium-uranium leases was more than $1 I 0,000. Development
of the potential uranium resources on the Navajo reservation
has received continuous attention. Cooperation with the Atomic
Energy Commission has been marked.
It is expected that the production of other useful materials from
Indian reservations—such as tungsten, asbestos, gypsum, and sand
and gravel—will increase and will play a part in the Nation’s defense
program.
For several years it has been Government policy to aid Indians to
gain economic self-support through maximum utilization and conservation
of Indian resources. This policy has begun to pay dividends
to the country as well as to the Indians. During the current fiscal
year, 32 Indian reservations had active soil and moisture conservation
programs in operation, and both the land and other resources aie being
managed on a sound conservation basis. Increased production foi
defense goes hand-in-hand with the protection of Indian natuial le
sources. Indian forest and grazing lands are managed in accordance
with the principle of sustained yield. Nearly 582 million boaid feet
of timber were sold from Indian lands in the calendar year 1951, and
the number of cattle owned by Indians has increased from about
182,000 in 1932, shortly after the start of the Indian Service’s agricultural
extension and credit program, to nearly 350,000. Indian
income from the sale of livestock and livestock products during that
period rose from $1,300,000 to approximately $30,000,000.
Indian contributions to the defense effort in the field of foodstuffs
can be visualized when Indian farm production is translated into teims
of standard army rations. During the fiscal year 1951, Indian lands
produced enough meat—beef, pork, mutton, and poultry to feed
445,541 soldiers for 1 year; enough cereals for 544,485 soldiers; enough
potatoes to feed 15,106 soldiers; enough eggs to feed 58,189 soldiers;
enough fresh fruit for 29,739 soldiers, and enough butterfat for 16,184
soldiers. Indians also marketed enough wool to supply all clothing
requirements for more than 15,000 soldiers.
Enough has been said to show clearly that the American Indians and
their lands represent a rich resource for this country in its time of
need. Every effort is being made to enable the tribesmen to make the
best possible contribution, for themselves and for their country.
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE XXXIX
CONCLUSION
The country’s resource base is infinitely complex. In one way or
another all of its elements are essential to the continued growth and
development of this country. Whether we are considering the proper
use of our rivers and streams, the development of our minerals, the
handling of our fuel supply or the maintenance and use of our national
parks and monuments, it is clear that in this time of emergency we
simply do not dare to relax our efforts to use these resources with
the intelligent forethought which will provide for the future while
it also enables us to meet the immense demands of the national
emergency.
We have learned a great deal about this problem, in the last few
decades, and it is extremely significant that in the fight which the free
world is making to maintain itself against totalitarian aggression, and
to provide its people with a better life, many other nations are anxious
to learn from us the programs and techniques by which we exploit
and conserve our natural resources.
Indeed, one of the greatest contributions this country can make to
the common cause is to make its knowledge available to the people of
other lands.
Perhaps the greatest of our common enemies is simple poverty,
which creates the deadly breeding grounds for the kind of discontent
which the totalitarians seek to use for their own purposes.
In some lands this poverty exists largely because men do not know
how to make the fullest use of their own natural resources. To an
ever-increasing extent, those lands are sending their engineers and
administrators to us, to see how we manage such resources and to try
to transplant that knowledge to their own lands.
To those people our works in the field of reclamation, for example,
are an inspiration. Countries which have been irrigating semiarid
lands for many centuries, and which still apply the primitive techniques
developed in the long ago, are sending people to us to learn how
they can make their lands more productive. The body of knowledge
which we have—and which we make freely available to others—represents
one of the greatest assets of the entire free world. Conservation
and sound development of the world’s natural resource base must go
forward unceasingly if the present great crisis in human affairs is to
be surmounted, and we have a position of leadership there simply because
we have shown in our own land what immense benefits can be
derived in that way.
We need to continue to make our knowledge available, and to show
others as best we can how they can increase their own productivity
and well-being.
XL + ANNUAL REPORT, SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
We ourselves need to continue with our own conservation and development
programs. It is precisely in this time of emergency that
these programs are of the greatest value to us. We could make no
more tragic mistake than to let the demands of the emergency period
compel us to relax our efforts and use our resources to meet the needs
of the immediate moment without regard to the future.
Our greatness, our national strength, the prosperity which to so
large a degree we have succeeded in translating into human happiness
and human freedom, begin with the base of our God-given resources.
We use these resources for defense, as we are supposed to do—and,
as we use them, we realize that if we take the proper care and forethought
we may preserve them so that we shall always have them.
Using them in that way, we do not need to fear any imaginable future.
Secretary oj the Interior.
Contents
Page
Resources for Defense...................................................... ni
Bureau of Reclamation................................................... 1
Division of Hater and Power........................................ 123
Bonneville Power Administration........................................ 127
Southwestern Power Administration.................................... 148
Southeastern Power Administration................................. 153
Bureau of Mines................................................................. 157
Geological Survey.......................................................... 189
Oil and Gas Division.......................................................... 236
Division of Land Utilization............................................... 241
Bureau of Land Management........................................... 247
Fish and Wildlife Service................................................... 281
National Park Service...................................................... 313
Bureau of Indian Affairs............................................... 351
Office of the Solicitor...................................................... 383
Office of Territories.......................................................... 391
Division of Geography................................................... 419
Office of the Administrative Assistant Secretary............... 421
Interior Department Museum........................................ 432
Petroleum Administration for Defense............................. 437
Defense Solid Fuels Administration................................. 442
Defense Electric Power Administration ........ 448
Defense Fisheries Administration.................................... 450
Defense Minerals Administration.................................... 452
Index............................................................................ 459
XL!
Bureau of
Reclamation
Michael W. Straus, Commissioner
DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION
THE OUTBREAK of the Korean War which virtually
coincided with the beginning of the fiscal year necessitated cutbacks
on the program of the Bureau of Reclamation. The “no new
starts” policy of the Administration, with minor exceptions, was continued
in effect. Nevertheless, Design and Construction activities
continued the sustained pace and effort of postwar years and progressed
on previously authorized and financed West-wide undertakings
to new high levels of progress and completion. As an exception
to the “no new starts” policy, the Congress authorized and financed
initiation of construction of the Eklutna project, for power development,
in Alaska.
During this fiscal year the Bureau carried out one of the largest
volumes of work in its history. About $255,000,000 was added to the
nearly 2-billion-dollar Reclamation investment in water resources
developments.
Defense-order priorities, material scarcities, rising price levels, and
sharply increased power demands combined to add difficulties to the
year’s operations. However, streamlining of working methods, and
cooperation by the regional and field units in matters of project plans,
specifications, contract awards, and design delegations helped to keep
to schedules. At the same time designs met requirements even when
schedules were foreshortened by changes in plans or by expedited program
requirements.
More than 850 construction, material, equipment, and supply contracts
were awarded for the fiscal year period. These contracts comprised
an aggregate total of more than 107 million dollars. Contracts
for construction totaled 86 million dollars of this amount, or
about 80 percent. Construction contracts in force at the beginning
of the year totaled more than 325 million dollars. At the end of the
year they totaled nearly 283 million dollars. An additional 2 million
dollars worth of work was awarded and completed during the year.
1
2 4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Construction highlights were completion of four dams—Kortes,
Bonny, and Dickinson Dams and Superior-Courtland Diversion
Dam—on the Missouri River Basin project; North Coulee Dam and
Feeder Canal on the Columbia Basin project; Davis Dam on the
Davis Dam project; and Estes and Marys Lake Power Plants, and
Granby Pumping Plant on the Colorado-Big Thompson project. Of
signal interest was the completion of major canal and pumping plant
features to the extent that first integrated operation of the Central
Valley project was assured during the 1952 fiscal year and that irrigation
water to serve the first 87,000 acres of land in the Columbia
Basin would flow soon.
Administratively, the branch strengthened its functions and procedural
techniques through a critical analysis survey, and instituted
several organizational changes for greater efficiency and economy of
operations in these areas. Through continued review of its contractual
relations and specifications, additional improvements in specifications
were adopted, and advance contract information was broadened to
attract an increased number of bidders on Bureau work.
Increase of technical assistance to other governments through an
expanded foreign activities program during the year made possible
the furtherance of international cooperation and enhanced the cause
of world progress and understanding.
Through its intensive design and construction accomplishments in
conserving and developing the water resources of the Western United
States, the Bureau of Reclamation in fiscal year 1951 made a major
contribution to the country’s effort to mobilize and utilize natural
resources during the national emergency.
Contract Awards
Major contracts awarded during the year are summarized in Table
1. Among the features placed under contract for construction were
Cachuma Dam on the Cachuma project in California, Flatiron Power
and Pumping Plant and Afterbay Dam on the Colorado-Big Thompson
project in Colorado, 92 miles of the Angostura Canal on the Missouri
River Basin project in South Dakota, more than 380 miles of
electrical transmission lines to be integrated in the Transmission Division
of the Missouri River Basin project, and 16.5 miles of the East
Low Canal on the Columbia Basin project in Washington.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 3
Table 1.—Major Bureau of Reclamation contracts awarded in fiscal year 1951
Feature Project Amount of
award
Cachuma Dam._____ ____ _ ____ Cachuma $6, 722, 520
167 miles Bismarck-Mobridge-Oahe transmission line; 135 miles 5,388,192
Fort Randall-Oahe transmission line.
Missouri River Basin_______
Steel penstocks, manifold, concrete penstock structures, Pole
Hill power plant and Flatiron power and pumping plant.
Colorado-Big Thompson___ 4, 284, 512
Towers and appurtenances, Oahe-Fort Randall-Sioux City
transmission lines, 256 miles long.
Missouri River Basin_______ 4,178,114
16.5 miles East Low Canal, J4 mile Lind Coulee wasteway___ Columbia Basin____________ 3, 490,304
Grand Coulee Dam—River improvements, repair of spillway
face and spillway bucket.
____ do______________________ 2, 662, 866
Three generators for Folsom power plant__________ _____ _ Central Valley 2, 550,185
Flatiron power and pumping plant and Afterbay Dam_______ Colorado-Big 'Thompson___ 2, 240, 359
92 miles Angostura Canal________ .__________ _ _____ Missouri River Basin 2, 212,508
2,199, 800
2,195,467
Grand Coulee Dam—River channel slope protection ___ Columbia Basin
Earthwork and structures for relocation C B & Q railroad,
Trenton Dam.
Missouri River Basin_______
1.8 miles West Canal-Frenchman Hills tunnel__________ Columbia Basin . 2,175,315
12.6 miles North Poudre supply canal and diversion dam... Colorado-Big Thompson___ 1,955,187
220 miles Brookings-Watertown-Groton-Huron transmission
line.
Missouri River Basin_______ 1, 865,306
Completion of Hungry Horse Dam power plant, switchyard... Hungry Horse_________ 1, 792, 782
Turbines for units A-3, A-4, A-9, Hoover power plant; construction
of electrical equipment, Hoover switchyard.
Boulder Canyon___________ 1, 777, 241
10 miles Mohawk Canal, Tyson protective dike and outlet
channel.
Gila________________________ 1, 719, 348
Towers and appurtenances, Bismarck-Mobridge-Oahe transmission
lines 167 miles long.
Missouri River Basin_______ 1, 694, 562
1.3 miles Bald Mountain pressure tunnel______ Colorado-Big Thompson___ 1, 691, 262
70 miles laterals 124.5 E., 127.7 E., and 130.4 E. and sublaterals,
9 reservoirs, 10 pumping plants, unit 3, Southern San
Joaquin Municipal Utility District.
Central Valley...__________ 1, 671,177
Three turbines for Folsom power plant___________ .. . do 1, 629, 625
Progress of Construction
Construction on Bureau of Reclamation projects during the year continued
on the high plane of performance and accomplishment initiated
in and exemplified by larger Reclamation programs of the postwar
period. The work of the field construction forces continued to be consistent
in progress and quality with the performance of the previous
year and was matched by progressive advance in the contractors’ skill
and equipment ’as well as in supervisory relations. In general, the
over-all rate of accomplishment and economy of construction was
improved, although economic comparisons were difficult to analyze in
view of the sharp change in price trends during the year.
The construction record for the year was notable for completion of
several major structures. On the Missouri River Basin project, Kortes
Dam and Power Plant, Bonny and Dickinson Dams, and Superior-
Courtland Diversion Dams were completed. Bonny Dam was completed
more than iy2 years ahead of schedule. Dickinson Dam, scheduled
for completion by June 1951, was actually completed in August
1950. Estes and Marys Lake Power Plants, among the principal
sources of power for the Colorado-Big Thompson project, and the
Granby Pumping Plant, a key project unit, were also completed. The
4 4 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
unique transmission cable through the Alva B. Adams Tunnel on the
Colorado-Big Thompson project was placed in operation also to serve
as the connecting link between the western slope and eastern slope
power features of this transmountain diversion development.
On the Central Valley project the last 40 miles of the 153-mile-long
Friant-Kern Canal was completed. Sixty miles of the Delta-Mendota
Canal were added to the project, and construction on the final reaches
was advanced to a point where virtual completion of the 120-mile-long
facility was assured early in the following fiscal year. Installation of
four additional generators, R-5, R-6, R—7, and R-8, in the Grand
Coulee Power Plant on the Columbia Basin project was completed
during the year, bringing the total installed nameplate rating capacity
of the plant to 1,866,000 kilowatts. The Grand Coulee Pumping Plant
structure was essentially completed by the end of the year; the first
pump was placed in continuous operation in June, and the second
pump was scheduled for operation in July. On the same project, the
North Coulee Dam and Feeder Cana], Soap Lake Siphon, and 18 miles
of the Winchester Wasteway were completed.
Progress of work on Hungry Horse Dam, largest of Bureau of
Reclamation dams now under construction, was maintained on schedule.
The millionth cubic yard of concrete was placed in the dam in
November 1950, 14 months after placement began. By the end of the
year the height of the dam had reached about 300 feet of its full height
of 564 feet above the foundation.
On other projects, Davis Dam and Power Plant on the Davis Dam
project, Arizona-Nevada, were completed, and all five generators were
placed in service by June; Fort Sumner Diversion Dam on the Fort
Sumner project in New Mexico was completed, and 15 miles of the
Main Canal were added to the project; and the 18-mile-long Wellton-
Mohawk Canal was completed on the Gila project.
Construction progress on features remaining under contract reached
substantial levels of accomplishment indicating completion in 1952
of such major structures as Boysen, Keyhole, Shadehill, and Cedar
Bluff Dams on the Missouri River Basin project, Platoro Dam on the
San Luis Valley project, and Big Sandy Dam on the Eden project.
At the close of the year, construction was under way on 13 storage
dams, 2 diversion dams, 10 power plants, 6 pumping plants, 360 miles
of main canals, 28 miles of tunnels, 2,200 miles of transmission lines,
and lateral systems for 17 separate areas.
Principal Features Completed
Principal features completed on Bureau of Reclamation projects
are shown in table 2. Included are 7 dams, 5 power plants, 167 miles
of main canals, and 1,686 miles of transmission lines.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 5
Table 2.—Principal features completed on Bureau of Reclamation projects in
fiscal year 1951
Feature Project State
Kortes Dam and power plant____________________
Bonny Dam______________________________________
Dickinson Dam__________________________________
Superior-Courtland diversion dam------------------------
600 miles transmission lines, transmission division
Missouri River Basin___
____ do__________________
____ do__________________
____do__________________
____ do_______ __________
Estes and Marys Lake power plants-------------------------
Granby pumping plant------------ -------------------------------
1 mile tunnel No. 1 and 8 miles Horsetooth feeder
Colorado-Big Thompson.
canal.
125 miles transmission lines--------------------------------------
Grand Coulee power plant—Generators R-5, R-6,
R-7.
2.4 miles Soap Lake siphon--------------------------------------
North Coulee Dam and feeder canal_____________
18 miles Winchester wasteway----------------------------------
Anderson Ranch spillway and power plant--------------
40 miles Friant-Kern Canal________________________
60 miles Delta-Mendota Canal______________________
129 miles Shasta-Tracy east side transmission line—
97 miles Shasta-Tracy west side transmission line—
Davis Dam and power plant_______________________
635 miles transmission lines--------------------------------------
5 miles Salt Lake aqueduct_________________________
Unit 7, Coachella Valley distribution system-----------
18 miles Wellton-Mohawk Canal____________________
Fort Sumner diversion dam________________________
15 miles Main Canal_______________________________
26 miles Fire Mountain Canal---------- ------- ---------------
100 miles transmission lines________________________
do__________________
do__________________
____do__________________
Columbia Basin________
____do__________________
____do__________________
____do__________________
Boise___________________
Central Valley_________
____do__________________
____do__________________
____do__________________
Davis Dam-------------------
____do__________________
Provo River------------------
All-American Canal system.
Gila____________________
Fort Sumner___________
____do__________________
Paonia_________________
Fort Peck______________
Wyoming.
Colorado.
North Dakota.
Nebraska.
North Dakota, Wyoming,
Nebraska.
Colorado.
Do.
Do.
Do.
Washington.
Do.
Do.
Do.
Idaho.
California.
Do.
Do.
Do.
Arizona, Nevada.
Do.
Utah.
California, Arizona.
Arizona.
New Mexico.
Do.
Colorado.
Montana.
Continuing Program
Among the major features expected to be placed under construction
on Bureau projects during fiscal year 1952 are 3 power plants, 2 pumping
plants, 84 miles of main canals, laterals to serve 260,000 acres of
irrigable lands, 370 miles of pipelines for an irrigation distribution
system, and over 600 miles of transmission lines.
Major features on Reclamation projects expected to be completed in
fiscal year 1952 consist of 6 dams, 5 pumping plants, 160 miles of main
canals, over 2,100 miles of transmission lines, and 400 miles of pipelines
for an irrigation distribution system.
Alaska Program
Award of a contract this year for materials for a steel warehouse
at the Eklutna, Alaska, Government camp was the first Reclamation
contract ever awarded for a project located outside the 17 Western
States. The Eklutna project, located about 30 miles northeast of
Anchorage, Alaska, is designed primarily to make available critically
needed power for an important area. It also is to provide irrigation
and recreation benefits later. The project includes a 30,000-kilowatt
power plant, a low earth dam, a 4%-mile-long concrete-lined diversion
tunnel, and a 160,000-acre-foot storage reservoir.
6 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
During the year design and specifications preparations were under
way for start of construction in fiscal year 1952 for several features
of the project. This work was directed toward the following scheduled
program: issuance of specifications and award of the construction
contract for the power plant structure; award of the contract
for construction of the diversion tunnel; issuance of specifications
for construction of the Eklutna switchyard; completion of the Palmer
substation; completion of the Government camp, warehouse, laboratory,
and initial installation of communication equipment, and completion
of the Eklutna-Paimer transmission line.
Development of the Eklutna project is an initial step toward realization
of a full-grown regional economy. The project is the first
stage of a much larger plan for development of water resources in
the fast growing areas around Anchorage and in the Matanuska
Valley.
Administrative Developments
Over-all staff efficiency and administrative functioning continued
to receive close attention and analysis to maintain the degree of design
and construction performance necessitated by the year’s program and
defense requirements.
To appraise staffing requirements and operating practices and to
reexamine functions and procedures for the purpose of eliminating
nonessential activities and reducing personal services expenditures,
a “cost of doing business” survey was conducted throughout the
Branch as part of a Bureau-wide survey. As a result of the survey,
several procedural and organizational changes were made, making
possible greater efficiency and better utilization of personnel. In
addition, a number of recommendations relating to design and construction
procedures submitted by regional and operating offices were
analyzed and improved. A significant result of this phase of the
survey was the simplification of technical field reporting requirements.
To improve technical and administrative procedures and uniformity
of construction standards, construction engineers were again convened
in Denver for the annual Construction Engineers’ Conference.
During the week-long conference, the problems of contract administration,
labor regulations, equipment and machinery installation by
contract, and other matters relating to the Bureau’s contractual responsibilities
were subject to critical review and open discussion.
Emphasis this year was placed on construction quality, economy, and
concentration of work to speed production of additional hydroelectric
power needed for the defense effort. Program participants represented
virtually every important Reclamation project in the 17 Western
States and the Denver and Washington Offices.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 7
Security conditions at Bureau power plants were carefully investigated
during the year.
An outstanding event of the year was the formal dedication at
Denver, Colorado, of the Reclamation Enginering Center in July.
More than 40,000 visitors toured the offices and laboratories during
the open-house program.
Developments in Specifications Requirements
As in previous years, improvement of specifications and contractual
administration procedures received continued attention. Although
the impact of the national rearmament program did not seriously
affect the Bureau’s bidding procedures for construction contracts,
certain specifications requirements were modified because of shortages
and price changes.
Sufficient bids were received for most specifications issued, and
quotations for equipment were reasonable under the current market
conditions. However, to avoid delay stipulations in bids for heavy
electrical and mechanical equipment, it was necessary in some
instances to include escalation provisions in specifications. In some of
the larger electrical equipment specifications an additional provision
covering the right to terminate after a prolonged period of delay was
also included. The paragraph for contractor-furnished materials in
construction specifications was modified to allow for substitution of
specified materials which might hot be available because of priorities
or scarcities.
During the year lists of prospective bidders and lists of those who
have requested copies of the specifications for any work or equipment
were removed from a restricted status to make them available at issuing
offices for inspection by contractors, suppliers, and other interested
parties.
To make specifications clearer, more concise, and more readable
new measures were initiated during the year to reduce the context of
specifications. Such changes included elimination of detailed materials
specifications, instructions for use of special type materials,
and certain laboratory procedures. Standard Bureau specifications
were made available to bidders and suppliers to cover the requirements
for these special materials.
Design Activities and Developments
Design activities continued the trend of the past several years
toward increased efficiency and output by closer cooperation with field
forces. There was marked increase in the participation of the staff
in project planning, site and material inspection, and preparation of
973649—52-------4
8 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
preliminary designs and estimates. The design staff was occupied
also with review of project plan reports, study of drainage requirements,
operation and maintenance liaison work, and inspection of
structures. Design work was facilitated by improved program formulation,
initiated through group conferences of the program staff with
regional representatives.
Following an exhaustive study of the design criteria for concrete
dams, recommendations were approved providing for an increase in
concrete stresses. By allowing an increase in stresses, significant savings
will be possible in certain concrete dams through a reduction of
the volume of concrete and requisite foundation excavation. The new
criteria for concrete dam design mark an important advance in Bureau
engineering practice.
A signal achievement of the engineering staff was solution to the
long-continued problem of control of serious vibrations of the large
turbine runners in the Parker Power Plant on the California-Arizona
border. The vibration, at times a difficult problem in such installations,
had caused cracking of some of the turbine blades. As a result
of exhaustive tests and measurements taken during turbine operation,
a change in the shape in the runner blades was made, eliminating the
crack-causing vibrations. In addition, these modifications increased
the power output and improved efficiency. Basic data derived from
these tests were also valuable in establishing precedents for future
designs of large turbines.
The difficult problem of surging (flow fluctuation) in the pipelines
of the Coachella Valley Distribution System was also solved during
the year. Intensive studies revealed that the surging could be controlled
by covering the vertical pipe stands of the system with vented
caps. Use of the lids reduced surging to such an extent that delivery
of water was made possible from all completed structures.
During the year approximately 50 designers’ operating instructions
were issued ranging from those to be used in operating a single gate
valve to comprehensive criteria for the complex operation of an
entire feature such as a dam and power plant. The operating criteria
and instructions were initiated in the previous year to assure proper
and efficient operation of installed equipment and machinery.
Much work was done also by designers on the development of new
designs of overhead vertical lift gates, investigation of dredge stability,
and earthquake effects on dams.
Research Activities
Nearly all forms of Reclamation structures and their functioning
were under study in the Bureau’s research laboratories in Denver.
Studies and investigations progressed and field test sections were
installed in conjunction with the development of new and lower cost
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 9
materials and methods of installation for linings to reduce seepage
in irrigation canals. Sections of various membranes, such as those
composed of catalytically blown asphalt cement and of prefabricated
asphalt backed with paper and reinforced with fiber glass, were installed
in canals, and seepage measurements before and following
installation of the linings were made.
Research in earth included, aside from a great volume of current
soil testing: study of expansive clays, development of field penetration
tests for soils, and development of soil classification standards.
Some important field tests were also begun. Piles were driven in
loessial soils and pile bearing tests were performed, in collaboration
with field forces, to determine driving and bearing characteristics for
frictional and point-bearing types of piles. The results were used to
correlate pile bearing capacity with characteristics of loessial soils.
Electrical methods of soil stabilization were also investigated. As a
result of these studies, the feasibility of these methods in the field is
now determinable in the laboratory.
Geophysical tests, by seismic and electrical resistivity methods, were
conducted to determine depths of weathered rock at dam sites. Geophysical
techniques were also used in tests to determine adaptability of
geophysical equipment for location of aquifers and points of leakage
from irrigation canals.
The laboratories continued their studies on “false set” in portland
cement (a premature stiffening of the cement in concrete and mortar)
and advancements were made in the determination of the causes of
this phenomenon. A specification was developed during the year to
cover all types of pozzolanic materials in concrete. Previously, detail
specifications were available for fly ash (a pozzolan) only.
Prompted by the need for finding economical substitutes for rock
materials on earth dams, the Bureau initiated a program of experimental
installations of two substitute materials at Bonny reservoir in
eastern Colorado. Asphaltic concrete and soil cement were the materials
placed as test sections at the reservoir. From this full-scale test
program may come the answer to the problem of reducing the cost of
construction of earth dams throughout the Great Plains States of
the Missouri River Basin. In many plains areas, rock materials are
unobtainable locally and must be shipped in from distant sources.
A comprehensive test program on anchorage values of various types
of reinforcement bars, including new “high bond” bars, was also completed.
Performance of the bars in beams in flexure was tested and
many pull-out tests were made. Data from these tests were analyzed
and significant information relative to structural action of reinforced
concrete was developed.
In metals, continuous records of strains in steel were made by electronic
equipment to study the effects of creep, plastic flow, and fatigue.
10 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Tests performed during the year indicated that the techniques used
in welding mild steel can be used without modification for welding
low-alloy, high-strength steel members.
The substitution of pozzolan for cement confirmed by laboratory
testing, together with the adoption of revised criteria for design of
large gravity-type dams, has effected substantial economies in the
cost of such dams.
To corroborate conclusions reached from previous investigations
on Hungry Horse and Canyon Ferry Dams, an extensive testing program
was carried out on cores taken from concrete placed last year
in the dams. The results substantiated earlier investigations and
assured greater reductions in cement and pozzolan content.
International Cooperation
The Branch of Design and Construction, as in past years, played
a significant part in carrying out the Bureau’s increasing responsibilities
in the field of foreign activities. The scope of the participation
of this Branch included the loan of personnel for missions abroad,
rendering training, design, testing, and related services, taking part
in international conferences and, through correspondence and publication
exchanges, maintaining the exchange of technical information
with engineers of other countries.
Work Performed With and for Other Agencies
In addition to carrying out Reclamation design and construction
responsibilities, the staff performed much work for outside agencies.
Leading assignment was continued work in the preparation of construction
drawings and preparation of specifications for equipment
for Falcon Dam and Power Plant, a principal International Boundary
and Water Commission structure on the Rio Grande in Texas. Supervision
of grouting at Diablo Dam and continued study of structural
behavior of Ross Dam for the city of Seattle were also major undertakings.
Much test and research work was performed for outside agencies.
Laboratory work on development of heavy, dense concrete for the
Atomic Energy Commission continued. Of primary consideration
was the selection of a dense aggregate, heavier than that normally
used in concrete, and which would produce concrete meeting certain
rigid requirements relative to behavior under special service conditions.
The laboratories continued to assist the United States Forest Service
in conducting tests on chemicals used in control of beetles in national
forests. At the request of the Fish and Wildlife Service, the
laboratories gave advice and information concerning the development
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 11
of an insoluble coating for poisoned grains to be used for rodent control
in reforestation projects. Cooperative studies between the Bureau
research laboratories and Colorado A & M College were undertaken
to improve methods of designing stable unlined channels.
Weed control investigations were also conducted in the laboratories
in cooperation with the Department of Agriculture. Progress was
made in the radioisotope laboratory in application of radioactive
tracer techniques involving use of “tagged atoms.” Studies were
initiated on the measurement of absorption of radio-active materials
as a means for determination of the density and moisture control
of soil.
The laboratories continued to act as the acceptance testing agency
for the Denver office of the Federal Supply Service in testing of protective
coatings and related materials.
Work was also performed for the Navy on the use of construction
materials for the Fena River dam site in Guam, for the General Services
Administration in remodeling certain buildings of the Denver
Federal Center, and for the Northern Arizona Light & Power Co. in
analyses of a transmission system by use of the Bureau’s network
analyzer.
Members of the research staff, representing the Branch of Design
and Construction, participated in the concrete conference held during
the year with representatives of the Department of Army. Included
in the agenda were discussions and interpretations of test results on
permeability and of tests on lean mass concrete, and experimental determination
of uplift pressures on concrete dams. Bureau designers
cooperated with the Corps of Engineers in the design and construction
of irrigation features and facilities for flood-control reservoirs
at Harlan County and Folsom Dams.
The Bureau’s mapping activities, particularly those using aerial
photography, were coordinated with the programs of such primary
mapping agencies as the Geological Survey, Army Map Service, Coast
and Geodetic Survey, and Soil Conservation Service, to insure that no
duplication occurred. Contracts for aerial photography and mapping
were awarded by the Bureau for areas in California, Colorado, Montana,
Nebraska, Wyoming, and Alaska where urgent requirements
could not be met by the primary mapping agencies.
In order to meet the Bureau’s requirements for special high-dam
data, and requirements of the Coast and Geodetic Survey, for the latest
and more complete seismic information, coordinative seismological
studies of the Bureau, the Coast and Geodetic Survey, and the National
Park Service were continued at Hoover, Shasta, and Hungry
Horse Dams.
The Bureau continued cooperating with the National Park Service,
Smithsonian Institution and various state agencies regarding arche12
+ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
ological and paleontological surveys, and excavations at sites where
construction was contemplated or in progress.
Cost Trends
At the beginning of the year costs for Bureau of Reclamation construction
had reached the lowest level experienced in the period following
the end of World War II. With the outbreak of hostilities in
Korea, however, costs began to rise again. By the end of the year
Bureau construction involving only labor and equipment rental reflected
wage increases and higher equipment costs. Generally these
increases were slight except in those instances where considerably
lessened competition and uncertainty of labor supply in areas of intensive
defense activity were contributing factors.
The cost of work embracing large amounts of construction materials
and fabricated products became as high as or higher than at any time
in the past. This is indicated in table 3, which lists cost indexes for
construction work based on the combined costs of materials and labor
furnished by contractors and material and labor furnished by the
Government.
Bid prices for materials were widely varied and showed increases
generally from 20 to 100 percent over June 1950. This was attributed
primarily to shortages, real or anticipated, caused by stockpiling of
materials expected to be in short supply or not available and by mi] itary
purchases.
Table 3.—Bureau of Reclamation Construction Cost Indexes—fiscal year 1951
Cost indexes based on January 1940 costs=1.00 July
1950
January
1951
June
1951
Dams
Earth . . . . _ _ _ 1.85 1.95 2 10
Concrete___ ___________ .....i.-_ . _ _____ _____ . 1.95 2.15 2.25
Pumping plants:
Building and equipment_____ ____________________ ___ ____ _ ______ 2.00 2.15 2. 30
Structures and improvements 1__ _ _ _____ _____ 2. 25 2. 35 2. 50
Equipment. _ . * _____ ____ - 1. 70 2. 00 2 10
Pumps and prime movers ___________ ___ _____ 1. 70 1. 95 2. 20
Accessory electric and miscellaneous equipment___ - - - - 1. 75 2.05 2. 50
Discharge pipes__. ...____ . ____ 2.10 2.35 2. 50
Canals and conduits:
Canals________________ _________ . 2.15 2.15 2.30
Conduits (tunnels, free flow, concrete lined)___ ______ 2. 20 2.30 2 35
Laterals and drains. ____________ .. . _ . ___ 2. 35 2.45 2. 50
Power plants, hydroelectric:
Building and equipment________ _________ . _ 1.90 2.10 2 20
Structures and improvements 1__ . _________ __ _____ 2. 20 2.35 2.45
Equipment.. __ .*________________ ____ ... - 1. 75 2.00 2.10
Turbines and generators.___ ______ 1. 70 1. 95 2.10
Accessory electrical equipment _ _________ .. - 1.75 2.10 2.10
Miscellaneous equipment___ 1. 90 2.10 2 20
Penstocks_____________...1___________ ___________ 2.10 2. 35 2. 50
Transmission switchyards and substations .. _______ .. _________ . 1.70 2. 05 2. 20
Transmission lines (wood pole)__________ _ . 1.80 1.90 2. 20
Transmission lines (steel tower)__________________________________________ 1.75 1.95 2. 25
Permanent general property—buildings__________________________________
Roads and bridges:
2.15 2. 50 2. 60
Primary roads_________________ ___ 1.95 2. 05 2. 25
Secondary roads, unsurfaced .. -____ ___________ __________ - . 1.80 1.90 2.10
Bridges . __________________ ______ 2. 05 2.20 2. 45
Composite index____________________________ ... _ 2. 00 2.15 2. 25
1 Indexes for structures and improvements on pumping plants and power plants are based on reinforced
concrete structures.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 13
Publications
Important advancements representing a cross section of engineering,
and scientific endeavors by the staff were recorded this year in Bureau
technical publications.
Since publication of the Bureau’s fifth edition of the Concrete
Manual in 1949, its acceptance as an authoritative work on concrete
control and concrete construction has been widespread and a reprint
was required. Certain additions and corrections were incorporated
in the reprint which is to be distributed early in the following year.
The Earth Construction Manual and Paint Manual will be made
available for distribution early in fiscal year 1952. The first manual
records engineering practices and procedures developed in earth materials
testing and construction; the latter manual is an assemblage
of procedures and techniques for control of paints and protective
coatings.
Also published were three engineering monographs which discuss
the design and construction of the Soap Lake Siphon, stress analysis
of concrete pipe, and friction factors for large pipes.
Under preparation during the year were: a revised edition of
Dams and Control Works; a revision of the Arc-Welding Manual
under the title “Welding and Riveting Manual,” which brings up to
date and expands its present coverage to include other types of welding
as well as riveting; a geology manual, presenting technical instructions
relating to geological investigations; a hydraulic laboratory manual;
a revision of the Manual for Measurement of Irrigation Water; a
safety manual; a manual on bituminous construction; and additional
engineering monographs.
The Advance Construction Bulletin and Advance Equipment
Bulletin which report Bureau work proposed for the following 90
days were issued in increasingly greater numbers in response to
requests from contractors and subcontractors. To promote increased
competitive interest among wider numbers of prospective bidders, the
bulletins were improved in format by inclusion of more details on
work involved and on materials and equipment the construction
contractor is to furnish and install.
Approximately 20 new maps were issued of Bureau projects or
units of the Missouri River Basin plus a new edition of a wall-size
map showing present and proposed Reclamation activities.
14 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
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ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 15
2 «
a a
See footnotes a t end of table.
16 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 4.— Bureau of Reclam ation dam s— Continued
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 17
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18 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
FOREIGN ACTIVITIES
The degree of Bureau of Reclamation participation in the several
authorized foreign technical assistance programs of the United States
again showed an increase over previous years. Each year since the
termination of World War II requests from abroad for the technical
services of the Bureau have shown an increase in numbers and importance.
To facilitate the administration of the Bureau’s increased
activities in the foreign field the Office of Foreign Activities has been
established as an operating office under the Commissioner.
The most significant development in the program was the passage
of the Act for International Development (Public Law 535, 81st
Cong.) popularly known as the Point IV Act. Also of special note
was the execution of a contract with EGA for rendering service to
trainees, official observers, and accredited visitors that they refer to
us. While this Government’s Foreign Technical Assistance Programs
are directed primarily at benefiting other countries the Bureau nevertheless
profited greatly from the resulting mutual exchange of
technical and general information regarding water-resources development
the world over.
There were 22 missions overseas to 22 different countries involving
40 individuals in effect at one time or another during the last year—all
as a result of specific requests from the countries concerned and with
the approval of the Department of State, ECA, or other of the
agencies administering a foreign program. Under the point 4 program
missions were sent to Lebanon, Honduras, Costa Rica, Libya,
Nicaragua, and Ecuador. Other Bureau personnel traveled to Australia,
Afghanistan, Iran, Ceylon, Pakistan, and India to render technical
assistance under the provisions of Public Law 402, Eightieth
Congress. Our part in ECA’s program included the loan to that
agency of Bureau personnel for service in Italy, Greece, Turkey,
Northern Rhodesia, Italian Somaliland, and Thailand. Other overseas
missions included Guam, the Ryukyus, Saudi Arabia, and Puerto
Rico at the request of the Navy, Army, the Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations, and the Puerto Rico Water Resources
Authority, respectively.
Approximately 230 foreign officials and engineers from some 32
countries toured reclamation projects and visited Bureau Field
Offices. Engineering trainees numbering 54, representing 12 foreign
countries, studied Bureau engineering and administration practices
in the Denver engineering offices and laboratories or at other Bureau
offices.
During the last fiscal year Bureau employees were designated as
official United States delegates or observers at the following inANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 19
ternational conferences: Large Electric High-Tension Systems, World
Power Conference, Congress on Large Dams, Sectional Meeting of
the World Power Conference, International Association of Hydraulic
Research, UN Economic and Social Council Conference on Flood
Control, International Commission on Irrigation and Canals, Fourth
Inter-American Conference on Agriculture, and the UN International
Institute for the Arid Zones. In addition to sending delegates to
these conferences numerous papers were prepared by Bureau employees
for presentation at the above meetings.
The Bureaji also rendered testing, research, design review, and
other similar services to foreign governments at their request and with
the approval of the Department of State. Because of the Bureau’s
extensive and unique facilities for performing this type of work, the
numbers of such requests continue to increase. Testing and design
review in connection with the important Chao Phya Dam in Thailand
is being carried out at that Government’s request. In addition soils
and material testing were performed for the Governments of Israel
and Venezuela and for Bhakra Dam in India.
In addition to the above activities, hundreds of letters were received
from foreign nationals requesting technical and general information,
publications, reports, photographs, and similar material. Requested
items and information were supplied insofar as facilities permitted.
At the same time numerous exchange arrangements for technical
information were established. Publication exchanges with foreign
government agencies continued at an increased rate.
A further increase is anticipated in the scope and magnitude of
the Bureau’s part in this Government’s foreign technical assistance
programs during the coming fiscal year. Participation in worthwhile
projects of this sort will continue insofar as the Bureau’s
domestic activities will permit and funds in connection therewith are
made available.
OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE
Operation and Maintenance means providing irrigation water for
310,000 settlers on 100,000 farms which comprise almost 6 million
acres of land, preparing land for settlement where ultimately many
times the present number of settlers will become Reclamation farmers,
and last, but not least, to see that thousands of miles of irrigation
facilities throughout the 17 Western States are kept in good working
order to conserve and use water to the greatest advantage, thus assuring
service to the people of the area. These facilities include 107
storage and 68 diversion dams, more than 16,000 miles of canals and
laterals, more than 3,500 miles >f drains, 495 pumping plants and an
20 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
estimated 6,000 miles of roads. In addition to the farm population,
about 1,380,000 persons living in the nearby towns and villages are
dependent upon the success of the Reclamation program.
Two new projects, the 3,500-acre Lewiston Orchards project in
Idaho, and the 2,216-acre Savage Unit of the Yellowstone Division of
the Missouri River Basin project in Montana, were added to the Reclamation
family, making a total of 62 projects or divisions of projects
now in operation. Six new agreements were made with State Agricultural
Colleges and United States Department of Agriculture Agencies
whereby information on the latest and most economical methods of
irrigation farming will be obtained for Reclamation. This brings
the total number of agreements in effect to 41.
The repayment program, another principal Operation and Maintenance
activity, continued at top level during the year. Six amendatory
contracts (revision of existing agreements between the Bureau
and irrigation districts to adjust the charges paid by the farmers
to the current economic situation) and 20 new water service and
repayment contracts were executed during the period January 1, 1950,
to June 30, 1951. The total value of all Bureau repayment contracts
is $519,800,415 of which $88,739,714 has been repaid to date. Central
Valley project districts signed 11 of these agreements indicating
widespread support of the Bureau’s program and policy, and making it
possible for the Bureau to deliver Central Valley project water to
the numerous valley customers.
Representatives of the Chief Engineer’s Office conducted annual
inspections of all major Bureau structures and facilities and the various
project superintendents continued to conduct inspections of the
minor structures and facilities to insure uninterrupted and equitable
scheduled water deliveries. In addition to the inspection program,
Bureau personnel are responsible for checking stream flow, conducting
runoff forecasts, and measuring and delivering water.
Water users on the Grand Valley, Milk River, North Platte, Riverton,
and Salt River projects executed contracts with the Bureau which
paved the way for the Rehabilitation work on their respective projects.
Veteran settlement through public land homesteading and purchase
of acquired lands continues to receive wide public attention
throughout the Nation. Applications for farm units remain many
times the number of units available.
Increased annual maintenance assumed by water users as part of
the regular Operation and Maintenance work, and the Rehabilitation
and Betterment program, which is handled in conjunction with the
regular Operation and Maintenance program, resulted in the irrigation
facilities being in more efficient operating condition than at any
time during the past three decades.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 21
During the year a reappraisal of the drainage program was made
by all Regions to assure that it was meeting present needs. An active
up-to-date drainage program is being formulated, and attention will
be given to the need for day-to-day maintenance of facilities and preventive
construction to keep additional lands from going out of production
due to lack of proper drainage is being stressed.
The accelerated weed control program resulted in a tremendous
saving in maintenance costs and cut water losses considerably, The
development of aromatic solvents for controlling waterweeds was a
high spot in the program and has resulted in saving thousands of
dollars annually.
Extension of Irrigation Service
Facilities provided by the Bureau of Reclamation were expanded to
extend full or supplemental service to a total of 6,025,000 irrigable
acres in 1950. This represents an increase of 346,000 acres over the
previous crop year. Of these irrigable acres, 5,077,000 were irrigated
in 1950, which is an increase of 256,000 acres over 1949. The major
increase in irrigation service occurred on the Central Valley project
of California where supplemental water was provided for the first
time this year to districts in which 172,000 acres were irrigated. Proj -
ects reporting the principal increases with the number of farms furnished
a full or supplemental water supply for the first time during
1950 include the following:
Irrigated
Project or division of project
Number
of farms Acres
Boise project, Payette Division, second unit, Idaho-------------------------- ------------------------
Lewiston Orchards project, Idaho___________________________________________________
Minidoka project, Idaho---------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------- --
Deschutes project, north unit, Oreg------- - ------------------------------------------------------------------
Columbia Basin project, Wash______________________________________________________
Yakima project, Roza Division, Wash------------------------------------------------------------------------
Central Valley project, Calif________________________________________________________
Gila project, Yuma Mesa Division, Mesa unit, Ariz---------------------------------------------------
All-American Canal system, Coachella Division, Calif----------------------------------------------
Grand Valley project, Colo------------------------- ------------- -------------------------------------------------
Mancos project, Colo--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pine River project, Colo____________________________________________________________
Uncompahgre project, Colo_________________________________________________________
Humboldt project, Nev_____________________________________________________________
Newlands project, Nev____ ______________________________________________________
Provo River project, Utah------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tucumcari project, N. Mex_________________________________________________________
Buffalo Rapids project, Mont_____________________________ ----_------------------- -
Missouri River Basin project, Savage Unit, Yellowstone Division, Mont------------------
Riverton project, Wyo______________________________________________________________
Shoshone project, Wyo..._________________________________________________________---
Kendrick project, Wyo-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
125
1,595
344
16
11
300
2,145
0
137
2 100
100
12
28
55
93
9
6,093
2, 750
2,814
5,922
1,734
12, 648
i 172, 205
759
9, 622
200
555
264
1,502
386
1,660
3,184
9,053
1,528
2,016
6, 241 •
8,787
s1,784
Total. 5,070 251,707
1 Does not include 425 acres for rural homes receiving water in 1950.
2 Estimates supplied.
3 Includes acreage added to existing farms.
22 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 5.—P rojects in operation— Irrigation an d crop value data fo r th e calendar yea r 1950
973649—52------ 5
See footnote at end of table.
*11
24 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
fl
Table 5.— Projects in operation— Irrigation and. crop value data for the calendar year 1950— Continued
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES ♦ 25
i
©
s
Io
5
g
i
26 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 27
2, 722
17, 794
00
20,516
557, 599
0
26,468
3,534
204, 715
234, 717
37, 474
272,191
64,796
23,877
0
34, 420
1,977,083
557,599
272,191
2,929,966
160
907
0
0
1,067
22,563
0
1,503
935
13,395
15,833
1,209
17,042
1, 442
644
400
3,309
10,062
22,563
17,042
55,462
45.89
16.45
42.81
35.36
49.95
42.44
50.01
45.96
43.36
60. 96
62.96
59. 95
36. 22
52.54
56. 28
23.41
55. 59
105.62
114.40
193.14
60.16
205.48
43.36
55.59
109.98
1, 933, 632
81,129
2,014,761
380, 541
1,649,086
727, 212
526,394
3,283,233
18,185,947
676,170
3,323,189
2,547,393
415,914
3,897,587
10,184, 083
135,148
10,995,401
86,080,466
10, 493, 616
63,155, 201
10, 721,169
50, 657, 636
18,185,947
10, 995,401
250,289,436
42,132
4,933
47,065
10, 761
33,016
17,135
10, 525
71,437
419,401
11, 092
52, 780
42,495
11,484
74,186
180, 945
5, 772
197,809
815,009
91, 729
326,996
178,214
246,538
419,401
197, 809
2,275,696
-
41,517
4,255
45,772
10,921
33, 923
17,135
10, 200
72,179
418,528
11,092
52, 780
43, 998
12, 419
87, 581
196, 778
6,981
214,851
811,283
91,919
316, 407
179,849
255,228
418,528
214,851
2,288,065
48, 628
6,236
54,864
20,170
41, 627
25,182
11, 426
98,405
559,538
11. 598
54, 846
52,487
16,170
112,369
235, 872
11,933
259,403
950,506
104, 736
386,499
222, 420
270,186
559, 538
259,403
2,753,288
See footnotes at end of table.
28 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 5.—-P rojects in operation— Irrigation and crop value data for the calendar year 1950— Continued
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 29
See footnotes at end of table.
94.40
,72.85
72.85
150. 21
164. 61
86.69
204.00
76.05
186. 51
121.45
279.48
129.39
153.58
11, 035, 000
66, 004
66,004
1, 969,194
26,936,193
84,966,191
103,013,738
6,081, 734
109,095,472
126,432
23,700, 788
56,931, 231
80,758,451 |
116,900
—
906
906
13,110
163, 633
980,125
504,962
79,974
584, 936
1,041
84,802
440,000
525,843
116,900
932
932
13,110
163, 223
979,741
473,662
79,974
553,636
1,041
84,802
420,000
505, 843
125,303
1,057
1,057
13, 800
191,573
1,039,603
697, 569
86,694
784,263
1,056
96, 651
517,000
614,707
26. 52
29.23
29. 94
91.75
78.18
52.33
65.69
60.57
16,869
212,080
456,960
3, 925,398
411,148
257,464
668,612 1
11,162,737
636
7, 255
15, 260
42, 784
5, 259
4, 920
10,179
184,288
538
7,255
15, 260
42, 784
5,206
4,898
10,104
179,913
977
7,312
15, 291
46, 713
6,000
8,030
14,030
197,410
i I
IDAHO-OREGON
Boise: T o tal—Boise project__________________________
MONTANA
M issoula V alley *________________________ ____ _______
OREGON
B ak er________________________________________________ B u rn t R iv er______________________________ - __________
D eschutes: C en tral Oregon Irrig atio n D istrict-----------
U m atilla:
W est D ivision _ ______________________________
S outh D ivision:
Stanfield Irrigation D istric t---------------------
W estland Irrig atio n D istric t-____ ___________
T o tal—U m atilla project___________________
OREGON-IDAHO
O w yhee: T otal—O w yhee project____________________
WASHINGTON
Y akim a: T otal—Y akim a project____________________
T otal— Region 1 ._____ ________________________
R e g io n 2
CALIFORNIA C entral V alley______ ___________________ ___________
OREGON-CALIFORNIA
K lam ath : T otals—K lam ath project_____ ____________
T otals— Region 2_______________________ ____
R e g io n 3
ARIZONA
G ila: T otals— G ila project____ ____ __________________
Salt R iv er...... ..............—___________________ ___________
CALIFORNIA
A ll-A m erican C anal: Im perial Irrigation D istrict____
T otals—Region 3______________________________
30 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 5.— Projects in operation— Irrigation and crop value data for the calendar year 1950— Continued
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES ♦ 31
292.35
292.35
36.00
36.00
63.20
63.20
86.69
186. 51
153. 58
77.95
292.35
36.00
63. 20
127.92
5, 081, 543
5,081,543
71, 788
71. 788
8,462,776
8,462,776
84,966,191
109,095,472
80,758,451
2,118,120
5,081,543
71,788
8,462,776
290,554,341
17,382
17,382
1,994
1,994
133,904
s
co
980,125
584,936
525,843
27,174
17,382
1,994
133, 904
2,271,358
17,382
17,382
1,994
1,994
133,904
133,904
979,741
553,636
505,843
27,153
17,382
1,994
133, 904
2,219,653
17,970
17,970
2,046
2,046
139,864
139,864
1,039,603
784, 263
614, 707
27,889
17,970
2,046
139,864
2,626,342
157.17
157.17
©
cS
24. 05
1
60. 57
00
56.99
157.17
24.05
0
59.00
1,090, 452
1,090,452
$
of
8
202,166
1
11,162,737
o
0
19,193,610
1,090,452
202,166
0
31,648,965
6,938
6,938
co
00
8,406
184,288
0
0
336, 794
6,938
8,406
0
536,426
•i c0o0 । a>
! co
6,938
CO3
8,406
179,913
0
o
334,153
6,938
8,406
0
529,410
10,191
j s CO
o
8.916
197,410
00 387,238
10,191
8,916
0
603,755 j
R e g io n
R io G rande: T o tal— R io G rande project 7__...................
TEXAS B alm o rh eai_________________ ________________________
T o tal— Region 5_________ ______ _______________
R e g io n 6
SOUTH DAKOTA R ap id V alley *_______________________________________
WYOMING
R iv erto n : T otal— R iv erto n p ro ject__________________
T o tal— Region 6_______________________________
R e g io n 7
NEBRASKA-W YOMING
N o rth P latte: T otals—N o rth P latte project__________
T otals— Region 7______________________________
SUMMARY
Region 1_____________________________________________
Region 2___________________1_________________________
Region 3_____________________________________________
Region 4_____________________________________________
Region 5______________________ ______________________
Region 6_____________________________________________
Region 7_____________________________________________
T o tals______________________ ____ ______________
32 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Crop Production
Crop production and irrigation service on Reclamation projects
reached an all-time high in 1950. The volume of crops produced was
over 16 million tons for the first time in Reclamation’s history and
the value of the crops was $578,238,000 which is an increase of $62,-
000,000 over 1949 and almost $23,000,000 over the 555 million dollar
golden harvest of 1947, previous all-time high. This was the fifth
successive year that the value of Reclamation crops topped the halfbillion-
dollar mark and for the same period the average per acre
value of crops reached $111. The volume of vegetables, truck fruits
and nuts, the “protective food,” reached 5,613,000 tons or nearly 35
percent of the total crop.
The highest per acre crop value was found on the Coachella Division
of the All-American Canal system where project water users
received an average of $433 per acre for their crops. The high value
received here is largely due to the large acreages of fruit and truck
crop, mainly string beans and sweet corn and dates.
Including the crop returns for 1950, the cumulative value of crops
grown in the 45 years since irrigation water was first supplied from
Reclamation sources totals $7,161,808,000.
The types of crops raised on western irrigated lands include many
products not available from other places in the United States. An
outstanding record was achieved in 1950 in the production of cotton.
Both medium and long staple cotton are produced. The value of
the 454,000 bales of cotton lint and 184,000 tons of cottonseed grown
by irrigation on Bureau projects was $111,531,168. Approximately
670,000 acres, or 13 percent of the entire irrigated area, was devoted
to this valuable fiber crop.
Yields of cotton, deciduous fruit, except in a few areas damaged
by late spring frosts, and potatoes were excellent. Yields per acre
of pears and peaches on regular projects in the Rocky Mountain
States were especially hard hit by the bad weather. The production
was almost a total loss in some instances. As a result of the small
quantities of fruit produced, the price was higher than usual and
some recovery was made in terms of total returns. The resulting
total value of fruit on Reclamation projects substantially increased
over 1949. Prices of grapes and cotton were good, with a resultant
high gross value. The prices of potatoes generally, and of lettuce
in the Southwest, were down from the previous year. Alfalfa and
other hay was substantially the same as in the preceding year but
the value of these commodities was relatively low when compared
with other crops. Grains were about average on yield and price.
Water supplies were generally adequate, but shortages were apANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 33
parent in the Salt River Valley of Arizona and on the Rio Grande
project of New Mexico and Texas.
The cultivated area on which crop production is based amounted
to 5,189,000 acres. This represents an increase of 273,000 acres from
the previous crop year. Shifts in the cropping pattern on this irrigated
acreage included generally a reduction in the amount of cereal
grains, principally wheat, general increases in the acreage devoted
to seed crop production, and substantial acreages devoted to cotton.
ACREAGE AND VALUE COMPARISONS
FRUITS a NUTS
SEED
VEGETABLES
MISCELLANEOUS
COTTON
SUGAR BEETS
OTHER
CEREALS
HAY S FORAGE
MULTIPLE CROPPED 26.1
CROP USE
INCENTIVE PAYMENTS 1.9
RECEIPTS
34 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 6.— Cum ulative crop values— 1906—50*
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for negotiating amendatory repayment contracts on the following
projects:
Idaho: Boise project, Black Canyon Irrigation District,
Nampa and Meridian Irrigation District.
Montana: Frenchtown project, Frenchtown Irrigation District.
Oregon: Deschutes project, North Unit Irrigation District;
Umatilla project, Hermiston Irrigation District, West Extension
Irrigation District.
Washington: Yakima project, Roza Irrigation District.
Wyoming: Kendrick project, Casper-Alcova Irrigation District.
Financial adjustment investigations were commenced during FY
1951 on a number of additional projects. At the close of FY 1951,
substantial progress had been made also in connection with acquisition
of the power system and negotiation of amendatory contracts with
the districts in the North Platte project in Nebraska and Wyoming.
New water service and repayment contracts were executed in calendar
year 1950 and until June 30,1951, with the following water users’
organizations:
Arizona-California: Yuma project, sale of waste water to
Mexican interests, Yuma County Water Users’ Association
(Operation and Maintenance Transfer contract).
California: Central Valley project, Chowchilla Water District,
Contra Costa County Water District (interim), Exeter Irrigation
District, Lindsay-Strathmore Irrigation District,
Lower Tule River Irrigation District, Madera Irrigation
District, Saucelito Irrigation District, Stone Corral Irrigation
District, Terra Bella Irrigation District, Tulare Irrigation
District, temporary 1950 and 1951 water service contracts
(numerous districts in San Joaquin Valley).
Kansas: Missouri River Basin project, Kansas Bostwick Irrigation
District No. 2.
Montana: Milk River project, city of Havre (Municipal
Water).
Nebraska: Mirage Flats project, Mirage Flats Irrigation
District.
New Mexico: Tucumcari project, city of Tucumcari (Municipal
Water).
Oregon: Ochoco project, Ochoco Irrigation District.
South Dakota: Missouri River Basin project, Angostura Irrigation
District.
Wyoming: Eden project, Eden Valley Irrigation and Drainage
District; North Platte project, city of Casper (Municipal
Water).
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 41
At the close of the fiscal year, negotiations had been completed on
a number of additional contracts which were pending formal execution
by either the water users’ organizations or the United States.
These involved contracts with the following water users’ organizations
:
Arizona: Gila project, North Gila Valley Irrigation District;
Yuma Auxiliary project, Unit B Irrigation and Drainage
District.
California: Central Valley project, Buckeye Water District,
Contra Costa County Water District, Delano-Earlimart Irrigation
District, Porterville Irrigation District; Cachuma
project, temporary water service contracts (contemplated
with several districts).
Montana: Buffalo Rapids project, Buffalo Rapids Irrigation
District No. 1.
Nebraska: Missouri River Basin project, Frenchman-Cambridge
Irrigation District.
North Dakota: Missouri River Basin project, Fort Clark Irrigation
District, Heart River Irrigation District.
Oregon-California: Klamath project, Langell Valley Irrigation
District.
South Dakota: Missouri River Basin project, Belle Fourche
Irrigation District (Keyhole unit).
Wyoming: Missouri River Basin project, Owl Creek Irrigation
District.
In addition, detailed physical and economic investigations were
completed and negotiations were well advanced on more than a score
of contracts involving other new projects or new units of projects.
Items in the new contract program of particular note during the
past year included court confirmation of a revised water service and
repayment contract with the Frenchman-Cambridge Irrigation District,
Nebraska, Missouri River Basin project. On the last day of the
fiscal year, the judge of the superior court of Red Willow County,
Nebr., indicated that he would enter an order confirming the proposed
contract as revised following court disapproval of the preceding
contract executed in 1947.
The first water service and repayment contract for the Missouri
River Basin project in South Dakota was executed on May 29, 1951,
with the Angostura Irrigation District. The first Missouri River
Basin contract in Kansas was also executed—with the Kansas Bostwick
Irrigation District No. 2.
The Supreme Court of North Dakota in actions involving the Fort
Clark Irrigation District cleared the way for early execution of the
42 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
first irrigation water service and repayment contract for the Missouri
River Basin project in North Dakota.
The changing construction-cost picture arising in connection with
the Defense Program and the Korean situation may result in the need
for additional repayment contract coverage for some of the projects
now under construction. Building as the Bureau does on a strictly
cost basis, when significant changes in costs occur, it is the policy of
the Bureau of Reclamation to advise the water users’ organizations
of these increases in costs as soon as possible and where necessary to
negotiate supplemental repayment contracts to cover the added costs.
The Bureau of Reclamation, since it operates on a cost basis, does not
have the opportunity that private contractors have of making up
losses on one contract by profits on another.
Expansion of the urban population in the West, and the growing
water requirements of the National Defense Program in Western
States, have called for additional contract activities related to the
furnishing of municipal and industrial water from Reclamation projects.
These contract activities have included not only the negotiations
with municipal water users seeking new and supplemental water supplies
for municipal and industrial purposes, but also in connection
with furnishing additional supplies to military installations and certain
defense industries closely related to the National Defense Program.
In accordance with the policy of the Secretary of the Interior
water charges for municipal and industrial purposes have included
payment of interest on the construction cost at 2 percent.
Federal Income Taxes From Reclamation Areas
Federal income, corporation, excise, and other tax payments received
directly or indirectly from Reclamation project areas are estimated to
aggregate about 2.3 billion dollars. This is based on a sample analysis
of 15 Federal Reclamation projects which are estimated to have produced
over 68 million dollars in individual income taxes alone during
1950 with the total of these payments since the building of these projects
amounting to over one-half billion dollars. Other Federal tax
payments in these areas are estimated at approximately a quarter of a
billion dollars. Thus total Federal revenues in 15 project areas are
estimated in excess of three-quarter billion dollars. These revenues
constitute a partial measure of the extent to which Reclamation projects
contribute to the stability, productive capacity, and defense of
the Nation.
Rough estimates have been made of the Federal individual income
taxes paid directly and indirectly from 15 Federal Reclamation project
areas. These estimates include taxes paid by irrigation farmers,
townspeople, and business in the general project area. For these 15
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 43
selected areas, it is estimated that approximately $68,000,000 of Federal
individual income taxes were paid in 1950 and about $525,000,000
since development of the areas.
Estimated individual income taxes
Project 1950 Total
Belle Fourche______ .. ____ - _ .. $260, 000 $2 532 000
Bitter Boot___ .. ..____ - _ ... ... .. 224, 000 2,060, 000
Boise_________ _ .. ______ ___ 10, 082, 000 66,405, 000
Carlsbad__ . - . _ 836, 000 4 744,000
Huntley .. .. . _________ . _ . 217, 000 1, 881, 000
Lower Yellowstone___ ...... . ___ 441, 000 4,343, 000
Milk River___ .. ___ ________ __________ ... 558, 000 4, 276, 000
Rio'Grande___ . ____ __________ 8, 468, 000 51, 215. 000
Riverton_____ ___ . ___ _ . . 179, 000 1, 750, 000
Salt River . . ____ . ______ . _ ____ _____ .. 23, 495, 000 187, 675, 000
Shoshone___________ _____________________ 245, 000 2, 870 000
Sun River_ _ . _ _ ... ______________ .. 312, 000 3, 270,000
Vale and Owyhee ... ... .... . ... ___ 1, 730, 000 14, 878, 000
Yakima.. _ . ... „ ... . ___ . .. 18,707, 000 157, 683, 000
Yuma _____ ___ _______ 2,452 000 19,853, 000
Total _ _ _. - _ _ - ____ _ _ . - 68, 206,000 525, 435, 000
In addition to the above-estimated tax revenue an appropriate
share of corporation income taxes, excise and other Federal taxes
are directly and indirectly related to the business and industrial activity
in these areas. As an example the rough estimates for Maricopa
(Aunty, Ariz., representing the Salt River project area include $23,-
552,000 of corporation taxes and $18,315,000 of other miscellaneous
tax revenues, bringing the’estimated total Federal tax revenue from
the area to about $65,000,000.
For the 15 projects for which estimates were made, the individual
income taxes of $525,000,000 plus about $2'50,000,000 of corporation
tax revenues bring the total to approximately $750,000,000 since development
of the areas. By projecting this total to the 62 irrigation
projects now in production, estimates on total Federal tax payments
can be secured. These estimates indicate that, since Federal income
taxes were initiated, approximately 1.55 billion dollars of individual
income taxes and about 2.3 billion dollars of all Federal taxes have
been paid from all Reclamation project areas receiving either a full
or supplemental water supply from Federally constructed works.
Purchasing Power
Two Reclamation project areas will serve as examples to demonstrate
purchasing power created by reclamation activity. In 1949 approximately
40 percent of the volume and 72 percent of the value of all
railroad shipments of freight into Ada and Canyon Counties were
from the 37 States east of the Rocky Mountains. From 1939 to 1949
the volume increased from about 2,200 to more than 8,235 carloads
and the value increased from 6.5 million to 92.2 million dollars. For
44 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
every carload of freight shipped out of the area in 1949 one carload
was shipped into the area. The in-shipments totaled 20,476 cars
valued at 127.6 million dollars and the out-shipments amounted to
21,403 cars valued at 50.7 million dollars. Truck freight shipped in
would increase these figures by about one-fourth. Thus the total in
and out shipments in 1949 approximate an equivalent of about 52,000
cars valued at 223 million dollars.
The Scottsbluff area of the North Platte project in Nebraska received
283 carloads of freight in 1900. With the development of
irrigation in the area these in-shipments increased to 1,447 carloads
in 1910; 6,207 in 1940; and 7,144 in 1942'. In this area the freight
shipped in is more than twice the volume shipped out of the area.
The value of retail sales provides another excellent clue to the relationship
of the West to the Nation. In 1949 alone, in the 17 Western
States they amounted to nearly 34 billion dollars. An analysis of
railroad carloadings, as previously indicated, shows that a very high
percentage of this merchandise was shipped into the West from the
industrial centers of the Midwest and the East. In terms of the international
market in which we as a Nation seek to stimulate trade, the
value of retail sales in the 17 Western States exceeds total United
States exports by 3 times. Retail sales in the three far Western States
exceed the total value of United States exports by 20 percent.
The deposits in banks which directly service Reclamation areas
have been constantly increasing and for the last 5 years have averaged
more than a billion dollars a year. In 1950 deposits were up to approximately
1.1 billion and are expected to increase in future years.
Land Openings
During the fiscal year of 1951 the Bureau opened for sale and settlement
4,257 acres of irrigable land on the Columbia Basin project
comprising 106 farm units. These openings included 30 units consisting
of 2,505 acres in the East Columbia Irrigation District and
20 units involving 1,634 acres in the Quincy Columbia Basin Irrigation
District. In addition to these openings which were full-time
farming opportunities the Bureau opened 56 part-time units in the
Burbank Pumping Unit with a total acreage of 118. All farms were
located on the Columbia Basin project in the State of Washington.
A large portion of the irrigation facilities now under construction
or scheduled for future construction by the Bureau will serve privately
owned lands. However, during fiscal year 1952 about 25,000
acres of public or government acquired lands on Reclamation projects
are scheduled to be opened for settlement. These lands scheduled for
settlement in 1952 are located on the Columbia Basin, Gila, All-
American Canal, and Riverton projects.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 45
The farm units opened for settlement on the Columbia Basin project
during the past year were composed primarily of government-acquired
land and were sold to settlers under the provisions of the Columbia
Basin Project Act rather than being disposed of through homesteading.
Veterans of World War II were given preference in the purchase
of these units. The demand for farm units still continues to
exceed the supply as indicated by the 1,683 applications which were
received for 50 full-time farm units on the Columbia Basin project
or an average of 33 applications per farm unit. Thus where 1 veteran
succeeded in obtaining a unit 32 were unsuccessful.
Fifty-six of the units offered for sale on the Columbia Basin project
were part-time farm units ranging in size from one-half to five irrigable
acres. This is the first time that part-time farm units have been
offered for settlement on Reclamation projects.
These part-time farm units are intended primarily for persons who
obtain income from other sources but who desire a rural residence
where they can obtain part of their living from the farm.
The units were established in accordance with the recommendations
made in the Columbia Basin Joint Investigations. These
investigations or studies as they are frequently referred to were conducted
by the Bureau of Reclamation in cooperation with members
of Federal, State, and local agencies, along with authorities from
universities and other walks of life in order to encourage the success
of settlers on the project. The entire study, designed to assist new
settlers in every phase of reclamation, is the most extensive and
informative ever undertaken in connection with an irrigation development
and today is world renowned for its value to those interested
in irrigation farming.
One public land drawing was held during the year for the award
of 54 farm units, consisting of 6,940 acres on the Riverton project
in Wyoming. The public announcement for these farms was issued
on March 28, 1950, and the last day for filing was June 26, 1950, while
the actual drawing was held on August 26,1950.
Settler Assistance
The Bureau has extended its continuing program to obtain technical
assistance for new settlers on Reclamation projects through cooperation
with State Colleges and agencies of the Department of Agriculture.
The Bureau now has in effect nine working agreements with
State Colleges in Idaho, Kansas, Oklahoma, Oregon, Montana, New
Mexico, Washington, and two in Wyoming for helping settlers to
get off to a good start on their new farms. The State Colleges of
Agriculture have employed assistant county agents to give special
counsel to the newcomers. In other cases the various agricultural
46 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
agencies, which are able to grant specific service to the settlers, have
jointly formed a settler-assistance program and have mutually agreed
on the individual aid each will give to the farmers.
Development farms.—Eleven development farms have been established
in connection with this program. They are Bostwick, Nebraska,
in the Bostwick division of the Missouri River Basin project; Burbank,
Burke, Pasco, and Winchester in Washington; Huron and Redfields
in South Dakota; Bowbells and Mandan in North Dakota;
Kanopolis in Kansas; and Riverton in Wyoming. These farms are
located in new project areas, namely, Columbia Basin, Missouri Basin,
and Riverton, which are being brought under irrigation primarily
to demonstrate approved methods of irrigation and cultural practices
best adapted to specific localities.
A part of each farm generally is reserved for use by the State experimental
station and agencies of the United States Department of
Agriculture for conducting research. The findings of this research
are made available to settlers in this area and are also demonstrated
on the development farms. Field days and tours are conducted on
the development farms. Some of these farms have been in operation
for three or more years. During the past year new farms were established
on the Columbia Basin, Missouri Basin, and Riverton projects.
Several additional development farms are scheduled for the
Missouri Basin project within the next 2 years.
Credit for settlers.—Limited finances continue to be a problem for
new settlers, even though during the past year a great deal of progress
has been made to remedy this situation. Under provisions of Public
Law 361, Eighty-first Congress, it is now possible for the Farmers
Home Administration of the Department of Agriculture to make loans
to settlers on public land previous to the time they receive patent to
the land. Under the provisions of this law, the Farmers Home Administration
has made loans to a relatively large percentage of new
settlers on Reclamation projects, and as a result these farmers have
made rapid progress in developing their farm units. As an example,
the 104 settlers on the Heart Mountain Division of the Shoshone
project in Wyoming who obtained farm units late in 1949 had an
average of over 70 percent of their land under cultivation in the fall
of 1950. Excellent cooperation exists between the Farmers Home
Administration and the Bureau of Reclamation and the Bureau works
closely with the Administration in estimating the needs of that agency
for funds for loan purposes.
The settler application for a loan must be approved by the local
Farmers Home Administration Board. Also the money must be available
in the Farmers Home Administration which is dependent upon
annual Congressional appropriations.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 47
Cooperation with other agencies.—The Bureau of Reclamation is
continuing its policy of obtaining technical information and assistance
in the agricultural and economic phases of its program through
cooperation with state colleges of agriculture and agencies of the
United States Department of Agriculture. In this connection the
Bureau now has in effect 41 memoranda of understanding or cooperative
agreements with state colleges and other agencies. These agreements
provide for a wide range of activities including research on the
agricultural, economic, or engineering phases of reclamation, service
to the Bureau, and joint efforts in the solution of problems. An example
is the agreement between the Washington State College, the
Soil Conservation Service, and the Bureau of Reclamation which provides
for the conducting of investigations on the Columbia Basin
project to develop technical standards and practical irrigation guides
to be used in advising and assisting settlers in efficient use of irrigation
water on that project. As a result of these investigations, standards
and guides will be prepared for the use of settlers and also for use
of the several agricultural agencies in their assistance to settlers.
Another example is the memorandum of understanding between the
Washington State College, the Farmers Home Administration, and
the Bureau of Reclamation which provides for the Bureau’s collaboration
with the Farmers Home Administration and the State College
Extension Service in preparing plans for a domestic water system for
each irrigation block in the Columbia Basin project. The Extension
Service will then conduct educational work and will, if necessary,
help to perfect organizations of landowners which can assume financial
obligations for domestic water systems. The Farmers Home Administration
will work with individuals or organizations to achieve
the development of domestic water systems as planned. The Administration
will also take steps to finance such construction insofar
as available funds permit.
Lower Cost Canal-Lining Program
This special-investigations program, aimed at a determination of
materials, methods, and procedures that will result in the most economical
canal linings, was initiated in 1946. The investigations have
included laboratory work in Denver and experimental field installations
throughout the West. The work was continued during the past
year by the Bureau of Reclamation directly and by utilization of the
resources and experience of State colleges and the Soil Conservation
Service, in cooperative studies.
Utilization of the findings and developments under this program in
design and construction of new projects and in rehabilitation and
48 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
betterment of older, existing projects has resulted in definite worthwhile
savings to the Government.
Progress during the first 2 years of the investigations was recorded
in a general information report titled “Lower Cost Canal Linings,”
dated June 1948. It is anticipated that a complete, revised report of
accomplishments to date will be issued early in fiscal year 1952. The
following items are representative of these accomplishments:
1. Liberalization and simplification of specification requirements
with respect to line, grade, and finish of hard-surface linings have encouraged
greater mechanization of placing equipment and resulted in
lower construction costs and lower bid prices.
2. Elimination of reinforcement steel in concrete linings, except
where safety is involved, has resulted in savings of 10 to 15 percent in
total cost.
3. Development of subgrade-guided slip-forms has made it economically
feasible to line small canals and laterals with hard-surface linings
which heretofore have been prohibitive in cost.
4. Development of a buried asphalt membrane lining which may be
constructed of prefabricated strips or hot sprayed-in-place asphalt
cement, covered with a protective blanket of earth or gravel, has resulted
in greatly reduced costs where its use is applicable.
Drainage
During the past year, investigations of drainage problems were
intensified. The branches of Project Planning, Design and Construction,
and Operation and Maintenance cooperated to make sure that
in the planning stage proper consideration was given to potential
drainage problems, that programs were provided or reestablished to
assist operating projects in making water-table observations, and that
the design and construction of drainage works were properly supervised.
Drainage is one of the important items in the Rehabilitation
and Betterment program and it is hoped that on the existing projects,
where drainage systems are necessary and feasible but are beyond the
ability of the water users to finance in regular Operation and Maintenance
assessments, they will be cleared up in the next few years.
Weed Control
The comprehensive program of weed control and research now being
conducted has resulted in material savings in operating problems,
maintenance costs, and water losses. The development of aromatic
solvents for the control of waterweeds has saved many thousands of
dollars annually. The use of 2,4-D has been instrumental in helping
solve the serious willow problem on ditchbanks as well as noxious
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 49
perennial and annual weeds. The new herbicide TCA (Trichloroacetate)
is helping eliminate weedy grasses.
An educational program is conducted for project operators to teach
the most effective and economical methods. A handbook which describes
these methods has been written and distributed to both Federal
and private irrigation projects. Requests for the book have been
received from 21 foreign countries. In the spring of 1951 a motion
picture “Weed Control on Irrigation Systems” and a slide lecture on
the same subject were completed. These have been in great demand.
The Department of the Interior Weed Control Committee has been
instrumental in the formation of a similar committee in the Department
of Agriculture. The two committees hold bimonthly meetings
to exchange information on weed-control methods and to discuss common
problems. They also help coordinate weed-control programs
being conducted by land management agencies with the general aim
of preventing duplication of activities.
The grass-planting program on ditchbanks has been continued to
prevent future weed problems and to furnish extra pasture for project
farmers livestock. Grasses have been found to absorb less water than
broadleaved weeds, they prevent erosion of ditchbanks and are excellent
weed competitors. A systematic program of seeding grasses has
been formulated with the aim of establishing a grass sod on all projects
where growing conditions are favorable. Maintenance costs and
water losses due to weeds have been reduced to a minimum where this
practice has been established. On new projects seeding is begun as
soon as possible after construction.
Two problems which need further study are the control of salt
cedar and cattails. The program of cooperative research with the
Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering is
being continued at its four weed-control field stations in the irrigated
West. The basic research is conducted at the weed-control laboratory
of the Chief Engineer’s office in Denver where a BPISAE plant physiologist
works with Bureau of Reclamation chemists and weed specialists.
As a result of this cooperation several promising methods of
solving these remaining problems have been indicated but further
investigation will be necessary before practical applications can be
developed.
Sprinkler Irrigation
Field investigations of sprinkler irrigation methods and results
under actual farming conditions were continued on the Columbia
River Basin project in Washington, on the Missouri River Basin
project in North Dakota, and on the Gila project in Arizona.
50 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Final conclusions regarding the applicability of sprinkler irrigation
have not been reached. In some instances, sprinkling will be the best
or perhaps the only feasible method of water application. Results
to date continue to indicate, however, that surface irrigation is more
economical on lands adapted to the use of surface methods.
Soil and Moisture Conservation Operations
Under the Bureau’s program of soil and moisture conservation operations,
efforts were continued on the control of erosion on public
lands under the jurisdiction of the Bureau, protection of reservoirs,
canals, and other irrigation works from siltation, and prevention of
water losses detrimental to irrigation projects.
This work is accomplished throughout the 17 Western States by
individual effort of the Bureau of Reclamation and through effective
cooperation with all other interested agencies in each of the areas concerned,
particularly with the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau
of Indian Affairs, the Forest Service, the Soil Conservation Service,
and Soil Conservation Districts.
With greater Congressional recognition of the importance of this
phase of the Bureau’s operations, appropriations have been increased,
permitting a more effective attack on the soil and water loss problems
with which we are confronted. Representative of these activities are
the stabilization and conservation of public lands in reservoir areas
of the Central Valley project through revegetation, structures, etc.,
the cooperative program with the Bureau of Land Management for
control of erosion in the Book Cliffs area, Colorado, for benefit of
public land and protection of Reclamation structures of the Grand
Valley project; construction for control of erosion for protection of
the main canal and structures of the Rio Grande project; and increased
construction for prevention of further erosion of Five Mile and Muddy
Creeks above the Boysen Reservoir in Wyoming.
Payments to School Districts
The act of June 29,1948 (Public Law 835) authorized the Secretary
of the Interior to make such provision as may be deemed necessary and
in the public interest for the education of dependents of persons employed
by the Bureau of Reclamation on projects and investigations.
At the close of the fiscal year, cooperative agreements covering
school assistance were executed by the Bureau of Reclamation with the
following school districts under the provisions of Public Law 835:
Swan Valley No. 92, Idaho (Palisades project); Rural School District
No. 9, Crook County, Wyo. (Keyhole Dam) ; Trenton School District
No. 11, Hitchcock County, Nebr. (Trenton Dam); Anderson Dam
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 51
School District, Idaho (Boise project) ; Colorado School District No.
18, (Platoro Dam), San Luis Valley project, Colorado; Grant County
School District No. 156, Washington (Columbia Basin project) ;
Grade School District No. 1, Cheyenne County, Kans. (St. Francis
unit, Missouri River Basin project); Gustine Union Elementary
School District, California (Central Valley project) ; York Consolidated
School District No. 33, Lewis and Clark County, Mont.; and
Superior School District No. 11, Nebraska (Bostwick Division, Missouri
River Basin project).
In* addition to the assistance given through the cooperative agreement
under Public Law 835 maximum tuition payments of $65 per
semester were authorized for the fiscal years 1948-51 for dependents
of any Federal employee living in the vicinity of Boulder City, Nev.,
under the provisions of the act of May 14,1948 (Public Law 528).
The Eighty-first Congress by recognizing the need for an equitable
and uniform Federal school assistance policy passed legislation which
placed all school assistance measures in federally affected areas with
the Office of Education. Public Law 815, relating to construction of
school facilities in federally affected areas, and Public Law 874, concerning
operation and maintenance of schools in such areas were
approved September 23 and September 30, 1950, respectively. These
laws provide that funds appropriated to other Federal agencies for
the same purpose in fiscal year 1951 were to be available for transfer
to the Commissioner of Education. A detailed statement of the Bureau’s
school assistance program was furnished the Commissioner of
Education. In accordance with a Statement of Principles in connection
with Public Law 874, issued by the Commissioner of Education,
the Bureau of Reclamation was authorized to continue to execute contracts
for school operation and maintenance during fiscal year 1951
in cases in which an agreement or understanding for such assistance
had been reached prior to the passage of Public Law 874. Also, the
Bureau was encouraged to complete all school construction activities
undertaken under Public Law 835 where such construction contract
was let prior to the enactment of Public Law 815, Eighty-first Congress.
In any of the above school situations, the Commissioner of Education
has agreed not to institute claim for reassignment of funds appropriated
to the Bureau for fiscal year 1951. Public Law 874 and Public
Law 815 also provide that funds shall not be available to other Federal
agencies after June 30, 1951, for the same purposes as these acts.
Accordingly, the Bureau of Reclamation will not provide future
financial assistance under Public Law 835 or Public Law 528 after the
close of the fiscal year. However, the Bureau has requested funds for
fiscal year 1952 to complete the construction of school facilities at
Boulder City, Nev., undertaken in previous year.
52 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Recreational Use of Reservoirs
Construction of dams and reservoirs for irrigation and power
development provides incidental but very definite benefits to the public
through the creation of exceptional recreational opportunities. This is
particularly true in the more arid parts of the West.
Except in the Missouri River Basin, the Bureau of Reclamation is
not authorized to expend funds for recreational development of reservoir
areas. At certain reservoirs where recreational possibilities are
deemed to be of national significance, such as Lake Mead, on the Colorado
River between Arizona and Nevada; Franklin D. Roosevelt
Lake, on the Columbia River in Washington; Millerton Lake, on the
San Joaquin River in California, and Shadow Mountain and Granby
Lake on the Colorado River in Colorado, the development and administration
of recreational facilities is handled for the Bureau by the
National Park Service. At certain other reservoirs which are located
within National Forest boundaries, recreational facilities are administered
by the United States Forest Service.
There is an urgent need for legislation to provide authorization for
the expenditure of nonreimbursable funds for the coordinated planning,
development, and administration of the recreational resources at
Reclamation dams and reservoirs.
During the past year, the Bureau of Reclamation also worked closely
with the Fish and Wildlife Service and with the various State fish and
game agencies for the protection and, where possible, enhancement of
fish and wildlife values at reservoirs and on project lands. A joint
report was prepared with the Fish and Wildlife Service with recommendations
for maintenance and further development of the San Joaquin
River “Grasslands” in California, as a part of the Pacific flyway
for migratory waterfowl. Agreement was also reached with the Service
concerning improvement of the Lake Havasu National Wildlife
Refuge, which embraces all of the reservoir formed by Parker Dam on
the lower Colorado River.
POWER UTILIZATION
A new record of achievement in hydroelectric power capacity and
production on multipurpose projects constructed by the Bureau of
Reclamation was accomplished during fiscal year 1951.
By June 30, 1951, the total installed capacity in power plants constructed
and operated by the Bureau of Reclamation was 3,939,500
kilowatts, the highest installation achieved by the Bureau of Reclamation.
The sales of electric energy during the fiscal year totaled
approximately 21,265,000,000 kilowatt-hours which brought in revenues
of about $35,100,000 to the Treasury. During fiscal year 1951,
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 53
771,100 kilowatts were added in Bureau power plants. Additional
capacity scheduled to be added in fiscal year 1952 will further increase
power production capacity by 339,200 kilowatts. A summary of
power sales and revenues by projects is shown in table 7.
Table 7.—Bureau of Reclamation power systems, power sales, and revenues by
projects, fiscal year ending June 30, 1951 1
Region 1:
Boise_________ -_________
Columbia Basin________
Minidoka_______________
Yakima________________
Region 2: Central Valley-----
Region 3:
Boulder Canyon------------
Parker-Davis-----------------
Yuma__________________
Region 5: Rio Grande______
Region 6:
Fort Peek______________
Riverton_______________
Shoshone_______________
Region 7:
North Platte_______ ____
Kendrick_____________
Colorado-Big Thompson
Missouri River Basin___
Total_________________
Project
Sales of electric
energy kilowatt-
hours
Revenues
from sales
of electric
energy
97,153, 285 $127,334
12, 779, 950, 200 8,175, 979
115,199, 254 453, 257
23, 878, 092 62,161
2, 421, 761, 898 10, 510, 893
4, 311,603, 775 8, 628, 005
718, 510,192 2, 510, 928
8, 687, 718 38,423
64, 935, 913 407,421
263, 825, 355 934,145
32, 927, 249 200, 381
68, 388, 584 417, 416
47,788, 918 499, 462
143, 983, 754 919, 304
139, 839,101 1, 051, 822
26, 924, 913 189, 079
21,265, 358, 201 35,126, 010
i Does not include energy sales and revenues in transactions between Bureau projects.
Although previous records of capacity and annual generation were
surpassed with the record installation of generating capacity in power
plants on Reclamation multipurpose projects, demands for electric
power still exceeded the available supply. Applications for power
service continued to mount and contracts for sale of energy are being
processed in great numbers to provide for the widespread distribution
and integrated use of power to be produced from plants now under
construction.
The impact of the Korean War has brought about new demands for
power from industry and from rural areas. Many applications for
large blocks of power for use by industries have been received by the
Bureau of Reclamation but many of these demands could not be met
because the present power production is fully utilized and much of
the future production is committed.
Expansion of rural electrification is still a major factor contributing
to the increasing power requirements in many areas, particularly
in Missouri River Basin States. Shortages of power in North and
South Dakota and other areas of the West have delayed extension of
rural lines.
54 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
This critical situation will be partially alleviated in North and
South Dakota by the advance construction of portions of the ultimate
Missouri River Basin project power system. Initially, these portions
will be utilized to serve rural loads from presently available sources
and from fuel generating plants under construction by Rural Electrification
Administration financed generating plants. When Garrison
and Fort Randall power plants are brought into production in
1953 and 1954 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, these
transmission lines will then be used to market this power to preference
customers and the hydroelectric generating plants will be integrated
with existing plants in the areas. The advance construction of these
lines have been authorized by the Congress, and it is recognized that
this will have an important influence in delivering power to rural
customers in these areas at an early date. Ultimately, the transmission
systems in North and South Dakota will be extended to cover a
much greater area and deliver power from the federally constructed
plants to a great number of consumers.
Wheeling arrangements, whereby Reclamation power is transmitted
over the lines of private utilities, constitute another significant factor
in the utilization of Federal electric power output to a maximum of
capability. Such arrangements have been consummated with a number
of private utilities in the West. Through these, existing utility
transmission line capacity is utilized to the maximum for serving
areas at an early date or at a more economical cost to the Government.
In many instances, it has been possible by wheeling and power interchange
arrangements to provide power to preference customers,
especially Rural Electrification Administration cooperatives and
municipalities, well in advance of the time when service can be made
available to them by construction of Reclamation project transmission
systems. Such arrangements also permit delivery of power to areas
many miles from Reclamation project power plants and well beyond
economical transmission distance. Thus the maximum utilization of
existing facilities is obtained by displacement.
Irrigation pumping, which is vital to some Reclamation projects,
continues to impose large demands upon Reclamation power systems.
Pumping of irrigation water at Grand Coulee Dam in Washington
is essential to the Columbia Basin project irrigation plant. On the
Central Valley project, the Tracy pumping plant lifts a tremendous
quantity of water to permit irrigation of many additional acres of
highly productive agricultural land.
The Bureau of Reclamation is continuing to plan the development
of power consistent with multipurpose development of the West’s
valuable water resources.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 55
Present Installed Capacity
The installed nameplate capacity of 3,939,500 kilowatts in the 23
power plants operated by the Bureau of Reclamation at the end of
fiscal year 1951 showed an increase of 771,100 kilowatts capacity over
the 1950 fiscal year figure. The increase resulted from the addition
of four generating units of 108,000 kilowatts each, and one station
service unit of 10,000 kilowatts at Grand Coulee power plant on the
Columbia River Basin project in Washington; two units of 13,500
kilowatts each at Anderson Ranch power plant on the Boise-Anderson
Ranch project in Idaho; five units of 45,000 kilowatts each at Davis
Dam project in Arizona and California; three units of 15,000 kilowatts
each at the Estes power plant on the Colorado-Big Thompson
project; one unit of 8,100 kilowatts’ capacity at the Marys Lake power
plant on the Colorado-Big Thompson project; two units of 12,000
kilowatts each at the Kortes power plant in Wyoming on the Missouri
River Basin project. By these installations five power plants were
completed during the 1951 fiscal year. These power plants were—
(1) Anderson Ranch on the Anderson Ranch-Boise project in
Idaho;
(2) Davis on the Davis Dam project in Arizona and California;
(3) Estes on the Colorado-Big Thompson project in Colorado;
(4) Marys Lake on the Colorado-Big Thompson project in
Colorado ;
(5) Kortes on the Missouri River Basin project in Wyoming.
Power plants operated by other agencies, principally water users’
organizations, on Reclamation projects totaled 16, of which 9 were
originally constructed by the Bureau of Reclamation. These nine
plants have an installed capacity of 30,827 kilowatts; the seven other
plants constructed by the water users’ organizations have an installed
capacity of 72,500 kilowatts.
Initial operation of the 225,000-kilowatt power plant at Davis Dam
in January 1951 was the most significant event concerning new hydroelectric
power development during fiscal year 1951. The addition of
four generating units at Grand Coulee power plant on the Columbia
Basin project in Washington brought the total installed capacity to
a world record of 1,866,000 kilowatts for a hydroelectric plant.
Additional Capacity Under Construction
At the end of fiscal year 1951 the Bureau of Reclamation had under
construction 10 new power plants which will have an ultimate installed
973649—52------7
56 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
capacity of 680,450 kilowatts. In addition, construction of two 82,-
500-kilowatt units and one 50,000-kilowatt unit for Hoover power
plant on the Boulder Canyon project was continuing. One more
generating unit which is now being installed remained to be placed
into operation at Grand Coulee power plant.
New power plants under construction include Folsom and Nimbus
with a combined capacity of 167,000 kilowatts in California on the
Central Valley project; Flatiron with a capacity of 63,000 kilowatts
and Polehill with a capacity of 33,250 kilowatts, both on the Colorado-
Big Thompson project in Colorado ; Hungry Horse power plant with
a capacity of 285,000 kilowatts in Montana; Angostura and Canyon
Ferry with capacities of 1,200 and 50,000 kilowatts, respectively, on
the Missouri River Basin project in Montana; Boysen power plant
with a capacity of 15,000 kilowatts on the Missouri River Basin project
in Wyoming, and Eklutna power plant with a capacity of 30,000 kilowatts
on the Eklutna project in Alaska where preliminary construction
is underway. United States Army Corps of Engineers is proceeding
ahead of schedule with the construction of Garrison power
plant, with a capacity of 400,000 kilowatts in North Dakota, and the
Fort Randall power plant with a capacity of 320,000 kilowatts in South
Dakota, both on the Missouri River Basin project. The United States
Army Corps of Engineers also is proceeding with preliminary construction
at the Oahe Dam where a power plant with a capacity of
425,000 kilowatts is scheduled on the Missouri River Basin project in
South Dakota. The Bureau of Reclamation will market the power
from the plants of the United States Army Corps of Engineers in
the Missouri River Basin over transmission lines that are constructed
on the project.
Authorized to be constructed by the Bureau of Reclamation are
22 power plants with a total capacity of 927,000 kilowatts. The
United States Army Corps of Engineers have an additional 220,000
kilowatts authorized for construction in Big Bend and Gavins Point
power plants on the Missouri River Basin project in South Dakota.
The status of hydroelectric power plants on Reclamation projects in
operation, under construction, or authorized, is shown in table 8.
Transmission Lines
By June 30, 1951, it is estimated that the Bureau of Reclamation
had about 6,260 miles of high voltage transmission lines in operation.
This was accomplished by the completion of about 1,740 miles of line
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 57
Table 8.— H ydroelectric plants on Reclam ation projects— operating, under construction, or authorized as of June 30, 1951
C O N S T R U C T E D A N D O P E R A T E D B Y B U R E A U O F R E C L A M A T IO N
See footnotes at end of table.
58 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 8.—H ydroelectric p la n ts on R ecla m a tio n p ro jects—-operating, under con stru ction , or a u th o rized as o f June 30, 1951 Con.
C O N S T R U C T E D A N D O P E R A T E D B Y W A T E R U S E R S O R G A N IZ A T IO N S
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 59
A U T H O R IZ E D TO B E C O N S T R U C T E D B Y B U R E A U OF R E C L A M A T IO N
60 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
during the 1951 fiscal year. Principal lines placed in operation during
the year were as follows:
Project and line Voltage
(kilovolts) Completed Length
Boise-Anderson Ranch (Idaho): Anderson Ranch power plant
to Mountain Home substation.
Central Valley (California):
Oroville Junction to Tracy . - __ ____ _____
115
230
69
230
230
230
115
115
161
34.5
115
115
115
115
115
115
115
115 '
13.8
115
115
69
115
115
115
115
69/57
115
69
115
69
December 1950___
May 1951_________
17.9
129.0
26.0
278.6
63.9
69.9
30.7
79.4
129.0
21.1
47.7
1.5
5.0
16.3
26.9
51.0
25.0
14.0
5.0
47.0
3.5
28.0
73.0
174.9
69.0
58.0
1.0
100.0
43.0
40.0
62.0
1,737.3
Tracy to Contra Costa _ - __ _____ _____ June 1951______ ..
Davis Dam (Arizona-California):
Davis Dam power plant to Prescott to Mesa to Coolidge-----
Davis Dam power plant to Basic Magnesium plant tap-------
Davis Dam power plant to Parker Dam power plant----------
Coolidge to ED-5 substation_______________________________
Tucson to Cochise __________ ________________
January 1951--------
January 1951--------
January 1951--------
January 1951--------
January 1951.-----
Parker Dam power plant to Blythe to Pilot Knob--------------
Gila to Wellton to Mohawk _____ ____
January 1951_____
May 1951_________
Palisades (Idaho): Palisades Dam to Goshen__________________
Rio Grande (New Mexico): Hot Springs tap line_______________
Colorado-Big Thompson (Colorado!:
Flatiron switchyard to Pole Hill power plant----------------------
Estes power plant to Flatiron switchyard----------------------------
Flatiron switchyard to Greeley substation_________________
Brush substation to Yuma substation---------- -----------------------
Flatiron switchyard to Leyner substation__________________
Leyner substation to Brighton substation__________________
Flatiron switchyard to Pole Hill power plant_______________
Kremmling tap line to Oak Creek substation______________
Estes power plant to Marys Lake power plant_____________
Estes power plant to Granby pumping plant.--------------------
Brush switchyard to Limon substation_____________________
Missouri River Basin:
Casper (Wyoming) to Gering (Nebraska)__________________
Sidney (Nebraska) to Ogallala (Nebraska)----------------- ---------
Alliance (Nebraska) to Chadron (Nebraska)_______________
Glendive (Montana) pumping plant tap line_______________
Havre (Montana) to Shelby (Montana)____________________
Leeds (North Dakota) to Rolla (North Dakota)___________
Jamestown (North Dakota) to Edgeley (North Dakota)___
Edgeley (North Dakota) to Forman (North Dakota)..____
Total _ _ _____ . - ________ ____________
August 1950______
March 1950_______
July 1950_________
September 1950___
September 1950—
October 1950--------
December 1950___
December 1950-----
November 1950___
June 1951_________
April 1951________
January 1951_____
June 1951_________
August 1950______
May 1951--------------
January 1951_____
June.1951_________
June 1951_________
April 1951________
April 1951________
April 1951________
Construction was continuing on nearly 3,000 miles of high voltage
transmission lines at the end of 1951 fiscal year. A large percentage
of these lines will be placed in operation during fiscal year 1952.
Power Contracts
Electric power was delivered to numerous major and minor users of
power during the fiscal year by the Bureau. Deliveries were made to
38 municipalities, 3 State government agencies, 83 rural electric cooperatives,
7 Federal agencies, 45 public authorities, 34 commercial
and industrial users, and 35 privately owned utilities. A summary by
classification of customers for the 12 months ending June 30, 1951, is
contained in table 9.
During the year, 89 contracts for delivery of power were executed.
These include 4 contracts with irrigation districts, 7 with municipalities,
3 with State authorities, 42 with rural electric cooperatives, 5 with
other Federal agencies, 2 with public power districts, 23 with privately
owned utilities, and 3 with other customers. A number of these
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 61
contracts were renewals of expiring contracts or revisions resulting
from changed contractual conditions.
Contracts for wheeling service were entered into with Idaho Power
Co., Pacific Gas & Electric Co., Northwestern Public Service Co., Public
Service Co. of Colorado, Montana Power Co., and East Rivei Electric
Power Cooperative.
1 Does not include energy sales and revenues in transactions between Bureau projects.
Table 9.—Summary by classification of customers for 12 months ending
June 30, 1951 1
Number
of customers
Sales of electric
energy,
(kilowatthours)
Revenues
from sales
of electric
energy
35
38
3
83
7
370
7
34
45
44
4, 612,120, 967
2,329,148,082
653,014,128
217, 264,348
12, 731,135, 751
3,841,338
98,810
74,497, 212
492, 612, 253
151,625,312
$16, 542,689
4,946, 241
1.944,906
1,457, 282
8,337,066
24, 270
1,049
454,168
1,195,997
222,342
State Government utilities------------------------------------------- - ------——
Cooperative utilities (Rural Electric Administration projects) - -.
Residential and domestic------------------------------------------ -----------------
• Rural (other than Rural Electric Administration projects)--------
Commercial and industrial.-------------------------------------------------------
Interdepartmental------------------------------- --------------------------------------
Total all customers---------------------------------7-----------6--6-6------2-1--,- 265,358, 201 35,126,010
At the beginning of fiscal year 1952, the Bureau had 282 contracts
for delivery of power under negotiation. These include 7 with irrigation
districts, 6 with public power districts, 24 with Federal agencies
and bureaus, 9 with State authorities, 16 with private utilities, 80
with municipalities, 124 with REA cooperatives, and 16 with other customers.
A number of these are for the renewal of existing contracts
or for revision to reflect changed conditions. A large number of the
contracts under negotiation are for future power deliveries at such
time as additional generating capacity now under construction is
placed into commercial operation.
GENERAL INVESTIGATIONS
The General Investigations program of the Bureau provides for
the planning of the basin and project developments of the Bureau of
Reclamation for the utilization of the water resources of the West
and Alaska. World War II brought about outstanding increases in
population which have aggravated deficiencies in water and power in
those areas. The investigation of water and power resources will
clear the way for essential future developments necessary for a stable
economy and vital contributions to National defense. Despite the
advances made in the last decade, economic developments have failed
to match the population increases. These investigations are the first
62 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
steps in matching feasible project construction with existing water
and power demands.
The development of the resources of the West for irrigation is short
of the half-way mark. Hardly more than a good start has been made
on hydroelectric power development. Varying degrees of progress
have been made in the accomplishment of objectives such as flood
control, sediment control, recreation, fish and wildlife preservation
and propagation, and pollution abatement. During the first few
decades of water development in the West, the inexpensive and easily
developed projects were almost completely exhausted, largely by privately
financed development. The remaining potentials are, in the
main, long-range basin-wide developments of exceeding complexity
which only the Federal Government has the ability to finance.
Sound reclamation development is impossible without adequate
planning which in turn is impossible without adequate appropriations
for General Investigations with which the investigations are financed.
However, the funds available for investigations have not been adequate
to meet the needs and the Bureau has been forced to limit the
number of investigations included in the program because of this lack
of funds.
Comprehensive River Basin Surveys
The Flood Control Act of 1950 authorized the Secretary of the
Army to develop comprehensive, integrated plans of development
for the Arkansas, White, and Red River Basins in the Southwest. In
approving this authorization the President directed all interested
Federal agencies to work together in preparing these plans.
An interagency field committee for the Arkansas-White and Red
River Basins was established by the Federal Interagency River Basin
Committee on June 12, 1950, to coordinate at the field level, work in
the comprehensive survey of these basins. The Bureau’s cooperative
investigations in these basins got under way in fiscal year 1951.
A reconnaissance report on the potential development of water resources
in the Territory of Alaska was cleared with the office of the
President and submitted to the Congress in July 1951.
The Bureau of Reclamation completed its reconnaissance of the
United Western Investigations and closed the office conducting the
survey for the present. A report was completed which is undergoing
review in the office of the Secretary.
The Bureau’s investigations of the Rogue River Basin in Oregon
leading to a comprehensive basin report have been substantially
completed.
The Bureau has underway a number of other basin surveys of
western streams. The investigations of the Washita River Basin in
Oklahoma are nearing completion.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 63
New Projects Authorized
In fiscal year 1951 the following projects were authorized for construction
by the Congress:
Canadian River project, Texas.
Eklutna project, Alaska.
Minidoka project, Idaho, American Falls Power Division and
North Side Pumping Division.
Vermejo project, New Mexico.
Palisades project, Idaho—reauthorized.
The Sacramento River Canals were authorized as a part of the
Central Valley project, California, subject to a subsequent finding of
feasibility to be made by the Secretary of the Interior. Also, the
Alcova Power Plant of the Kendrick project, Wyoming, was authorized
by a finding of feasibility under Reclamation law by the
Secretary.
Except for the Eklutna project, which would provide power for
power-deficient Alaska, and the Alcova Power Plant, which consists
only of the construction of a new power plant at an existing dam, none
of these newly authorized projects are included in the President’s
construction programs for fiscal years 1951 or 1952 because of the
need to concentrate on national defense, although these projects are
urgently needed to help meet existing water and power shortages
and to maintain the essential civilian economy.
Other Project Planning Reports
The report on the Collbran project was transmitted to the Congress
on July 3, 1951. Reports on the Hells Canyon Division and the
Scriver Creek power facilities, Mountain Home Division, Snake River
project, Idaho, Oregon, were submitted to the President through the
Bureau of the Budget in fiscal year 1951.
In connection with the development of the Colorado River storage
project, which would provide storage for the comprehensive development
of the Upper Colorado River Basin, a public hearing was held on
April 3, 1950, to consider the merits of constructing Echo Park and
Split Mountain Dams which would impound water within the Dinosaur
National Monument. The hearing attracted large numbers of
proponents from Colorado River Basin States and numerous opponents
representing recreational interests. After careful analysis of
the testimony presented at the hearing, the Secretary approved the
completion of a report recommending construction of the dams. The
report on the general project plan and on the initial units was completed
in fiscal year 1951 and is under review by the affected States
and Federal agencies. The plan of development for the Colorado
64 4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
River storage project provides for aid in the financing of the con'
struction of irrigation projects in the Upper Basin with revenues
from the power developments in the storage project. The following
initial units and participating projects are recommended for construction
in the report:
Initial development, Colorado River storage project
Echo Park unit, Colorado, Utah.
Flaming Gorge unit, Wyoming, Utah.
Glen Canyon unit, Arizona, Utah.
Navajo unit, New Mexico, Colorado.
Participating projects
Central Utah project, Utah (initial phase).
Emery County project, Utah.
Florida project, Colorado.
Hammond project, New Mexico.
LaBarge project, Wyoming.
Lyman project, Wyoming.
Pine River project extension, Colorado, New Mexico.
Seedskadee project, Wyoming.
Silt project, Wyoming.
Smith Fork project, Colorado.
The Paonia project, Colorado, now under construction, is proposed
for reauthorization as a participating project. The Eden project,
Wyoming, also under construction, has been authorized as a participating
project. In addition, the Shiprock Indian project is proposed
for authorization in accordance with laws applicable to the development
of irrigation projects on Indian reservations.
The report on the initial development of the Gunnison-Arkansas
project, Colorado, is under review by the affected States. This project
would provide supplemental water and power for the Arkansas Valley
by diversion from the Upper Colorado River Basin.
The report on the Joseph City unit, Holbrook project, Arizona, was
reviewed by the affected States and Federal agencies in fiscal year
1951.
Definite Plan Reports
Project planning feasibility reports are prepared to present a comprehensive
plan for orderly development and conservation of water
and related resources, and to ascertain the probable engineering and
financial feasibility to a degree sufficient to enable recommendation
for or against further work on the plan of a project. These reports
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 65
are made to secure authorization of the project. Considerable detailed
studies and exploratory work usually remains to be done following
this stage before sufficient data are available to start the
preparation of final designs and specifications. Sometimes projects
are authorized by the Congress before the investigations have been
completed and the report written even though adequate data maybe
available to support a favorable recommendation for authorization
of a project. Usually there is a fairly long period between authorization
of a project and start of actual construction due to lack of funds
as well as to lack of detailed information. Therefore, following the
authorization of a project, there is need for a report on the additional
studies, including investigations and negotiations consummated prior
to construction, that are required to determine the definite plan of
development for the project. Such a report, known as the Definite
Plan Report, is prepared for the whole project, or for a unit of the
project, depending on the size and complexity of the plans for development
of the project.
Definite plan reports were prepared, reviewed and approved for the
following projects or units in fiscal year 1951:
Missouri River Basin project:
Angostura unit, South Dakota.
Yellowtail unit, Montana, Wyoming.
Eklutna project, Alaska.
Drafts of a number of other reports were under review at the end
of the fiscal year.
River Compacts
The Bureau of Reclamation continued to assist the States in every
way practical in the negotiations of interstate water compacts and in
compact operation. Bureau representatives have participated directly
in the negotiations for most of these compacts. Bureau technical
personnel have assisted in the studies necessary for a successful
compact.
The Canadian River Compact between New Mexico, Oklahoma, and
Texas and the Yellowstone River Compact between Wyoming, Montana,
and North Dakota both have been ratified by the appropriate
State legislatures and, at the end of the year, were awaiting congressional
action.
Negotiations for the Cheyenne River Compact, between Wyoming
and South Dakota, were completed but the Wyoming legislature declined
to ratify the compact although an earlier, but similar, version
had been ratified.
Active negotiations for the Bear River Compact between Wyoming,
Utah, and Idaho, were continued during the year.
66 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Hydrology
In addition to its usual hydrologic studies, the Bureau of Reclamation
has continued to improve the bases for its technical work, thus
continuing to improve the quality of planning for the best utilization
of water for irrigation and power and to coordinate flood control
operations with the Corps of Engineers.
During the year, such diverse studies as the use of water on Bureau
projects, the derivation of flood hydrographs from precipitation,
forecasting of seasonal runoff, and sediment movement in rivers and
canals were initiated or continued.
In cooperation with the Forest Service, studies of snow melt in the
Colorado River basin were continued while studies of evaporation at
Lake Hefner, near Oklahoma City, Okla., in cooperation with the
Geological Survey, Weather Bureau, and the Department of the Navy
were nearing completion.
Field work in sedimentation studies continued. Resurveys of Pathfinder
and Seminoe Reservoirs on the North Platte River in Wyoming
were completed and special studies of sediment movement in the
Niobrara River in Nebraska were undertaken in cooperation with the
Geological Survey as were general studies of fluvial morphology.
Particular emphasis was placed on development of better methods
of forecasting stream discharge, both seasonal and flood flows. Refinements
in method of determining possible flood discharge have resulted
in increased confidence that procedures provide a method for adequate
and economic spillway design. Better methods of forecasting seasonal
runoff are leading to economy of operation in irrigation projects both
to the Bureau and to the farmer.
International Streams Investigations
The Bureau participated in the international engineering studies
of the Kootenai River in the Columbia River Basin, and in developing
information for use in the preparation of reports to the Internationa]
Joint Commission on all international aspects of the Columbia River.
Engineering work has been advanced on the Waterton-Belly Rivers
reference and the Souris-Red Rivers reference made to the International
Joint Commission in January 1948. The Commission held
public hearings at Ottawa in October 1950, relative to apportionment
of flows of the Waterton and Belly Rivers to the United States and
Canada. Work was continued on collection of data that will be needed
for preparation of plans of mutual advantage to the two countries
as soon as the Commission has made its recommendation for apportionment.
Studies of present and future water uses were continued on the
Souris and Red Rivers, It was found that from the standpoint of the
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 67
engineering studies which have been completed, based upon prevailing
water flow conditions, no apportionment of the waters of the Red
River at the International Boundary appears to be required at the
present time.
Artificial Precipitation and Salt Water Conversion
Studies of current technical developments in artificial precipitation
and salt water conversion which were initiated in 1947, were accelerated.
This was done in anticipation of enactment of legislation
(H. R. 6 and 7 and S. 5) which would establish an active research and
demonstration program in these fields for the purpose of augmenting
the Nation’s fresh-water supply. The studies in artificial precipitation
made by the Bureau of Reclamation since 1947 were referred to
the other agencies of the Department, resulting in the establishment
of a departmental committee on artificial precipitation.
PROGRAMS AND FINANCE
New Accounting System
During the fiscal year 1951 the Bureau brought to substantial completion
the conversion of its accounting system to modern and utility
recognized practices. Under date of July 25, 1950, the system was
submitted to the Comptroller General of the United States for approval
of the principles and basic concepts underlying the new accounting.
Subject to certain qualifications pertaining to development
of policies, improvements, and accounting techniques for depreciation,
repayment by water users, costing of accrued annual leave
and the classification of physical properties for reporting and ratemaking
purposes, the Comptroller General, under date of October 6,
1950, formally approved the new accounting system.
Continuous attention has been directed toward the solution of the
problems mentioned above, with special consideration directed toward
the subject of depreciation accounting. The basic principle of depreciation
accounting has been approved by the Commissioner of
tire Bureau and a committee has been appointed to resolve this complex
subject. It is anticipated that depreciation accounting coveringall
income-producing properties operated by the Government will be
adopted by July 1, 1952.
At the time the new accounting system was established it was necessary
to require detailed and complete financial statements and reports
on a monthly basis in order that the Commissioner’s Washington
Office could determine from the reports (1) progress being made
in analysis of old account balances, (2) accuracy of the new accounting
operations and practices, and (3) adequacy and management
needs for financial data. As a result of continuing self-analysis, the
68 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
frequency and simplification of reporting has been revised with a
marked reduction in the workload covering this phase of operations.
When conversion was made to the new accounting system it was
necessary to convert many of the old account balances without analysis.
Since conversion, the importance of early completion of the
old account analysis has been emphasized in all offices concerned.
Satisfactory progress has been made in this respect and it is anticipated
that the analysis will be completed early in the fiscal year 1952.
The completion of the account analysis, the application of accounting
improvements and procedures will permit for the first time the
preparation of an informative consolidated Bureau balance sheet
and financial report as of June 30, 1952.
The Budget and Accounting Procedures Act of 1950, approved
September 12, 1950 (Public Law 784, 81st Cong.), granted broad
authority to the Comptroller General of the United States and to the
Secretary of the Treasury to prescribe such changes in Governmental
accounting procedures as would result in simplification, improvement,
modernization, and economy.
Pursuant to the provisions of this act several Treasury Department-
General Accounting Office joint regulations were issued, which prescribed
basic and far-reaching changes and modifications in the accounting
procedures of the Government. Many of these revisions were
founded on pilot installations tested and checked in Reclamation offices.
In order that the joint regulations could be made effective on a
uniform and consistent basis throughout the Government, the General
Accounting Office prepared a number of accounting-systems memoranda
which prescribed certain new and detailed accounting procedures
for use by all Government agencies. These actions necessitated
a number of changes in the accounting system of the Bureau of
Reclamation.
Manualization of Procedures
Numerous revisions in Government accounting procedures were
prescribed by the Treasury Department and the General Accounting
Office. These actions required almost complete revision of the finance
manual. The revisions incorporated not only the changes necessary
for conformance to the newly prescribed procedures but also included
refinements and improvements resulting from experience gained in
actual practice in the finance offices, and from finance conferences and
joint studies conducted by members of the Washington and field staffs.
The general ledger charts of accounts were consolidated and simplified
without sacrifice of information. Additional economies and simplification
were obtained in revisions pertaining to allotment and fund
accounting, cost accounting, power operation, and irrigation account- ’
ing, etc.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 69
Full cognizance is had of the need for additional standardization
and uniformity in payroll operations. During the last quarter of
fiscal year 1951, pilot installations were made of payroll procedures
on bookkeeping machines in two regions. Additional pilot installations
will be made in selected offices of the remaining regions early in
the fiscal year 1952 after which standard payroll procedures will be
manualized.
Because of the improvements and economies obtained in the application
of machine accounting in certain field offices during the fiscal
year 1951, it is proposed to conduct surveys in additional offices during
the ensuing year to ascertain whether similar results can be effected on
a broader scale. In addition, it is proposed to review machine accounting
operations presently in effect to determine whether broader application
to additional accounting would be advantageous. At the
conclusion of these studies, it is proposed to manualize machine-accounting
procedures so that the most desirable and consistent benefits
will be obtained uniformly throughout all Bureau offices involved.
Program Coordination
Formalizing of program procedures to assure coordination of program
schedules with budget documents and program reports and to
provide effective administrative control of field activities had been
accomplished to a large degree when the fiscal year began. During
the year, emphasis was placed on activities directed toward refinement
and simplification of existing procedures.
Particular effort was made to relate programs and budgets to the
accounts. More orderly and systematic procedures were established
for handling the annual review of program documents prior to their
official approval by the Commissioner. Conferences were held in
Washington and in the field to develop more effective and workable
program procedures. Closer liaison was maintained between the
Washington Office and field offices to afford a better understanding of
the Commissioner’s policies and requirements and to insure the availability
of coordinated and up-to-date program documents for keeping
top management, the Congress, and the Bureau of the Budget informed
of Reclamation’s programs.
The international situation was beginning to have its effect on the
Bureau’s activities during the latter part of the fiscal year. Changed
criteria required reexamination of the Bureau’s program and in some
cases necessitated rescheduling of programmed work. Loss of personnel
to the defense agencies also necessitated simplification of programing
procedures.
Efforts will continue to be directed toward the achievement of more
realistic programing, while scheduling procedures will be subject to
continuous scrutiny for improvement and simplification.
70 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 10.— Schedule of public works construction program s
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 71
42
X CD
zZ^ n rr"< . /II
1 £ b£
«£ S
42
973649—52- -8
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' ;£5
!2-sI □
Eh
72 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 10.— Schedule o f public works construction program s— Continued
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 73
74 ♦ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
§ s
H
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SSS552 2^82 -^8882282 32 22 822
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 75
996,762
121,377
30,426,330
13,116,052
115,587
179, 210
471, 541
147,430
199,730, 774
9, 677, 799
14, 520, 705
182, 284
224, 111, 562
24,353, 717
248, 465, 279
38,064,070
780,000
227,095,397
593,030
32,000
1,993,686
26,000
509,000
719,749,187
675, 628, 510
1,342, 899, 219
-376, 6841
os
7
2, 736, 805, 232
262,348,862
2, 999,154, 094
500, 000
33,571,000
2,000
96,884,000 |
3,625, 000
3, 904, 000
82,000i
g
r—1
105, 590, 000
7, 500, 000
000 ‘960 ‘£11 '
100,000
930,679
33,800
5,000
1 o
18
11 ioo'
239,579
557, 600
233,896
78,000
109, 075
000,000
109,075
13,
42,
2,
3 3,
48,
5,
53,
1,245,930
161, 523
32,974,275
14,673,020
216,359
190,371
476,404
151, 728
214,079,482
11, 036,438
15,815,885
216, 684
241,148,489
25,151,138
266, 299, 627
39,310,000
1, 541,523
307,571,351
15, 266,050
282,159
2,189,057
504,404
710,728
,072,952,248
co o !
S O j
00 00 ।
Ociii COO i। CO CO [
131, 652, 796
300, 000, 000
431, 652, 796
t —4 I CO co
76 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 10.—Schedule of p u b lic w orks co n stru ctio n p ro g ra m s—Continued
78 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Schedule o f irrigation and power developm ent
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 79
S3SSSS3S3 S3 3 3 3 3 8 8 £ 3 3 SSS
80 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Schedule of irrigation and power developm ent— Continued
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 81
82 > ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 83
84 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Appropriations
Appropriations for 1951 were made to the Bureau of Reclamation
in conformity with the new appropriation structure as recommended
by the House Appropriations Committee. Under the new appropriation
structure the Bureau’s multifarious activities are grouped into
four major appropriation items, namely, General Investigations, Construction
and Rehabilitation, Operation and Maintenance, and General
Administrative Expenses, with specified amounts to be derived
from the Reclamation fund and the Colorado River Dam fund.
These 4 main appropriations replaced 54 appropriation items and
unnumbered subitems which appeared in the 1950 Appropriation Act.
The language has been streamlined and reduced wherever possible
without sacrificing the intent of the Congress. This entirely new
language is an improvement in mechanics and not a change in basic
policy.
Under the lump-sum provisions of the 1951 Appropriation Act,
operations of the Bureau are handled in a fashion similar to the
manner in which the Missouri River Basin appropriation has been
handled in the past 5 years, Allotments are made to individual projects
or activities in accordance with the expressed desires of the Congress,
and the expenditures are controlled by a programing and
reporting system which has been set up in cooperation with the General
Accounting Office to insure that the program moves forward only, as
approved by the Congress at the maximum rate permissible with
available funds.
It is anticipated that requests for deficiency and supplemental appropriations
will be minimized somewhat as a limited interchange
of allotments within the appropriation is permitted in cases of real
emergency; only, however, with the approval of the Secretary of the
Interior who is charged with the responsibility of carrying out the
intent of the Congress with respect to allocations.
The General Appropriation Act, 1951, was the first omnibus appropriation
bill approved by the Congress. However, this type of bill
for fiscal year 1952 appropriation was abandoned by the Congress
in favor of the appropriation bills for individual agencies such as
those types of bills prior to fiscal year 1951.
Regular and supplemental appropriations for the Bureau of Reclamation
for fiscal year 1951 totaled $325,494,000. After savings effected
by the Bureau of the Budget acting under the mandate of
section 1214 of the General Appropriation Act, 1951, the net appropriations
available were $271,543,800, a reduction of $53,950,200.
Contract authority for $3,000,000 granted to the Bureau in the 1951
appropriation was also withheld by the Bureau of the Budget acting
under the authority in section 1214.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 85
Unused balances carried over from fiscal year 1950 plus contributions
from other sources and fund adjustments equaled $65,783,863
making a total available for obligation of $337,327,663.
The unobligated funds at the end of fiscal year 1951 carried over
into fiscal year 1952 amounted to 32.3 million dollars, something less
than the regular 10 percent of the total available for obligation usually
allowed as a provision against contingencies and frequently carried
over.
Obligations for fiscal year 1951 totaled 305 million dollars or 90.4
percent of the work programed in 1951 as compared with 85.3 percent
accomplished in fiscal year 1950.
The limitation on the amount of money which may be used for
the performance of work by Government forces (force account work),
first imposed upon the Bureau in the 1949 appropriation act, was included
again in the 1951 act. The 1951 act carried the same limitation
as appeared in the 1950 bill, viz, not to exceed 12 percent of the
allotment for any one project with a maximum of $225,000 to be used
on any one project or unit of Missouri River Basin.
A limitation of $150,000 in the General Administrative Expenses
appropriation was imposed upon expenditures for informational work
in 1951. This was the same limitation as appeared in the 1950 act.
The amount appropriated, including all suppiementals for fiscal
year 1951 for each activity, together with the amount to be derived
from the special and general funds, is as follows:
Table 11.—Condensed statement of appropriations, fiscal year 1951,
exclusive of trust funds
Amount appropriated
Budget reserve
under section
1214
Net appropriation
General investigations_________________ _______________
Reclamation fund__________________________________
Colorado River Dam fund: Colorado River development
fund -------- ___ _ _ ___ ___________
$5,875,000
(5,116,000)
(500,000)
(259,000)
296,928,000
(25,135, 700)
(271, 792, 300)
15,491,000
(12, 001, 400)
(1,808, 000)
(1, 681,600)
7, 200, 000
(7, 200,000)
$375, 000
(316, 000)
$5, 500, 000
(4,800,000)
(500,000)
(200, 000)
243, 733, 000
(23,219, 965)
(220, 513, 035)
15,446,800
(13, 872, 935)
(1,808, 000)
(1, 681, 600)
6,864, 000
(6, 864,000)
General fund__ __ . __ - ______________________ (59, 000)
53,195, 000
(1, 915, 735)
(51,279,265)
44,200
(44, 200)
Construction and rehabilitation •______________________
Reclamation fund__________________________________
General fund. ____ _______ _____________________
Operation and maintenance______________________ _•____
Reclamation fund--. _________ _________ ______
Colorado River Dam fund
General fund______ __ . ...____ - ___________ ...
General administrative expenses_______________________
Reclamation fund__________________________________
Grand total. - _ . - ________
336, 000
(336, 000)
325, 494, 000
(49, 453,100)
(2,308,000)
(273, 732, 900)
53, 950,200 271, 543,800
Reclamation fund ... ______ _____ _ ______
Colorado River Dam fund _ ______ _ _______
General fund______ _ _ . _____ ____ _
1 In addition, appropriation act granted contracting authority in the amount of $3,000,000 which was
impounded by Bureau of the Budget under authority' in section 1214.
86 > ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 12.—Annual appropriations 1 summary by funds and total expenditures,
1902—51
Fiscal year Reclamation
fund
General
fund 3
Revenue
available
Emergency
funds
Permanent
appropriation
expenditures
Total
appropriations
Total
expenditures
1906 3 $17,363,800 $17,363,800 4 $12,658,163
1907 18, 051,161 18, 051,161 12, 533; 916
1908 9, 562,038 $1, 000,000 10, 562, 038 11, 799,956
1909 9,180, 700 9,180, 700 10,390,395
1910 8,183,300 8,183,300 10, 050, 733
1911 26, 896, 790 26, 896, 790 9, 556.325
1912 8,262,367 8,262,367 11,663,193
1913 8^ 300, 508 8,300, 508 8, 791,905
1914 15' 931j 922 15,931, 922 10, 437, 941
1915 1, 204,411 1, 204, 411 14, 213.173
1916 13 530,000 (5) 13, 530,000 8,805, 940
1917 8,887, 557 $15, 000 8, 902, 557 8, 023,130
1918 8, 227,000 310,213 8, 537,213 8,982, 355
1919 9,397, 081 443^ 196 9,840,277 8,645, 625
1920 7,300, 000 548, 927 7,848,927 6,399,871
1921 8,463, 000 661’ 177 9,124,177 10, 034.149
1922 20 266,000 335,871 20,601,871 8,760,134
1923 14,800,000 559, 530 15,359, 530 10, 045, 703
1924 13,800, 000 314i 067 14,114,067 11,873, 766
1925 11,890,809 11,890,809 10,869, 452
1926 12. 563,240 50,000 12, 613,240 8, 906,138
1927 7,436,320 75j000 7, 511,320 7,449, 552
1928 12 148,800 50j 000 12,198, 800 8,636, 998
1929 14 138,400 115, 000 190,000 14,443, 400 10, 254, 937
1930 8, 253, 000 10, 760' 000 390, 000 19, 403, 000 10,995,304
1931 9, 087,000 100^ 000 395, 000 9, 582,000 13, 942, 762
1932 6,971, 000 25,100, 000 300,000 32,371,000 26,345,915
1933 2, 442, 288 13 j 050, 000 375, 000 15,867,288 25, 204, 914
1934 3 003 000 8’, 048,000 405,000 $163,53'5,000 114,991, 000 24, 751,833
1935 860, 750 316, 000 34,076,000 35,252, 750 40,882,912
1936 1 022,100 20, 950, 000 366,000 25,438,000 47, 776,100 49,849,120
1937 12,028,600 36j 850, 000 666, 000 -4,873,000 44, 671, 600 52,379,804
1938 ___ 11, 991, 600 6 30, 670i 000 831,000 39,547, 500 $1,100,000 84,140,100 65,405,810
1939 ______ 10, 574, 600 32,995, 000 866, 000 -5,002,488 4,600,000 44, 033,112 79, 329, 428
1940 _________ 13, 269,600 63, 715, 000 1,181,000 23,334 5, 700,000 83,888, 934 96,365, 934
1941 ______ 9, 429,600 63, 765,000 1,339,000 -119, 287 6, 600,000 81, 014, 313 85, 596, 484
1942__________ 7,446,600 93, 915, 031 1, 414, 400 -19,965 2, 600,000 105,356, 066 91, 438, 941
1943 _____ 2, 651.060 87, 076, 210 1,936,400 -1,127 2,600, 000 94,262, 543 69,287,440
1944 _______ 2,422, 500 35-, 853, 000 3,335, 075 -72, 709 5,669, 468 47, 207,334 54, 587, 242
1945__________ 5,321, 000 19, 324,200 3, 278,800 -22,332 5,282, 501 33,184,169 50,376, 076
1946 34,089,290 84,970, 500 3, 578,600 4,491, 718 127,130,108 64,362,688
1947__________ 36,315,968 77', 846’. 135 3,284, 245 -30,396 4,806,879 122, 222,831 123,142,887
1948 20 127,250 117,508,288 5, 549, 500 5, 545,400 148, 730,438 176,153, 466
1949 29,952,663 229' 25b 503 6,999; 601 5, 293, 475 271,497, 242 243,794,856
1950 35, 447, 705 313 j 557, 275 9,327, 097 8, 034,825 366,366,902 298,373, 537
1951__________ (7) 271, 543,800 (’) —3 5,502,086 277,045,886 3 348, 793,030
Total... 548,492,378 1, 641,311, 923 46,338, 718 192,478, 530 67,826,352 2,496, 447,901 2,331,143,833
i Including allotments from the Reclamation fund through 1915; authorizations for increased compensation
from general fund, 1918 through 1924, power and other revenues made available; and allocations from
emergency funds 1934-44. , . .
2 General fund includes appropriations for operation and maintenance of the Colorado River front work
and levee system and for the Colorado River Dam fund.
3 Allotments prior to 1906 W’ere canceled on July 27, 1907, at Fallon, Nev., and summary allotments
issued in lieu thereof.
4 Total expenditures for 1903-06, as follows: 1903 -$269,094; 1904—$1,513,431; 1905—$3,767,922, 1906
^Excludes appropriation of $100,000 to Secretary of the Interior for Imperial Valley protection.
6 Includes appropriation of $100,000 to Bureau of Reclamation for Bonneville.
? All funds merged into the general fund appropriation in fiscal year 1951.
s Estimate.
Reports
Reporting methods and reports covering analyses of progress on the
Bureau’s programs for General Investigations, Construction and Rehabilitation,
and Operation and Maintenance, operating financial and
personnel statistics and preparation of periodicals and publications
were further improved during the year to meet minimum administrative
and top management requirements.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 87
Table 13—The Reclamation fund, 1950-52, funds available for appropriation
Actual
1950
Actual
1951
Estimated
1952
Unappropriated balance brought forward (as of June 30)----------- $41,128, 209 $32,136, 457 $40,828, 300
Accretions and collections:
Bureau of Reclamation, 100----------------------------------------------- 9,251, 558
10, 041,395
17,023,785
8, 893,499
17,929,996
29,417,040
—
Reclamation fund, power revenues, 300----------------------------
Total accretions and collections------------------------------------- 36, 346, 738 56, 240, 535 -------------- ------
Total available for appropriation-------------------------- --------- 77,444,947 88,376,992 —
LCSAppropriated for refund of revenue collections - -------
Appropriated for farmers irrigation district. North Platte
14, 985 398,154
6,575
2,309,137
5,116, 000
25,135, 700
12,001,400
7, 200,000
—
Appropriated collections returned to receipts--------------------
Add: Lapsed appropriations-------------------- - --------------------------
Deduct appropriation or estimate for general investigations------
Investigations, upper Colorado River Basin---------------------
672, 066
129, 796
3„700, 000
500,000
50,000
21,853, 063
2, 500,000
11, 783, 072
(7 onsti uction-------- . ,. . j
Rehabilitation and betterment of existing projects------------
Operation and maintenance----------------------------------------------
Salaries and expenses---------- ---------------------------------------- -
4,365,166
Total appropriation or estimate-------------------------------------
Balance carried forward-------------------------------------------------
44. 751, 235
32,136, 457
49,453,100
40,828, 300
------ =
For progress analyses, the monthly fund and Cost Data Digest of
prior year, limited to the Construction and Rehabilitation program
was expanded to include General Investigations and Operation and
Maintenance programs and retitled Activities Digest. Available to
the Commissioner’s Office in summary form by the 15th of the month
following the report month, it reports monthly on progress made on
each activity, Bureau-wide, in terms of costs and funds. With this
timely report as the base, the Bureau’s monthly progress report, complete
with supplementary data, was prepared for administrative and
for interim statistical reference purposes pending compilation of annual
data and for records. Likewise, the quarterly program accomplishment
letters which summarize performances complete with
analyses, interpretation, and trends for each region were prepared
for management purposes. A series of display charts illustrating
progress on accomplishments and related items were developed and
maintained for visual ready-reference and conference pui poses. More
sensitive reporting on anticipated changes in scheduled actions was
developed by adding forecast of flagged action changes to the established
Flagged Action reporting routine. Among other purposes, the
revision provides for establishing advance schedules for critical materials
requiring priorities.
The summary cost and progress monthly reporting system for all
activities and the monthly reports on status of construction and supply
973649—52—9
88 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 14.—Accretions to Reclamation fund by States, fiscal year 1951
State
Sale of public lands Proceeds from oil leasing act
Total to June
F iscal year 30,1951
1951
To June 30,
1951
Fiscal year
1951
To June 30,
1951
Alabama______ _____ $4,372. 65
2, 879,885. 69
$79. 80
9,164. 74
36. 75
3, 778, 542.82
2,157,470. 90
$199,092.35
75,564.02
2, 783.08
43,233, 501. 58
10,117,895.16
126.00
246, 639.87
21.00
153,489.37
424, 617. 00
11,095.98
3, 649.10
5,162,404.19
6, 808. 80
454, 262. 33
15, 844, 395. 69
402,801. 70
89, 368. 59
10, 550.46
97, 674.28
3, 543,035. 78
50,427. 36
67, 799,846. 61
$203,465.00
2, 955, 449. 71
2, 783.08
52, 074, 533. 88
20, 669,673. 77
126.00
7, 541,186.03
21.00
1,193,395. 50
424,617.00
11,095.98
3,649.10
20, 784,869. 92
2,163, 359. 74
1, 560,182.15
22, 763, 613. 59
12,648, 791. 24
6,040,439.81
12, 605, 316.15
7, 844, 743. 33
8,083,279. 92
7, 924, 800. 7o
76,908,620.82
Arizona __ _ ___________ $30, 725.53
Arkansas
California ______ ____ 206,611.40
35, 257. 62
8, 841,032. 30
Colorado_ _____ 10, 551, 778. 61
Florida
Idaho___ __ 90, 256.67 7,294, 546.16 78, 533.02
21.00
45,444.64
10, 602. 71
1, 629.13
1, 523.54
676,432. 28
3, 931.01
376, 717. 75
1, 986, 581.03
40,538. 78
42,470. 89
1,419. 99
49,482.89
513,037. 28
2,196.00
5, 777, 358. 52
Illinois _ _ ____ _
Kansas______ ________ 2,180.83 1, 039, 906.13
Louisiana
Michigan ____________
Mississippi
Montana _ _____ __ 75, 404.80
30, 913. 81
11,922. 77
14, 283. 23
7,156.26
3, 564.44
252, 892. 86
4, 241.22
42, 874. 58
202, 803.02
27, 925. 54
15, 622,465. 73
2,156, 550. 94
1,105,919.82
6,919,217.90
12,245,989.54
5,951,071.22
12, 594, 765. 69
7, 747,069.05
4, 540, 244.14
7,874,373.34
9,108,774.21
Nebraska. ______ ______
Nevada . __ ..
New Mexico____________
North Dakota__________
Oklahoma..___ .
Oregon. .
South Dakota__________
Utah .. _ _ ._ __
Washington____________
Wyoming _____________
Total..________ _ 1, 039, 014. 58 116, 477,963.12 15, 553, 215. 57 147, 930,050. 30 264,408, 013.42
Proceeds, Federal waterpower
licenses. _ 1 1,165, 897. 50
2 4, 558, 220.00
29, 778, 300. 23
2 10, 550. 64
4 31,980. 39
s 723, 545. 73
6 158, 688. 95
Proceeds, potassium royalties
and rentals
Receipts from Naval
petroleum reserves, 1920-
38, act of May 9,1938
Proceeds from rights-ofway
over withdrawn
lands, act of July 19,
1919
Lease of lands .
Town lot sales
Timber sales, and other
miscellaneous items %
Grand total 300, 835,196.86
1 Proceeds for fiscal year, $417.33.
2 Proceeds for fiscal year, $1,156,765.64.
2 Proceeds for fiscal year, $148.85.
4 Proceeds for fiscal year, $21,064.46.
■’ Proceeds for fiscal year, $680.20.
6 Proceeds for fiscal year, $158,688.95.
contracts were maintained. Monthly tabulations of estimated unobligated
year-end funds were issued as in prior years and monthly
tables of year-end unexpended funds were compiled for management
and budgetary use. Establishment of a centralized statistical record
system was initiated. Among various compilations of ready reference
. statistical tables, a record of investments, benefits, and pertinent data,
by States, was progressed.
With the elimination of the Bureau of the Budget personnel ceiling
control, procedures for continuing under a Commissioner’s Personnel
Ceiling were established. The routine was effectively used to bring
about orderly reduction in employment from approximately 19,000 in
early July 1950 to 16,500 in June 1951 in pace with the leveling off of
fiscal year 1951 annual program and in anticipation of a smaller proANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 89
gram for fiscal year 1952 governed by defense needs. A plan was developed
to eliminate need for personnel ceiling procedures. Under
this plan, personnel requirements will be related to approved project
control schedules and internal office budgets, in terms of man-years
and personal services funds. Limitations will be established in accordance
with budgets and be funded, accounted and reported upon
using manual prescribed documents, accounting procedures, and report
forms. Personnel statistical reports were reduced to a minimum,
eliminating all unessential reporting. Display charts were maintained
for employment and its trend. The Activity and Object Expenditure
Report serving as a stopgap measure pending adoption of a more substantial
accounting and reporting device on costs involved in general
expenses, was continued through the year.
Federal Power Commission FPC 1 report series, the annual power
reports required by law under the Boulder Canyon Project Adjustment
Act and Fort Peck Project Act, and the Bureau’s Annual Consolidated
Operating Statement of Bureau of Reclamation Power Systems
were compiled. Likewise the Bureau’s Washington Report, a
periodical for acquainting all employees with important news and
policy matters, was issued on its biweekly schedule.
COMPTROLLER
The Office of the Comptroller pursued the delegated functions of
consultative and advisory service to the Commissioner and top staff
of his office and continued the development of expanding and more
effective auditing activity. At the beginning of the year a reorganized
plan of audit administration was instituted with the Commissioner’s
approval. This plan was designed to provide for maximum audit
production in the face of very limited potential in terms of staff numbers.
The plan has been productive and the past year witnessed
a degree and quality of performance heretofor unattained.
Because of the competition for trained professional accounting personnel
and the resulting difficulty of recruitment, the lapse factor in
the field audit staff was unusually high. Recent intensification of
recruitment efforts has largely overcome this situation. As a direct
outgrowth of the staffing problem, however, it was impossible to effectuate
one phase of the reorganized approach; namely, the establishment
of resident auditors. This phase of the operation has not been
abandoned, but its accomplishment is directly dependent upon
budgetary and recruitment factors.
Eighty-five auditing assignments were undertaken which included,
in addition to comprehensive project audits and water users audits,
special analyses of representative projects pertaining to stores and
equipment, work order system, salaries and expenses, budget and costing
practices, vouchering operations, and power operations.
90 + ANNUAL REPORT 8 OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
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2,461,886 I___________ I 2,461,886
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 91
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1 Flood control plant in service.
92 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 15.—In vestm en t in p la n t an d p ro p erty as of June 30, 1951—Continued
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 93
As heretofore, the field audit activity of the Comptroller covered
(1) financial audits of various types relating to the financial operations
of Bureau projects; (2) selected audits of water users’ organizations
having contractual relationships with the Department; and (3)
special audits dealing with cost allocations in joint venture construction,
construction contract claims, and many other subjects bearing
upon the financial program of the Bureau.
Ancillary to the audit work, the Comptroller’s staff discharged its
functions of financial policy and review in matters of repayment contracts,
analyses of rate schedules, municipal finance and management,
interagency agreements, external audit, and investigational reports
and legislation. The auditing and review functions of this office have
now progressed to a point at which there is positive integration between
field examinations and policy review.
In summary, the Comptroller’s functions have been stabilized by a
well-founded, precise program. This development is of particular
significance in the audit activity in which the work has progressed
beyond the experimental and pilot type operation to a phase of systematic,
effective performance.
LEGISLATION
At the close of the 1950 fiscal year several legislative bills affecting
the Bureau of Reclamation were pending before the Congress. Some
of these bills were enacted during the latter part of the second session
of the Eighty-first Congress, others were in various stages of the legislative
process when the Eighty-first Congress adjourned sine die on
January 2, 1951.
Among the enacted bills were five measures which authorized the
construction of projects by the Department of the Interior on the basis
of plans prepared by the Bureau of Reclamation.
The first such project authorized by the Congress during the fiscal
year 1951 was the Eklutna project in Alaska (Public Law 628, 81st
Cong., act of July 31, 1950). This hydroelectric power project is in
the vicinity of Anchorage, Alaska, and will supply an area in which
there is a shortage of electric energy. Although the project is not a
Federal Reclamation project, the Secretary on September 1, 1950,
designated the Bureau of Reclamation as the agency charged with the
construction, operation, and maintenance of the project.
The act of September 26, 1950 (Public Law 839, 81st Cong.), reauthorized
the Central Valley project so as to include certain irrigation
canals in the Sacramento Valley as an integrated part of that
project. Studies on such canals were commenced prior to the study
of the initial features of the Central Valley project. It was estimated
that the canals would not be required for approximately 25 years;
therefore, they were excluded from the initial project authorization in
94 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
1935. The increase in agricultural development in California during
the World War II years, plus the unprecedented population increases
brought the demand for these canals into existence about 10 years
ahead of the anticipated time.
The construction, operation, and maintenance of the Vermejo project
in New Mexico as a Federal Reclamation project was authorized
by the act of September 27, 1950. The project, which was originally
privately owned and operated, had deteriorated to such an extent that
only a part of the lands could be irrigated. It was no longer selfsustaining
and the resources of the local interests were insufficient for
the installation of necessary improvements. In order to preserve the
established economy of the area authorization of extensive and effective
rehabilitation measures by the Federal Government was necessary.
Authorization of the Palisades Dam and Reservoir project and the
North Side Pumping Division and American Falls power plant of the
Minidoka project was accomplished by the act of September 30, 1950
(Public Law 864, 81st Cong.). Enactment of this legislation constituted
a long step forward in the development of the water resources
of the Upper Snake River Valley in Idaho and in the settlement of
an extremely complicated water-right problem in that area.
Public Law 898 of the Eighty-first Congress (act of December 29,
1950) authorized the Canadian River project, Texas. The primary
purpose of the project is to furnish a reliable municipal and industrial
water supply to 11 cities and towns in the Panhandle-South Plains
area of northwest Texas which are now dependent upon a rapidly
declining ground water supply. Benefits relating to irrigation, flood
control, and fish and wildlife will also be served.
In addition to the above laws, which authorized the construction of
projects by the Department, other measures directly affecting the
Bureau of Reclamation were enacted by the Congress.
Two more amendatory repayment contracts, negotiated pursuant to
section 7 of the Reclamation Project Act of 1939, were authorized by
the Congress to be signed by the Secretary. Public Law 666 and Public
Law 667, both approved by the President on August 5., 1950, authorized
amendatory repayment contracts with the Ogden River Water
Users’ Association, Ogden River project, and the South Cache Water
Users’ Association, Hyrum project, respectively.
Other enactments during the latter part of the Eighty-first Congress
included: Public Law 713, authorizing the granting of easements and
rights-of-way by the United States without restriction to their duration;
Public Law 750, authorizing credits to certain agencies in the
United States for costs of construction and operation and maintenance
of flood protective levee systems along or adjacent to the lower Colorado
River; Public Law 832, providing for the transfer of a sewerage
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 95
system to the town of Mills, Wyo.; Public Law 840, amending the
Columbia Basin Project Act so as to extend the time during which
landowners within the project may sign recordable contracts and by
permitting certain landowners to bring their lands back in the project;
and Public Law 851, concerning the sale of State land within the
Columbia Basin project.
No legislation was enacted by the Congress affecting the Bureau of
Reclamation during the latter half of the fiscal year 1951.
Litigation
Attorneys in the Office of the Chief Counsel in Washington, D. C.,
and in the offices of the various regional counsel devoted many hours
in fiscal year 1951 to problems arising out of litigation involving the
Bureau of Reclamation. Assistance was given to the Department of
Justice in the conduct of trials in numerous cases and in the preparation
of legal briefs, arguments, stipulations, and proposed settlements.
Soon after the Supreme Court of the United States had rendered
its opinion in the action United States v. Gerlach Live Stock Co. and
related cases (339 U. S. 725) it was necessary to devote a considerable
amount of attention to various proposals to settle or enter into stipulations
in the Will Gill and three related actions which were pending
on the docket of the Court of Claims. These actions were instituted
to recover damages for the taking of water of the San Joaquin River
by the construction and operation of Friant Dam, Central Valley
project, California. A proposed statement of facts is being considered
by the Department of Justice and this Department.
Work continued on the actions filed by owners of land bordering the
channels of the San Joaquin River below the mouth of the Merced
River for alleged damages to their water rights. These actions, known
as the W. F. Brash and 16 related actions, involve a demand for the
sum of $1,287,000 with interest from the date of alleged taking. Consideration
is being given to an offer of settlement of these actions.
Proposed findings of fact, conclusions of law, and decree of the special
master in the case of United States v. Alpine Land <& Reservoir
Co. were submitted to Judge Roger T. Foley of the United States
District Court for the District of Nevada. This action affects the
water rights of the United States in Carson River for the Newlands
project.
In December 1950 the United States District Court for the District
of Colorado decided that it had jurisdiction to hear the action by the
United States against the Northern Colorado Conservancy District,
the city and county of Denver, and others. Since that time numerous
motions to strike, make more certain, and other motions have been
heard. No answers have been filed in the case except on behalf of the
96 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Public Service Co. of Colorado. The total number of defendants in
the action is approximately 200.
An action was commenced against the United States in the Fourth
Judicial District Court for Utah by Mr. and Mrs. M. H. North for
damage allegedly due to the high water elevation of the Deer Creek
Reservoir of the Provo River project. That action, later transferred
to the Federal Court of Utah, culminated in a decree of no cause of
action.
In May 1947 the United States and the Frenchman-Cambridge
irrigation district at Cambridge, Nebr., entered into a repayment contract
in connection with a unit of the Missouri River Basin project.
As required by the Federal reclamation laws, the irrigation district
thereafter filed an action in the District Court of Red Willow County,
at McCook, Nebr., asking for approval and confirmation of the contract.
However, the hearings thereon were not held by the court
until February 1950.
On July 19, 1950, the court rendered an opinion approving the
contract in part and disapproving or rejecting it in part by holding,
in effect, that the excess land provisions of reclamation law could not
apply to those lands which had vested water rights acquired under
independent appropriations, that the United States could not claim
waste, seepage and flow rights for the irrigation water involved, and
that the Secretary of the Interior did not have a right to make rules
and regulations with reference to water use and soil conservation
practices.
The irrigation district then filed a motion to set aside this decree
on the grounds that the court not only misapplied the Nebraska
law but that it was beyond the jurisdiction and authority of the court
to render a decision approving the contract in part and disapproving
it in part under the issues and the law applicable thereto, and the
decree was inconsistent on its face, and that it would not, in any event,
apply to the United States. The motion was overruled and the irrigation
district appealed to the Supreme Court of Nebraska.
This Department obtained permission from the Department of
Justice to file a brief amicus curiae on behalf of the United States although
the United States was not a direct party in the action. Oral
arguments were held before the Nebraska Supreme Court and the
court filed an opinion in which it was held that the motion to set
aside the decree was in the nature of a motion for a new trial, and,
as such, had not been filed in time. Hence the court did not pass on
the merits of the case. After extensive conferences the repayment
contract was amended; as amended it was submitted to the district
court at McCook, Nebr., for a reconfirmation, and an order confirming
the contract as amended was granted.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 97
After protracted negotiations with, reference to a proposed repayment
contract with the Kansas Bostwick irrigation district at
Courtland, Kans., a contract was executed in final form on April 20,
1951. Shortly thereafter the irrigation district filed an action in the
State district court at Belleville, Kans., wherein approval and confirmation
of the contract was requested. Opposition to the confirmation
developed and a hearing before the court was held in Belleville, Kans.
The hearings were continued in the fiscal year 1952. The main point
involved is an attempt on the part of the objectors to obtain an injunction
restraining the board of directors of the irrigation district
from proceeding with the confirmation proceedings on the grounds
that the 1951 amendment to the irrigation laws of Kansas was unconstitutional.
The 1951 amendment involved provides in part that
before a contract may be confirmed by the district court having jurisdiction,
the board of directors of an irrigation district must file with
the court a proposed tax schedule which shall show the assessments
proposed for each individual tract of land in the district for the entire
period to be covered by the contract. The amendment also requires
the district court to consider the proposed tax schedule with reference
to the benefits to be derived from the construction of the proposed
works involved.
MANAGEMENT PLANNING
Management emphasis continued to be directed toward obtaining
maximum effectiveness and economy in employee utilization, with
satisfactory and encouraging results. Particular attention was given
to the simplification of organizational arrangements and operating
procedures.
A Bureau-wide “reduce the cost of doing business” program, involving
the participation of virtually every employee in a critical
review and analysis of operating methods and practices, was carried
out. Improvements realized by this program involved monetary benefits
of an estimated $3,000,000.
Management appraisals of Bureau operations were conducted, in
regions 1 and 5 and initiated in regions 6 and 7.
A program for the development of work measurement and staffing
standards criteria was initiated.
The initial edition of the Reclamation Manual of administrative
and technical instructions was completed. A survey of its use outside
the Bureau revealed that nearly 50 foreign governments have requested
copies, in addition to numerous other Federal, State, and local governmental
agencies, universities and colleges, and private engineering
firms.
98 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The review and improvement of forms and reports, and of the procedures
governing their use, was continued. This systematic examination
resulted in the elimination of some reports and forms and the
more effective utilization of many others. The program for controlling
and improving forms was initiated in two additional regions.
PERSONNEL
Restricted by Bureau of the Budget personnel ratios placing limitations
on the number of employees who could be engaged on personnel
work, the Bureau personnel staffs concentrated on planning and developing
a forward-looking personnel management and development program.
New staff development programs successfully piloted were the
accountant trainee program in two regions, and the hydrologists inventory
and training program in region 7. The construction engineer
development program was hampered by no new starts but it is broadening
into an executive development and placement program. Rotation
of beginning engineers spread in the field and was very successful
where tried. The student engineer and administrative trainee program
instigated 2 years ago was continued. An expanded power operation
training program was adopted in several hydroelectric plants.
Due to the present emergency the Bureau’s construction program
was curtailed; however, reduction-in-force of personnel was largely
avoided by voluntary turn-over and internal placement. Turn-over
during the year was high and recruitment was difficult in the beginning
engineer, draftsman, and other lower-grade groups because of inflation
and higher pay in private industry. New college graduate engineers
were offered 15 to 50 precent higher pay than the GS-5 rating offered
by Civil Service. The Central Board of United States Civil Service
Examiners for the Bureau processed 42 percent as many applications
and placed 33 percent as many persons as in the previous year. There
was a slight increase in student engineers last summer to 242. This
summer one-third of last year’s GS-4’s are expected to return as
GS-5’s.
Labor-management negotiations arriving at mutually satisfactory
hourly rates of pay and working conditions were successfully carried
out for the Columbia Basin project. A representation election was
held on the combined Parker-Davis Dam projects resulting in the
designation of the Colorado River Power Trades Council as the representative
of the majority of ungraded employees for the development
of the collective-bargaining type of labor agreement. Although wagerate
changes were numerous because of apprehension concerning wage
stabilization, the Bureau of Reclamation Wage Board was able to keep
the Bureau’s wage schedules alined with the local prevailing rates.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 99
Work stoppages among the 25,000 contractor’s employees were
negligible and did not disrupt construction schedules. Relations continue
to improve between contractors, their employees, and the Bureau.
The Bureau’s safety program was continued and further intensified
in region 6 by establishing motor vehicle driver training tests. Safety
inspections were performed in all Bureau operations and a program
of safety education was continued. The Federal employees health
program was continued in its pilot stage at the Denver Federal Center.
Additional and greater delegations have been made to regional
directors authorizing them to make appointments and status changes,
excepting a few key positions, in all positions up to and including
grade GS-15. Classification authority of regional directors also has
been increased from GS-11 to GS-13 level. Emphasis was placed
upon position classification of the Bureau positions for currency of
descriptions and grade allocations to insure equitable treatment of
personnel. Through Presidential directive further study was devoted
to top positions and recommendations again made for the allocation
of certain positions to the new grades GS-16, 17, and 18 levels
established under the Classification Act of 1949. Contacts with field
installations were expanded by both the Washington and Regional
Offices to keep abreast of reorganizations and to place positions on
a current and accurate basis. Time was devoted in working with the
United States Civil Service Commission on proposed Civil Service
Class Specifications and with various Regional Civil Service Classification
inspection teams in classification inspections which were enlarged
upon during the fiscal year. With further delegations to Regional
installations a review of policies and procedures was undertaken
to change and/or supplement existing policy. Due to the emphasis
placed upon the point 4 program, new procedures were developed and
installed to handle this new phase of work.
Twenty-one inspections were made of regional, district, and project
offices. The coverage of the inspections was broadened during the
year and the regions were required to apply region-wide the results
of each inspection.
On June 30, 1951, the Bureau had on the rolls 16,595 full-time employees,
12,860 of whom were under the Classification Act and 3,735
under the wage boards. Of this number 8,612 were entitled to veteran’s
preference; 2,300 were women.
SUPPLY
Aircraft Operations
The Bureau of Reclamation maintained and operated a fleet of
8 aircraft consisting of 1 twin-engine, 10-passenger Lockheed Lode100
+ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
star; 2 twin-engine, 5-passenger Beechcrafts; 4 single-engine, 3-passenger
Ryan Navions; and one Bell Helicopter.
The Lodestar, assigned to the Washington Office, was used to transport
Departmental and Bureau officials and Members of Congress to
observe construction and operation of Bureau dams, power plants,
canals, transmission lines and other structures, many of which are
located in areas not served by regular commercial airline transportation.
These visits were made in a minimum of time and at a cost
equal to or less than that of commercial transportation.
The two Beechcrafts, assigned to regional offices, were used to
transport regional staff personnel to areas not generally served by
commercial air transportation, for inspection of proposed transmission
line rights-of-way and surveillance of floodwater conditions.
They were used very successfully for aerial photographic surveys of
features of various Bureau projects and particularly in photographically
recording the changing regime of river channels affected by
Bureau construction and operations.
During the past fiscal year, four new Ryan Navion aircraft were
acquired replacing the single-engine Fairchild airplanes which
proved inadequate. They were assigned to various district and regional
offices. These aircraft have proved extremely valuable inasmuch
as they can be landed in relatively small areas and have provided
means of transportation directly to many construction sites m
a much shorter time and at lower cost than could be afforded by surface
transportation. The airplanes were also used for aerial inspection
and aerial photography of Bureau projects.
The Bell Helicopter, assigned to the Parker Dam power project
in region 3, was used for regular scheduled flights patrolling 1,522
miles of high-voltage transmission lines. This type of aerial patrol
has proved superior to ground patrol for location of trouble and determining
condition of conductor, devices, insulators, and crossaims
due to better visibility. Speedy location of faults and reporting via
mobile radio has reduced loss of revenue due to line outages. The
net savings have resulted from reduction in personnel required foi
line patrol work and transportation costs of vehicles over mountainous
and desert terrain. This aircraft also proved excellent for leconnaissance
and location work.
Procurement Division
The increasing tempo of the national defense effort and the consequent
shortages of critical materials made increasingly difficult the
procurement of those materials needed to carry forward Bureau construction
programs. Current work of the Bureau was in geneial restricted
to that work which contributed to the national defense and
the building up of the civilian economy of the West.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 101
The Defense Electric Power Administration was established as
claimant agency through which the Bureau presents its requirements
to NPA for materials for its power developments. This agency
screens our requirements in their relation to power needs and other
materials requirements of the electric power industry. No serious
disruptions of the essential power programs occurred although a number
of hampering delays were encountered. Some delays resulted
from the unavoidable hasty preparation of first submissions of our
materials requirements. The result was submission of less than fully
adequate justifications in some cases.
To insure proper handling the Bureau established a number of
material control offices in the field which were given the responsibility
of collecting and compiling current requirements for critical materials
and preparing full and complete statements of essentiality as
justifications for requests for allocations. All requests for allocations
and for assistance in procuring critical materials were cleared through,
and controlled by, these offices. This proved to be the only feasible
method of handling under this Bureau’s decentralized plan of procurement
and operation. One of the most essential jobs of the Bureau,
from the standpoint of early production of electric power to
supplement the supply in a critical area, is the Hungry Horse project
in Montana. This project was granted a firm authorization to extend
priority ratings to secure needed critical materials to be used
in the structure in an amount not to exceed 8 million dollars.
Defense demands upon industry are having the effect of increasing
the difficulty of procuring needed equipment particularly in the
heavier items aside from the problems of critical materials.
Suppliers demanded extended time for deliveries and escalation
provisions to cover possible changes in material and labor costs.
This required progressively earlier initiation of procurement for
essential items in anticipation of program needs.
The national shortage of rail cars caused some serious delays in
delivery to construction jobs of large quantity needs of materials.
Particularly cement and aggregate is required in large lots and in
smooth flow to avoid disruption of construction work on the larger
structures such as dams. This flow of materials is dependent upon
the availability of rail cars.
The result of extensive efforts made to divert some of the Bureau’s
business to small business concerns indicates that 30 percent of purchases
made through formal advertising and 70 percent of open
market purchases were made from small business firms.
Property Management Division
Property inventory procedures were simplified by elimination of
requirements for detailed inventory of all noncapitalized items. This
102 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
applies to property costing $50 or less per item. Other similar changes
were made and still others will be considered during the coming year
for adoption wherever simplified procedures can be applied without
adversely affecting sound accountability controls over property. Continuing
effort for the past several years to improve property accountability
controls, and, particularly, utilization and management of the
Bureau’s movable property, which includes automotive equipment
and motor vehicles, is showing definite results in improved field
practices.
An inventory of the housing of the Bureau was completed during
the year for the purpose of reviewing present rental rates and adherence
to established policies for the fixing of proper charges to employees
for such housing as has been provided.
The inventory indicated general consistency in rates and compliance
with existing Departmental and General Accounting Office policies.
This study also showed that 20 percent of all Bureau housing is portable,
i. e., can be moved substantially “as is” to meet changing work
conditions and requirements. The result of this study will be used
during the ensuing year to develop manual coverage of the subject of
assignment of quarters to employees and rental rates to be charged
employees for quarters where furnished.
Office Services Division
The program for the review and selective screening of records and
files and the disposal of records which have lost all administrative,
legal, or historical value has continued at an increased pace. During
the year, 49 schedules, authorizing Bureau-wide disposal actions on
more than 200 types of records, were issued by the Bureau.
A program for the protection of indispensable operating records of
the Bureau in the event of a major disaster has been established and is
now in operation.
Numerous revisions of the several chapters of the Bureau Manual
devoted to records management operations were accomplished to keep
pace with constantly changing operating requirements and improved
operating procedures.
REGIONAL REPORTS
Region 1
General investigations—The planning program for the region included
work on 5 reconnaissance investigations, 4 basin surveys, 30
project investigations, 10 studies of existing projects, 7 investigations
classed as general engineering and research, and 2 advance planning
studies.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 103
Final project investigation reports were completed on the domestic
water system, north unit, Deschutes project, Oregon, and the Kalispell
project, Montana. A special reconnaissance report was completed
on the bypass channel, Deschutes project. Reconnaissance reports
on the Hartline project, Washington, and on Lewis, Cowlitz, and
Chehalis River Basins in Washington were submitted to the
Commissioner.
Preliminary project investigation reports were completed on Goose
Lake project, Oregon, Fayette Heights unit, Fayette Division, Boise
project, Idaho, Sequim project, Washington; Post Reservoir, Crooked
River project, Oregon, and Supplemental Storage, Yakima project,
Washington. Special reports were completed on the McNary Gravity
project, Oregon-Washington; Scriver Creek power facilities, Idaho;
and Hells Canyon project, Idaho-Oregon. A definite plan report on
Hungry Horse project, Montana, was submitted to the Commissioner
for approval.
Bureau planning representatives helped establish a permanent Water
Management Subcommittee of the Columbia Basin Inter-Agency
Committee, designed to develop a plan under which the river can be
operated cooperatively for the purposes of irrigation, flood control,
power production, etc. Frank A. Banks, retired district manager,
Columbia River District, was named chairman.
A report on Snake River stream flow depletion was completed by
the Technical Subcommittee on Operation Plan, CBIAC, consisting
of three Bureau of Reclamation employees, and representatives of
Bonneville Power Administration and the Geological Survey. The
report indicates the depletions to be anticipated in the flow of the
river when all foreseeable irrigation development is undertaken.
Construction.—The Columbia Basin project at the year’s end was
more than half complete. The total investment in the Eastern Washington
development was slightly under $400,000,000, with an estimated
$320,000,000 of work yet to be done. Outstanding accomplishment
of the year in region I was the starting of the world’s largest
pump at the Grand Coulee Dam for irrigation of Columbia Basin
lands and world’s record power generation of more than 12% billion
kilowatt-hours.
Continuing the trend established last year, major construction
attention centered on the irrigation works of the multipurpose project.
Virtually all of the large canals were completed with work progressing
increasingly on canals of smaller size and to lateral systems. Major
structures completed in addition to the power and pumping plants
include the Soap Lake Siphon, approximately 50 miles of main irrigation
canal, lateral system for block 71 and most of the systems for
block 70, 72, 40, and 21, and the North Dam. A district headquarters
973649—52------ 10
104 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
building was also completed. From works completed at the end of
the fiscal year, it is obvious that construction for the irrigation of
87,000 acres in 1952, as proposed, will be completed on schedule.
Construction on the Hungry Horse Dam in northwestern Montana,
the largest dam now being built by the Bureau of Reclamation, progressed
at record-breaking speed. All major phases of construction
on the important multipurpose project were on or ahead of schedule.
Progress on the prime contract was exceptionally good with
1,262,486 cubic yards of concrete placed during the fiscal year to
bring total concrete in place in the dam, power plant, and appurtenant
works to 1,562,486 cubic yards, or more than half of the estimated
3,100,000 cubic yards required. Average height of the huge concrete
arch-gravity dam at the end of the fiscal year was 291 feet, an increase
of 172 feet during the year. When it is completed Hungry Horse
Dam will be 564 feet high, ranking third among the world’s highest
concrete dams, being exceeded only by Hoover (762 feet) and Shasta
(602 feet).
A $1,796,542 contract covering completion of the 285,000-kilowatt
powerhouse and construction of a high-voltage switchyard was
awarded and at the fiscal year’s end work was progressing on schedule
with installation under way on three of the four 105,000-horsepower
turbines. All phases of construction are being geared to the generator
installation schedule which calls for the first two 71,250-kilowatt
units to go on the line in October and December of 1952, with
units three and four following in August and November 1953.
Logging, clearing, and road relocation work in the 34-mile long
Hungry Horse Reservoir area also progressed well in advance of the
rate required by the water-storage schedule. Removal of approximately
90,000,000 board feet of merchantable timber from the reservoir
area was virtually completed and clearing contracts were 70 to 87
percent complete.
Relocation work on the 30-mile section of the east side Forest Service
road was practically complete, and work was getting under way on
two contracts awarded on June 1, 1951, covering construction of a
47-mile long Forest Service road on the west side of the reservoir.
As of the close of the fiscal year the project was 54 percent complete .
on the basis of total costs to June 30, 1951, as compared with the
total estimated cost of $108,800,000.
At Anderson Ranch Dam on the Boise project, work on the spillway,
outlet works, and powerhouse was completed and the first of two
13,500-kilowatt generating units was placed into service December 16,
1950. The second unit is scheduled to go on the line in July 1952.
On the Payette Division, Boise project, work in the irrigation area
consisted largely of drain ditch excavation and improvements to the
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 105
Black Canyon Canal to increase the carrying capacity. In the Cascade
Reservoir area, work on the relocation of county roads was completed.
Work on the last section of the relocated State highway,
with the State as contracting authority, continued, with completion
expected during the first half of fiscal year 1952. A contract for
clearing the remainder of the reservoir was awarded, with completion
scheduled for the fall of 1952.
Activity on the Deschutes project was limited to minor contracts
for construction of a wasteway, canal sealing and additional checks
in the Main Canal, cattle guards and a toe drain at Wickiup Dam.,
Repairs to the Arnold Diversion Dam were also completed, which
completes all work contemplated for the Arnold irrigation district.
On the Lewiston orchards project the water treatment plant and
Clearwater Reservoir were completed and placed into service. This
completes major construction activity on this project.
On the North Side Pumping Division, Minidoka project, work to
explore the feasibility of irrigation by pumping from underground
water supplies continued. Total progress to date includes 11 irrigation
wells, complete with pumping and lateral systems. Four observation
wells were drilled and drilling of six more such wells was in
progress at the year’s end.
The Palisades-Goshen transmission line on the Palisades project
was completed. Work on the first 2^ miles of relocated highway, for
which the State of Idaho is contracting authority, continued.
Under the rehabilitation and betterment program, work was completed
on the rehabilitation of Tieton Dam and Spillway, Yakima
project, and the Bully Creek Siphon of the Vale project. On the
Bitterroot project a rehabilitation program, consisting of minor
repairs to canals and conduits, continued.
Operation and maintenance.—Crops valued at $184,056,530 were
produced in 1950 on 1,999,714 acres under cultivation on 17 projects
in region I—an average of $92.04 per acre. The total gross was
$11,000,000 more than that of 1949 and the per-acre return was $3.26
greater than that of the preceding year. The highest gross and peracre
returns on record for the northwest projects were set in 1946
at $225,235,236 and $120.18, respectively.
As in previous postwar years, the Bureau made irrigable land available
in the Pacific Northwest. Three sales of Government-acquired
and public land were conducted on the Columbia Basin project.
Seventy-eight applications were made for 56 part-time farm units,
comprising 118 irrigable acres on the Burbank pumping unit near
Pasco. Early in 1951 some 801 World War II veterans made application
for 30 full-time farm units, comprising 2,505 irrigable acres near
Moses Lake, and on June 16, 739 World War II veterans participated
106 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
in a drawing for 20 full-time farm units, comprising 1,635 irrigable
acres near Soap Lake and Ephrata, Wash.
Expansion of irrigation occurred on the Roza Division of the
Yakima project, where water was made available for 25,000 additional
acres, 13,000 of which actually used it, and on the pumping unit of the
Payette division, Boise project, where 6,093 new acres received water
for the first time. Land adjacent to 11 large wells on the north side
pumping division of the Minidoka project, comprising 5,100 acies, is
under agricultural lease.
A fourth “development” farm on the Columbia Basin was ready
for full operation early in the spring of 1951 and leased. The farms
are important units in the cooperative research program in which the
Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Plant Industry and the Soil
Conservation Service and the Washington State Experiment Station
are cooperating with the Bureau of Reclamation. In line with the
Bureau’s policy of cooperation with Land Grant Colleges and Universities,
cooperative settler assistance programs in Idaho, Oregon,
Washington, and Montana were continued. Cooperative research
programs are in operation with State Experiment Stations in Idaho,
Oregon, and Washington and with various agencies of the Department
of Agriculture. . _ ,
Amendatory contract negotiations were continued with 13 irrigation
districts, and financial adjustment investigations were in progress
for 7 other irrigation districts.
Power production..—Grand Coulee’s huge battery of geneiatois
were responsible for a new record generation of 13,022,414,997 kilowatt-
hours of hydroelectric energy by six Bureau hydroelectric plants
in the region. .
With the installation of four main units (R-5, R-6, R-7, Kr-8)
and one station-service unit (LS-3) during the fiscal year, Giand
Coulee power plant increased its nameplate capacity to 1,866,000 kilowatts.
A record peak load of 2,023,000 kilowatts was carried in June
and generation for the year hit a record of 12,779,950,200 kilowatthours.
A monthly record of 1,188,470,200 kilowatt-hours was established
in February.
Generation from the region’s newest hydroelectric plant began m
December with the operation of the first of two 13,500-kilowatt units
at the Anderson ranch plant in Idaho. Production fiom this plant
together with that from the 8,000-kilowatt Black Canyon and 1,500-
kilowatt Boise River plants enabled the Boise project to earn $156,-
621.60 in gross revenues from a generation of 105,454,042 kilowatt-
Ji ours.
The 13,400-kilowatt Minidoka power plant produced 111,508,840
kilowatt-hours to earn gross revenues of $463,181.96, and the 2,400-
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 107
kilowatt Prosser plant on the Yakima project produced 25,501,915
kilowatt-hours to earn $62,447.47.
The total production of the Grand Coulee plant since March 22,
1941, is 63,365,233,000 kilowatt-hours. Forty-five percent of the
power supply from Grand Coulee and Bonneville Dams was used by
the aluminum industry which in calendar year 1950 produced 48 percent
of the aluminum output of the United States.
Region 2
General investigations.—The most significant development in its
impact on water resource development in California and southern
Oregon was the shift in current national objectives and the consequent
elimination of new planning starts.
An interim report, essentially a compendium, was prepared for the
Trinity River, evaluating the utilization of the Trinity for defense
power purposes.
A feasibility report was completed for the Sacramento River Canals,
Central Valley Basin plan, California, pursuant to H. R. 163, Eightyfirst
Congress, first session, which authorized the canals as an addition
to the Central Valley project.
The proposed Regional Director’s report on the North Fork Kings
River unit, Kings River Division, was completed. This report supplements
information contained in a previous report on the North Fork
Kings River development (H. D. 537, 81st Cong., 2d sess.).
Substantial progress was achieved upon Trinity River, San Luis,
Klamath Basin, Pajaro River and Union Valley investigations and
advance planning work on the authorized Solano project.
Construction.—Central Valley project construction on Shasta Dam
and power plant, Keswick Dam and power plant, Friant Dam, Madera
Canal and Contra Costa Canal is practically completed and these
features are in full operation. Tracy pumping plant is substantially
completed and three of the six pumps including 22,500-horsepower
motors were to be in full operation August 1, 1951. The remaining
three pumps and Tracy Switchyard are 95 percent completed. Energy
for pumping unit testing was supplied over the newly energized
east side 230-kilovolt Shasta-Tracy transmission line.
Delta-Mendota Canal, 117 miles in length, is in final stages of construction.
The upper reach of the canal has been operated to dispose
of water pumped during test periods. Full operation of the canal to
Mendota pool was contemplated by August 1, 1951. Friant-Kern
Canal, 153 miles in length, is completed and in operation to Poso
Creek. The Delta Cross Channel is essentially completed and was to
be placed in operation August 1,1951.
Distribution system construction is under way by contract for the
Southern San Joaquin Municipal Utility District, including three
108 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
units, of which one is completed and in operation, the Lindsay-
Strathmore irrigation district, and the Lindmore District. Plans and
specifications are under preparation for Exeter, Stone Corral, Ivanhoe,
Delano, Earlimart, and Saucelito irrigation districts. The
Madera irrigation distribution contract has been executed and construction
scheduled for fiscal year 1953.
Contracts were awarded for Folsom power plant turbines and generators,
earthwork for the powerhouse, warehouse, penstock fabricating
areas, tailrace channel and tailrace channel access roads. The
Corps of Engineers is receiving bids on the main structure of Folsom
Dam, August 31, 1951.
Cachuma project construction under contract consists of Tecolote
tunnel 50 percent excavated, Cachuma Dam 20 percent completed,
Lauro Dam 5 percent completed, South Coast conduit (Goleta section)
75 percent completed.
Klamath project work completed during the year consisted of Lost
River Channel improvements, Lower Langell Valley; Lost River
Diversion Channel enlargement, improvements to pumping plants
G, H, J, K, L and M; enlargement of feeder drains to pumping plant
A; structures and seepage control 1946—48 homestead area. Work
presently under construction consists of structures for pumping plants
1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, strengthening of main dikes, Tide Lake sump; and
Lower Lost River Channel improvements. Specifications and plans
were under preparation for starting construction of laterals and drains
for the “N” Canal area, Tule Lake sump; and Lost River Channel
improvements, Upper Langell Valley.
Power—the generating units at both Shasta and Keswick
power plants were in operation during the year, resulting in energy
sales totaling 2,206,008,200 kilowatt-hours and power revenues of over
$10,500,000. This is an increase in revenue over fiscal year 1950, the
highest previous record, of almost 13 percent. As previously, about
99 percent of CVP power was sold to the Pacific Gas & Electric Co.
under terms of a day-to-day agreement in effect since January 1,1949.
Negotiations toward a sales contract to replace the day-to-day agreement
were not concluded during the year. Contract L5r—2650 was
executed with the Pacific Gas & Electric Co. on April 2, 1951, for
transmission and exchange service. It provides that the company
will transmit CVP power over its system to project customers. . The
first CVP power sales contract with a preference customer, providing
for delivery over the facilities of the Pacific Gas & Electric, was
executed by the Westside irrigation district on June 8,1951.
Studies were accelerated in the interest of national defense on
the feasibility of supplying CVP power to the Riverbank Aluminum
Plant and the Ames Laboratory of the National Advisory Committee
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 109
for Aeronautics at Sunnyvale, and on an interconnection between the
Central Valley project and the Bonneville Power Administration.
Operation and maintenance.—All completed features of Central
Valley project and completed portions of features still under construction
were operated during fiscal year 1951 under the direction of the
newly created CVP Operations Office.
Water supply contracts were executed with the Exeter, Saucelito,
Stone Corral, Madera, Lindsay-Strathmore, Lower Tule River, Terra
Bella, and Tulare irrigation districts and the Chowchilla Water
District.
Six temporary contracts for water service along the San Joaquin
River were handled during the year. Proposed contracts with the
Delano-Earlimart and Porterville irrigation districts and the Contra
Costa County Water District were approved as to form by the Secretary.
Land classification and land use studies were completed on approximately
600,000 acres. This work consisted of agricultural studies
and crop mapping for the purpose of determining beneficial use of
water rights investigations. Land use studies leading to determination
of water requirements for water sales contracts were conducted
for eight irrigation districts. Land studies for preliminary investigations
and definite plan reports were conducted on the service area
of the American River, Sacramento Valley Canals, Black Butte Reservoir
and in the Klamath Basin.
The administration of the excess-land provisions of Reclamation
law was given active attention. Five recordable contracts providing
for delivery of CVP water to 3,570 acres of excess land are the first
to be executed on the project. In addition, several sales of large
tracts prior to project water deliveries resulted in a net decrease in
excess land.
Region 3
General investigations.—Potential project investigations in region
3 were expedited. Following installation of a cableway at mile 32.8
oh the Colorado River in Marble Canyon, the Bureau’s field forces
diamond-drilled and made geologic investigations of the potential dam
site there. Investigations at this site being completed, the cableway
was dismantled and moved downstream to mile 39.5 dam site for
similar field studies.
Storm studies needed for future designs for dams and power plants
included in the potential Central Arizona project were made; the potential
second barrel of the San Diego aqueduct was further studied;
all field investigations on the Moapa Valley project, Nevada, and the
Santa Margarita project, California, were completed.
110 4 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The Bureau established a project planning field office at Kingman,
Ariz., in August 1950 from which investigations were started on the
Fort Mohave project, Nevada. Studies of the Victor project, California,
were resumed.
Construction.—Construction by the Utah Construction Co., undei
the prime contract for the Davis Dam embankment, intake, spillway,
and powerhouse structures was completed in December 1950. The
utility building and parking area, architectural finish in the powerhouse,
and the stilling basin are yet to be completed. The Bureau’s
1,500-mile transmission system in this region was placed in limited
operation.
Installation of two generating units, A-3 and A-4 for the State
of Arizona, and the Nevada unit A—9 in the Arizona wing of the
Hoover power plant was started. These units, scheduled to be in
operation early in 1952, will bring the Hoover power plant’s capacity
to 1,249,800 kilovolt-amperes. Nevada’s Hoover and Davis energy
was initially supplied the State through the basic magnesium plant
substation on June 1, 1951.
The Colorado River was diverted into the new man-made 12-mile
channel through the swamp between Needles, Calif., and Topock,
Ariz., on June 25, 1951. The channel was cut by the Bureau’s dredge,
The Colorado, to reduce the river surface elevation in the swamp and
thus lessen the flood danger to Needles and also reduce water losses
out of the river from evaporation and transpiration.
The 18i/2-mile Wellton-Mohawk Canal on the 75,000-acre Wellton-
Mohawk division of the Gila project was substantially completed. The
canal system will carry its first Colorado River irrigation water next
year.
Unit 7 of the Coachella Valley underground distribution system
is substantially completed, and work is in progress under two contracts
on part 1 of unit 9. All work under the $13,500,000 distribution system
repayment contract will be completed in the fall of 1951. The
Coachella Main Canal, completed in 1948, eventually will deliver
Colorado River water through the lateral system to some 78,500 acres
of land in the Coachella Valley. Laterals were completed to serve
28,000 acres in 1950, and it is estimated that by the end of 1951 construction
will have progressed sufficiently to enable 60,600 acres to
receive water.
Operation, and maintenance.—Region 3 projects in 1950 produced
crops valued at $146,000,000 on 879,000 acres. This, the third highest
income on record, was exceeded only by $171,000,000 in 1948 and
$152,000,000 in 1949..
Arrangements were made for transfer on July 1,1951, of the operation
and maintenance of the valley division, Yuma project, to the
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 111
Yuma County Water Users’ Association. The valley division has been
operated by the Bureau since water was first available in 1912. The
Bureau will continue to operate the project’s Reservation division and
the common facilities serving the valley division.
The Mexican Water Treaty of 1944 became effective on November
8, 1950, and since then all water diversions from the Colorado River
above the lower international boundary for use in Mexico have been
made at Morelos Dam, completed by Mexico in 1950. Deliveries of
water from the All-American Canal for use in Mexico, via Pilot
Knob wasteway, were discontinued on November 7, 1950, and at the
close of the fiscal year had not been resumed.
A contract for construction of the Yuma levee earthwork and structures
was awarded to Gibbons & Reed Co., Salt Lake City, Utah, on
May 21, 1951. The levee system will protect areas adjacent to the
river in this country and in Mexico from possible floods.
Rehabilitation and betterment work on the Salt River project
consisted of lining 2 miles of main canal and 9 miles of laterals with
concrete, replacing certain canals and laterals with pipe conduits,
repairing or replacing gates, checks, and other minor irrigation
structures, and rehabilitating project water wells. This work is being
performed by the Salt River Valley Water Users’ Association under
the general supervision of the Bureau of Reclamation and with funds
made available under a repayment contract with the United States.
Power.—Hydroelectric plants on the Colorado River—producing
over 5 billion kilowatt-hours of energy during fiscal year 1951—continued
to make this region the powerhouse of the Southwest.
The Bureau’s fourth largest hydroelectric plant at Davis Dam
reached full production June 16, 1951, when unit No. 5 went on the
line. Secretary Chapman pressed a key in Washington January 5,
1951, to signal the start of the first of the plant’s five 45,000-kilowatt
units. Davis generators will add approximately a billion kilowatthours
of energy annually to that generated on the lower Colorado
River.
All water released from Hoover and Parker Dams and, since April
16, 1951, from Davis Dam, was utilized for power production. Releases
of water from Davis and Parker Dams were held to the minimum
necessary to satisfy downstream requirements. All additional
water released from Hoover Dam was stored in Lake Mohave to fill
that reservoir by May 29,1951, with 1,696,300 acre-feet of usable storage.
At the end of the fiscal year, the reservoir above Davis Dam
extended upriver 67 miles to the Hoover power plant tailrace.
Region 4
General investigations.—A report on the Colorado River storage
project and participating projects was completed during fiscal year
112 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
1951. It outlined a plan calling for 10 major developments for river
legulation, power production, and other benefits from additional controls
on the Colorado River. The plan, which is based on the use of
power revenues to assist in paying costs of sound irrigation projects
(participating projects) utilizing Upper Colorado River Basin water,
was reviewed and favorably commented upon by the five Upper Colorado
River Basin States. The governors of these States also concurred
in the Commissioner of Reclamation’s recommendation that the storage
project and initial group of 11 participating projects be authorized.
Supplemental reports on the participating projects were also
reviewed by the Basin States and Federal agencies concerned. As
the fiscal year ended, the reports, together with the comments of the
States and Federal agencies were being readied for submission to the
Bureau of the Budget and the Congress.
Region 4 planning engineers also prepared reconnaissance reports
on the Gunnison River and Washoe projects, in addition to a report
recommending addition of a power plant to the nearly completed
Provo River project, Utah. As the result of nearly 2 years of detailed
investigations, they looked forward to completion of a definite plan
report on the $70,000,000 Weber Basin project early in fiscal year 1952.
This project was authorized in August 1949. Substantial progress
was made on investigations of the Gooseberry, Animas-LaPlata, South
San Juan, Fruitgrowers Dam project extension, Bear River, Savery-
Pothook (unit), and Sublette projects. Policy problems delayed completion
of additional volumes of the definite plan report on the Eden
project, Wyoming.
Construction.—Eighty-three percent of region 4’s construction goal
was accomplished during fiscal year 1951. This was approximately
$6,173,000 of a $7,444,000 program.
The Salt Lake aqueduct was brought to completion during the year,
and work was sufficiently advanced on the 40,000,000-gallon terminal
reservoir to insure its completion by the middle of fiscal year 1952,
reinforcement steel priorities permitting. Excavation of the 6-mile
Duchesne tunnel, a companion feature of the Provo River project,
was pushed to within 1.4 miles of completion. Fiscal year 1952 schedules
call for holing through of the tunnel and construction of the
diversion dam, which will divert water from the Duchesne River
drainage to the Upper Provo River. Completion of the entire job,
including concrete lining of the tunnel, is scheduled for February
1953.
Accelerated construction activities on the Eden project, Wyoming,
gave assurance that Big Sandy Dam, the key feature, would be completed
by the middle of fiscal year 1952. Work on the distribution
system was scheduled to start during the second quarter of fiscal year
1952, commencing with construction of the Means Canal.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 113
Construction, crews on the Fire Mountain Canal, Paonia project,
Colorado, had practically completed the work of enlargement by April
16, 1951, when the new canal was placed in operation. Further work
on this project, including construction of a storage dam on a tributary
of the North Fork of the Gunnison River, was dependent upon Congressional
reauthorization.
Rehabilitation and betterment program progress on the Grand Valley
project in Colorado, included the concrete lining of tunnel No. 3
(completing emergency repairs started in 1950) and completion of
six major concrete flumes on the Highline Canal. Three siphons,
also a part of the Highline Canal, were scheduled for construction
during fiscal year 1952.
Operation and maintenance.—Dependable late-season water supplies,
bolstered by 16 Bureau-constructed storage reservoirs and Lake
Tahoe, enabled farmers on 18 projects to mature crops having a gross
value of $32,067,336 during the calendar year 1950. This was an
average of $58.79 per cropped acre from 545,485 acres cultivated.
The Grand Valley Water Users Association executed an amendatory
contract on May 5, 1951, increasing its repayment obligations
from $1,500,000 to $1,900,000. This enabled continuation of an extensive
rehabilitation and betterment program for the Garfield Gravity
Division of the Grand Valley project, Colorado.
The Commission notified the Preston, Riverdale & Mink Creek
Canal Co. that the deferment period on construction charges for the
Preston Bench project, Idaho, would begin January 1, 1950, and that
the company was to assume operation and maintenance of the project
works on June 30,1950.
On May 1,1951, the Metropolitan Water District of Salt Lake City
assumed operation and maintenance of the completed portion of
the Aqueduct Division, Provo River project, Utah, consisting of the
Salt Lake aqueduct, extending 42 miles from Deer Creek Dam to,
but not including, the Terminal Reservoir on the outskirts of Salt
Lake City. On July 1, 1951, the district made a $200,000 initial payment
to' apply on aqueduct construction costs.
On August 5, 1950, the Congress approved amendatory repayment
contracts with the Ogden River Water Users Association for the
Ogden River project, Utah, and with the South Cache Water Users
Association for the Hyrum project, Utah.
The region continued joint studies and investigations under the
lower cost canal lining program under cooperative agreements with
the Soil Conservation Service and the Utah Agricultural College Experiment
Station.
New soil and moisture conservation measures were initiated on the
Moon Lake, Humboldt, and Newlands projects.
114 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Power utilization — Investigations and studies were advanced on
six projects involving 1,748,800 kilowatts of installed hydroelectric
generating capacity distributed as follows: Weber Basin, 5,400 kilowatts;
Collbran, 7,400 kilowatts; Provo River (Deer Creek power
plant), 7,000 kilowatts; Colorado River Storage, 1,62'2,000 kilowatts;
Central Utah (initial phase), 61,000 kilowatts; and Washoe, 46,000
kilowatts. The fiscal year 1952 planned workload included continuation
of these studies, in addition to reconnaissance type investigations
on the Cliff s-Divide project in northwestern Colorado, Sublette project
in southwestern Wyoming, South San Juan project in northwestern
New Mexico, and the San Miguel and Animas-LaPlata projects
in southwestern Colorado; also status report on preliminary work
being conducted on the Bear River project, Utah.
Region 5
General investigations.—A report on New Mexico’s water resources
was sent to the New Mexico Economic Development Commission
and the Commissioner. Reports on the Lower Nueces River pioject,
Texas, and the Canton project, Oklahoma, wTere forwarded to the
Commissioner. Preliminary drafts of reports on the Washita Rivei
subbasin, Oklahoma, and the Carlsbad project, New Mexico, were
distributed to Federal and State agencies and the Commissioner.
Funds were requested for constructing an auxiliary spillway at Alamogordo
Dam. Hearings were completed on Fort Gibson project, Oklahoma.
An unfavorable report on construction of this project by the
Federal Government is in progress. West Texas and Balmorhea project
reports continued. San Juan-Chama project investigations consisted
primarily of studies of potential uses of San Juan water in the
Rio Grande Basin. Arkansas-Red River Basin investigations were
combined after establishment of an Arkansas-White-Red Basins Inter-
Agency Committee. Middle Rio Grande project advance planning
was initiated. Vermejo project, New Mexico, and Canadian River
project, Texas, were authorized. Objectives for fiscal year 1952
include program reports on reconnaissance findings for Gulf Basin
and San Juan-Chama project; reports on Balmorhea project and
Brownwood Division, West Texas project; establishment of a definite
investigation program for Pecos River Basin; continuation of the
Arkansas-White-Red Basins survey; definite plans for Middle Rio
Grande project channel construction between Elephant Butte Reservoir
and lower boundary of the Conservancy District and drainage rehabilitation;
definite plans for the Vermejo project; and initiation of
Canadian River project advance planning.
Construction.—Construction was completed on the following. Foit
Sumner project, New Mexico; repairs on Pecos River flume, Carlsbad
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 115
project; exploratory drilling on San Luis Valley project; gate-tender’s
house, Platoro Dam; additional capacity and pressure for water
system Government camp at Elephant Butte Dam; road improvements
and seven additional housing units for employees at Elephant
Butte and Caballo Dams; Hollywood Substation; Hot Springs Tap
Line and Substation; Lucero Arroyo Protective Works; four ditchrider
residences and garages, Tucumcari project, New Mexico; Drain
F, earthwork and structures, and Altus Canal wasteway, W. C. Austin
project, Okla. Construction of Platoro Dam and clearing of Platoro
Reservoir site, San Luis Valley project, Colorado, was continued.
Construction was initiated on the Socorro-Albuquerque transmission
line, Albuquerque Substation, Belen-Willard transmission line, and
Belen and Willard Substations, Rio Grande project. Fiscal year
1952 will see the completion of the Platoro Dam. Fort Sumner project
will be turned over to the water users for operation and maintenance.
All transmission facilities and substations on the Rio
Grande project will be completed in fiscal year 1952. Channelization
of the Rio Grande River above Elephant Butte Reservoir will be
initiated as part of Middle Rio Grande project work.
Operation and maintenance.—Operation and maintenance work involves
five projects in full operation, four operated by the Bureau and
one by water users; one water conservation and utilization project;
one Warren Act contractor; two projects under construction. On the
five operating projects, 262,166 acres in 9,799 farms, with a population
of 49,094, were irrigated in 1950. Total gross crop income
was $53,725,167.
On the Rio Grande project, 158,704 acres of irrigated land grew
crops valued at $44,782,276, or $281.34 per acre. The 17,318 acres
irrigated with water delivered under a Warren Act contract on the
Hudspeth project produced crops valued at $5,067,977, or $292.64 per
acre. The Carlsbad project’s irrigated 19,007 acres grew crops valued
at $3,281,407, or $172.65 per acre. W. C. Austin project facilities
were completed for the 47,809.4 irrigable acres. The irrigated 45,-
953.7 acres grew crops valued at $3,460,601, or $73.86 per acre. Tucumcari
project facilities were completed for 42,321 irrigable acres.
The irrigated 31,563 acres grew crops valued at $1,110,368, or $35.18
per acre. On the Balmorhea project, the irrigated 6,938 acres produced
crops valued at $1,090,452, or $154.17 per acre. On the Fort
Sumner project, the irrigated 4,915 acres grew crops valued at $310,-
590, or $68.98 per acre. This project continued under construction.
Platoro Reservoir, San Luis Valley project, was under construction.
The irrigated 71,884 acres grew crops valued at $2,560,429, an average
of $35.60 per acre.
The Soil and Moisture Conservation program includes building
dikes and facilities on Lucero Arroyo, Rio Grande project, and di116
+ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
version terraces in the Alamogordo Reservoir area. Salt cedar spraying
continued in the McMillan Reservoir area.
Power production.—Total energy sold in fiscal year 1951 from the
Rio Grande project’s hydrogenerating plant at Elephant Butte Dam,
N. Mex., was 64,395,913 kilowatt-hours, producing revenue of $407,-
420.64. Low water in Elephant Butte Reservoir resulted in below normal
generation. Proposed early additions to the project’s power system
are 79 miles, 115-kilovolt transmission line from Socorro to Albuquerque,
with a substation at Albuquerque, and a 50-mile, 115-kilovolt
tap transmission line from near Belen, N. Mex., to Willard, N.
Mex., with a substation at Willard. Facilities for the Albuquerque
extension will be completed in fiscal year 1951, and for the Willard
extension in fiscal year 1952. Current contracts with private utilities
provide for power and energy for firming Elephant Butte generations
during low water conditions on the Rio Grande, and for movement of
power over Bureau lines from points having reserve capacity to
points in New Mexico having critical needs for power.
Region 6
General investigations.—Investigations to obtain material for basin
reports were carried forward on 32 divisions. No division reports
were submitted in fiscal year 1951, but the report for Cannonball division
is scheduled for completion in fiscal year 1952. In addition, a
reconnaissance report for Little Missouri division is scheduled for
completion in fiscal year 1952. Four definite plan reports were processed
during the fiscal year. The report for Angostura unit was
approved by the Commissioner; the report for Crow Creek pump unit
was reviewed by the Commissioner, but requires additional studies;
the report for Hanover unit was submitted to the Commissioner late
in the fiscal year; and the report for Bixby unit indicated a poor quality
of water, resulting in postponement of all activities on this unit.
Approximately 18 definite plan reports are scheduled for submission
to the Commissioner in fiscal year 1952.
Construction.—One hundred thirty-two specifications for construction
work and major equipment were issued in fiscal year 1951, with
contracts amounting to over 30 million dollars being awarded.
The following construction was completed by contract during the
fiscal year: Dickinson Dam, Dickinson unit; relocation of C. B. & Q.
Railroad and most of clearing on reservoir area, Boysen unit; considerable
canal lining and several bridges, Riverton project; substantially
all of Shadehill Dam, relocation of cemetery and clearingportion
of reservoir area, Shadehill unit; clearing portion of reservoir
area, Keyhole unit; canal and wasteway structures, Buffalo Rapids
project; access road to dam, Angostura unit; relocation of cemetery
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 117
and. temporary housing, Canyon Ferry unit; housing at Chester,
Mont., and most of Tiber government camp, Lower Marias unit; Rudyard,
Circle, Wolf Point, Miles City and. Savage substations, warehouse
for Havre substation and Havre-Shelby transmission line, Fort
Peck project; Fresno Dam parapet wall, Milk River project; Edgeley-
Forman, Jamestown-Edgeley, Leeds-Rolla, Voltaire-Rugby-Devils
Lake-Carrington, Devils Lake-Lakota and Boysen-Thermopolis transmission
lines and Beulah, Watford City and Williston substations,
transmission division.
Construction progress during the fiscal year and to date on major
contracts carried over from fiscal year 1950 and continuing into future
fiscal years follows: Keyhole Dam, 47 percent completed during
the year with 47 percent of the total contract completed by June 30;
Boysen Dam and Power Plant, 75 and 91 percent and Canyon Ferry
Dam and PowTer Plant, 21 and 42 percent.
New construction contracts awarded during the fiscal year follow:
Improve access road to dam, canals, laterals, and drains and power
plant, Angostura unit; clearing reservoir area, Boysen unit; clearing
portion of reservoir area and warehouse, Canyon Ferry unit; county
bridge reconstruction and road relocation, Dickinson unit; fencing of
wildlife habitat area, Heart Butte unit; relocation of county road
and U. S. Highway No. 14 and clearing portion of reservoir area,
Keyhole unit; the Lovell, Sioux Falls, Watertown, Huron, Mount
Vernon, Washburn, Bismarck, Jamestown, Rugby, Devils Lake, Lakota,
Leeds, Bisbee, Rolla, Carrington, Edgeley, Valley City, and
Forman substations, Transmission Division; the Garland-Lovell,
Thermopolis-Lovell, Garrison-Fort Peck Tie, Canyon Ferry-East
Helena, Garrison-Voltaire, Devils Lake-Lakota, Jamestown-Valley
City, Bismarck-DeVaul, Sioux Falls-Brookings, Brookings-Watertown-
Groton-Huron, Huron-Armour, Gavins Point-Sioux Falls, Fort
Randall-Gregory-Winner, Armour-Fort Randall-Gavins Point, Rapid
City-Wall-Midland, Oahe-Mobridge, Fort Randall-Oahe, and Bismarck-
Mobridge, transmission lines, Transmission Division; the Glendive-
Williston transmission line and Rudyard and Shelby substations,
Fort Peck project; canal and wasteway structures, Buffalo Rapids
project; C. J. Coulee Siphon, Shoshone project; lining portion of Vandalia
Canal, Milk River project; and considerable canal lining, permanent
O&M camp, bridges for Five Mile and Muddy Creeks, Wyoming
Canal from station 2560 to end, and the development farm
buildings, Riverton project.
In fiscal year 1952, construction work is scheduled to start on the
irrigation facilities for Fort Clark, Heart Butte and Cartwright
units. Major construction scheduled for completion is Boysen Dam.
Angostura Power Plant, remainder of Wyoming Canal on Riverton
118 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
project, Keyhole Dam, a number of transmission lines and substations,
and a portion of the irrigation system on Angostura unit. It
is estimated that 7,500 kilowatts of power from Boysen and 1,200 kilowatts
from Angostura plus 6,750 acres of irrigated land on Riverton
and 4,000 acres on Angostura will be made available by the close of
the fiscal year. The remaining power from Boysen and the additional
acreage on Angostura are scheduled to become available in
fiscal year 1953.
Operation and maintenance.—The 12 operating projects in region
6, receiving a full water supply from Bureau works, produced crops
in 1950 worth $18,006,620 from a net area under cultivation of 408,513
acres. The Bureau delivered supplemental water to an additional
8,406 acres from which the gross crop value was $202,166. During
the fiscal year, 47 farm units, comprising 6,016 acres of irrigable land,
were awarded to veteran settlers under the provisions of Public Notice
No. 30, Riverton project.
The Angostura Irrigation District and the Buford-Trenton Irrigation
Districts were organized and steps were taken to organize an irrigation
district for the Crow Creek Pump unit.
An amendatory repayment contract with Midvale Irrigation District
was executed on behalf of the United States. An amendatory
contract was executed by the Malta Irrigation District, and one is in
the process of execution by the Glasgow Irrigation District, both of
the Milk River project. Amendatory repayment contracts with
Lower Yellowstone Irrigation Districts Nos. 1 and 2 were approved
as to form by the Secretary.
A new contract was executed with the Angostura Irrigation District.
Ln addition, three additional new contracts with the Buffalo Rapids
Irrigation Districts, Nos. 1 and 2, and Fort Clark Irrigation District
were approved as to form by the Secretary. Also, a proposed waterservice
contract with the Belle Fourche Irrigation District for supplemental
water from Keyhole unit was approved by the Secretary and
the irrigation district board. Arrangements were made for furnishing
water on a rental basis to individual farmers on the Heart Butte
and Dickinson units who are anxious to initiate irrigation development
without waiting for construction of the entire unit.
A rehabilitation and betterment contract, authorized by Public Law
335, Eighty-first Congress, first session, was executed with the Fort
Shaw Division of the Sun River project for the expenditure of funds
in fiscal years 1951 and 1952.
The completed portion of the Riverton project was transferred to
the Midvale Irrigation District January 1, 1951.
The Bowbells, Mandan, Redfield, and Huron Development Farms
were in operation during the entire fiscal year, with operation on the
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 119
Riverton Development Farm getting started late in the fiscal yeai.
Plans were completed for the Shadehill Development Farm.
Power utilization —During the fiscal year, 16 contracts involving
sale of power to REA Cooperatives, irrigation districts, utilities, and
industries within the region were completed. The number of cooperatives
in the region served with Federal power increased from 34 to 37.
Total power revenues for fiscal year 1951 were $1,550, <36 as compared
to $1,524,808 for fiscal year 1950. Generation of Federal hydroelectric
power plants in region 6, for which the Bureau markets the power,
was 430 million kilowatt-hours in fiscal year 1951. It was recommended
to the Army Corps of Engineers that a second powei plant
of 80,000 kilowatts be constructed at Fort Peck project.
Region 7
General investigations.—At the year’s end, the investigations program
accomplishments were encouraging. The Gunnison-Arkansas
Initial Development Report had been completed and forwarded to the
Commissioner and all other interested agencies, as had the MRB
Power Survey Report and the Glendo Unit Definite Plan Repoit. The
finishing touches were being put on the Lower Platte River Basin
Report, and the Sargent, Frenchman-Cambridge, Bostwick and Narrows
Definite Plan Reports were well advanced toward completion and
will be completed in fiscal year 1952. During the latter part of the
year, the regional office reevaluated its progress on investigational
activities and has prepared better estimates of the time, manpower,
and funds required to carry forward the work in future years.
Construction.—Construction contractors generally were not able to
comply with their optimistic estimates of performance. They encountered
increasing difficulty in securing materials and equipment,
particularly rolled steel shapes, copper or aluminum conductor, and
other critical materials. Scarcity of labor was evidenced in some
skills. Toward the end of the year, contractors were found to be increasingly
reluctant to bid on long-term contracts involving critical
materials or large amounts of manpower.
Construction activities were widespread throughout the region.
Some 43 major contracts involving $118,700,000 were in force, including
10 major dams, 66 miles of canals, 10 miles of tunnels, 5 power
plants, and 808 miles of transmission lines. On the Colorado-Big
Thompson project, work was completed on Granby pumping plant,
Estes and Marys Lake power plants; work was continued on the Horsetooth
feeder canal, Olympus and Pole Hill tunnels, and Cartel Lake
Dams and pressure tunnel; and during the year, contractors started
work on Willow Creek Dam, Rattlesnake & Bald Mountain tunnel, Pole
Hill and Flatiron power plants.
973649—52------ 11
120 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
This fiscal year saw the completion of Kortes and Bonny Dams, the
Superior Courtland diversion dam, and the dedication of the Cedar
Bluff Dam.
Canal and lateral work on the MKB project was curtailed pendingresolution
of repayment contract problems in the Kansas River Basin.
Very little canal construction was in progress on the Frenchman-
Cambridge division. On the Bostwick division construction on only
the Superior Canal and Nebraska sections of the Courtland Canal was
in progress.
Construction of the Narrows and Glen do Dams, originally scheduled
for a start in the spring of 1949, has been again delayed until fiscal
year 1953 because of inability to resolve all problems with State and
local groups.
All major features for the Colorado-Big Thompson project will be
either completed or under contract in fiscal year 1952. In the Bostwick
division, the Superior Canal and laterals and the Nebraska section of
the Courtland Canal and laterals will be completed and construction
initiated on the Franklin Canal and Franklin south-side pumping
plant, canal and laterals, but progress in Kansas will be slow due to
court action and negotiation of repayment contracts. Other construction
of importance is the continuation of work on Trenton Dam and
the Cambridge Canal and laterals in the Frenchman-Cambridge division,
and completion of some transmission lines in Wyoming and
Nebraska. Work on the St. Francis and Cedar Bluff units will be
limited mainly to negotiations of repayment contracts.
Operation and maintenance.—Provision for canal-side delivery of
water from existing facilities to 1,600 acres of land in the Bostwick
division and 1,900 acres m the Frenchman-Cambridge division has
been approved and some of the lands actually furnished water during
May and June. This acreage, together with 1,800 scheduled acres on
the Kendrick project, was all the additional acreages placed under
irrigation during 1951. In fiscal year 1952, completion of the Superior
Canal and Nebraska section of the Courtland Canal and laterals in
Nebraska (Bostwick division), further sections of the Cambridge
Canal (Frenchman-Cambridge division), work on the Casper Canal
lining (Kendrick project), and completion of the Poudre and North
Poudre supply canals (Colorado-Big Thompson) will allow for the
irrigation of some 14,500 acres of new land and 206,000 acres to which
only a supplemental supply is furnished.
Power.—In addition to the four hydroplants which have been in
operation for the past several years, three other power plants, namely,
Kortes, Estes, and Marys Lake, were placed in operation. The Kortes
plant can operate full time, but operation of the other two will be
limited until sustained pumping can be maintained from Granby ResANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 121
ervoir on the western slope. These seven plants have a combined
capacity of 150,000 kilowatts, and during fiscal year 1951 generated
358,446,686 kilowatt-hours of electrical energy, which were sold to
municipalities, REA. cooperatives, industrial plants, and public utilities,
for a gross revenue of $2,659,666.
Alaska District
General investigations.—The Canadian and the United States Governments
jointly continued studies of Yukon- l aiya project, an inteinational
development that would improve navigation on the Yukon
River and produce huge amounts of hydroelectric energy by dropping
excess Yukon River water to the sea via a transmountain diversion
tunnel. Reconnaissance studies were completed during the month
of March under the auspices of a special committee set up by the
Minister of Resources and Development of the Canadian Government
and the Secretary of the Department of the Interior in collaboration
with the State Department of the United States Government. Detailed
investigation is awaiting clarification of international aspects.
The Wood Canyon project, an alternate All-American project embracing
essentially the same power markets as Yukon-Taiya project, is
under investigation. It has potentialities of over 1,000,000 kilowatts
of capacity.
Lake Dorothy project, located near the capital city of Alaska and
subject of an interim project report shelved in fiscal year 1950, was
reactivated by proposals for essential and strategic industrial developments
in the Juneau power market area. Studies were complete at
the end of the fiscal year with a project report scheduled for submission
to Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation during first
quarter fiscal year 1952.
Swan Lake project, to serve the power deficient Ketchikan area, was
the subject of a project report submitted to the Washington office.
Studies revealed potential annual firm power production of 71 million
kilowatt-hours and secondary energy of 8.8 million kilowatt-hours.
Construction is estimated to cost $10,485,000.
In the Fairbanks area, dynamic growth stemming from migration
of people and capital into the Territory, development of natural resources,
and a resurgence of military activities resulting from international
tensions, taxed the capabilities of power producers. Wickersham
proj ect is under investigation to determine feasibility of serving
this area. Between Fairbanks and Anchorage in the rail-belt area,
potentialities of Susitna River are being investigated. The basin
report is scheduled for submission to the Commissioner’s office in
fiscal year 1952.
122 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Construction.—Alaskan activities were highlighted by congressional
authorization of the $20,365,400 Eklutna project on July 31, 1950.
This was the first Bureau of Reclamation project authorized for construction
in the Territory of Alaska. To be located 34 miles north of
the city of Anchorage and 14 miles south of Palmer, it will add 30,000
kilowatts of capacity to the Anchorage-Matanuska Valley power
supply. Eklutna Lake, a natural reservoir 862 feet above sea level,
lies near an arm of Cook Inlet with only a narrow mountain intervening.
Development encompasses diversion of lake water through
a transmountain tunnel down a penstock and into a power plant at the
base of the mountain near sea level. The 143 million kilowatt-hours
of firm energy and 21 million kilowatt-hours of nonfirm energy thus
to be made available each year will be transmitted northward to serve
Matanuska Valley, the city of Palmer, and several coal mines, and
southward to serve Elmendorf Air Force Base, Fort Richardson, the
city of Anchorage, and adjacent areas.
Classed as an emergency project, the Congress in September appropriated
$1,100,000 for initiating construction. Project work started
immediately, a construction office opened at Palmer, and preparation
of the definite plan report expedited. Drilling crews continued subsurface
geological investigations through the winter despite temperatures
of minus 50° and lower. The definite plan report was completed
on May 15.
At the close of the fiscal year the percent completion of each project
feature under actual construction was as follows: 12 permanent residences,
two 10-car garages, streets, and utilities, 10 percent; laboratory
building, 60 percent; warehouse building, 8 percent; 115-kilovolt
Eklutna-Palmer transmission line, 2 percent; and water-supply well
for Government camp, 100 percent. Construction will be initiated
during fiscal year 1952 on the 4^-mile-long tunnel and other hydraulic
structures, the power plant, electric switchyard, and Eklutna-Anchorage
transmission line. Programmed expenditures for next year total
$5,761,500. Peak construction activities are scheduled for fiscal year
1953, when contractors are expected to do $10,152,300 of work. All
construction should be completed by November 1954.
Division of
Water and Power
Reginald C. Price, Director
SECRETARIAL ORDER No. 2601 dated December
1, 1950, established in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Water
and Power Development a Division of Water and Power, J he activities
of the former Division of Power and the staff functions of the
former Water Resources Committee were transferred to the new division.
It was also given additional duties in connection with water
programs. The principal functions of the new division are to provide
technical staff assistance to the Assistant Secretary for Water and
Power Development, and to assist in (1) establishing and clarifying
departmental policy, (2) coordinating the activities of the various
water and power agencies of the Department to bring about consistent
actions, and (3) aiding in the formulation of an over-all departmental
program. The agencies over which the Assistant Secretary for Water
and Power Development exercises secretarial direction and supervision
are the Bureau of Reclamation, Bonneville Power Administration,
Southeastern Power Administration, and Southwestern Power
Administration.
During the 12 months ended June 30, 1951, these agencies marketed
24,164 million kilowatt-hours produced by plants having an installed
generator (nameplate) capacity of 4,910,500 kilowatts on June 30,
1951, for which $67,552,000 was received in revenues at an average
price of 2.73 mills per kilowatt-hour sold. The attached table shows
these data for each power marketing agency.
In marketing this power, the Department continued to carry out the
policies of Congress (1) to give preference to public bodies and cooperatives
and prevent monopolization, and (2) to sell power at the
lowest possible rates which will return the investment plus interest
and assure the widest possible use. Where facilities of private utilities
are available and where it is in the public interest, the Secretary
123
124 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
of the Interior has entered into agreements for the transmission of
power from load centers to the Government’s customers. Many such
agreements have been signed.
Federal agencies for which the Department markets power have
under construction approximately 3,850,000 kilowatts generator
capacity. Of the 27,000,000 total additional kilowatts of capacity
needed to be completed during the 3 years 1951-53 for national
security, approximately 2,800,000 kilowatts are scheduled for installation
in such Federal projects.
During the year the Department, through the Division of Water
and Power, reviewed 26 reports of the Corps of Engineers, Department
of the Army, concerned primarily with flood control and navigation
; 10 reports of the Department of Agriculture, concerned primarily
with runoff and water-flow retardation; and 7 reports of the
Bureau of Reclamation, concerned primarily with irrigation and
incidental power, flood control, and water-conservation features.
The Department also reviewed, through the Division of Water and
Power, 48 applications for power permits and licenses referred for
comment to the Department by the Federal Power Commission. The
coordination activities of the Department in the field of water and
power are carried out under a policy which assures that adequate
consideration is given to all uses of water so that maximum benefits
may be realized.
Members of the staff of the Division of Water and Power represent
the Department on the energy conversion and the benefits and costs
subcommittees of the Federal interagency river basin committee.
A departmental committee under the chairmanship of the Director
of the Division of Water and Power has been established to assist the
Secretary and the Assistant Secretary for Water and Power Development
in formulating policy in the field of artificial precipitation.
A task force consisting of representatives from all agencies in the
Department was established under the chairmanship of the Director
of the Division of Water and Power to review and analyze the report
of the President’s Water Resources Policy Commission.
The position of departmental representative on the interdepartment
Radio Advisory Committee has been transferred from the
Bureau of Mines to the Division of Water and Power. The Department
of Interior now has approximately 3,000 radio stations (exclusive
of certain categories of mobile and portable stations) operating on
over 200 different frequencies. These are used for communication
necessary in the operation of the Department’s various agencies.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 125
Capacity and generation of plants whose power is marketed by Interior Department
agencies and kilowatt-hour sales and revenues, by marketing agency,
fiscal year 1951.
Marketing agency
Installed
generator
capacity,
nameplate
rating
June 30,
1951
Net energy
generated 12
months ending
June 30, 1951
Energy marketed
12
months ending
June 30, 1951
Gross revenues
from
sale of power
12 months
ending June
30, 1951
Average revenue
per kilowatt-
hour sold
12 months
ending June
30, 1951
Bureau of Reclamation_____
Bonneville Power Administration___________________
Southeastern Power Administration________________
Southwestern Power Administration____________
Total_________________
Kilowatt
1 3, 989, 500
2 518, 400
2 245, 600
2 157, 000
Kilowatt-hours
21, 426, 489, 000
2 3,793,276, 000
2 600,823, 000
2 491, 580, 000
Kilowatt-hours
’ 8, 595, 709,000
’ 15,079, 237, 000
600,823,000
488.145, 000
4 $27,043, 000
4 35,771,000
2,458, 000
2,280,000
Mills per
kilowatt-hour
3.14
2.37
4.09
4.67
4,910,500 26, 312,168, 000 24, 763,914, 000 67, 552, 000 2.73
1 Includes 1,866,000 kilowatts Grand Coulee, 27,000 kilowatts Anderson Ranch, 180,000 kilowatts Davis,
8,100 kilowatts Marys Lake, and 50,000 kilowatts at Ft. Peck, a Corps of Engineers project.
2 U. S. Corps of Engineers plants.
2 Excludes 12,699,649,000 Kwh. deliveries to BPA for resale.
4 Excludes $8,083,000 sales to BPA for resale.
6 Includes energy generated at Grand Coulee project.
Bonneville Power
Administration
Paul J. Raver, Administrator
FINANCIAL RESULTS OF OPERATIONS1
EXCELLENT water conditions permiting the sale of
large amounts of interruptible power were primarily responsible for a
record growth in fiscal year 1951 revenues. Gross operating revenues
approximated $35,600,000, an increase of nearly $4,500,000 over the
previous year.
Energy Sales Gain
Sales of energy revealed gains in all customer categories. Revenues
from aluminum and other industries, including military establishments,
increased $2,416,867 or 16.3 percent, publicly owned utilities
$1,524,569 or 18.1 percent, and privately owned utilities $814,409, or
10.7 percent. Industry accounted for 48.3 percent of gross revenues,
publicly owned utilities 27.9 percent, privately owned utilities 23.6
percent, and other electric revenues 0.2 percent. Revenues by class of
customers through fiscal year 1951 are shown in table 1.
Net Revenues High
Annual independent audit of the Bonneville Power Administration
accounts by Arthur Andersen & Co. is expected to show net revenues
of $13,500,000 after deducting all expenses of operation, maintenance,
administration, marketing, depreciation, and interest allocated to
power at the rate of 2% percent per annum. Accounts of the Columbia
River power system include power components of the Bonneville
Dam project and Grand Coulee Dam of the Columbia Basin project.
Gross and net revenues on a cumulative basis from beginning of
operations to June 30, 1951, approximate $224,500,000 and $68,100,000
respectively.
1 Revenue and Operating figures are estimated on basis of first 10 months of actual
operating results and are projected for the last two months of fiscal year, to meet publication
dates.
127
128 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table I.—Revenues by class of customer through fiscal year 1951
Class of Customer 1944 and
prior 1945 1946 1947 1948
Industry:
Aluminum___________________________
Other industry 1----------------------------------
Publicly owned utilities----------------------------
Privately owned utilities_________________
Other electric revenues------------------------------
Total operating revenues------------------
$24,350,433
5,185,494
3,768,642
7,152,532
130,123
$11,838,156
4,171,469
2,141,635
4, 752,021
86, 737
$7,987, 226
3,108, 749
1,711,822
5, 209, 344
2 1,867,144
$9,045, 540
1,836,349
2, 778, 765
6,127,669
2 2,102,606
$10,453,425
1, 915,884
4,318,120
7,633,051
193, 230
40,587, 224 22, 990, 018 19,884, 285 21,890, 929 24,513, 710
Class of Customer 1949 1950 1951
Total to
June 30,
1951
1951 percentage
(dollar
revenue)
Industry:
Aluminum------------------------------------------
Other industry 1----------------------------------
Publicly owned utilities----------- ,----------------
Privately owned utilities---------------------------
Other electric revenues------------------------------
Total operating revenues------------------
$11,741,530
2, 219, 819
5,893, 436
7, 756,301
209, 943
$12,133, 254
2,677, 580
8, 409,428
7,587,963
384,609
$13,515,836
3, 711,865
9, 933, 997
8, 402,372
57,543
$101, 065, 400
24, 827, 209
38,955,845
54,621, 253
5,031,935
37.94
10. 42
27.89
23. 59
.16
27,821,029 31,192,834 4 35,621,613 4 5 224,501,642 100.00
1 Includes military establishments.
2 Includes $1,789,443 of contract cancellations applicable to fiscal year 1946. (The total of $3,802,415 was
apportioned over a period of 12 months.)
3 Includes $2,012,972 of contract cancellations applicable to fiscal year 1947. (The total of $3,802,415 was
apportioned over a period of 12 months.) ■
< includes 10 months actual revenue (to Apr. 30, 1951) and 2 months estimated for fiscal year 1951.
s As of June 30 1951, the Administration had collected and deposited in the U. S. Treasury power-revenue
receipts totaling an estimated $210,891,457 (actual to May 31, 1951, $207,278,840 plus estimated for June
1951 $3 612 617) and general fund receipts of an estimated $5,724,521 (actual to May 31, 1951, $5,709,521 plus
estimated for June 1951, $15,000). Accounts receivable, accrued unbilled revenues, unbilled exchange sales,
miscellaneous adjustments, and minor items accounts for the difference between total revenues and total
receipts deposited by the Administration with the U. S. Treasury.
Low Rate Justified
Favorable operating results for fiscal year 1951, accumulated net
revenues available from prior years, and the general financial outlook
for the next few years confirmed the Administration’s decision of
December 1949 to continue for another 5-year period the basic $17.50
per kilowatt-year wholesale power rate. Some increase in the wholesale
power rate level may be required in December 1954, the next rate
adjustment date, in view of increased construction costs of dams now
being built and scheduled to begin operations between now and
December 1954.
The Administration’s wholesale power contracts require adjustments
of rates every 5 years provided the general level of wholesale
commodity prices has increased sufficiently over the preceding base
period.
Receipts Pay All Costs
Cash receipts through June 30,1951, will total $216,600,000, exceeding
by a substantial margin the amounts required for current expenses
and scheduled repayments of construction costs. Power revenues are
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 129
required to repay with interest the investment in power facilities of
the Columbia River system, current expenses for operation and maintenance,
and, without interest, a substantial portion of the construction
costs of the Columbia Basin project allocated to irrigation.
Columbia Basin Repayment
Power sales receipts returned or scheduled for return to the Reclamation
fund to Jtine 30,1951, by the Bonneville Power Administration
for the account of the Columbia Basin project totaled $63,618,680.
These returns were applied to repayment of:
Expenses of operation and maintenance of the dam, reservoir,
power plant, and appurtenant works_______________________ 1 $13, 907, 000
3 percent interest on construction costs allocated to power________ 26, 719’ 000
Construction costs, including replacements_____________________ 22, 992, 680
Total----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 63, 618, 680
1 Includes approximately $1,966,000 allocated to irrigation for cost accounting
purposes but repaid from power revenues.
Repayment of $22,992,680 of construction costs and replacements is
nearly three times the originally scheduled repayments of $8,009,283.
Moreover, the repayment represents 16i/2 percent of the $138,371,000
of construction costs and replacements allocated to power as of June
30, 1951, based on a 15-unit power, development. Power investment
will be repaid by 1977 according to present estimates, or only 35 years
after the start of commercial power generation in fiscal year 1942.
Net power revenues will then be applied to the return of irrigation
construction costs.
Bonneville Dam Repayment
Power sales receipts returned to the general fund of the Treasury to
Ju;ne 30, 1951, for the account of the Bonneville Dam project total
$38,163,000. These repayments exceed power costs including operation,
maintenance, depreciation and interest by 42 percent and place
the payout of the power investment substantially ahead of scheduled
i equirements of the 50-year payout period. The gross repayment of
$38,163,000 has met operation and maintenance expenses of $6,444,000,
interest expense of $14,953,000 and left $16,766,000 applied to repayment
of the capital investment of $59,738,000 allocated to power,
representing approximately 69 percent of the total capital investment
in the pioject. Hence, 28 percent of the power capital investment
has been repaid in the first 7 years, or only 14 percent of the payout
period.
130 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Transmission Repayment
Gross cash receipts to June 30, 1951, of $216,600,000 less repayments
of $38,163,000 for Bonneville Dam and $63,618,680 for Coulee Dam
and less $1,830,000 advanced to the Reclamation fund on account of
fiscal year 1952 estimated expenses, leaves $112,988,320 available for
repayment of the expenses of and investment in the Administration’s
transmission system. This amount has been applied to the return of
the following accounts:
Expenses of operation, maintenance, marketing, administration,
etc_______________________________________________________ $38,151,534
Interest expenses_____________________________________________ 18, 486, 659
Capital investment, including replacements_____________________ 50,131,141
Subtotal______________________________________ __________ 106, 769, 334
Unapplied cash receipts carried forward________________________ 5, 718, 986
Amount carried forward in continuing fund____________________ 500, 000
Total__________________________________________________ 112,988,320
The repayment of $50,131,141 represented the return of approximately
25.43 percent of the cumulative capital investment of $197,-
161,014 aS of June 30,1951.
SUMMARY OF OPERATIONS
Energy Production
Power generated for the Administration at Bonneville and Grand
Coulee power plants in fiscal year 1951 exceeded 16 billion kilowatthours
and represented over half of the power produced in the Pacific
Northwest. Power production for the year revealed an increase of
16 percent over fiscal year 1950 and brought total production from the
two Columbia River plants since July 1939 to 97 billion kilowatt-hours.
A new system peak was recorded between 10 and 11 a. m, June 11,
1951, with an all-time high coincidental demand on Bonneville and
Grand Coulee plants of 2,535,000 kilowatts. The new peak represents
a 20-percent increase over last year’s maximum demand of 2,106,-
000 kilowatts during January 1950.
Energy production by years at Bonneville and Grand Coulee plants
is shown in table 2, with peak demand and energy data in chart 1.
Prepared on a quarterly basis to indicate more clearly general trends
of Bonneville Power Administration system growth and development,
the chart shows the effect of postwar economic conditions in the
area. Since the fall of 1946, maximum system demands have continuously
exceeded the name-plate rating of installed generators.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREUAS AND OFFICES + 131
Energy Receipts and Deliveries
Electric energy receipts and deliveries on the Bonneville Power Administration
transmission system cover many complex transactions in
addition to receipts from Bonneville and Grand Coulee generation
and deliveries by sales. Bonneville’s grid represents the backbone of
the interconnected transmission systems of public and private utilities
in the Pacific Northwest. Substantial quantities of energy are received
and delivered as transfers from other utilities.
Also included are receipts from storage by the Administration in
non-Federal reservoirs and for storage by non-Federal utilities in the
Grand Coulee Reservoir. Disposition of energy may also include
deliveries from storage in Grand Coulee or to storage in other reservoirs,
energy transfers for the Bureau of Reclamation from Grand
132 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Coulee, energy used by the Administration and energy losses in transmission
and transformation.
Table 2.—Generation at Bonneville and Grand Coulee plants for Bonneville
Power Administration, fiscal years 1939—51 (includes estimates for June
1951
[Thousands of kilowatt-hours]
Fiscal years ending June 30— Bonneville
generation
Grand Coulee
generation
Total generation
for Bonneville
Power
Administration
1939_______________________
1940_______________________
1941_________________________________
1942_________________
1943__________________ . . .
1944___________________________
1945_________________________________ .
1946_______________________________________
1947___________________________
1948_____________________________ .
1949_______________________________________
1950___________________________________
1951_____________________________________
34, 874
208,426
894,177
1,807,309
2, 801,480
3,488,874
3, 391,128
2,674,834
3, 695, 255
3, 991,860
3,868,558
3, 689,309
3, 778,400
7,455
741,844
2,816,956
5, 750, 950
5,660,446
3,561,329
5,058,482
6,894,047
9, 057,230
10,451, 524
> 12,648, 900
34,874
208,426
901,632
2,549,153
5,618, 436
9,239,824
9, 051,574
6, 236,163
8, 753, 737
10,885,907
12,925, 788
14,140,833
16,427, 300
Total____________________________________________ 34,324, 484 1 62,649,163 96,973,647
1 Includes energy transferred for Bureau of Reclamation.
Table 3, Electric Energy Account, summarizes energy receipts and
deliveries.
Table 3.—Electric energy account, fiscal year ended June 30, 1951 (includes
estimates for June)
Energy received (thousands of kilowatt-hours) :
Energy generated for Bonneville Power Administration:
Bonneville____________________________________________ 3, 778, 400
Grand Coulee_________________________________________ 112, 648, 900
Total______________________ ________________________ 16, 427, 300
Power purchased and interchanged in______________________ 1,178, 000
Total received___________________________________ ______ 17, 605, 300
Energy delivered (thousands of kilowatt-hours) :
Sales_____________________________________________________ 15, 041, 900
Power interchanged out___________________________________ 1,191, 600
Used by Administration_________________________________ __ 18, 003
Total delivered_________________________________________ 16, 251, 500
Energy losses in transmission and transformation___________ 1,353,800
Losses as percent of total energy received___________________ 7. 7
Maximum demand on Bonneville and Grand Coulee plants (kilowatts)
:
June 11, 1951, 10-11 a. m., Pacific standard time_____________ 2, 535, 000
Load factor, total generated for Bonneville Power Administration,
percent__________________________________________ 74. 0
1 Includes energy transferred for Bureau of Reclamation.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 133
Sales Exceed 15 Billion Kilowatt-Hours
Energy sales to customers of the Bonneville Power Administration
exceeded 15 billion kilowatt-hours during fiscal year 1951, an increase
of 15 percent over the previous year. Energy losses in transmission
and transformation of power were 1.4 billion kilowatt-hours or 7.7
percent of total energy received on the system.
Sales of electric energy to other utilities, both publicly and privately
owned, increased 11 percent over fiscal year 1950. Sales to all
industries increased 17 percent with sales to aluminum industries
increasing 11 percent. Continuous favorable water conditions during
the 1950-51 storage season made possible the delivery of large
amounts of interruptible power to industries.
Composite Average Rate 2.43 Mills
During the 13 years’ operation ending June 30, 1951, the Administration
has delivered 90,415,833,000 kilowatt-hours of energy at a
composite average rate of 2.43 mills per kilowatt-hour. Sales to
publicly owned utilities for this period were 13.7 billion kilowatthours
at an average rate of 2.84 mills. Privately owned utilities received
22.9 billion kilowatt-hours at an average rate of 2.40 mills, and
industries 53.8 billion kilowatt-hours at an average rate of 2.34 mills.
Power sales to the aluminum plants, initially established in the Pacific
Northwest primarily to meet World War II production needs, were
45.8 billion kilowatt-hours at an average rate of 2.21 mills. Sales to
industries other than aluminum including sales to military establishments
were 8.0 billion kilowatt-hours at an average rate of 3.06 mills.
Electric energy sales by class of customer for each of the 13 years’
operation are shown in table 4. The monthly detail of energy deliveries
to these four classes of customers is shown in chart 2 for the
period from January 1941 to date. This chart portrays the relative
size and growth of energy sales to aluminum plants, other industries,
privately owned utilities and publicly owned utilities.
Rate Schedules Summarized
A summary of sales for fiscal year 1951 classified by rate schedules
is shown in table 5. Approximately three-fourths of energy sales
during the fiscal year were made under the C schedule at an average
rate of 2.16 mills. This is the kilowatt-year rate for firm power
delivered anywhere from the transmission system and is also used
with special measured demand provisions for sales of interruptible
power. Sales are generally made under this rate to industries operating
at high load factor and to utilities having substantial generatingfacilities.
134 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 4.—Electric energy sales by class of customer fiscal years 1939—51
(includes estimates for June 1951)
[Thousands of kilowatt-hours]
Fiscal years ending June 30
Industry
Publicly
owned
utilities
Privately
owned
utilities
Total
Aluminum Other
industries 1
1941 and prior __ ___ 522,982 4,829 35, 242 536,555 1,099, 608
1942____ *.______________________ 1,845^ 249 79' 155 142; 491 357, 704 2, 424, 599
1943____________________________ 3' 588, 848 507^ 196 435, 289 739i 076 5', 270, 409
1944 ____ . ________ 5,453' 893 1,022' 477 727j642 1,467,304 8,671,316
1945 _________________________ 4,667j381 ' 9C4, 724 823' 822 2, 057, 203 8,513,130
1946 . _________________________ 2,492^ 985 799^ 378 635j 531 t 902; 990 5,830, 884
1947____________________________ 4, 212, 413 626' 688 1,044' 784 Z 377', 887 8, 261, 772
1948____________________________ 4,902', 465 646' 913 f 560, 755 3,180,993 10, 291,126
1949____________________________ 5, 665, 746 880, 017 2,078, 931 3,343,983 11,968,677
1950 ________________________ 5,863^ 465 1,016' 100 2, 844,128 3,318, 719 13, 042,412
1951____________________________ 6^ 548', 300 f 505^ 500 3, 403, 700 3; 584i 400 15,041,900
Total to June 30, 1951_____ 45, 763, 727 8,052, 977 13, 732,315 22,866,814 90,415,833
1 Includes military establishments.
Table 5.—Electric energy sales by rate schedules, fiscal year ended June 30,
1951 (includes estimates for June)
Rate schedule Energy Revenue 1
Mills per
kilowatthour
C-3, C-4:
Industries__________________________ _____________________
Utilities
Thousands of
kilowatt-hours
7,537,500
4,147, 300
$15,512,500
9, 716,100
2.06
2. 34
Subtotal__ _______ ___________ ____ ____ 11,684,800
277, 200
68,100
25, 228, 600
961,000
.321,400
2.16
F-2, F-3, F-4:
Industries.- - __ ________ _ 3.47
Utilities___ _ ___ _ _______ _ _ . _ 4.72
Subtotal. -------- -_- 345,300
20, 500
2, 210,800
780,500
1, 282, 400
66, 700
7,104, 400
1,951, 200
3.71
A-3, A-4: Utilities. _ - _______________ - _____ ____. - . _ 3.25
E-2; E-3, E-4: Utilities______________________________________
Experimental, H-l, H-2, II-3, and exchange (industries and
utilities)____________________________________________ -____
3. 21
2.50
Total sales _________ ______ ________ __ 15, 041, 900 35,633, 300
169, 230
57,543
2.37
Reconciliation with accounting records
Other electric revenues ___
Total operating revenues 35,621, 613
1 Sales statistics include billing adjustments or revisions made subsequent to close of accounting records.
Major features of rate schedules:
C-3, C-4: Kilowatt-year rate for transmission system firm power.
F-2, F-3, F-4: Demand-energy rate for firm power.
A-3, A-4: Kilowatt-year rate for at-site firm power.
E-2, E-3, E-4: Demand-energy rate for firm power for resale to ultimate consumers.
Experimental: Energy rate of 2.5 mills for developmental purposes.
H-2, H-3: Energy rate for dump, emergency, or breakdown service.
Exchange: Gross exchange account deliveries at dump energy rate.
Interruptible: Billed under C-4 and F-4 schedules with special measured demand provisions.
Other sales were made principally under the E schedule to utilities
purchasing all or substantially all of their power requirements from
the Administration. Sales under the F schedule were made to utilities
and industries requiring power at low load factor use and under
the H schedule for dump, exchange or experimental purposes.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES +■ 135
The Administration served 108 customers at the end of fiscal year,
including 77 publicly owned distributors of power, 19 industrial customers
4 military establishments, and 8 privately owned utilities. Five
customers were added during the year—the cities of McCleary, Wash.,
and Springfield, Oreg., the Lincoln Electric Cooperative at Kalispell,
Mont., the Bureau of Reclamation, and California-Oregon Power Co.
No service to customers was discontinued during the year.
CHART 2.
Low Rates Stimulate Power Use
All long-term wholesale power contracts with distributors of Bonneville
power contain provisions regarding resale rates and principles
of operation to insure distribution for the benefit of the general public,
and particularly domestic and rural consumers. The direct relationship
of increased use of electric energy to the influence of lower
rates is well illustrated in table 6. This shows the trends from 1938
to date on the average use and price for residential home and farm
973649—52-------12
136 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
service in the Pacific Northwest as compared with the national average.
Added Generating Capacity
Four additional units have been installed in the right powerhouse at
Grand Coulee during the year. These units have increased the nameplate
rating of the system to 2,354,000 kilowatts with maximum generating
capability of 2,604,000 kilowatts. The final units scheduled
for October 1951 will complete the 18-unit installation at Grand
Coulee.
Table 6.—Residential and rural service, average use per customer and average
price per kilowatt-hour
Kilowatt-hour per customer Price per kilowatt-hour
Calendar year
United States
total
Oregon and
Washington
United States
total
Oregon and
Washington
1938.
1939.
1940.
1941.
1942.
1943.
1944.
1945.
1946.
1947.
1948.
1949.
1950.
902
953
1,006
1,044
1,088
1,135
1,225
1,305
1,418
1,546
1,674
1,806
1,951
1,410
1,467
1, 589
1, 776
2. 024
2, 279
2, 504
2,801
3,219
3,696
4,160
4, 503
4, 867
Cents
4.02
3.87
3. 74
3.65
3.57
3. 50
3. 41
3.32
3.13
3.00
2.92
2.87
2.81
Cents
i 2.65
i 2. 55
2. 27
2. 08
1.94
1.84
1.74
1.69
1.58
1.49
1.41
1.38
1.36
1 Partially estimated from State commission data.
Source: Edison Electric Institute.
The Federal projects existing, authorized, or recommended by the
Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation are shown in
table 7. Chart 3 shows peaking capabilities of present installations
and installations proposed under schedule T, the current recommended
schedule of development for federal projects. The multipurpose
projects listed are needed to meet flood control, navigation, irrigation,
and power requirements of the region. With complete development of
these projects a total of 27.3 million acre-feet of storage space will be
available for flood control operations and over 12 million kilowatts
of peaking capability will be available to meet the region’s power
needs.
Non-Federal Additions
Only a few additions were made to non-Federal utility generating
facilities during the year. Seattle City Light completed the installation
of an additional 60,000-kilowatt unit at its Gorge plant and the
California Oregon Power Co. completed its Slide Creek and Soda
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 137
cr> oo r~ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Circuit Miles Added
A tabulation of construction completed during the fiscal year indicates
that 330 circuit miles of high-voltage lines and 15 substations
were added to the Bonneville transmission grid. This results in a
total of 4,370 circuit miles of line and 123 substations serving portions
of the four Northwest States. The transmission line total is made
up of 1,995 miles of 230,000-volt line, 2,095 miles of 115,000-volt line,
and 280 miles of lower-voltage line, as shown in chart 6.
TRANSMISSION LINES
IN CIRCUIT MILES
CHART 6.
New Substation Capacity
Substation capacity as shown on chart 7 was increased by 346,850-
kilovolt-amperes, bringing the total transformer capacity to 3,112,825-
kilovolt-amperes under self-cooled conditions and a maximum of
3,870,325-kilovolt-amperes when forced-cooled. Additional static capacitors
with a capacity of 171,400-kilovolt-amperes were installed
bringing the total of static capacitors on the system to 626,400-kilovolt-
amperes. Installation of a 50,000-kilovolt-ampere synchronous
condenser brings the total system capacity of this type of equipment
to 357,500-kilovolt-amperes. The combined capacity of the static
capacitors and synchronous condensers on the system are indicated
by the reactive capacity curve on chart 7-
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 145
CHART 7.
Major lines energized during the year follow:
Location Date
energized
Structure
miles Kilovolts
Eugene-J. P. Alvey_____________________________________________
Mapleton-Coos___________ ___ ______________________ ._________
C olumbia-E phrata______________________________________________
N ewport-Sandpoint_____________________________________________
Grand Coulee-Snohomish No. 2__________ ______________________
Olympia-Covington___ _________________________________________
M cKinley-Bandon__________________________________________ __ -.
Lebanon-J. P. Alvey_________________________________________
Oct. 6,1950
Oct. 25,1950
Nov. 5,1950
Nov. 7,1950
Nov. 19,1950
Dee. 3,1950
Dec. 13,1950
Mar. 18,1951
13
65
26
24
73
60
22
40
115
115
115
115
230
230
115
i 230
1 115, kilovolts operation.
Special Projects
First leg of the micro wave communication network was placed in
operation linking the major power facilities between the Puget Sound
and the Portland-Vancouver' areas. This provides voice communication
between dispatching centers, substation operators, and the Portland-
Vancouver offices. Its use will later be expanded to telemetering,
relaying, and fault location operations.
A new type of undertaking for Bonneville engineers was the laying
of a high-voltage submarine power cable from Fidalgo Island, in the
San Juan group, across Rosario Strait to Decatur Island, and from
Decatur Island across Lopez Sound to Lopez Island. The cable
carries Columbia River power to the San Juan Islands in Puget Sound
to serve 1,200 customers of the Orcas Power & Light Co.
Preventive Maintenance
An annual threat facing the Bonneville Power system is the failure
to obtain sufficient appropriated funds to allow the formulation of a
146 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
preventive-maintenance program adequate to assure reliable service
to its customers, including important defense plants and military
establishments. Extremely heavy loading of transmission lines, accelerated
construction schedules, and the growing expanse and complexity
of the network contribute to a critical operating instability.
This can only be ameliorated by applying the insurance of the most
highly advanced type of protective equipment and an adequate maintenance
reserve.
Application of the microwave system to line relaying and telemetering
is acknowledged as the ultimate in preventing costly and
hazardous disruptions of service caused by breakup of a system resulting
from a comparatively minor fault occurring on an unstable
system. However, it may be found advisable to delay completion of
this microwave network until sufficient funds for maintenance of the
equipment is assured.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Bonneville Power Administration, supplying over half the powerneeds
of the Pacific Northwest, has a heavy and continuing responsibility
as a public utility. Defense production as well as the economic
growth and development of the region are largely dependent upon
adequate supplies of low-cost hydroelectric power from Federal multipurpose
dams.
Consideration by the Congress of the following specific recommendations
would, in the opinion of the Department, go far in enabling
the Administration to carry out its public responsibilities to
the region—
1. New starts on recommended multipurpose Columbia Basin power
projects in fiscal year 1952 are imperative if present power deficits in
the region are not to continue indefinitely. Key projects in meeting
future power needs recommended by the Corps of Engineers and
Bureau of Reclamation, and concurred in by the Columbia Basin
Inter-Agency Committee, include Ice Harbor, The Dalles, and Hells
Canyon as well as accelerated construction on projects already under
way such as McNary, Hungry Horse, Albeni Falls, Chief Joseph, and
Dexter dams.
2. A limited amount of steam and gas turbine generating capacity
should be authorized for construction on the outer edges of the
Government’s transmission system in the Pacific Northwest. Such
plants would make power available for defense needs and area loads
more quickly than any other type of generation of similar size and
cost. They would have the added advantages of effecting substantial
transmission savings and of having a permanent value for firming
up hydro even after new hydro projects are completed.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 147
3. Clarification and revision of Federal fiscal policy by the Congress
to permit more flexible and efficient operations of reimbursable
public works remains a pressing need. A major step in that direction
would be the establishment of a Columbia Basin account which would
treat all projects in the Pacific Northwest as a single unit for the purpose
of fixing rates and returning costs reimbursable out of power
revenues. Enactment of this proposal would provide a more practical
and equitable basis for fixing rates and for applying present
policies relating to irrigation subsidy.
Southwestern Power
Administration
Douglap G. Wright, Administrator
IN ORDER TO CARRY ON the construction program
of the Southwestern Power Administration for the fiscal year
1951, Congress appropriated $8,620,000 in cash, of which $5,000,000
were for the liquidation of obligations incurred and previously authorized.
In addition, $1,730,000 in contract authority were granted
and $760,000 were appropriated to carry on the operation and maintenance
program of the Administration.
ENERGY PRODUCTION
Net generation during the fiscal year from the three reservoir
projects now in operation, Norfork (Ark.), Denison (between Tex.
and Okla.), and Narrows (Ark.) was as follows:
Kilowatt-hours
Denison________________________________________________
Norfork________________________________________________
Narrows________________________________________________
254, 586, 000
207, 583,100
29, 388, 410
ENERGY DELIVERIES
Energy sales by Southwestern Power Administration during the
fiscal year 1951 amounted to $2,279,759.22. Electric power and energy
generated by the hydroelectric facilities under the marketing jurisdiction
of the Administration were sold to 12 rural electric cooperatives,
four municipalities, and 5 private utility companies.
Sales to municipalities and rural electric cooperatives amounted to
$418,006.18, and to private utility companies $1,861,753.04.
POWER CONTRACTS
Arkansas Power & Light Co.
Periodically during the fiscal year, the Government determined the
amount of firm power from the Norfork Dam project that was not
148
ANNUAL repor ts of bureaus and off ices + 149
needed for its other obligations, and sold the excess power and energy
to the Arkansas Power & Light Co. on monthly contracts. A contract
has now been executed whereby the power and energy will be sold for
an 18-month period, beginning July 1, 1951. The contract provides
that the Government will sell to the company 4,000,000 kilowatt-hours
per month at a rate of delivery not to exceed 20,000 kilowatts, and
any additional firm power not needed by the Government for its
other obligations, at rate schedule “A.” Dump energy will be sold at
1.25 mills per kilowatt-hour. The Government may buy off-peak
power and energy from the company and return the same number of
kilowatt-hours to the company during on-peak hours the following
month. The additional capacity obtained by the company under this
arrangement is to be paid for at 70 cents per kilowatt per month.
Southwestern Gas & Electric Co.
The contract executed with this company provides for the sale of
the entire output of Narrows Dam for $207,000 per year. The company
will redeliver power to the Government up to 5,000 kilowatts of
capacity, for which the Government will credit the company at the
rate of 60 cents per kilowatt per month and 4 mills per kilowatt-hour.
Power redelivered to the Government at the project site is without
limitation as to its use. Power delivered at other points on the company’s
system may be sold by the Government to rural electric cooperatives
only. The Government pays the company 1 mill per kilowatthour
for each kilowatt-hour (up to 1,000,000 kilowatt-hours a month)
delivered by company to Government or for Government’s account.
Public Service Co. of Oklahoma and Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co.
A contract for the sale and exchange of electric power and energy
was executed on July 13, 1950, with the Public Service Co. of Oklahoma
and the Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co. The contract became
effective on February 6, 1951, when the rates and charges contained
in the contract were approved by the Federal Power Commission. Under
the terms of the contract, the Government can request the companies
to deliver to the Government, or for its account, the electric power
and energy required to serve Government’s customers in the area of
the companies. In return for such power and energy, the Government
delivers to the companies 1.65 kilowatts and 330 kilowatt-hours
for each kilowatt delivered by companies to Government or for its
account. The companies pay Government $1.15 per kilowatt for 0.15
kilowatt of each 1.65 kilowatts delivered by Government to companies.
The Government pays the companies 4 mills per kilowatt-hour for all
kilowatt-hours which companies deliver to Government in excess of
the kilowatt-hours which Government delivers to companies. In addition,
the Government pays companies a service charge of 1.25 mills
150 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
per kilowatt-hour for all kilowatt-hours delivered by companies to
Government.
The contract also provides that the Government can sell excess capacity
to the companies at the rate of 4% cents per kilowatt per day,
and excess electric energy at the rate of 1.25 mills per kilowatt-hour.
The contract further provides that the Government can purchase
off-peak energy from the Companies at the rate of 3.25 mills per kilowatt-
hour.
Contracts With Preferred Customers
Electric service agreements totaling 7,150 kilowatts were executed
with five rural electric cooperatives in Oklahoma. These cooperatives
receive service through the facilities of the two Oklahoma utility companies
in accordance with the terms of the contract between this
Administration and Public Service Co. of Oklahoma and the Oklahoma
Gas & Electric Co.
Three municipalities in Oklahoma and one in Arkansas contracted
during the fiscal year 1951 with Southwestern Power Administration
for a total of 1,810 kilowatts to be delivered under the provisions of
the Oklahoma contract.
Four municipalities in the State of Missouri have entered into contracts
with the Administration for a total of 5,500 kilowatts. These
contracts are contingent upon the Government’s being able to use the
facilities of generating and transmission cooperatives necessary for
the delivery of power to the municipalities.
During the fiscal year 1951, a contract was entered into with KAMO
Electric Cooperative, a generating and transmission cooperative, calling
for the ultimate delivery of 55,000 kilowatts to the cooperative.
A second agreement was entered into with KAMO Electric Cooperative
which will enable this Administration to lease the transmission
facilities that are to be constructed by the cooperative.
Three contracts have been entered into with the M. & A. Electric
Power Cooperative. One of these contracts is a temporary agreement
calling for the delivery of 450 kilowatts at Doniphan, Mo. The second
contract covers the sale of 2,500 kilowatts and calls for delivery by the
Government to the cooperative at Idalia, Mo. This contract further
provides, upon payment of a service charge of 1.25 mills per kilowatthour,
that the Government can use the facilities of the cooperative
to deliver power and energy to other customers of the Government.
This contract covers only the present facilities of the cooperative.
The third contract is a provisional contract and is contingent upon the
cooperative’s completion of its planned system. This contract calls
for an ultimate delivery of 27,500 kilowatts and would replace the
first two mentioned contracts. This contract also permits the GovernANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 151
ment to use the facilities of the cooperative for the delivery of power
to Government’s other customers upon payment of service charge to
the cooperative.
PERSONNEL
The personnel staff concentrated on establishing and recruiting
to fill critical positions in the various operating divisions. Emphasis
was placed on the improvement of personnel procedure, employeeutilization
program, and wage surveys. The following files were
revised and are maintained in accordance with Civil Service requirements:
(1) Service control file, (2) chronological file of personnel
actions, (3) position description file, (4) retention preference record
file, and (5) active and inactive application file.
Southwestern Power Administration has been able to carry on its
extensive activities in the six-State area with 290 employees. Nine
of the agency’s employees are in active service on military furlough.
SUPPLY AND PROCUREMENT
The supply branch continued to improve the supply program by
establishing warehouse stock levels, forecasting long-range requirements,
and scheduling procurement accordingly. Established quarterly
quotas for critical and programed material, and obtained
priorities to assure delivery at all times to meet demands. Property
control and accountability records have been established and are
current at all times.
Southwestern Power Administration has been concerned with significant
litigation during the fiscal year 1951 as follows:
LITIGATION
United States v. Arkansas Power A Light Convpany, an action for
damages for breach of contract arising out of the energy sales agreement
between the Government and the company which is now pending
for final trial.
Kansas City Power & Light Co. et al. v. Oscar L. Chapman, Secretary
of the, Interior et al., Civil No. 4276-50, United States District
Court, District of Columbia. This is a suit instituted by the Kansas
City Power & Light Co. and nine other public utilities in the southwestern
area against the Secretaries of the Treasury, Agriculture, and
Interior, the Administrators of Rural Electrification Administration
and Southwestern Power Administration, for injunctive and
declaratory relief primarily to enjoin the defendants from advancing,
transmitting, lending, giving, or disbursing monies to certain federated
cooperatives, N. W. Electric Power Cooperative and Central
973649—52------ 13
152 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Electric Power Cooperative and Sho-Me Power Corp., for the construction
of any of the electric facilities or in furtherance of any of
the projects described in the complaint. Motion to dismiss has been
overruled and answers have been filed.
/Vo. 12,095
After the filing of the above-mentioned suit, the Kansas City Power
& Light Co., and five other private utility companies listed as plaintiffs
in the Washington suit, filed a complaint before the Public
Service Commission of Missouri against the N. W. Electric Power
Cooperative, and Douglas G. Wright, as Administrator of Southwestern
Power Administration, to require the cooperative to obtain a certificate
of convenience and necessity for its generation and transmission
system in the State of Missouri, and to require Douglas G.
Wright, as Administrator of Southwestern Power Administration, to
comply with the rules and regulations of the Public Service Commission
of Missouri with respect to the sale and transmission of electric
power and energy in the State of Missouri, which is now pending
on motion to dismiss filed by both the cooperative and the
Administrator.
SPA SYSTEM
During the fiscal year 1951, one substation, an extension to an existing
substation, and approximately 190 miles of transmission lines were
added to Southwestern Power Administration’s system. This makes
a total of four substations, two switching stations, and approximately
700 miles of transmission lines presently being maintained by the Administration.
During the 1952 fiscal year, approximately 240 miles
of transmission lines (170 miles 154-kilovolt, 40 miles 132-kilovolt,
and 30 miles of 66-kilovolt), five substations, and four switching stations
will be added to Southwestern Power Administration’s system.
One project (Bull Shoals) with 160,000-kilowatt rated capacity is
scheduled to go into commercial operation during fiscal 1952.
Muskogee, Okla., continued to be the field operations center, servicing
four maintenance-unit depots and with patrol crews stationed at
four strategic points.
Contract negotiations with the Government’s preference customers,
public bodies, municipalities, and rural electric cooperatives, will be
continued.
Southeastern Power
Administration
Ben W. Creim, Administrator
THE SOUTHEASTERN POWER ADMINISTRATION
was established by Departmental Order No. 2558, dated March
21, 1950 (15 F. R. 291). This order delegated to the Administrator
of the Southeastern Power Administration the authority of the Secretary
of Interior under section 5 of the Flood Control Act of 1944 (16
U. S. C., 1946 ed., Sec. 825s) to dispose of electric power and energy
generated at reservoir projects under the control of the Department
of the Army in the States of West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina,
South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky,
and Tennessee, exclusive of the TVA area.
During the fiscal year 1951 the total installed capacity of hydroelectric
plants constructed by the Corps of Engineers from which
Southeastern has the responsibility to market power and energy has
grown from 110,600 kilowatts to 245,600 kilowatts of installed nameplate
capacity.
At the close of fiscal year 1951 three hydroelectric plants were in
operation, namely: (1) Allatoona, located on the Etowah River near
Cartersville, Ga., with an installed nameplate capacity of 74,000 kilowatts
in three units, the power from which is being sold to Georgia
Power Co., (2) Dale Hollow, located on Obey River, a tributary of
the Cumberland River in northern Tennessee with an installed nameplate
capacity to date of 36,600 kilowatts in two main units and one
house unit with the third 18,000-kilowatt unit scheduled for future
operation, and (3) Center Hill, located on Caney Fork of the Cumberland
River in northern Tennessee with an installed nameplate capacity
of 135,000 kilowatts, equally in three units. Power from Dale Hollow,
Center Hill, and Wolf Creek (first two units scheduled for operation
in August 1951) has been sold to the Tennessee Valley Authority.
There are throughout the area seven projects under advanced construction.
The generation of this power is scheduled to begin in
August 1951. The last unit is scheduled for December 1955. These
projects are listed in chronological order.
153
154 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Project Basin e Energization of first
unit
Total ultimate
nameplate
capacity in
kilowatts
Wolf Creek____________
Philpott_______________
Buggs Island__________
Clark Hill_____________
Jim Woodruff__________
Cheatham_____________
Buford______________...
Cumberland River, Ky______________
Roanoke River, Va_____________ ____
____ do___ ____________________________
Savannah River, Ga.-S. C___________
Appalachicola River, Fla_____________
Cumberland River, Tenn____________
Appalachicola River, Ga_________ ....
August 1951__________
September 1952_______
October 1952_________
-___ do________________
December 1953_______
January 1954_________
December 1955_______
270,000
14, 000
204, 000
280,000
30, 000
36, 000
86, 000
Total____________ 920, 000
Of next importance are eight projects in various planning, program,
and budget stages. These projects are listed in chronological
order.
Project Basin Energization of first
unit
Total ultimate
nameplate
capacity in
kilowatts
Old Hickory___________
Carthage______________
Lower Cumberland____
Celina_________________
Gathright_____________
Salem Church_________
Hartwell______________
Howell Mill Shoals____
Cumberland River, Tenn____________
____ do________________________________
Cumberland River, Ky______________
Cumberland River, Ky.-Tenn_______
James River, Va____ ________________
Rappahannock River, Va____________
Savannah River, Ga.-S. C___________
Coosa River, Ala________>_________
March 1954__________
April 1955____________
May 1955 ___________
February 1956________
March 1956__________
July 1956_____________
December 1956_______
____ do____ ____________
100,000
92, 000
130, 000
64, 800
34, 000
80, 600
180, 000
200,000
Total____________ 881, 400
At the close of fiscal year 1951 the Administration had received 120
applications from preference agencies including public bodies, municipals,
and cooperatives which reported an aggregate December 1950
peak of 483,000 kilowatts, which is estimated to grow to 700,000 kilowatts
by December 1955. The Tennessee Valley Authority has indicated
that it can easily absorb within its system all scheduled
generation from the Cumberland River Basin hydroelectric plants
as this power becomes available.
During fiscal year 1951 memoranda of understanding outlining the
basic terms of definitive power sales contracts have been executed with
Alabama Electric Cooperative, Inc., and South Carolina Public Service
Authority. A contract has also been executed with Greenwood
County Electric Power Commission of Greenwood, S. C., for the sale
and exchange of power and energy. The above three commitments
aggregate 57,500 kilowatts.
During the fiscal year discussions were held with representatives
of all the private utility companies in whose service areas are located
projects under construction from which power is now being marketed.
The Administration proposed in all instances that the Government
construct only the backbone transmission lines required to transmit
power from the power plants to load centers and proposed that the
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 155
private companies wheel power for the account of the Government
from load centers to preferred agencies which contract with the Government
for purchase of power. Only one of the companies expressed
a willingness to wheel power for the account of the Government and
lengthy negotiations were undertaken in an attempt to arrive at an
agreement. No agreement had been reached at the close of the fiscal
year in view of the company's insistence that it be paid a fee for
transmitting power for the account of the Government which was
regarded as excessive by the Administration.
Total revenues of the Administration for fiscal year 1951 were
$2,458,469.50, making a total of $3,788,050.57 in power revenues received
by the Government from projects for which the Administration
is marketing agent.
Bureau of
Mines
James Boyd, Director
FOREWORD
AS ARMED CONFLICT in Korea and the threat of
aggression elsewhere created a national sense of urgency last year,
every activity of the Bureau of Mines was reappraised on the basis
of its potential contribution to the defense of the Nation and the free
world. This reappraisal was applied to mining and metallurgical
research, to studies of mineral fuels and their utilization, to investigations
of explosives and explosions, to the many-faceted program designed
to minimize human suffering and loss of facilities due to accidents
in the mineral industries, and to the collection and analysis of
economic and statistical data on all phases of mineral production,
supply, and consumption.
The two great wars since creation of the Bureau 41 years ago not
only demonstrated the importance of minerals and mineral fuels to
military success but also seriously depleted the Nation’s mineral reserves.
A survey of America’s position with respect to the principal
industrial minerals revealed that in some 17 metals and minerals—■
including such key commodities as copper, lead, zinc, mercury, bauxite,
and iron ore—the Nation’s production in relation to domestic consumption
has declined compared with the war years 1940-44 or with
the prewar years.. In only five minerals has our position improved.
Ever since VJ-day the Bureau has been striving to help bridge the
widening gap between supply and demand by searching for additional
deposits, by studies designed to make submarginal mineral deposits
commercial, by development of alternate materials, and by experimentation
aimed at more complete recovery and utilization of the mineral
values in complex and refractory ores. The growing emergency demanded
greater intensification of effort rather than its redirection.
Some shifts of emphasis were, of course, inevitable. In scientific
and technologic research, priority had to be given to the strategic and
157
158 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
critical metals and nonmetallic minerals, to petroleum products (natural
and synthetic), and to coking coal. Economic and statistical
studies were influenced increasingly by requirements stemming from
accelerated military preparedness and the foreign military assistance
program, and by the need for timely, accurate data upon which decisions
relating to imports, allocation controls, and other regulatory
measures of Government could be made promptly and equitably.
About midyear, creation in the Department of the Interior of the
Defense Minerals Administration, the Defense Solid Fuels Administration,
and the Petroleum Administration for Defense imposed new
responsibilities upon the Bureau of Mines. These agencies looked
increasingly to the Bureau for economic data and technical advice as a
basis for formulating and carrying out programs to assure adequate
supplies of minerals and mineral fuels for defense requirements and
essential civilian needs.
As the year progressed, the Bureau concentrated more and more
upon problems of immediate urgency, slowing or recessing projects
that are definitely long range. Efforts to increase the domestic supply
of manganese, for example, resulted in’marked progress. On the
basis of small-scale experiments, the technical feasibility of extracting
manganese from open-hearth steel-furnace slags was established, and
efforts to make the process economic were prosecuted vigorously in
cooperation with the iron and steel industry. Attacking the manganese
problem on another front, the Bureau macle more headway toward
developing economic methods of mining and utilizing low-grade
domestic ores during fiscal 1951 than in all its previous history. This
goal has not yet been attained; but it is now definitely in sight, and
efforts to reach it will be intensified during the coming year, when a
pilot plant at Boulder City, Nev., begun last year, is expected to go into
operation. Exploration and development, meanwhile, added substantially
to known domestic manganese reserves.
Other problems concerning ferrous metals likewise received much
attention, including those presented by the advanced depletion of the
Mesabi range, currently the Nation’s principal source of direct-shipping,
open-pit iron ore. The Bureau made a study of the proposed
St. Lawrence Seaway in connection with economical movement of
Labrador iron ore to the Great Lakes steel-making centers. It also
continued investigations into the problems expected to arise as greater
reliance has to be placed upon iron ore that is extracted from deep
mines instead of by open-pit operations and that which must be concentrated
before shipment to the blast furnaces.
The Bureau also moved to increase the Nation’s ability to produce
important ferro-alloy metals, such as chromium, nickel, and cobalt, as
well as tungsten and molybdenum, for which demand exceeded supply
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 159
during the year. The Bureau's process for producing pure chromium
electrolytically from low-grade concentrates advanced so far that a
commercial plant now under construction will use it. The technical
feasibility of extracting nickel from a low-grade ore reserve in Oregon
was established, but more research is required to make the process
economic.
Routine Bureau mineral-exploration projects during the year outlined
additional reserves of copper, lead-zinc, antimony, and mercury
ores of commercial or near-commercial size and grade. At the request
of the Atomic Energy Commission, the Bureau doubled its facilities
for producing pure zirconium metal. It also continued tests on the
beneficiation of submarginal domestic bauxites in the hope of developing
a technically and economically feasible process of upgrading them
for use in aluminum production. Moreover, the Bureau obtained additional
information on the physical properties of ductile titanium
and its alloys.
The Bureau’s studies of strategic and critical nonmetallic minerals
were intensified during the year. As the world demand for sulfur
soared beyond the productive capacity of the dome deposits, special
attention was given to the technology and economics of obtaining this
mineral as a byproduct and from sources ordinarily wasted. Mining
and ore-dressing studies of tire pegmatites—coarse mineralized rocks
containing mica, beryl, and other minerals important to defense—
were pushed. Progress was made in producing such Strategic minerals
as mica and asbestos synthetically, and research was conducted
upon building up talc block from talc powder to reduce the shortage of
the commodity.
Motivated by concern over depletion of the Nation’s best coking
coals, the Munitions Board a few years ago requested the Bureau to
take an inventory of known minable reserves. This project was prosecuted
vigorously during the year in the Appalachian field, upon which
the steel industry now relies most heavily, and will continue until
every source of coking coal in the Nation has been covered. As the
steel industry requires coke meeting rather rigid specifications as to
strength and chemical composition, the survey involves not only estimating
known minable reserves but also investigating the carbonizing
properties of the various coals and methods by which the content of
ash, sulfur, and other impurities can be reduced to a point tolerated
for metallurgical use. Reports on several counties were issued during
the year, and surveys either have been completed or are in progress in
a number of others in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Colorado,
and New Mexico.
Studies directed toward wider utilization of extensive western deposits
of lignite and subbituminous coal also were emphasized. These
160 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
low-rank coals comprise about two-thirds of the Nation's known coal
reserves on a tonnage basis but in the past have provided only a minor
share of its solid fuels production. Completion of the Bureau’s Lignite
Research Laboratory at Grand Forks, N. Dak., only one of its
kind in the United States, paved the way for research expected to increase
the usefulness of this locally abundant fuel tremendously.
In east central Pennsylvania, meanwhile, the Bureau worked to develop
a system of mechanical mining that would reduce the loss of
anthracite under present practices. To aid in this and other technical
studies of the problems of the anthracite industry, addition of a new
wing to the Anthracite Research Laboratory at Schuylkill Haven, Pa.,
was begun. Anthracite is being considered seriously as fuel for a new
type of furnace expected to be used for recovering manganese from
open-hearth slags.
Increasing demands for liquid fuels and lubricants, both military
and civilian, emphasized the importance of the Bureau's technologic
research designed to conserve the Nation's petroleum resources by
increasing ultimate recovery and to reduce the cost of producing liquid
fuels synthetically from both coal and oil shale. These efforts were
being accelerated at the close of the fiscal year, when the possibility
arose that a substantial part of the oil production of the Middle East
might be lost to the western world.
The development of processes for producing liquid fuels by the
hydrogenation of coal at Louisiana, Mo., and from oil shale at Rifle,
Colo., progressed to the point where the Secretary of the Interior,
about midyear, recommended the establishment of a few commercial
plants by private industry, with such Government assistance as is
available under existing legislation. Although it still costs a little
more to produce gasoline, Diesel fuel, and kindred products from coal
or oil shale than from natural petroleum, this gap is narrowing
rapidly, and the demand for the byproduct chemicals is so great that
such plants should become attractive investments.
Thousands of gallons of gasoline produced by coal hydrogenation
were tested in military equipment to the satisfaction of the authorities
concerned. The great flexibility of plants of this type was demonstrated;
they are capable of turning out large quantities of the products
most in demand at a given time, whether aviation gasoline or
Diesel and fuel oils, as well as important chemicals. Successful use
of an iron catalyst eliminated the need for those that contain such
strategic metals as cobalt, nickel, tin, chromium, and molybdenum.
The other coal-to-oil demonstration plant at Louisiana, which will
use the gas-synthesis process, was completed during the year, and its
various units were put through preliminary tests. This plant is the
first of its kind to be erected in the United States. Its operation,
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 161
coupled with, laboratory research at Bruceton, Pa., and Morgantown,
W. Va., is expected to provide data for establishing the technical and
economic adaptability of this process to American coals.
In the Bureau’s work on oil shale at Rifle, Colo., the year’s most significant
development was successful testing of a pilot-plant-size gascombustion
retort, which not only operates continuously but requires
no cooling water and uses part of the gas it produces to provide heat
for the process. Elimination of the need for water is especially important
because the Nation’s principal oil-shale reserves are in semiarid
country. The most dramatic event of the year, as far as shale-oil
development is concerned, probably was the use of Diesel fuel made
at Rifle to power the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad's passenger
train, the Prospector, on a regular run from Salt Lake City to
Denver.
Less spectacular, but equally significant in its contribution to the
sustained military and economic strength of the Nation, was continuation
of scientific and technologic research on the recovery and refining
of natural petroleum. The Bureau pioneered in petroleumengineering
research years ago. Its studies, coordinated with the
investigations of industry and private laboratories and research foundations
to supplement rather than duplicate them, have been instrumental
in increasing substantially the recoverable portion of the Nation’s
oil reserves. During the year the Bureau made engineering
studies of a number of oil fields, completed analyses of more than 200
crude oils from new and important fields in this country and abroad,
and carried on other technical studies in cooperation with industry.
Helium, of which the Bureau of Mines is the sole producer, was in
greater demand by Federal agencies and private industry and institutions
than at any time since 1945; in fact, it became necessary to
operate two plants most of the year. The demand for grade A helium
of 99.995 percent purity rose, and capacity for producing it was increased
accordingly. The demand for high-purity helium for welding
and metallurgical use is expected to be intensified as production
of defense materiel advances, and medical use of this inert gas is becoming
more extensive.
The Bureau is the only civilian agency of the Government that
studies explosives and the explosion hazards of industrial fumes and
dusts. During the year, it sought more efficient and safe materials
for stemming charges of permissible explosives and made gains in
basic research to determine exactly how firedamp is ignited by explosives,
promising more effective precautions against coal-mine
explosions. The Bureau also progressed in ascertaining the explosive
characteristics of industrial dusts and in developing effective measures
162 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
for preventing, dust explosions and minimizing their severity if they
occur. A number of studies were made for the Armed Services.
An upward trend in coal-mine fatalities during the first 4 months
of the calendar year 1951, high-lighted by two major disasters, emphasized
the fact that unremitting vigilance is the price of mine and
plant safety. The first disaster, a gas explosion in a bituminous-coal
mine, occurred in January. Taking 11 lives, it ended a disaster-free
period of nearly 26 months beginning in November 1948—the longest
in the statistical history of American coal mining. The other disaster,
also an explosion, occurred in an anthracite mine in March and killed
five persons.
Except for January-April 1951, the fatality rate during the fiscal
year trended downward, reflecting in part a concerted and determined
effort by management, labor, State mining agencies, and the Bureau
of Mines. These efforts have been intensified, but it will be surprising
if the fatality rate for the calendar year 1951 is brought down to that
of 1950 or 1949 during the 6 months to come. Tn June, the fatality rate
decreased to 0.85 death per million man-hours, reducing the monthly
average for the first 6 months of the year to 0.95 compared with the
annual rates of 0.90 in 1950 and 0.91 in 1949.
The Bureau’s work during the fiscal year provided basic information
that will be useful to all who are striving to reduce the accident
toll in the mining and allied industries. The intensive attack upon
the prevention of falls of roof and coal or ore, the No. 1 killer in the
mining industry, continued, with special emphasis upon roof bolting.
This involved field investigations and laboratory research. The lessons
learned are being made available to supervisors and miners
through special classes on roof-control methods as well as through
Bureau publications. A similar campaign looking toward increasing
haulage safety was carried on during the year. .
The policy of investigating all fatal accidents in coal mines, begun
during the previous year, was followed, and analyses of all roof-fall
and haulage fatalities in bituminous-coal mines and of all fatalities
in anthracite mines from February through December 1950 were made
available in separate publications. More information about the precise
circumstances under which fatalities occur was obtained, and this
is being utilized to improve the Bureau’s programs of safety education
and training.
On May 8 the Bureau issued its first approval of a Diesel locomotive
as permissible for safe use in coal mines, representing culmination
of about 20 years of study of the use of Diesel equipment underground.
Several years earlier the Bureau had set up a permissibility
schedule more rigorous than those employed in countries where this
type of equipment has been standard for many years because the use
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 163
of trolley locomotives is not tolerated. It was not until last year,
however, that an American manufacturer produced a locomotive that
met the Bureau's standards. The Bureau stands ready to study and
watch the operation of such locomotives underground under actual
operating conditions, and will if necessary make further recommendations
to insure operation that will protect tlie mine personnel.
Education and training, on which the Bureau has relied heavily
during its 41 years of efforts to promote safety and health in the
mineral industries, were carried on throughout the year on an expanded
scale. Special courses were conducted on accident prevention
for coal-mine supervisors, coal miners, and metal-mine officials and
employees, as well as supervisors and workmen in the petroleum industries.
An accident-prevention course for employees of mills, oredressing
plants, and smelters was prepared during the year and is to
be tested soon. First-aid and mine rescue training was continued,
and for the first time since 1931 a national first-aid and mine rescue
contest was planned, to be given in the fiscal year 1952. Several State
mining departments, coal- and metal-mine trade associations, and
mine workers’ organizations joined the Bureau in sponsoring this
contest.
Under authority of the Coal-Mine Inspection Act of 1941, the Bureau’s
inspectors made 9,000 inspections of about 5,000 coal mines,
visiting some of them more than once. Although the Bureau has no
enforcement authority, publication of the results of these inspections,
supplemented by letters to the heads of mining companies and of State
mining departments calling attention to serious hazards, resulted in
a notable number of corrective actions.
The past fiscal year was the third during which the Bureau had
funds available for combatting fires in coal deposits not now beingmined.
Seven fires were extinguished or brought under control, raising
to 19 the number that have been or are in process of being attacked.
It is estimated that 100,000,000 tons of coal reserves have been saved
by this program. This work is expected to be continued.
Another measure for conserving an irreplaceable natural resource
on which the Bureau progressed during the year is the control of
underground and surface flood waters that threaten to abridge the life
of the Pennsylvania anthracite industry. The study of practicable
methods for controlling the flood waters has reached the point where
it is expected that a report, containing recommendations for action,
will be ready to submit to the Congress late in the fiscal year 1952 or
early in the fiscal year 1953.
With a view to improving its statistical program, the Bureau during
the year contracted with the American Statistical Association for a
thoroughgoing study and recommendations, expected to be completed
164 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
by the close of the 1952 fiscal year. In the newly established office of
the chief economist, research was begun on mineral taxation and
tariffs, and in cooperation with the Air Force and the Bureau of the
Budget, basic research was started on the relationships between broad
economic trends and requirements for mineral raw materials and
mineral fuels. The Bureau assisted in the trade negotiations at
Torquay, England, and in the work of the President's Materials
Policy Commission.
MINERAL DEVELOPMENT
Bureau of Mines work on metallic and nonmetallic minerals in 1951
was keyed to the needs of the military establishment and the even
greater requirements of the industrial mobilization program. At the
same time, the Bureau did not overlook the need for accelerating its
mineral resource-development programs to assure adequate raw materials
for a protracted period of partial mobilization, for full mobilization
if it should become necessary, and for replenishing reserves
being depleted at abnormally high rates.
Establishment of the Defense Minerals Administration added to the
Bureau’s duties. It assigned mining engineers and metallurgists to
field teams to investigate projects for which DMA assistance was
sought. Many prospects and mines were examined and ores metallurgically
tested to determine the feasibility of proposed ventures.
By the end of the year, liaison between the two agencies was smooth
and efficient, and DMA could rely upon the Bureau’s technical and
statistical services for advice in programming and passing upon applications
in Washington and for examinations in the field.
By the end of the year, 12 encyclopedic reports on strategic and
critical minerals were hearing completion, and plans were perfected for
preparing some 30 others. These are to be a part of a series of materials
surveys for the National Security Resources Board.
The Bureau’s fact-finding and advisory services grew in number,
scope, and urgency. The stockpiling program of the Munitions
Board, on many of whose committees the Bureau is represented, continued
to make heavy demands. In addition, technical investigations
were made for the Emergency Procurement Service regarding the procurement
of mineral commodities, the beneficiation of low-grade
stocks, and the improvement of stockpile storage procedures.
The Leadville, Colo., drainage tunnel, expected to free large reserves
of lead-zinc and manganiferous ores now flooded, advanced some 3,000
feet during the year. By year end, the water level in some of the mines
had fallen considerably. In anticipation of completion of the tunnel,
mining operations in the area were being planned by private enterprise.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 165
Field staffs of the Bureau engaged in investigations related to
various river-basin programs. By the end of the year, data on more
than 500 properties had been entered in an atlas of the mines and
mineral deposits of the Black Hills, S. Dak. Reports were prepared
on high-swelling bentonite resources of Wyoming, South Dakota, and
Montana; on the mineral resources of the Big Horn Basin in Wyoming
and Montana; on Wyoming iron-ore resources; and on the vermiculite
deposits of the Encampment area in Wyoming. A survey of mines
and mineral deposits in Jefferson County, Mont., was carried ahead
early in the year. County-by-county surveys were made of Kansas
mineral resources in the Missouri and the Arkansas-White-Red River
Basins.
Two more drill-core storage houses were put into service. One of
them already has received many drill cores from State- and railroadowned
lands, as well as smaller contributions from private mining
companies. Some 300,000 feet of drill core from the World War II
Arkansas bauxite investigation has been moved from rented space at
Little Rock to a Government core-storage house at Bauxite, Ark.
To provide industry and Government with information needed for
defense mobilization, the Bureau expanded its statistical activities
considerably during the year. Canvasses were converted from partial
to complete coverage and were made more frequently. Data on
production, consumption, and stocks were released at the earliest practicable
dates. Progress in decentralizing the collection of mineproduction
statistics continued throughout the year.
Several staff members participated in the work of the International
Materials Conference, seeking a practicable basis for the international
allocation of strategic and critical minerals.
Ferrous Metals
A reevaluation of domestic iron-ore reserves revealed ample supplies
for current needs in all steel-producing districts. However, it showed
that production from the Mesabi range, the major source of supply,
would begin to decline within a few years. Future domestic production
will depend increasingly upon leaner ores requiring beneficiation
and upon underground mines, resulting in higher costs, lower productive
capacities, and decreased flexibility. The importance of the
St. Lawrence Seaway project in bringing newly developed Quebec-
Labrador iron ore to Great Lakes consuming areas was studied.
The Bureau accomplished much to make available new sources of
manganese to meet the requirements of expanded steel production.
Special appropriations permitted the construction of a pilot plant at
Pittsburgh for extracting manganese from open-hearth steel-furnace
166 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
slags, heretofore a waste product. Establishing the validity of former
laboratory research, operation of this plant gave promise that the
process may be a commercial success, and, if so, it could supply nearly
half of the Nation’s current manganese requirements. The Bureau
also began construction of a pilot plant at Boulder City, Nev., to
determine the feasibility of processes developed on a laboratory scale
for extracting manganese from low-grade domestic ores. Some progress
was made in studies looking toward conservation of manganese
in use. In addition, many millions of tons of low-grade ores were
added to known domestic resources of this critical ferro-alloy by
exploration and development of new reserves, which were expanded
during the year.
During the year development, maintenance, and experimental mining
of chromite deposits in Stillwater County, Mont., were discontinued.
However, laboratory studies aimed at upgrading the ore for
metallurgical use proceeded. The specification of a hard, lumpy material
presents a difficult problem. The Bureau has produced pure
chromium metal from low-grade chromite concentrates electrolytically,
and the process has been developed to the point where it will
be used in a commercial plant now being built.
In southwestern Oregon, extensive soil-sampling tests were made
to increase the known tonnage of low-grade nickel ore at Riddle Mountain.
Four partial-reduction smelting heats on Riddle ore recovered
78 to 91 percent of the nickel, but an economic process has not yet
been developed.
The demand for tungsten and molybdenum exceeded the supply.
The Bureau cooperated with DMA and many other Government
agencies in efforts to increase production of these metals, supplying
data on which several programs are based. Field investigations
were made at many deposits, one of which has been drilled, and metallurgical
tests were made on ore from several mines.
Nonferrous Metals
Twelve copper, lead-zinc, antimony, and mercury deposits were investigated
during the year, several of them establishing ore reserves
of commercial or near-commercial size and grade. Two projects
dealt with the large zinc-lead districts of the Mississippi Valley, one
in Missouri, Oklahoma, and Kansas and the other in Illinois, Wisconsin,
and Iowa. With the cooperation of State agencies and private
mining companies, drill logs and other exploratory and mining
records were compiled in each of these districts and made readily
available.
Supplies of and requirements for copper, lead, zinc, and mercury
were estimated, and tentative programs for increasing supplies were
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 167
prepared early in the year; after DMA was created, these were elaborated,
revised, and added to its program. In the field and in Washington,
reports were prepared on the potential production of individual
copper, lead, and zinc mines, together with data on milling
capacities and on factors that might restrict further expansion.
Data sheets on copper, lead, zinc, cadmium, antimony, and tin
were prepared for use of the State Department in conferences with
representatives of the United Kingdom Ministry of Supply. Bureau
staff members attended these conferences as technical advisers and
observers. Recommendations regarding tariff action on metals and
metal products also were prepared for the Torquay, England, conference.
Throughout the year a continuing project was carried on looking
to the development of a caustic leaching-electrolytic process for treating
zinc ores not amenable to conventional ore-dressing methods.
Progress was made on purification of solutions before electrolysis.
At the request of the State Department, investigations were continued
on a sulfidizing-volatilization process for treating low-grade
Bolivian tin ores.
With funds provided by the Atomic Energy Commission, the Bureau
studied radioactive minerals during the year. This involved
field investigation of numerous deposits and laboratory research on
methods of analysis, concentration, and extraction. By arrangement
with the AEC, too, the Bureau helped to test and evaluate about
9,000 samples of ore believed to contain uranium. This contributed to
increased interest in prospecting for radioactive minerals and has led
to the discovery of potentially valuable deposits.
At the request of the Atomic Energy Commission, the Bureau
doubled its facilities for producing pure zirconium metal by the magnesium-
reduction process. This has permitted more effective research
on process improvements and on the properties of zirconium and its
alloys. It has provided metal for testing by numerous private companies.
The Bureau was represented on the Interagency Committee on Beryl
and Monazite which has helped draft programs to expand supplies
of these commodities. Domestic sources of monazite and bastnaesite
recently explored by Government and private agencies promise to
make the United States self-sufficient in rare earths within 2 years.
Experiments pointed to the feasibility of concentrating fine-grained,
low-grade beryl ores; and this process, if it can be developed to the
production stage, will more than treble the potential domestic supply
of beryl.
Laboratory work on four high-iron bauxites, reported during the
year, developed methods for treating this material to produce a non-
973649—52------ 14
168 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
magnetic product meeting chemical requirements for abrasive bauxite
and a magnetic product suitable for Bayer-plant feed, with substantially
complete recovery of the contained aluminum. Search for
methods for desilicating high-silicon bauxites to make them suitable
for Bayer processing continued.
Government-owned ferrosilicon-process magnesium plants have
been reactivated to help supply defense requirements. Bureau laboratory
experiments suggested the possibility of lowering production
costs by developing a continuous reactor to operate under a helium
atmosphere at atmospheric pressure. A 50-kilvolt-ampere reactor was
constructed and initial tests were made. The fabrication and physical
properties of new magnesium alloys in which lithium and aluminum
are used instead of more critical metals are being investigated.
The titanium pilot plant at Boulder City, Nev., is being operated,
under Bureau supervision, by the Titanium Metals Corp, of America
under a cooperative agreement effective in November 1950, and output
has been increased from about 200 pounds of sponge a week to
roughly 1,500 pounds. The cooperating company fabricates the metal
and makes it available to Government agencies for research and development.
Other titanium research led to the design of an improved
arc-melting furnace, improvements in the mechanical properties and
surface appearance of rolled titanium sheet produced from powder
compacts, and additional information on the physical properties of
titanium and its alloys. A method for reducing titanic chloride by
magnesium in a continuous process is being sought.
Nonmetallic Minerals
The Bureau of Mines expanded its work on sulfur during the year
to meet growing requirements for this commodity. Surveys were
begun on the availability of sulfur as a byproduct, and exploration of
sulfur-mineral deposits now considered marginal was expanded.
Drilling was done on a Minnesota pyrite deposit.
As it continued difficult to obtain kyanite of high refractory grade
from abroad, the Bureau conducted extensive research on mullite refractories
made both from natural kyanite and by synthesis from other
more abundant minerals. This showed that synthetic kyanite produced
in this country probably would be a satisfactory substitute for
the foreign material but would cost more.
The Bureau continued to study building materials along the Alaska
Railroad, as well as to make field and laboratory investigations of
pegmatite deposits. Emphasis was placed upon more efficient mining,
recovery, and utilization of the pegmatites—potential sources of mica,
beryl, and other minerals important to defense.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 169
Progress was made in mineral synthesis, particularly in melting and
crystallizing synthetic mica. Methods of forming large crystals suitable
for producing strategic mica were emphasized, and further work
was done on hot-pressed synthetic mica. Research also was conducted
on synthetic asbestos, as well as on the beneficiation of natural asbestos.
Deposits of this mineral in California and Arizona were examined.
Research continued on hard carbides needed in the abrasives
industry.
Miscellaneous Research on Minerals
The application of physical science to the solution of mining problems
continued throughout the year. Microseismic recording instruments
were used successfully in several iron-ore mines where subsidence
is a serious problem. Blasting research was conducted along
several lines. The so-called linear array of recording gages, sealedin
lines of drill holes along the path of a shock wave caused by the
detonation of a charge of explosives, was used in an investigation of
oil-well shooting for comparing types of explosives, loading designs,
and other variables. It was employed also at the Experimental Oil-
Shale mine of the Bureau at Rifle, Colo., in investigating milliseconddelay
blasting and during a study of quarry blasting in Georgia.
Other blasting studies were carried out at a Corps of Engineers dam
site to determine whether contractors were complying with certain
specifications designed to prevent damage to concrete structures.
A study at the Mount Weather, Va., Experimental Hard-Rock mine
on crystallographic orientation of diamonds in drill bits led to a
preliminary conclusion that diamond wear might be reduced substantially
without undue cost by setting the stones in certain “hard” directions.
This study will be continued. A university fellowship was
established to permit a graduate mining-engineering student to work
on diamond-drilling research under the guidance of Bureau engineers.
The first year’s study dealt with the cutting action of the diamond bit.
Voluminous technical reports and other records of mineral investigations
by Government agencies—accumulated, filed, and indexed at
Mount Weather—were drawn upon in appraising production and exploration
projects for which applications for assistance had been filed
with DMA.
The measurement and correlation of thermodynamic properties of
metallurgical substances are being continued. These data are invaluable,
not only in formulating new metallurgical processes but also in
evaluating and improving established ones. They are used by research
institutions and private companies all over the world. During the year
four papers containing thermodynamic data on ceramic materials,
170 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
zirconium compounds, and metal sulfides, prepared by Bureau metallurgists
were published in the Journal of the American Chemical
Society. Fundamental research on the application of fluidization
roasting techniques and on improved flotation agents and methods is
in progress. Investigations of new methods of determining the components
of mineral and metallic substances by petrographic, spectrographic,
polarigraphic, X-ray, and chemical means have resulted in
the development of faster and more accurate analytical procedures.
FUELS AND EXPLOSIVES RESEARCH
Although total fuel supplies remained adequate last year in spite of
growing defense demands, special-purpose fuels presented many problems.
Accordingly the Bureau’s fuel-research activities emphasized
measures to assure the development of reserves and supplies of such
fuels—coking coal, and liquid fuels produced not only from natural
petroleum but also from coal and oil shale—without sacrificing safety,
efficiency, or conservation.
COAL AND COAL PRODUCTS
Coal Mining and Investigations
In the investigation of known minable reserves of coking coal, data
were obtained on Armstrong, Westmoreland, and Fayette Counties,
Pa., and Floyd County, Ky., and the survey is continuing in 26 other
Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Maryland, and Virginia
counties. Diamond drilling outlined more than 65 million tons of
recoverable coking-coal reserves in thick beds and considerably more
in thin beds in the Castleman Basin in Maryland and the Deep River
coal field in North Carolina. An estimated minable reserve of 121
million tons was disclosed in Gunnison County, Colo.
The Bureau completed studies of pillar extraction with mechanical
equipment in 13 bituminous-coal mines in West Virginia and Kentucky
and of the performance of mechanical loaders in 16 West
Virginia and Pennsylvania mines where pillars are not recovered.
New, highly productive methods of mining in thick, steeply pitching
anthracite beds were demonstrated, as was the versatility of lightweight
cutting and shearing machines for use under widely varying
conditions in the anthracite region.
Coal Preparation
Determination of the amenability of known coking reserves to preparation
that will meet metallurgical standards is nearly completed
for the important Pennsylvania coal-producing counties. Reports
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 171
on the preparation characteristics of coals from Cambria, Indiana, and
e Armstrong' Counties, published during the year, show that sulfur removal
is the principal problem.
During the year, the third and largest commercial coal-cleaning
plant using the kerosine-flotation process developed by Bureau engineers
was installed at an Alabama mine. It has eliminated a major
waste problem at this mine, while yielding a better coking coal. Improved
design and methods of operation of the cyclone washer permitted
coal and refuse to be separated at efficiencies formerly considered
unattainable.
Coking, Gasification, Drying, and Combustion Studies
Carbonization tests showed that coal from the extensive Sewall bed
in West Virginia can be used for producing good coke if blended with
small amounts of high-volatile coal. Carbonization tests of other
Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Tennessee, and Alabama coals
showed that many of them could be used alone while others must
be used in blends to improve various coke qualities.
The Bureau studied the production of char for generation of power
and production of coal chemicals by using a fluidized-bed technique
to carbonize low-rank western coals and Texas lignite. Two additional
tests, involving continuous operation of the annular-retort
lignite gasifier at Grand Forks, N. Dak., showed that this system has
possibilities for gasifying lignite and other noncoking coals to produce
gas for industrial or domestic use or as a chemical raw material.
Research Facilities
The Lignite Research Laboratory at Grand Forks, N. Dak., was
completed and occupied during the year. Construction of another
wing, expected to be completed late in 1951, was begun at the Anthracite
Research Laboratory at Schuylkill Haven, Pa.
Services to Government
Accelerated defense activities brought greater demand for the fuel
advisory services that the Bureau renders to other Government
agencies. Surveys and tests were made to improve the efficiency of
fuel-burning equipment of all types. Thirty-eight different Federal
agencies were assisted on 195 special problems. Tipple and special
samples were taken at 555 coal mines in connection with Federal coal
purchasing and for the Bureau’s research work, and the personnel of
several Federal plants was trained in coal sampling. In all, 10,876 new
analyses of coal were reported during the year.
172 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
More than 9,700 samples of boiler water used at Federal plants were
analyzed and recommendations for treatment made. Illustrative of
the savings brought about were $10,000 a year for chemicals at one
plant, a decrease of $20,000 a year in maintenance costs at another,
and $10,000 in the initial cost for water-treatment equipment at a third.
Research on the fundamental causes of boiler corrosion included a
search for the most economical compounds for use under various conditions
and the development of a number of new analytical methods.
Coal Economics
During the year the Bureau stepped up the collection of statistical
and economic data on the production and utilization of coal, coke,
coal chemicals, peat, and packaged fuels. Besides being useful to the
whole economy, these data formed a basis for the development of programs
by the Defense Solid Fuels Administration. The Bureau
analyzed not only trends in the production and consumption of solid
fuels but also changes in fuel-use patterns and their causes.
Data for forecasting requirements of solid fuels were developed.
Among items considered were requirements for and the availability
of coal and coke for expanded steel production, information on the
replacement, installation, and operation of coke ovens, and requirements
of the solid fuels industries for scarce materials for machinery
and for maintenance, repair, and operating supplies, as well as applications
by the industry for accelerated tax amortization and for
Government loans for new production facilities.
SYNTHETIC LIQUID FUELS
Private interest in establishing a domestic synthetic liquid fuels
industry increased last year as the Bureau and industry continued
to improve equipment and techniques for producing gasoline and
other commodities from coal and oil shale. With the technical feasibility
demonstrated, industry and Government turned their attention
to costs.
Oil From Coal
Improved results in producing synthetic liquid fuels by coal hydrogenation
were obtained at the coal-to-oil demonstration plant at
Louisiana, Mo. In the sixth liquid-phase run, lasting 2 months, 2,600
tons of Kentucky coal were converted to 336,000 gallons of synthetic
oil for vapor-phase processing to high-octane gasoline. Five runs on
3,000 tons of Wyoming coal yielded 300,000 gallons of charging stock.
In a month-long vapor-phase run, 78-octane gasoline was produced.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 173
and thousands of gallons were tested by the military establishment
with “eminently satisfactory” results. An iron catalyst was used
successfully in place of those containing such strategic metals as
cobalt, nickel, tin, chromium, and molybdenum. The versatility of
coal-hydrogenation plants was demonstrated further.
Units of the newly completed gas-synthesis demonstration plant
at Louisiana received preliminary tests. Integrated operations to
convert coal first to synthesis gas and then to liquid fuels are about
to begin as this is being written. The first of its kind in this country,
this plant includes a ton-per-hour oxygen-production unit, a gasification
unit, a synthesis-gas-purification unit, and product-recovery
and refinepy facilities.
Laboratory and pilot-plant research at Bruceton, Pa., was concentrated
upon improved gas synthesis, direct high- and low-pressure
hydrogenation, catalyst improvement, and bench-scale experiments
on a new low-pressure, fluidized-bed, coal-hydrogenation process.
Long, satisfactory runs were made with a “moving-catalyst-bed”
process that eliminated cementation problems and resulted in other
improvements. Encouraging test results led to pilot-plant-scale development
of the fluidized-bed or dry-coal hydrogenation process,
which compares favorably with liquid-phase hydrogenation.
Pilot-plant experiments in the synthesis-gas laboratories at Morgantown,
W. Va., resulted in a relatively simple continuous, slagtapping,
gasification process that promises to reduce the cost of synthesis
gas. Good-quality synthesis gas, the largest single cost item
in the gas-synthesis process, was produced in a pilot plant by gasifying
coal with superheated steam and oxygen at atmospheric pressure.
At Gorgas, Ala., gas generated by burning unmined coal was used
to run a gas turbine as part of the second field-scale underground
gasification experiment of the Bureau and the Alabama Power Co.
This had never been done before in this country. As the year ended,
preliminary work was under way to test a technique in which highvoltage
electricity passed through the coal bed carbonizes the coal
and opens passageways for admitting air or oxygen blasts without
the need for underground work.
Oil From Oil Shale
Revised estimates of Colorado oil-shale reserves last year raised
the total shale-oil potential to nearly 500 billion barrels, of which
80 billion barrels is considered recoverable from the rich Mahogany
ledge of the Green River formation. Improved mining techniques,
including longer-life drill rods and more efficient blasting, further
lowered mining costs in the Experimental mine near Rifle, Colo.
174 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Iii the oil-shale demonstration plant, an improved, continuous, vertical
retort successfully passed pilot-plant tests. It requires no cooling
water and uses part of the gas produced to supply heat for the
process. For the first time in America, a passenger train was powered
with shale-oil Diesel fuel. Shale-oil gasoline and Diesel fuel produced
by conventional petroleum-refining techniques have been used
successfully for more than a year to power Bureau equipment at Rifle.
Bench-scale experiments at the Oil-Shale Experiment Station at
Laramie, Wyo., showed that oil-shale fines would yield when retorted
completely refined, marketable products, including benzene, essential
for making synthetic rubber, plastics, nylon, and insecticides. Other
scarce and useful chemicals could be produced as byproducts. Satisfactory
reduction of the sulfur and nitrogen contents in Diesel and
jet fuels, enabling them to meet military specifications, was
approached.
PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS
During the year the Bureau signed an agreement with the Petroleum
Administration for Defense providing for the expansion of
statistics on production, manufacture, transportation, and consumption
of petroleum, natural gas, natural gasoline, carbon black, jet
fuels, and aviation gasoline and its components; engineering studies
of producing fields, refining methods, and equipment; laboratory research
on minor components of crude oils and on the thermodynamics
of hydrocarbons, and such other related problems as may be approved
by the Bureau of the Budget.
' In January 1951 the Bureau of Mines and the Geological Survey
undertook a geologic and engineering study of the Canyon Reef fields
in Texas at the suggestion of the PAD. Important engineering studies
of Colorado, Oklahoma, Montana, and Wyoming oil fields were
completed. Research on secondary recovery of oil was emphasized.
The Bureau completed analyses of 246 crude oils from new and important
domestic and foreign fields. It made available data on the
characteristics and refining possibilities of 92 of these oils that will
be a standard reference for petroleum laboratories throughout the
world.
In cooperation with the American Gas Association, the Bureau undertook
a study of gas condensates and one of the productivity of
high-pressure oil and gas wells; pipeline-flow investigations, including
the development of accurate formulas for predicting the capacity
of new gas pipelines and checking the efficiency of existing ones; and
the completion of a reliable dew-point recorder needed to control the
formation of hydrates in long-distance natural-gas pipelines.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 175
Working with the American Society foi*Testing Materials, the
Bureau undertook to administer the activities of a group of industrial
and Government laboratories cooperating to determine the accuracy
and precision of A. S. T. M. engine-test methods for rating aviation,
motor, and Diesel fuels. With the Western Petroleum Refiners Association,
the Bureau began a study of the compatibility and stability
in storage of Diesel and burner oils.
In cooperation with industry, the Bureau continued periodic surveys
of the characteristics of motor, aviation, and Diesel fuels marketed
throughout the country. It continued study of the preparation,
isolation, and purification of sulfur compounds in petroleum. It
summarized 2 years of study of the combustion characteristics of
Diesel fuels to provide practical information to engine builders and
users.
HELIUM
The Bureau produced over 95 million cubic feet of helium in the
year, making about 70 percent available to Federal agencies and
selling the rest to non-Federal customers. For the first time since
May 1945, the demand for helium exceeded the capacity of the Exell
plant near Amarillo, Tex. The Amarillo plant was operated for 7
months until that at Otis, Kans., was reactivated in March 1951.
As the demand for grade A helium, 99.995 percent or more pure,’
increased, the Bureau increased its capacity to produce this grade.
In a modest research program at Amarillo, a continuous recording
instrument was developed to analyze grade A helium for hydrogen.
Samples of natural gas from several new fields were analyzed for
helium.
EXPLOSIVES AND EXPLOSIONS RESEARCH AND TESTING
Explosives Research
The Bureau made about 1,750 tests of permissible and special explosives
and hazardous chemicals during the year. One permissible
explosive was put on the inactive list, and 5 were added to the
active list, raising it to 178. About 27 percent more permissible
explosives were used in coa] mines than during the previous year, and
the ratio of black blasting powder to permissibles (less than 15 percent)
was the lowest in history.
More efficient and safer stemming materials were sought for use
with permissible explosives. An extensive study of the mechanism
of ignition of firedamp by explosives, utilizing a new high-speed
camera, yielded data promising a more positive approach to the problem
of the ignition hazard of explosives.
176 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
A number of new nitrated furane derivatives have been synthesized
and tested during the Bureau’s search for more efficient and stable
primary explosives. Experiments continued on the multiple-shot
blasting of coal.
Gas- and Dust-Explosion Research
Continuing its efforts to help eliminate dust-explosion hazards in
industry, the Bureau tested 70 different dusts. Progress in basic
studies of the mechanism of the propagation of dust explosions was
expedited by improvements in experimental techniques.
The Bureau also investigated the explosive characteristics of a
number of new flammable liquids and gases. The causes of several
industrial explosions were studied on the spot. An investigation of
the ignition and explosion hazards of certain aircraft fuels was begun
for the Armed Services.
Based on the Bureau’s previous work on the fundamental properties
of flame, considerable progress was made on the problems arising
from the combustion instability of appliances when supplied with a
substitute gas of equal heat value but different chemical composition
from that for which they were adjusted. Progress is continuing in
fundamental research on ignition and flame propagation.
SAFETY AND HEALTH ACTIVITIES
Promoting safe and healthful working conditions in the mineral
industries is one of the oldest responsibilities of the Bureau. Over
the past 41 years, an effective technique for fulfilling it has been developed.
This consists of (1) conducting research and investigations
to identify existing hazards and discover ways of correcting them;
(2) conducting educational and training activities to impart the
knowledge gained to supervisors and workmen throughout the industries;
and (3) inspecting individual coal mines to determine specific
hazards and recommend steps to correct them.
Work on Primary Hazards
Between 80 and 85 percent of the fatalities and about 45 percent
of all injuries in American coal mines during the past 2 years have
been caused by falls of rock and coal or by haulage accidents. Falls
of rock and ore are also the principal cause of fatalities in noncoal
mines, and haulage accidents are a heavy contributor. During the fiscal
year, in accordance with its policy of concentrating upon the hazards
that are most serious at any given time, the Bureau intensified its
research and investigations on roof control and haulage operations.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 177
It also accelerated its educational and training activities in these two
fields.
With regard to roof control, special attention was given to roof
bolting. This method of roof support, which the Bureau has been
sponsoring in the coal-mining industry since 1947, has achieved even
greater success than was originally anticipated. By the close of the
fiscal year, roof bolts were being used to supplant or supplement conventional
timbering in 494 coal mines, where they were supporting
about 150,000,000 square feet of roof. A survey at the end of the
fiscal year revealed that roof bolts were being manufactured in the
United States at the rate of 2 million a month, and all were being used
in mines. Roof bolts were being employed in 54 noncoal mines, supporting
about 25,000,000 square feet of roof. Experience has shown
that roof bolts, properly installed under suitable conditions, increase
not only safety but also efficiency in both coal and ore mines.
Research on technical problems involved in this method of roof support
was continued in the field and the laboratory. A cooperative
study of mine roof proceeded at the Dehue, W. Va., mine of the
Youngstown Mines Corp., where color photography of the inside of
boreholes is being used. Studies of torquometer readings to determine
bolt tension were continued, field data were gathered on hydraulic
jacks, electrical strain gages were used to study roof action,
and data on roof-bolting practices were collected. The initial tasks
of designing and calibrating special equipment for roof-control research
was completed, and the gathering and analysis of data were well
underway as the year ended.
To assure that roof bolting would not be discredited because of improper
installations, a number of Federal coal-mine inspectors were
trained as consultants to advise mine operators wishing to install this
method of roof control. Accident records of mechanized coal mines in
States where roof bolts are used widely show a reduction in rooffall
injuries.
During the year, enough data on the circumstances under which rooffall
fatalities occur were accumulated to form the basis for an intensive
effort to instruct supervisors and miners in recognizing and correcting
roof hazards before they cause accidents. The need for such
training, which will supplement the Bureau’s regular accident-prevention
courses, is emphasized by the failure of roof-fall fatalities to
decline in proportion to fatalities from other causes. Coal-mine inspectors
will be utilized to conduct this course and to take advantage
of every opportunity to enlist the cooperation of mine personnel in
eliminating the conditions and practices that contribute to accidents of
1 his type.
178 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
During the year, the Bureau conducted a program of education and
training on the prevention of haulage accidents, with good results.
About 3,000 haulage employees, supervisors, and others took this
course, which was based upon current studies of coal-mine-accident
reports and was prepared in a special haulage-safety unit organized
during the year.
The investigation of all coal-mine fatalities, upon which the Bureau
embarked in February 1950, already has provided data that will be
useful in all phases of its accident-prevention work. A report on each
fatality investigated, describing the contributing circumstances in
detail but refraining from any attempt to assess blame, is distributed
to interested persons and agencies as promptly as possible. In addition,
the information in these reports is condensed and published
annually, so that the industry will have available the information
needed for establishing effective safety programs.
Tests of Equipment
During the year, the Bureau continued to test electrically operated
machines and appliances designed for use in mines to determine
whether they are so constructed as to minimize gas- and dust-ignition
hazards as well as those of electric shock. It investigated Dieselpowered
mine locomotives and equipment to determine their safety for
use underground. In addition, research was continued upon improvements
in design and operation of equipment to minimize accident
hazards.
This work has increased with growing mechanization of coal mining.
Equipment meeting the Bureau's safety standards is approved
as permissible for use in coal mines. Approvals are granted under 10
different schedules. The safety standards are published as schedules.
During the fiscal year 66 formal approvals were granted. Tests to
determine flame-resisting qualities were made on 66 trailing cables.
Changes in approved equipment were sanctioned by granting 102
formal and 1,129 informal extensions of approval. Approval was
granted for one permissible Diesel locomotive for use in coal mines
under standards much more rigorous than those established in countries
where Diesel mine locomotives have been used with official sanction
for many years.
In addition, during the year 9 new approvals and 34 extensions of
approval were granted for respiratory protective devices. Check tests
of approved types of equipment now on the market were made to
determine whether they met the specifications upon which approvals
were based.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 179
Health Studies
During the fiscal year, the Bureau continued research and investigations
directed toward minimizing health hazards in the mineral
industries. Dust and particle-size determinations and X-ray diffraction,
spectrographic, and petrographic examinations were made in connection
with dust surveys in mines, in the analysis of dust-source
materials, in the evaluation of materials for rock dusting in coal mines,
and in connection with the Bureau's experimental work. Tests were
continued at the Experimental coal mine at Bruceton, Pa., to determine
the efficiency of dust collectors for use in connection with drilling
for roof bolting in coal mines.
Exactly 16,091 gas and dust samples were analyzed during the year.
They were collected in mines and tunnels, during investigative work
for the Armed Services, in connection with the investigation of accidents
or hazardous conditions, and in various laboratory studies.
Some of these studies dealt with gaseous combustion products of
coal-mine rubber belting, the health hazards of mercury vapor in
Bureau laboratories, exhaust gases of Diesel-powered mine equipment,
fume and dust concentrations during multiple blasting with
millisecond-delay detonators in a commercial coal mine in Washington
and in the Bureau’s Experimental coal mine at Bruceton, Pa., and
the efficiency of water sprays used during such blasting.
The Bureau gave the industry advice upon ventilating underground
operations to be developed rapidly with Diesel equipment,
prepared plans for ventilating the San Manuel copper mine, and gave
advisory ventilation proposals to mine operators and to representatives
of foreign countries. It also offered advice on air-conditioning deep
western copper mines.
Literature research and the compilation of scientific information
on industrial hygiene and preventive medicine in the mining and
allied industries were continued. In addition, work was begun upon
an annotated bibliography on air pollution, which will be the most
extensive ever compiled upon this subject.
Safety Education and Training
Teaching supervisors and workmen first how to recognize and then
how to correct dangerous conditions and practices is one of the most
powerful weapons in the Bureau’s accident-prevention armory. It has
conducted safety classes in mines and plants throughout its 41-year
history. New, specialized courses, including those on roof control
and haulage mentioned above, have been added recently, and old
180 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
courses are revised from time to time to keep them abreast of changing
technology and incorporated the results of new research.
Two coal-mine accident-prevention courses are given, one for supervisors
and those aspiring to become supervisors and the other for
miners. Since the revised course for supervisors was offered in 1948,
12,276 mine officials have completed it, and 34,832 have completed the
revised course for miners since its introduction in 1947. The Bureau
also offers a metal-mine accident-prevention course, which was completed
by 796 officials and key employees of mines and plants during
the year; 203 others attended some of the classes. A similar course
for employees of mills, ore-dressing plants, and smelters is ready for
an initial try-out.
Lectures and demonstrations on static-electricity hazards, gas and
dust explosions, and the fire hazards of dusts and gases were given
to more than 11,000 persons in many States. Lectures on static electricity
and proper handling of gasoline were presented before Air
Force personnel at 10 air bases.
First-aid and mine rescue training was given to 35,485 persons in
the mining and allied industries during the year, bringing to 1,806,-
013 the number who have had such training since the inception of the
Bureau. During the year 334 new instructors were trained, raising
to 18,564 the number who have qualified to teach the Bureau of Mines
first-aid course. Certificates showing that all employees had taken
first-aid training during the year were presented to 70 mines and
plants.
For the first time since 1931, a national first-aid and mine rescue
contest was arranged, in cooperation with several State mining departments,
coal- and metal-mine trade associations, and mine workers’
organizations. To be held during the fiscal year 1952, it will
assemble crack teams from mines all over the country.
Coal-Mine Inspections
The Bureau’s 250 coal-mine inspectors made 8,971 inspections during
the fiscal year, raising the-total since inception of the program to
41,986. Last year’s inspections covered 6,360 mines; some of them
were visited more than once.
The program carried on under the Coal-Mine Inspection Act of
1941 (Public Law’ 49, 77th Cong.) has proved an effective catalyst in
stirring up efforts to prevent coal-mine accidents. After rising for
9 years before 1942, the fatality rate has since been declining, the
rate of 0.90 fatality per million man-hours during the calendar year
1950 being the lowest in the statistical history of American coal
mining. Although there was an increase in the rate during the first
4 months of the calendar year 1951, concerted efforts by management,
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 181
labor, State mining officials, and the Bureau of Mines counteracted
this trend in May.
That unceasing vigilance is the price of coal-mine safety was emphasized
as t-wo major disasters, one in a bituminous-coal mine in
January and the other in an anthracite mine in March, taking a total
of 16 lives, broke the longest disaster-free period in the history of
American coal mining. It had lasted since November 1948. Both of
the 1951 disasters were caused by the ignition of undetected gas
accumulations in working places.
The authority of the Bureau’s inspectors is purely advisory. They
report all unsafe conditions and practices observed and recommend
corrective action. Their reports also cite recent safety improvements
and desirable features. Copies of each report are sent to the mine
operator, the mine workers’ organization, the State mining agency,
and the joint Industry Safety Committee.
An important factor in obtaining cooperation in correcting hazards
has proved to be postinspection conferences between the Federal inspectors
and officials and workmen at the mines visited. In addition,
the inspectors play a major role in the Bureau’s various safety educational
and training programs, conduct the investigations of fatal
accidents previously mentioned, and act as judges at first-aid and
mine rescue contests.
Although coal-mine injury rates are declining, much must be done
before they are in line with those of other industries. During the year
the correction of serious hazards reported by the Federal inspectors
continued. However, 49 percent of their reports showed the existence
of major hazards, and only 27 percent of their recommendations were
adopted.
Accident Analysis
To increase the effectiveness of the coal-mine-inspection program,
inspectors were supplied quarterly with data on the causes and frequency
of injuries in individual coal mines and regional and branch
supervisors with quarterly injury records for their areas. Increasing
manpower difficulties in metal mines brought more requests for analyses
of employment and injury data. At the request of the Defense
Minerals Administration, a comprehensive monthly report on manpower
problems and productivity in metal mines was planned. The
defense program increased demands for data on production, consumption,
and ingredients of industrial explosives. Nearly 200 operations
enrolled in a new industry-wide safety competition for sand and gravel
plants sponsored by the Bureau. Decentralization of the accidentanalysis
work to the regions was begun during the year.
182 > ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Control of Fires in Inactive Coal Deposits
At the end of the fiscal year, 19 fires in coal beds not now being
worked had been or were in process of being controlled, 10 on the
public domain in Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming and 9 on
private lands in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Control or extinguishment
of seven of these fires was completed during the fiscal
year. Since the fiscal year 1949, when funds for this work first became
available, it is estimated that more than 100,000,000 tons of coal have
been saved from destruction at a cost to the Government of less than
1 cent a ton.
Anthracite Flood Prevention
Field work on some phases of the Bureau’s study of the underground
mine-water problem in the Pennsylvania anthracite region was completed
during the year, and plans were prepared to aid in preventing
the loss of large reserves by flooding. Boreholes drilled under contract
at 15 shaft sites along the proposed line of a main tunnel to drain
all the anthracite fields into the Susquehanna River near Conowingo,
Md., furnished cores for a study of rocks and water seepage along the
route. Construction quantities have been calculated for twin-tunnel,
single-tunnel, and combination single-tunnel and central pumpingplant
schemes.
Study was continued to determine the ability of the barrier pillars
in the anthracite region to withstand hydrostatic pressure that may
be brought to bear against them, to locate breaks in the barrier pillars,
and to learn where openings may be made to combine underground
pools. This study entails investigation of 6,000 pillars in some 186
collieries.
Another phase of the anthracite floodwater problem under study
is the infiltration of surface water from streams that cross the anthracite
measures and the devising of methods to control its leakage
into the underground pools.
PUBLIC REPORTS
Under its organic act, the Bureau of Mines is directed “to prepare
and publish reports of inquiries and investigations.” In all, 589
manuscripts covering all phases of its work were approved and edited,
compared with 680 in the fiscal year 1950. The sharp decline in
number resulted largely from the assignment of many Bureau engineers,
scientists, and economists to defense activities.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 183
Results of Bureau investigations were made available to the industry
and the public in printed and processed reports, in articles prepared
for the trade and technical press, and in papers presented before
various organizations interested in the Bureau’s work. The printed
reports included 18 bulletins, 1 technical paper, 67 Minerals Yearbook
chapters and 1 bound volume, and 19 miscellaneous items such
as handbooks and monthly and annual lists of publications—a total
of 106. In addition, 96 reports of investigations, 43 information circulars,
and 26 other manuscripts, including Mineral Trade Notes and
reports for the National Security Resources Board, were prepared for
processing—a total of 165. Papers for presentation before technical
and professional societies and for publication in the trade press totaled
318. These reports included approximately 22,000 manuscript pages
and 2,100 illustrations.
An index of nearly 5,000 items was prepared for Minerals Yearbook,
1949, and the Senate hearings on the Interior Department appropriation
bill were indexed for the ninth consecutive year.
The number of showings of films from the Bureau’s free loan library
of educational motion pictures established another all-time
record during the fiscal year. Bureau films were exhibited a total
of 194,439 times, an increase of 11 percent or 20,131 over the 1950
record of 174,308. The total attendance at showings during the fiscal
year was 12,639,968.
A total of 963 new copies of films were added to the film library
during the year, and 1,225 copies were withdrawn owing to obsolescence
and ordinary wear. At the end of the year, 6,017 copies of
motion-picture films were in circulation.
Five new films became available for circulation during the fiscal
year. They were Texas and Its Natural Resources, West Virginia and
Its Natural Resources, A Story of Copper, Treasure from the Sea,
and The Melting and Refining of Stainless Steel. Texas and Its Natural
Resources is a revision of an earlier film of the same title. Treasure
from the Sea is an animated color film on magnesium.
Bureau of Mines educational films are available in 16-millimeter
width, all in sound except for a few of the earlier ones not yet withdrawn
from circulation, and many in color. Like all films in the
Bureau’s free loan library, those added during the fiscal year 1951 were
sponsored by industrial concerns which defrayed all costs incidental
to production and provided the Bureau with enough copies for distribution
to schools, colleges, training classes, the Armed Services,
business and civic groups, and other recognized organizations. No
charge is made for the loan of films, but the borrower pays for transportation
and for any damage other than ordinary wear and tear.
973649—52—15
184 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
ADMINISTRATION SUMMARY
Increased emphasis was placed on continued improvement of program
and administrative functioning.
A notable development was the initiation of semiannual conferences
of regional directors and administrative personnel devoted
to discussions of technical and administrative procedures. Conferences
were held in Washington, D. C., and Amarillo, Tex., during
the year. The conference held the week of March 12 in Washington
was devoted to budget and accounting, personnel, and property -
management matters. These conferences resulted in better all-around
understanding of the detailed requirements as well as of the over-all
objectives.
Authority has been delegated to regional directors, regions I through
VIII, to make appointments and status changes in positions in GS-1
through GS-11 and CPC-1 through CPC-10 which have been allocated
and established, and all ungraded positions, as well as to fill
vacancies vice such positions, and to take additional identical actions
on such positions. Also, the regional director, region IV, is authorized
to allocate positions up to and including grade GS-7, and the
regional director, region VIII, is authorized to allocate positions up
to and including grade GS-11. Some officials in charge of field stations
under the jurisdiction of regional directors are also authorized
to make appointments and status changes in positions in GS-1
through GS-7; CPC-1 through CPC-10; and all ungraded positions.
The Office of the Bureau Safety Engineer is charged with the
formulation and direction of a program to improve the health and
injury experience of employees. There are six full-time safety engineers
and one safety inspector in four synthetic liquid fuels plants.
At each of three additional stations, all metallurgical, an employee
functions as safety engineer besides carrying on his regular duties,
and two of the helium plants have safety committees whose chairmen
have safety matters directed to them but who do not otherwise function
as safety engineers.
The injury-frequency rate, which is the number of lost-time injuries
per million man-hours of work, was 12.4 for the calendar year
1950. Although this represents only a small percentage reduction as
compared to the value of 12.8 for calendar 1949, except for the abnormally
bad record of a single station there would have been an
improvement of nearly 12 percent in the 1950 frequency rate as
compared with that of the preceding year. Every effort is being made
to improve the injury experience at this station, including the designation
of an employee as a full-time safety engineer. The severity rate,
which is the number of days lost per thousand man-hours, was 1.39—
an improvement of nearly 17 percent over calendar 1949. But this
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 185
includes a highway fatality that may or may not be finally chargeable
as occupational on the basis of whether or not being on per diem is
technically an “on duty” status for hours actually off duty. If this
fatality is decided as not chargeable, then the 1950 severity rate will
be 0.74, nearly 56 percent lower than the preceding year. Fires, although
fewer in number-in 1950, caused property damage estimated
at $9,819 as compared with $5,785 in 1949. Eighty-one percent of
the total damage occurred at one (experimental) plant where hightemperature,
high-pressure hydrogenation processes are extremely
dangerous, potentially, but where every effort is made to prevent and
to control fires. Motor-vehicle accidents were 19 percent greater in
number and property damage 40 percent higher in 1950 than in 1949,
both less than in 1948, but no person was seriously injured. Four tort
claims were approved for total damages to privately owned cars of
$264.30.
There is evidence of continuous improvement in the occupational
health and safety of Bureau of Mines employees.
On June 30, 1951, there were 5,001 full-time employees in the Bureau
of Mines, distributed as follows:
Table 1.—Classification and number of appointees
GS-1 CPC-2 Total
Departmental___________________________________________________________
Field____________________________________________________________________
Total______________________________________________________________
725
3,885
4, 610
380
391
736
4,265
5,001
1 Includes instrument makers, safety instructors, laboratory aids, assistants, etc.
2 Includes laborers, mechanics, messengers, wage employees, etc.
PROPERTY
Property records of the Bureau of Mines, as of June 30, 1951, show
accounts as follows:
Automobiles and trucks______________________________________ $1, 675, 612. 70
Canvas and leather goods____________________________________ 21,102. 82
Drafting and engineering instruments_________________________ 93,120. 49
Electrical equipment_________________________________________ 347, 654. 61
Hardware and tools______ __________________________________ 406, 565. 45
Household equipment_______________________________________ 90, 521. 96
Laboratory equipment_______________________________________ 5, 382, 060. 41
Medical equipment__________________________________________ 38,173. 85
Office furniture and equipment_______________________________ 1, 835, 893.15
Photographic apparatus_____________________________________ 168,132. 76
Machinery and power-plant equipment________________________ 5, 734, 293. 49
Land, building, and improvements____________________________ 20, 847, 438. 62
Specialized equipment and apparatus_________________________ 8, 540, 814. 72
Total--------------------------------------------------------------------------- 45, 181, 385. 03
This property is in Washington, D. C., and at the various field stations
and offices of the Bureau.
186 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
FINANCE
The total funds available to the Bureau of Mines for the fiscal year
ending June 30, 1951, including direct appropriations, prior year
balances available, reimbursements, transfers and advances from other
Government agencies, and advances from. other than Government
agencies, were $41,835,210. Of this amount $29,975,088 was obligated,
leaving an unobligated balance of $11,860,122.
Funds available to the Bureau of Mines for fiscal year 1951 (by source of funds)
Direct appropriations_________________________________________ $24, 981,100
Deduct:
Reserves for savings required by section 1214, General
Appropriation Act, 1951________________________ $360, 000
Transfer of funds to finance defense activities______ 515, 000
------------- 875,000
Net, direct appropriations________________________________ 24,106,100
Prior year balance available (includes $6,600,000 of contract authorization)
________________________________________________ 10,198, 344
Reimbursements from other Government agencies_______________ 1,099, 349
Advances from other than Government agencies_________________ 957, 461
Advanced or transferred from other Government agencies________ 5, 473, 956
Total___________________________________________________ 41, 835, 210
Obligations incurred by the Bureau of Mines in fiscal year 1951 by appropriation
Conservation and development of mineral resources:
1. Fuels:
(a) Coal______________________________________________ $2,023,451
(b) Petroleum and natural gas---------------------------------------- 1,146,730
(c) Synthetic liquid fuels---------------------------------------------- 7,746,371
(d) Helium_____________________________________________ 92, 574
2. Minerals and metals :
(a) Ferrous metals and alloys------------------------------------- 2,111,661
(b) Nonferrous metals_______________________________ 2, 646, 065
(c) Nonmetallic minerals--------------------------------------------- 774,651
(d) Mineral research, unclassified--------------------------------- 366,982
3. Control of fires in inactive coal deposits---------------------------- 324, 593
Total, conservation and development of mineral resources— 17, 233, 078
Health and safety:
1. Investigation of accidents and rescue work---------------------- 792, 455
2. Mine inspections and investigations---------------------------------- 2, 533, 468
3. Explosives and explosions testing and research___________ 471, 948
Total, health and safety________________________________ 3, 797, 871
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 187
Obligations incurred by the Bureau of Mines in fiscal year 1951 by
appropriation—Continued
Construction:
1. New laboratory facilities__________________ ,____________ $654, 573
2. Drainage tunnel, Leadville, Colo________________________ 465, 382
3. Synthetic liquid fuels__________________________________ 605, 283
Total, construction_____________________________________ 1, 725, 238
General administrative expenses________________________________ 1,284,433
Construction and rehabilitation, Bureau of Reclamation (transfer
to Bureau of Mines)_________________________________________ 209,265
Development and operation of helium properties__________________ 538, 550
Helium production--------------------------------------------------------------------- 841, 507
Working fund, Interior, mines___________________________________ 4,136, 435
Contributed funds______________________________________________ 92, 885
Expenses, international development, Executive Office of the President
(allotment to Interior) 1951__________________________________ 115,826
Total, Bureau of Mines__________________________________ 29, 975, 088
-
■
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Geological
Survey
W. E. JErather, Director
IN PEACE OP WAR the work of the Geological
Survey is a prerequisite in guarding the Nation’s raw materials and
energy sources, expanding production facilities, and carrying on many
other activities that contribute to maintaining the economic base for
our American way of life. Today, with oil, gas, coal, strategic metals,
and other valuable commodities being used at an enormously increased
rate and with our supply of water, once believed limitless so far as
our needs are concerned, beginning to be used to its maximum capacity
in more and more areas, the farseeing programs of the Survey’s four
divisions are tremendously important. At present the Geologic, Topographic,
Water Resources, and Conservation Divisions are devoting
their best efforts to meeting the very real needs of national defense,
yet the Survey from its earliest days has been concerned with the wise
utilization of our natural resources; instinctively, it will bear in mind
the Nation’s long-term needs during this present emergency as it has
during other times of crisis.
GEOLOGIC DIVISION
The emergency created by the Korean hostilities caused serious
problems in the Division during fiscal year 1951. Those activities
which contribute most directly to national defense have had to be
enlarged and new defense activities begun. Duties have been assigned
to the Geological Survey under the Defense Minerals Administration
and the Petroleum Administration for Defense, and members of the
Survey staff are serving as advisers to the National Security Resources
Board and the President’s Materials Policy Commission. Geologic
investigations in foreign areas and the military geology program are
being expanded.
189
190 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The problem of staffing has been met to some extent by delaying or
interrupting other activities, but in spite of increased responsibilities
the regular program of investigations and research necessary for the
long-range welfare of the Nation’s mineral industries is continuing
and every effort will be made to enlarge it during the next fiscal year.
Mineral Deposits
The traditional functions of the Mineral Deposits Branch were
supplemented during the past year by special defense activities.
Personnel participated in the establishment and development of
the Defense Minerals Administration. At the request of this agency,
commodity geologists recommended special programs designed to reduce
deficiencies in the supply of 23 strategic and critical mineral
commodities. By the end of May more than 975 applications for
Government assistance involving 47 commodities had been referred
to the Survey for appraisal and recommendations. Approximately
75 percent of these can be appraised on the basis of published and file
data, but the remainder require special field study. About 500 applications
had been processed and nearly 100 field examinations completed
by June 1.
Confidential reports on the world resources of 12 strategic metals
and minerals were prepared for the National Security Resources Board
during the year. A request for similar reports on 34 other mineral
commodities was received for completion during fiscal year 1952.
The President’s Materials Policy Commission is allotted a full-time
liaison man and consultant, and assignments on the marginal ore
reserves of 15 mineral commodities and on a list of unpublished
Survey documents concerning mineral resources have been completed.
Study of exploration and discovery practices for several important
minerals is in progress.
Although these special activities have retarded the Survey’s regular
program of geologic mapping and research, 91 Mineral Deposits
Branch projects, some in the report-preparation stage, were active in
fiscal year 1951. These projects dealt with more than 30 different
mineral commodities in 31 States. About three-quarters of the program
was focused on strategic minerals; most of the remainder was
concerned with commodities like iron, potash, and phosphate, which,
though not now classed as strategic, are essential to the continued welfare
of the Nation.
Projects supported by regular Survey appropriations and by transfer
of funds from other Department agencies and from seven States
included studies of such commodities as copper, lead, zinc, ferroalloys
(chromium, tungsten, manganese, cobalt, and titanium), iron, precious
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 191
metals, fertilizer materials (potash and phosphate), thorium and rare
earths, beryllium, mica, talc, and ceramic materials (feldspar, kyanite,
sillimanite, cordierite, and clay). Exploratory drilling was carried
out in nine areas.
Mapping of geologic structure in the Menominee-Crystal Falls
Range, Mich., has led to the discovery of important new iron-ore deposits
and new ore-bearing areas. Continued geologic work on the
rare-earth deposits near Mountain Pass, Calif., has resulted in the discovery
of entirely new deposits that are being explored by private
mining interests.
Rapid field tests for use in geochemical prospecting were developed
for molybdenum, tungsten, cobalt, nickel, and silver, making a total
of eight elements for which field analytical methods devised by the
Survey are now available. Special equipment needed will soon be
available commercially. Geochemical prospecting methods continued
to be applied successfully both by the Survey and by miningcompanies.
The work done for the Atomic Energy Commission was expanded,
particularly in reconnaissance for radioactive materials and in the
trenching, drilling, and sampling of uranium deposits in Colorado,
Arizona, and Wyoming. Further exploration, sampling, and tonnage-
grade studies were conducted in the phosphate fields of Florida,
Idaho, and Montana.
New projects approved to start late in the year include the geologic
mapping and study of the iron-manganese deposits of the Cuyuna
Range, Minn., clay deposits in the foothills of the Front Range, Colo.,
and tungsten and quicksilver deposits in Nevada; further geologic
mapping and appraisal of manganese reserves near Batesville, Ark.,
in cooperation with the Bureau of Mines and the Arkansas Geological
Survey; and a research project on the origin, extent, thickness, and
grade of phosphate- and uranium-bearing sediments off the west coast
of Florida.
Publications during the year included professional papers on the
geology and ore deposits of the Front Range of Colorado with its
more than 30 mining districts, on beryl and mica pegmatites of Idaho
and Montana, and on the Pleistocene shore lines of Florida and Georgia
and their possible relation to the pebble phospate deposits, as well
as 27 bulletins, circulars, and scientific articles on many other studies.
Petroleum and Natural Gas
The Survey’s oil and gas investigations, made available to the
public by means of maps and reports, include studies of the distribution,
structure, and variation in thickness of the rocks; the presence
192 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
or absence of source beds and reservoir rocks; regional changes in
formations that might cut out oil-bearing beds at depth or produce
stratigraphic traps; and lateral changes in the character of the rocks
that have a bearing on the accumulation of oil and gas in reservoir
rocks.
In collaboration with the oil and gas industry, State geological
surveys, and other geologic organizations, the Geological Survey has
been able to conduct 59 regional investigations during fiscal year 1951.
These investigations, which ranged from detailed mapping bed by
bed where the rocks are exposed to the correlation of rocks in the subsurface
by means of samples, cuttings, and cores, were carried on in
half the States of the Nation.
Survey geologists in western Texas are establishing the regional
correlation of rocks of Pennsylvanian age in which the reef oil fields
of Scurry County were found and have initiated geologic studies of
the stratigraphy, structure, sedimentology, and facies relations of
the reefs and the relation of the oil pools to the reefs. These investigations,
which are sponsored by the Petroleum Administration for
Defense in cooperation with the Bureau of Mines, are designed to obtain
data that will be helpful in guiding the development of reef fields
in the Scurry area.
Eighteen maps, charts, professional papers, and circulars providingbasic
data as an aid to oil and gas exploration in many areas were published
during the year. Also, 22 reports prepared by the Geological
Survey were published by State geological surveys or in technical or
trade journals.
Oil Shale
Detailed geologic mapping of the largest high-grade oil-shale deposits
in the country was continued during the year. The major objective
in these investigations is to determine the extent, depth, and
reserves of the richer oil-shale zones of the Green River formation in
northwestern Colorado and in northeastern Utah. Delimitation of
the most promising parts of the oil-shale deposits in Colorado by field
mapping and stratigraphic studies is nearing completion, and investigation
of the deposits in Utah is being undertaken. A map showing
the distribution, thickness, depth, and estimated reserves of the oilshale
zones in the eastern part of the Piceance Creek structural basin,
in Colorado, has been published; reports on two more areas within
this basin are nearly complete.
Coal
In connection with the urgent task of reappraising the coal resources
of the United States, new detailed estimates of the coal reANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 193
sources of Michigan, New Mexico, and Wyoming were published
during the year; coal-resource studies in South Dakota, Indiana,
North Dakota, and Virginia are in progress; and reports on the coal
resources in Wyoming and the total coal resources of the United States
have been published.
Also, the Geological Survey has completed and published the results
of detailed mapping of the coal beds in parts of the anthracite
fields of Pennsylvania and two districts in Colorado and Washington.
A report is in preparation on the results of core drilling in the Lake
De Smet area of Wyoming, which revealed a continuous bed of subbituminous
coal about 100 feet thick and under less than 100 feet of
overburden over much of an area of 21/2 square miles.
Geologic mapping of coal deposits was carried on in Custer and
Powder River Counties, Mont., in eastern Montana, and in Indiana
and Kentucky.
Engineering Geology
During fiscal year 1951 geologic mapping in cooperation with construction
agencies was continued in Puerto Rico, Massachusetts, and
Rhode Island and along the Snake River in Washington, and several
new projects were started in areas where major engineering wcrks
are planned. The purpose of these projects is to supply basic geologic
data during the planning and before the construction stage when the
lack of complete information may prove costly. The data made available
include depth to bedrock, sources of construction materials, foundation
conditions, and information as to the stability of possible landslide
areas.
The geologic mapping of larger cities is being accelerated in line
with the conversion of the Survey’s activities to meet the present
emergency. The mapping of Portland, Oreg., and Knoxville, Tenn.,
is now in progress. Geologic investigations were made in relation to
underground-shelter construction in downtown San Francisco for the
Federal Civilian Defense office, and alternate bridge sites across San
Francisco Bay were studied. Knowledge has been gained regarding
the occurrence and causes of landslides, foundation conditions, availability
of construction materials, and minerals of economic importance.
A large part of the engineering geology program is centered on the
Missouri River Basin in support of the Department’s program for
development of the basin. Suitability for irrigation, availability of
construction materials, susceptibility to landslides, and the waterholding
capacity of possible reservoir sites are some of the special
problems studied.
Research is being conducted in the Upper Columbia River Valley
in Washington to determine the effect of water-level fluctuation on
194 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
landslides. Upper Pennsylvanian channel sands are being studied in
detail in eastern Kansas. Geologic mapping was continued at the Fort
McDowell dam and reservoir site in Arizona. In all, 25 field projects
were in progress in 14 States and Puerto Rico.
During the year, 67 reports were made available to the public by
being placed on open file in Washington, D. C., and Denver, Colo.; 5
reports were published by the Survey; and 3 reports were published in
professional journals. A special report was prepared for the United
States Navy on the sand and gravel resources of Naval Petroleum
Reserve No. 3 near Teapot Dome, Wyo., and one for the Atomic Energy
Commission dealt with the Rocky Flats plant site near Denver.
Translations and abstracts of selected foreign literature on engineering
geology were made and placed on open file in both Washington and
Denver.
General Geology
During fiscal year 1951 general geologic investigations were in progress
in such widespread areas as California, Alaska, North Dakota,
and Hawaii. In the Mohave Desert of California general geologic
studies made it possible to outline the potentially mineralized area
of rare-earth deposits; intensified and detailed geologic studies led in
turn to new discoveries of major importance. Stratigraphic studies in
western North Dakota will aid in the exploration of oil in that State.
Encouraging progress in the prediction of volcanic eruptions and the
consequent saving of lives and property was made in Hawaii. Studies
in the Aleutian Islands were continued and provided the basis for
advising the Department of Defense on certain problems.
Geophysics
During the past year a new plan of organization for geophysical
activities was set up. Several projects formerly carried on for the
Atomic Energy Commission by two other branches of the Division
were transferred to the Geophysics Branch and set up as the Radiation
Section. Other projects were organized in three sections: Airborne
Surveys, Ground Surveys, and Basic Investigations.
Airborne surveys, both aeromagnetic and aeroradiometric, included
a total of 43,100 miles of traverse in 12 different States. Compilation
of 49,530 miles of data was completed, 31 maps were released in open
file, and 63 maps were published. Of special interest were the surveys
in Minnesota, Michigan, and Maine. An apparent extension of the
iron-rich Vermilion Range in Minnesota was indicated by the magnetic
anomalies, and drilling by mining companies is reported to be
in progress. Aeromagnetic work in the iron areas of Michigan was
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 195
continued, and the results are proving useful in tracing buried structure.
In northern Maine, where magnetite is associated with manganese
minerals, an aeromagnetic survey was begun to locate extensions
of known deposits and to explore adjacent unmapped areas for additional
deposits. Of scientific interest were flights in cooperation with
the Navy over the continental shelf.
Ground surveys were made in 12 States, using magnetic, seismic, and
electrical methods. Magnetic surveys were made in conjunction with
aeromagnetic surveys in northern Maine for manganese and in Delaware
for areas favorable to drilling for water supply; shallow-refraction
seismic surveys were carried on in Massachusetts and California
to determine depth to bedrock; and electrical surveys in Minnesota,
Wisconsin, Ohio, Kansas, California, and the Colorado Plateau served
such varied purposes as determining depths of aquifers, locating highway
materials, studying buried valley systems, and finding areas
favorable for lead-zinc and carnotite ores.
Valuable information on thermal profiles and gradients in ice and
permafrost is being obtained from the program of temperature measurements
in drill holes in northern Alaska. Three seismic observatories
were operated in the Aleutian Islands.
Mathematical investigations included a continuing project on the
extension of resistivity tables for the flow of current in multiple-layered
ground, methods of interpreting aeromagnetic surveys, and a report
in cooperation with the Naval Ordnance Laboratory which
showed that broad magnetic anomalies may extend to altitudes of
20 miles. Abstracts of literature on both earth physics and applied
geophysics in current domestic and foreign periodicals were prepared
and published in the quarterly Geophysical Abstracts.
Geochemistry and Petrology
Essential to geologic study are the identification of rocks, ores, and
minerals and the elucidation of physical-chemical processes operative
in the formation of those materials.
During the year the Branch of Geochemistry and Petrology inspected
more than 43,000 samples for geologists and the general public. In
addition to equipment for grinding rock samples and thin and polished
sections, facilities are available for making full chemical analyses and
petrographic examinations, determining radioactivity, making spectrochemical
and X-ray determinations, making thermal analyses, and
conducting studies in electron diffraction and microscopy and optical
and X-ray fluorescence.
Techniques were developed in cooperation with other laboratories
to reduce the time required to perform approximate chemical analyses
of sufficient accuracy for many geologic studies, and improved meth196
+ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
ods designed to increase the accuracy of certain types of analyses were
worked out.
Research work completed during the year dealt with special chemical
analytical methods; chemical methods for field use; special analytical
aids such as nuclear track plates, high-index liquids, and an
instrument for measuring fluorescence; base-exchange studies; thermal
analyses; descriptions of new minerals; and geochemical and
mineralogical studies.
f
Paleontology and Stratigraphy
The Paleontology and Stratigraphy Branch supplements the work of
other Geologic Division units and publishes reports on research findings
for the information of geologists and the general public.
During fiscal year 1951 the old paleontological collections were rearranged
for greater accessibility and new collections were catalogued;
the staff was augmented in order to deal with the backlog of referred
material; and new equipment and improved facilities were acquired
for more efficient working conditions.
A total of 389 reports on referred collections comprising about
40,000 specimens and ranging in age from Cambrian to Recent were
transmitted by the branch. These collections came from 33 of the
48 States and from 16 foreign areas or territories.
Reports on research were completed by most members of the Branch;
of these, 43 have been approved for publication and 27 have been published.
Many of the reports represent basic contributions to the
stratigraphy, paleontology, and paleoecology of North America and
the Pacific. Included are papers on the geology and paleontology of
the Santa Maria district, Calif., on organic growth and sedimentation
on an atoll, on the age of the lower Stanley shale, and on the Jurassic
of the Green River region.
Geologic Investigations in Alaska
The Korean situation has caused considerable change of emphasis
both in the planning of new projects and in the orientation of existing
projects in Alaska. To the Geological Survey this has meant increased
emphasis on the study of construction materials used in military, railroad,
and highway developments, of fuel resources for internal consumption
and possible export, and of the so-called strategic and critical
minerals needed in the military and civilian supply program in the
United States.
Various mineral deposits were studied during the fiscal year. Survey
geologists investigated limestone deposits west of the Alaska
Railroad in the Foggy Pass area; construction materials in the RailANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 197
road-Highway block; pumice along the west shore of Cook Inlet; riprap
material on Kodiak Island; a tin deposit on Seward Peninsula;
the tungsten deposits in the Fairbanks area; and copper deposits in
the Prince William Sound district. Detailed and reconnaissance
mapping of mineralized areas was carried on in the lower Kuskokwim
region in southwestern Alaska and in the Glacier Bay area of southeastern
Alaska; the Juneau gold belt; the Willow Creek mining district;
and the Haines-Skagway area, with emphasis in the last-named
area on the iron deposits in the vicinity of Klukwan.
Coal investigations were again focused on the Matanuska and Kenai
coal fields. In the Matanuska field a Survey geologist was assigned
to the study of cores recovered during a Bureau of Mines drilling
program; in the Kenai area additional coal sections were measured
and sampled in an effort to extend and delimit the boundary of the
Kenai coal field prior to undertaking inland investigations.
Increasing interest in Alaskan petroleum possibilities was reflected
by the extension of geologic studies northward from the Iniskin-Chinitna
area to Tuxedni Bay and the continuation of field work in the
Yakataga and Katalla areas. A preliminary report on the Yakataga
field was released for public use late in the fiscal year. In northern
Alaska petroleum investigations were continued as in past years,
largely financed by Navy funds.
Reconnaissance investigations in search of fissionable materials were
carried on in various parts of the Territory with funds provided by
the Atomic Energy Commission.
The activities of the Defense Minerals Administration played an
increasingly prominent role in the assignments of Survey personnel
in the Territory. A small but adequate working unit was established
at Juneau, and other geologists were made available to meet specific
needs.
Military Geology
For the ninth consecutive year the Survey provided geologic advice
to the Armed Forces through its Military Geology Branch. The
activities of this branch were expanded rapidly to meet the heightened
demands created by the world situation. Information was supplied
on the geology, soils, terrain, and water supply of many areas.
As in the past, most of the Military Geology Branch projects were
supported by the Corps of Engineers under a cooperative agreement.
A major portion of the Branch activity is conducted in Washington,
where a research staff gathers and interprets the basic data on foreign
areas, making use of the maps and the scientific and technical literature
in the Geological Survey Library.
198 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The existing field programs of the Military Geology Branch were
continued. In the Trust Territory of the western Pacific, the detailed
geologic and soil mapping of Tinian Island in the Marianas group
was completed. A military geologic folio based on the field investigations
is being prepared, along with folios on several other islands previously
mapped. The mapping program, projected over a period of
several years, will cover most of the islands of the Trust Territory. In
addition, arrangements were completed for mapping the geology and
soils of Guam, now under the jurisdiction of the Department.
The special problems created by terrain, geologic, and vegetation
conditions in the Arctic and sub-Arctic were studied further in
Alaska. Construction in the Territory is affected greatly by the
presence of permafrost, which is therefore a primary object of investigation.
Geologists and botanists are collaborating to extend knowledge
of the basic characteristics of permafrost and associated phenomena
from an investigation of selected areas and are applying their
findings to the solution of military problems. The field phase of a
special investigation on ground ice, conducted at Barrow, Alaska,
was ended, and results are now being compiled in a report.
Military geologic folios covering several Alaskan areas, as well as
one on Fort Benning, Ga., and the Sixth Army area, are now in
preparation.
Foreign Geologic Investigations
The Geological Survey's program of extending scientific and technical
assistance to those areas of the world possessing relatively underdeveloped
economies began in 1940. With the exception of assistance
to Liberia and the Philippines, this work was confined until 1949 to
countries of the Western Hemisphere. In 1949 legislation enabled
the Survey to begin acting on numerous requests from the countries
of the Eastern Hemisphere. The launching of the President’s Point
Four program this fiscal year gave added impetus to these activities.
Geologic investigations in the Western Hemisphere during the
year included studies of copper, lead, zinc, silver, and phosphate deposits
; volcanological research in Mexico; cooperative studies of the
lead-zinc-copper deposits of Hualgayoc, Peru; observations made
during Peru’s Cusco earthquake in May which are aiding in the current
reconstruction of housing in the area; evaluation, study, and mapping
of the rich Minas Gerais iron ores in Brazil; observation of the
eruption of Mount Santiago in Nicaragua and consultations with the
Nicaraguan Government on measures to be taken for the protection
of the population, livestock, and agriculture; mineral investigations
in Venezuela; and studies of recent earthquake damage in Ecuador
in cooperation with that country’s program for rehabilitation of
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 199
earthquake-devastated areas. Six bulletins were published in fiscal
year 1951, dealing with geologic investigations in Mexico, Chile, the
Dominican Republic, and Colombia.
In the Eastern Hemisphere a country-wide minerals reconnaissance
was completed in cooperation with the Royal Department of Mines
of Afghanistan. Ground-water investigations were conducted in
India and Saudi Arabia. In the new Philippine Republic the Survey’s
mission continued its role as adviser to the fast-growing Philippine
Bureau of Mines and engaged in detailed geologic mapping of
manganese deposits on Siquijor and Busuanga Islands.
A total of 19 in-service training awards were made during fiscal
year 1951 to promising young technicians from India, Pakistan, Brazil,
Mexico, and the Dominican Republic. Although scientific and
technical aspects of training have the most attention, these men are
also given a thorough review of the Survey’s administrative practices
and organizational procedures in long-range planning for countrywide
geological surveys (mineral and water-resources) and mapping.
Under the sponsorship of the Economic Cooperation Administration,
a specialist advised the Government of Thailand on the development
and utilization of lignite deposits. Final reports were prepared
on investigations of Korean coal deposits carried out before
the beginning of the present hostilities.
Geologic Maps
During the year the Office of Geologic Cartography, in conjunction
with its six field units, prepared 1,853 geologic maps, charts, diagrams,
and other illustrations for multicolor and black and white reproduction.
Final copy for seven maps in the geologic quadrangle series and
one mineral investigations map was transmitted to the branch of map
reproduction. This is an increase of 80 percent over the number transmitted
last year. Fifteen other multicolor maps are in various stages
of preparation.
The geologic map editor reviewed and edited 2,287 maps and figures
involving more than 265 reports. Some 73 percent of these illustrations
were designated for publication by the Survey; the remaining
27 percent were routed for publication by cooperating State and
Federal agencies or by scientific journals.
Library
Fiscal year 1951 was notable in the history of the Library for the
development of the new system of branch libraries, necessitated by
the permanent location of geologists in the field. Branch libraries
973649—52------ 16
200 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
in Denver and San Francisco are being developed by additions to the
staff and by augmentation of working materials.
The main library in Washington had over 17,000 readers, made
more than 32,000 loans of materials for outside use, and had a total
circulation of over 100,000. This very nearly equals the record year
of 1950. Almost 22,000 pieces of new material were received during
the year.
TOPOGRAPHIC DIVISION
The mapping program carried on by the Topographic Division in
fiscal year 1951 was considerably larger than in previous years, with
major emphasis given to the production of large-scale topographic
maps of critical and economically important areas throughout the
United States and Alaska. Federal-State cooperative mapping programs
were in progress in 26 States and Puerto Rico, and field operations
were started for the revision of the obsolete map series covering
the Hawaiian Islands. Progress continued on the compilation of the
Transportation Map of the United States being prepared for the
Bureau of Public Roads, and the compilation of small-scale aeronautical
charts covering world-wide areas was continued for the Department
of the Air Force. An expanded program of surveying and
mapping was undertaken to supply the high-priority requirements
of more than 15 Federal agencies which need topographic maps for
planning, general economic, and military purposes.
Shortly after the outbreak of the Korean war, an urgent request
came from the Department of Defense for the completion of highpriority
defense mapping. In view of this request and the world
situation in general, current mapping operations and the programing
of future operations were given detailed analysis and the overall
mapping program sharply reoriented to expedite current mapping
in critical areas and to provide for a 6-year mapping program designed
to meet defense needs. The objectives of this long-range program
envision the early completion of topographic maps for strategic
areas and the coordination within defense requirements of mapping in
certain areas which contain valuable natural resources or which are
otherwise important to the Nation’s economy.
Throughout the year research was carried on for the purpose of
developing new techniques and methods to meet the demands for
more maps and charts. Advanced stereoplotting instruments for
compiling map detail give promise of accelerating the progress of
aerial mapping. Helicopters have been used successfully to transport
men and survey equipment to the tops of mountains and other difficult
locations in remote areas for making control observations. A new
method of precision barometric altimetry, known as the “leapfrog
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 201
method,” has been successfully used to determine elevations for topographic
maps. Electronic methods used for obtaining control include
shoran and radar altimetry. These new techniques are especially applicable
in the vast expanses of unmapped lands in the Western States
and in Alaska which may loom large in the strategic picture.
Map-making facilities in the regional offices were expanded to provide
for faster schedules of map completion. The facilities of the
photographic laboratories have been enlarged, and new equipment installed
in the Survey’s optical laboratory will provide for the testing
and calibration of precision aerial cameras.
The supplying of information on maps and related data, as well as
photographic or photostatic reproductions of new mapping prior to
publication, has been given special consideration. During the year
auxiliary map-information centers were established in Tulsa and
Boston.
Technical assistance was given to other nations through cooperation
with the Economic Cooperation Administration, the Pan American
Institute of Geography and History, and the Department of
State.
Mapping Programs and Map Production
An expanded topographic mapping program was carried on in
the 48 States, the District of Columbia, Alaska, Puerto Rico, and
Hawaii. Federal-State cooperative mapping projects, whereby half
the mapping funds are supplied by the State and half by the Federal
Government, were conducted with 26 States and Puerto Rico. The
Survey also continued to assist the Tennessee Valley Authority in completing
the topographic mapping of the valley—a program designed
to provide standard 1: 24,000-scale maps over an area of 40,000 square
miles. In the continental United States and its Territories and possessions,
mapping was in progress on approximately 3,700 quadrangles
during the year.
New mapping projects were selected on the basis of requests submitted
by the principal Federal map-using agencies through the
Bureau of the Budget and from State, county, and municipal requests
as directly received by the Geological Survey. The agencies cooperating
in topographic mapping included such long-time cooperators as
New York, Massachusetts, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Indiana,
Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, North Dakota, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan,
Wisconsin, California, Washington, and Puerto Rico. More recent
cooperators, or those resuming cooperative programs, were Connecticut,
Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Minnesota, North Carolina, Tennessee,
Utah, and Mahoning County, Ohio.
202 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTER OR
The largest cooperative project undertaken to date by the Survey
is the 5-year cooperative mapping program in Kentucky. This mapping
will provide a uniform series of 1: 24,000-scale maps for the entire
State as a basis for the development of natural resources and the expansion
of transportation and industrial facilities.
In the Missouri River Basin, extensive topographic mapping operations
were continued. The mapping in progress in this area during
the year covered 75,000 square miles (48,000,000 acres).
All mapping in Alaska was accelerated. Under the over-all program,
the coordinated compilation and map-finishing facilities of the
three western regions were utilized to compile and finish large-scale
maps covering 30,000 square miles. The 1:250,000-scale series of
Alaska maps was advanced to a point where it is more than a year
ahead of schedule.
In the continental United States (excluding Alaska) approximately
61,000 square miles (39,040,000 acres) of domestic mapping was completed,
including 8,700 square miles (5,568,000 acres) of map revision.
In the first phase of mapping operations 50,000 square miles (including
9,350 linear miles of transit traverse) was covered by third-order
horizontal control, 55,000 square miles (15,900 linear miles) by vertical
control, and 51,700 square miles by supplemental control. In the
second phase 52,300 square miles was compiled by stereoscopic
methods, 2,350 square miles of which was done under commercial contract.
In the third phase 61,000 square miles was compiled in the
field. In the fourth phase 49,000 square miles was drafted and prepared
for reproduction. A detailed summary of production covering
new mapping, remapping, and revision, as well as the total mapping
completed for each of the States, Territories, and possessions, is shown
in the following table.
[Contour intervals, 5 to 100 feet]
Areas, in square miles, mapped during fiscal year 1951 for publication on
standard scales
State
Scale
New and
remapping Revision
1:24,000 1:31,680 1:62,500
Alabama___________________ . 372
30
372
1,283
1,027
6,712
2,130
435
Arizona. ______ . . ... _ 1,609
1,259
4,842
191
356
232
612
Arkansas _____________ .
California__________________ . 2,482
Colorado.. ____________ 1,939
Connecticut____________ ... . 435
Delaware___________________ _
District of Columbia_______ _
Florida.. ________ . . _ ... 123 123
750
1,114
771
827
612
2,690
1,978
841
Georgia_____ .. ... ... ... . 750
630
899 128
32
Idaho__________ 484
Illinois___________________
Indiana. __________________ . 859
Iowa___ _________ ___ ... ... 612
Kansas..._______ .. ... ... 416 2,907
1,978
843
Kentucky______ _________ . _ 633
Louisiana________________________________ — 1,053 1,055
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 203
Areas, in square miles, mapped during fiscal year 1951 for publication on
standard scales—Continued
[Contour intervals, 5 to 100 feet]
State
56
Scale
New and Revision
1:24,000 1:31,680 1:62,500
remapping
818
400
56
818
Maine__________
Maryland----------
Massachusetts...
Michigan_______
Minnesota______
Mississippi--------
Missouri------------
Montana_______
Nebraska_______
Nevada_________
New Hampshire
New Jersey-------
New Mexico____
Ne w York______
North Carolina-
North Dakota.
Ohio___________
Oklahoma______
Oregon--------------
Pennsylvania...
Rhode Island___
South Carolina..
South Dakota ...
Tennessee______
Texas----------------
Utah___________
Vermont.______
Virginia________
Washington------
West Virginia.-.
Wisconsin______
Wyoming----------
562
1,684
1,393
1,554
1, 338
332
974
5
61
83
185
2, 758
619
463
1,022
20
471
136
3
14
1,981
116
242
491
1,006
463
2, 980
2,807
932
98
242
1,053
251
1,801
4,373
4,361
932
755
346
214
725
387
742
1,023
1,810
86
110
2, 005
1,870
1,442
136
1,242
332
1,246
5
803
1,106
69
2,758
619
1,854
1,108
130
1,117
2, 006
3
779
2,117
96
725
115
116
419
1,359
677
Total_______________________________ 34,507 52,428 8,688
Alaska. ’ 298, 743 ___________
1 Includes 28,823 square miles mapped on a scale of 1:63,360 and 269,920 square miles on a scale of 1:250,000.
A total of 815 topographic maps were reviewed and forwarded for
reproduction by the photolithographic process.
In addition to new maps, the Division prepared reprint editions
for 344 quadrangle maps, 14 State base maps, and 27 State index
maps. At the close of the fiscal year, maps in process of reproduction
included 16 for copperplate engraving and 250 for photolithography.
Maps being reviewed or awaiting review by the editors at the close
of the year totaled 63, with about 500 maps being carried on the agenda
for reprinting.
About 20 percent of the maps cleared for reproduction were originally
compiled by other agencies for administrative and other
special-purpose use. Such maps, when judged suitable for general
use, are edited and published by the Geological Survey for general
distribution.
Special mapping and charting assignments were continued by the
Trimetrogon Section for the United States Air Force. In general,
these assignments, which are performed on a reimbursable basis, provided
for the editorial review and evaluation of various charts and
the preparation by photogrammetric methods of revised or recompiled
204 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
base charts preliminary to photolithographic reproduction. This
work forms an integral part of the over-all program of the Air Force
foi the production and maintenance of adequate world-wide coverage
of aeronautical charts, primarily in the interest of national defense.
Approximately 225,000 square miles of entirely new photo compilation
was completed, as well as photo revision of nearly 300,000 square
miles of charts and nearly 400,000 square miles of cartographic compilation
in all, approximately 925,000 square miles of charting. Covering
areas in practically every part of the world, this involved a
total of 492 charts and various special projects as follows:
Preliminary charts on a scale of 1:250,000 (foreign)_______
Revision charts on a scale of 1:250,000 (foreign)_____________________
Preliminary charts on a scale of 1:250,000 (domestic)________________
Shaded-relief charts on a scale of 1:250,000 (domestic)_______________
Pilotage and preliminary charts on a scale of 1:500,000 (foreign)_____
World aeronautical charts on a scale of 1:1,000,000 (foreign)__________
Approach and landing chart on a scale of 1:250,000 (foreign)_________
Charts on a scale of 1:100,000 (foreign)___________________
Large-scale planimetric compilation___________________________
Special charts___________________________
Photo and cartographic revision, scale 1:200,000 (foreign)____________
Color-separation drafting______ 2___________________
Special drafting______________
Controlled photo mosaics, scale 1:48,000 (domestic)_______________ 22
Uncontrolled photo mosaics, scale 1:25,000 (foreign)_______________
Overlays for mosaics, scale 1:25,000
Other projects____________________________
In addition, there were at the end of the year 309 charts in various
stages of compilation, revision, or recompilation.
During the year, the Air Force assumed responsibility for the maintenance
of the world-wide reference library containing several million
oblique and vertical trimetrogon photographs. This library was
formerly in the custody of the Trimetrogon Section.
I he Special Maps Projects Section devoted its map-making facilities
to the compilation and preparation for publication of State, sectional,
and regional maps on scales of 1:250,000, 1:500,000 and
1:1,000,000.
For the United States portion of the International Map of the
World, scale 1:1,000,000, three sheets—Austin (H-14), Mississippi
Delta (H-15)? and Cascade Range (L-10)— were published, and
work already in progress on the Los Angeles (1-11) and Savannah
(1-17) sheets was continued. The preparation of additional sheets
of this series has been suspended.
Considerable progress was made on the Transportation Map of the
United States, scale 1:250,000, being prepared for the Bureau of
Public Roads. When completed for the 48 States this series, which
22
1
1
31
6
2
20
30
18
12
9
43
94
111
34
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 205
shows the principal transportation routes, will comprise an aggregate
of 441 sheets. New maps of this series were published for Nevada in
15 sheets, Ohio in 6 sheets, Louisiana in 9 sheets, and Alabama in 8
sheets. Compilation was advanced on sheets for Arkansas, Colorado,
Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee.
In the new series of State maps, scale 1: 500,000, both new base maps
and topographic and shaded-relief editions (including one with highway
overprint) were published for New Jersey, Maryland-Delaware,
and Massachusetts-Rhode Island-Connecticut. Also published were
1: 500,000-scale base maps in two editions (one with highway overprint)
for Oklahoma, Indiana, Iowa, and Mississippi. Revision of
the base maps of New Hampshire-Vermont, New Mexico, Ohio, and
Pennsylvania was in progress.
Relief shading was completed on 25 maps. This is a part of the
over-all program of publishing relief-shaded topographic maps of
areas that have special physiographic interest. Among those completed
were the shaded-relief maps of Chattanooga, Tenn., Great
Smoky Mountains National Park and vicinity, and the Gunnison
River Black Canyon National Monument.
Planning for National Defense
It appears that for a 6-year period the mapping facilities of the
Topographic Division will be largely directed toward fulfilling the
urgent requirements of the defense program. Mapping planned for
this program is expected to reach its high point about the third
year, after which more attention can be given to nonmilitary map
requirements.
Particular attention was given during fiscal year 1951 to the planning
of the mapping programs for the territories and possessions.
For the mapping of Alaska close liaison is maintained between the
Office of the Chief of Engineers, Department of Defense, and the
Coast and Geodetic Survey of the Department of Commerce. Through
coordinated efforts, plans have been formulated for the preliminary
phases of a 5-year Alaska program designed to complete (1) a series
of 1:250,000-scale maps of the entire Territory, (2) an inch-to-themile
series of topographic maps of the strategic heartland of Alaska,
and (3) maps which will meet certain high-priority civilian requirements
in central and southeastern Alaska and which are considered
essential for the economic development of the Territory.
Studies to determine the most economical and suitable methods for
revising the maps of the Hawaiian Islands were completed. Field
operations utilizing the results of these studies were started on Molokai,
Maui, and Oahu, and the revision of the maps of the other islands
will be undertaken during the next several years.
206 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
An analysis of the annual mapping requests of the principal Federal
map-making agencies, as presented through the Bureau of the
Budget, also was completed. Insofar as these requests were important
to the defense effort, the mapping requested was integrated with the
over-all program of mapping designed to meet national defense
requirements.
Research and Development
The first part of the new manual which is being prepared to replace
Bulletin 788 was published as Geological Survey Circular 92,
containing Topographic Instructions, Chapter 1A1, Purpose and
Use of Topographic Instructions, and Chapter 1A2, Table of Contents.
Six other chapters issued in loose-leaf form were published
during the year, the manuscripts for 39 chapters were in various
stages of preparation, and outlines for 13 chapters were approved.
The classification of maps published between April 1950 and March
1951 was completed, and maps which had become out of date were
reclassified. The numbered classification of all available quadranglemap
coverage, as well as the criteria used in the. appraisal, has been
coded and is being machine-tabulated. This tabulation is being
reviewed to remove duplication and other errors, and a code is being
added to permit segregation of duplicate map coverage, along with
a column showing map area.
Development and testing of new methods of utilizing trimetrogon
aerial photography continued. A 1° quadrangle in Nevada was in
process of compilation from nine-lens P-K photography. As a
study of the position accuracy of compilation with this type of photography,
the quadrangle was compiled with slotted templets, and within
the 1° quadrangle a 30-minute quadrangle is being compiled with a
stereophotogrammetric plotter in an effort to determine its usability
in preparing small-scale topographic maps. A 1° quadrangle in
Idaho comprising an area of approximately 3,500 square miles was
compiled to determine cost figures and the accuracy obtainable from
trimetrogon photography for the 1:250,000-scale topographic map
series. Experimental work to determine the feasibility of extending
control for stereomapping with the photoalidade was completed
on a project comprising six 15-minute quadrangles in southeastern
Alaska. A Kelsh vertical stereoplotter was modified for use with
oblique photographs, and a comparison was made with the oblique
multiplex to explore the possibilities of such equipment in utilizing
trimetrogon oblique photography.
Among the experimental projects for the improvement of topographic-
mapping methods, photo mosaics were prepared and tested
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 207
in field surveys for use as plane-table sheets for topographic-map
compilation. For this purpose, commercially sensitized foil-mounted
paper was field-tested and found to be the most satisfactory material
presently available. Additional tests of this method are planned for
next year.
The Wilson photoalidade was redesigned for use with glass plates
as well as paper prints in conjunction with terrestrial and aerial
oblique photogrammetric mapping. A greater degree of accuracy
is obtainable through the use of this method. By changing several
parts, the new model can be made to accommodate photography of
longer focal lengths as well as 9-by-18-inch photographs. The first
of the newly designed alidades will be built during 1951.
Tests were made to determine the rigidity of surveying-instrument
tripods, and the data compiled will be used to improve the specifications
for future tripod procurement. A study was made of the effect
of the sun’s radiation on precise levels, and a special bubble assembly
cover was designed which is expected to reduce the problems resulting
from the nonuniform heating of the level caused by the sun. A
system of testing and comparing altimeters in field surveys was investigated
and improved. This system will have particular application
to Alaskan mapping. A single-bulb contact printer was designed
and constructed. The new printer provides for more rapid
correction of variations in film density because of camera-lens limitations,
resulting in improved print quality.
An experimental project was carried on in Alaska for extending
vertical control toward the interior from the shore line. Horizontal
positions of selected topographic features were plotted by multiplex,
and a projection on glass cloth containing the plotted positions of some
50 features was used with the Wilson photoalidade in a procedure
similar to plane tabling but using aerial oblique photographs for extending
vertical control from shore-line points. This experimental
technique was later used in supplemental-control activities in Hawaiian
mapping. Low-altitude, high-oblique photographs were flown offshore,
looking into the terrain so that the shore line was in the foreground
and vertical control near the peaks could be identified in the
distance. Supplemental elevations were then established by means
of the new Wild-type photoalidade.
An experimental project for obtaining supplemental control was
completed for an area in Uintah County, Utah, where mining and developing
operations of commercial deposits of phosphate require
large-scale maps. Supplemental control was obtained by phototransit,
phototrig, and low-altitude aerial oblique methods, and three 7y2~
minute quadrangles were completed by multiplex with 20-foot contours.
These methods promise to be especially useful in Alaska and in
other remote areas not readily accessible for ground surveys.
208 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Another experimental project for obtaining supplemental control
was carried on in southeastern Alaska. Here the photoalidade technique
was used with oblique photography for establishing supplemental
control, and five inch-to-the-mile quadrangles with 100-foot contours
were completed. These maps will be field-checked during the
summer. Assistance was given two Economic Cooperative Administration
projects in Brazil through the supervision of map compilation,
including the .preparation of specifications and the issuance of contracts.
Reports on new instruments, mapping techniques, and methods
were prepared and translated into Spanish for the Pan American
Consultation on Cartography.
Geodetic Surveys
Geodetic surveys were carried on in the United States and Alaska
to supply an adequate control framework for current topographicmapping
operations and for new mapping projects planned for the
coming year. Data for these surveys were, for the most part, computed
and adjusted in the regional offices immediately upon the completion
of the field work and issued in processed lists giving all control
information within a 15-minute quadrangle area. These lists
were then available not only for Survey mapping operations but for
the use of other Federal and State agencies as well as the public.
In addition to the basic-control surveys, supplemental-control surveys
of the fourth order were made. These surveys, designed specifically
for mapping operations, were made by plane table and stadia
traverse, by various vertical-angle methods, by two-base altimetry, or
by the mobile elevation meter.
The first attempt in the United States, so far as is known, to obtain
ground elevations for topographic mapping by airborne electronic
methods was made under contract in Alaska. With an instrument
known as the Airborne Profile Recorder, approximately 78,000 square
miles in central Alaska was surveyed from the air. A portion of the
survey data was computed and adjusted and then analyzed by comparing
the experimentally obtained data with test elevations determined
by ground surveys. A subsequent test project has been started
for the purpose of mapping the Big Delta, Alaska, quadrangle on a
scale of 1: 250,000 with a 200-foot contour interval to determine
whether the new electronic method can produce satisfactory control
for mapping that will meet standard accuracy specifications.
During the year, a field test was made of an experimental project in
Wyoming involving a method of extending horizontal and vertical
control concurrently by subtense base triangulation and simultaneous
reciprocal vertical angles. Such control data were found to be satisANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 209
factory for mapping operations, and this method, when used in favorable
locations, offers a saving in the over-all cost of basic control.
Another test project was set up to evaluate the effect of signal color
on refraction in vertical-angle measurement.
New tables and computing forms for machine computations of
geodetic positions in triangulation and of elevations by vertical angles
were designed. Also designed were new tables of M and P factors for
machine computation of transit traverse. A simple mathematical
test was developed for analyzing the strength of a three-point resection
before making precise field observations.
Two sound-color training films, “Leveling for Topographic Mapping”
and “Transit Traverse for Topographic Mapping,” were produced
for the orientation and training of new Survey employees.
These films will also be made available to the military services, other
Government agencies, engineering societies, and college groups.
Equipment was installed in the Central, Rocky Mountain, and
Pacific regional offices for microfilming field notes and computations
of current geodetic work. Microfilm records of the current geodetic
work in the Atlantic region are made in Washington. Microfilming
of the accumulated files of original field surveys and computation
records in the Washington office has been practically completed.
Photogrammetry
The photogrammetric-mapping capacity of the regional offices has
been substantially increased by the procurement and installation of
additional multiplex equipment and Kelsh plotters of. the latest design.
During the year contracts were awarded for approximately 160,000
square miles of new aerial photography in the United States, and
approximately 100,000 square miles of this photography was completed.
A contract for aerial photography covering the entire island
of Puerto Rico (some 3,500 square miles) was awarded and completed.
In addition, a sizable amount of aerial photography was
obtained in cooperation with the Armed Forces.
Research and development projects for the improvement of photogrammetric
equipment techniques, procedures, and instruments were
carried on throughout the year. For the preparation of small-scale
planimetric base maps, compilation work was undertaken and partly
completed on an experimental mapping project utilizing aerial
photography taken with a nine-lens camera. Also completed was the
compilation of an experimental mapping project using the Twinplex,
a new stereoplotting instrument developed by the Geological Survey.
Field tests of this compilation are being made to determine the performance
characteristics of this instrument.
210 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Progress was made in the development of a new-type projector with
an improved light source which is expected to increase the efficiency
of existing types of stereoplotting instruments.
An improved type of diapositive printer, in which distortion compensation
is achieved by the use of an aspherical correction plate in
conjunction with an improved projection lens, was assembled and
tested. An appreciable increase in image quality also was noted.
Experiments were undertaken in the use of oblique photography as
an aid in establishing ground control. Two oblique-photography
projects were completed, and two more were in progress. An experimental
model of the Kelsh plotter, adapted for oblique photography,
was built and tested. The tests revealed good possibilities for the
application of this device to special mapping projects.
A distortion-free lens of high resolution was received from the
manufacturer, installed in an aerial camera, and carefully calibrated.
The photography obtained with this lens on test flights was found to
excel in quality that obtained with any other wide-angle lens used in
an aerial camera up to this time.
The increasing volume of photogrammetric activities, coupled with
the high standards of precision required, have made it imperative that
the Geological Survey expand the facilities of its optical laboratory
so as to provide for the testing and calibration of precision photogrammetric
cameras. The engineering design and the preparation of specifications
for these improvements were completed, and steps were taken
for the procurement of testing equipment, including a complete aerial
camera calibrating device, a precision comparator, and various parts
of a specially constructed photogrammetric optical bench.
Cartography and Map Editing
Most of the productive capacity of the Cartography and Map Editing
Section was devoted to the technical control of map-finishing procedures.
Special study was given to the determination of style, symbolization,
and general quality of maps.
A considerable number of Corps of Engineers maps on military
scales were prepared for reprinting for civil use, this conversion requiring
changes in scale, headings, and other map detail. Improvements
made in relief-shading techniques were utilized in the preparation
of the new shaded-relief map of the Great Smoky Mountains
National Park and vicinity. Current index maps for 37 States showing
quadrangle names and locations, dates of survey, and series were
prepared, as well as administrative planning maps for 10 States.
Work on map design and the improvement of drafting equipment
and map-finishing procedures continued to be important. Printed
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 211
maps were regularly inspected for factual content, legibility, and
general appearance to determine where improvements might be made.
During the year a standard scheme of map-paper sizes was established
in order to facilitate the handling and filing of maps. A photolettering
machine designed to expedite the preparation of type impressions
and facilitate the development of improved type styles for
maps was procured for the Denver regional office.
Symbol standardization was reviewed with other Government mapping
agencies, and numerous changes were adopted. A survey of
recent accomplishments and current activities in cartographic research
and development was started. This survey should provide information
of value to all cartographers and eliminate much duplication of
effort in this field.
Map Information Office
The increased volume of service requests during the year gave
evidence of the ever-expanding needs of Government and industry for
maps and related data. A steady volume of requests came from
Federal agencies, from exploration, geophysical-prospecting, and
aerial-survey firms; from highway, railway, and airline organizations
; from other map-making agencies, both governmental and commercial
; and from engineers and technicians concerned with the construction
of water supplies, sewage-treatment works, public-utility
lines, industrial plants, and various conservation programs. In all,
the office serviced approximately 30,000 requests.
The supplying of photographic and photostatic reproductions of
new mapping in manuscript form (generally available a year prior
to publication of the printed map), for engineering or other urgent
technical needs, showed a substantial increase. Some 1,050 requisitions
involving the processing of 11,000 prints were filled, with the
total sales reaching $14,000, an increase of 50 percent over the preceding
year. In addition, 7,200 prints were supplied without charge
for the official use of Federal and State agencies.
The volume of requests for geodetic-control data continued to increase.
For example, requests for horizontal and vertical control
from oil-exploration and aerial-mapping companies involved the
supplying of data for 1,700 quadrangles. In addition to supplying
such data to other governmental agencies and to industry, the Map
Information Office filled Geological Survey requisitions covering the
basic control for 484 quadrangles to be used in mapping operations in
the Atlantic region.
The more than 3,000 letters and telegrams regarding aerial photographic
reproduction alone received this year gave indication of the
212 4 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
extensive use of aerial photography, particularly for areas where topographic
maps are not yet available and for special purposes in connection
with geologic, mineral, and petroleum investigations, forestry
operations, soil conservation and agricultural planning, highway construction,
and many other activities.
The series of 14 base index maps of aerial photography was maintained
in order to supply current information on Federal, State, and
commercial holdings of aerial negatives. These maps show areas
covered, date of photography, focal length of lens, and scale. Reproductions
of the base maps are available to Federal and State agencies
as well as to the public.
The sale of aerial photographic reproductions amounted to nearly
$60,000, an increase of 15 percent over the previous year.
During 1951, map-information centers were established in Tulsa,
Okla., and in Boston, Mass., so as to service directly the map requirements
of intergovernmental groups concerned with naturalresource
development. The Tulsa office supplies the Arkansas, Red,
and White River Basin Inter-Agency Committee with map information
needed in the preparation of a comprehensive report on the resources
and development of the basin. The Boston office serves the
New England-New York Inter-Agency Committee in a similar
capacity.
The second edition of the index maps showing the status of topographic
mapping in the United States was published during the year.
These index maps classify topographic and planimetric maps published
by the Geological Survey and other Federal agencies, thus
keeping map users informed as to the quality of topographic-map
coverage for specific areas and the new mapping in progress.
Topographic-map depository libraries and map-sales agencies in
Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, Mississippi, and Georgia were visited
during the year in order to evaluate the use of topographic maps by
the colleges and to determine procedures that might be adopted to
make these map collections more readily available to all map users.
The preparation of special map displays was continued throughout
the year. Displays on a State basis showing complete map, aerial
photography, and control information, with illustrations of mapping
procedures, selected shaded-relief maps, and other special data, were
made for various State and university engineering groups. Other
displays of particular interest to professional groups were assembled
for the annual conventions of the American Association of Petroleum
Geologists, St. Louis, the Association of the American Geographers,
Chicago, and the American Society of Photogrammetry, Washington,
D. C.
In cooperation with other Federal mapping agencies, the Map Information
Office participated in presenting a 55-panel exhibit of maps
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 4- 213
and mapping methods at the annual convention of the American
Congress on Surveying and Mapping. This exhibit, originally prepared
for the meeting of the Pan American Institute of Geography
and History in Buenos Aires, Argentina, has also been displayed
in other countries in South America and in Europe as a part of the
program for technical assistance and cooperation with other nations.
WATER RESOURCES DIVISION
Water is the Nation’s most important natural resource. Because
it is transient, it can be conserved only by using it wisely—it cannot
be stockpiled like other resources. Fortunately, however, fresh water
is a renewable resource. In streams and underground the supply is
being replenished constantly through operation of the hydrologic
cycle whereby water in the sea and on the land is transformed into
vapor in the air and then is precipitated back upon the earth, purified.
The process is continuous, but because the rate varies from
time to time and from place to place, the water supply in any one
locality is always changing. Streams rise and fall; flood follows
drought or flood in an irregular pattern; the amount of water stored
underground increases and decreases; and the quality of the water
changes as it passes over and through the rocks, dissolving minerals
from them and picking up its load of sediment. We must keep
records of these never-ending changes so that we can know what
our water resources are. The collection, compilation, and interpretation
of those records is the major work of the Water Resources
Division.
All the water we use comes from rainfall. Generally, however,
only a small part of the rainfall remains on or in the earth long
enough for man to put it to work; evaporation and transpiration
take their toll first. Thus, although the amount of rainfall may vary
within narrow limits from year to year, the portion available for
replenishing a water supply may vary widely, as it is what remains
after the relatively constant demands of evaporation and transpiration
have been satisfied. Predictions of future water supplies are
rarely made for longer periods than the time required for the water
to run off after it has already been precipitated on the earth. Accurate
estimates of runoff are possible only where there are many
years of records collected by the Geological Survey on which to base
them; such records are essential for planning long-range programs
or making dependable short-term predictions. In a national emergency,
however, owing to sudden requirements that could not be
anticipated in a stable economy, estimates of w’ater supplies are frequently
based on meager specific data. The only justification for
such estimates is that the need offsets the risk. Although the men
214 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
who make them have had years of experience in interpreting similar
records, it would be uneconomical to rely on them in designing peacetime
installations.
The Nation’s water supplies, which have been subject to recordbreaking
demands in the past, are being used at accelerated rates during
th$ present period of mobilization. Although water is a renewable
resource, there are indications of a sudden awareness that the
Nation’s waters are a limited resource. This limitation on the amount
of water available produces many problems in various phases of our
expanding economy. Industries need water for the enlargement of
existing facilities or the establishment of plants at new locations.
Increasing population calls for more water for domestic use. With
irrigation growing within arid regions and spreading into humid
areas to assure crop production in times of drought, it is becoming
increasingly difficult to meet all the demands for water. Only through
the systematic and continuing inventory of our water supplies are
we able to make the most efficient use of the available water.
Federal Government? s Interest in Water Resources
The problems of water supply and utilization affect such large
areas and such wide interests that they are more and more becoming
problems of national concern. Therefore, the collection of information
on water resources is a definite obligation of the Federal Government,
in close collaboration with all State and local agencies concerned.
During recent years it has become evident that, in addition to
determining the occurrence and availability of water, the Geological
Survey must also determine the extent and methods used in developing
supplies, utilization, and conservation in areas where the limits
of readily available supplies apparently are being reached. A first
step in this direction is the determination of the water requirements
of various classes of users. During the latler part of fiscal year 1950
a unit was established in the Water Resources Division to investigate
the quantity and quality of water required for producing various
manufactured products and to assist in the planning and preparation
of reports on the water resources of specific areas.
During fiscal year 1951, a report was prepared on the estimated use
of water in the United States during 1950. The report showed that
the withdrawal of water from streams, lakes, and underground formations
was about 170,000 million gallons per day, exclusive of water
used for development of water power. The average daily use of water
from municipal systems was 145 gallons per person. An average of
3,600 million gallons per day was used for rural domestic and stock
supply. Industry used an average of 77,000 million gallons per day
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 215
from private sources, including some brackish water. Eighty-nine
million acre-feet of water was delivered to irrigators during 1950,
and 1,250 million acre-feet was used for the generation of water power.
Information has been collected on the quantity of water required
to produce a given unit of production, the chemical content of water
permissible for certain industries, and the variation in the manner in
which water is applied within a manufacturing or mining process.
Information obtained from industrial plants has revealed that the
basic industries producing the initial materials for later fabrication—
such as steel, gasoline, rubber, plastics, and paper—require the greatest
volume of water both for the individual plant and for a given
tonnage or unit of production. On the other hand, the fabrication
processes—such as stamping, cutting, and assembling—require much
less water, in some plants little more than that used by the workers
for sanitary purposes. Typical quantities of water required per unit
of production are: steel, 60,000 gallons per ton; rayon, 200,000 gallons
per ton; and paper, 65,000 gallons per ton. The large industrial plants
producing basic raw material likewise have greater difficulty in providing
water with the necessary chemical quality and temperature.
This is due partly to the large quantities involved but more particularly
to the wide variety of uses to which the water is applied in industry.
The requirements with respect to dissolved minerals range
from a high degree of purity for pharmaceuticals, foods, electroplating
solutions, rayon, and the like to few or no restrictions for washing
and cooling operations that may permit the use of most natural
waters, possibly including even sea water. Most significant has been
the observation that, within limits, the water system for an industrial
plant is dictated largely by economic and geographic circumstances
and hence varies considerably from plant to plant. For example, a
paper mill located in an area where sufficient water is available may
make high-quality thin paper by means of the bleached sulfate process
and use more than 100,000 gallons of water per ton of finished product.
On the other hand, a paper mill in an area where large amounts of
water are not available may produce newsprint from pulpwood with
a total water requirement of less than 15,000 gallons per ton of product.
The Federal Government is itself a large user of water-resources
information. For example, in the Columbia and Missouri River
basins where water-development projects are being carried out and
great multiple-purpose dams are being built and operated, extensive
and accurate water-resources information is essential for economic
design and operation. The choice of site for the reservoirs connected
with these projects presents an efficiency problem; some reservoir sites
are unusable because evaporation from their surface would be so
great that there would be little water left for beneficial use. Because
973649—52-------17
216 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
more accurate information is needed on the amount of evaporation
from reservoirs, the Geological Survey, in cooperation with the
Bureau of Reclamation and the Department of the Navy, began a
comprehensive investigation of evaporation at Lake Hefner, near
Oklahoma City. The studies there have shown already the practicability
of new methods of determining evaporation from reservoirs.
The results of these studies will be applied to larger reservoirs such as
Lake Mead, and also to new research on the problem of determining
the amount of water wasted by bottom-land vegetation.
Water information is also used by the Federal Government in providing
supplies on the public domain for watering stock. The Geological
Survey cooperates with the land agencies of the Department
in the conservation of the soil and water resources of the public domain
and of Indian lands in the 17 Western States. Most of the
land is semiarid or arid, and water is the key resource in its utilization
and development. New supplies of water from wells, springs, or
ponds, developed on the basis of exploration by the Geological Survey
at the request of the land agency in charge, have brought tens of
thousands of acres of land into grazing use for the first time. In
many other areas old and uncertain supplies have been improved.
Besides increasing the value of the land, evenly distributed water
supplies reduce the concentration of grazing loads at a few watering
places and so retard erosion.
Information on erosion and sedimentation is highly important to
the Federal Government. Many formerly productive valleys have
been and are being destroyed by systems of large gullies; not only do
the gullies impair these valley lands for grazing and irrigation, but
they drain away the shallow ground water and they are large sources
of the sediment loads carried by the rivers into the reservoirs. Studies
in progress by Survey scientists as to the causes of this destructive
and, in some places, critical erosion are producing a better understanding
of the effects of rainfall, vegetation, soil properties, and
land use on rates of erosion and sedimentation. The results are being
analyzed for use in developing methods of arresting the erosion.
The Federal Power Commission requires licensees operating hydroelectric
projects to measure the flow of streams used to generate
power. The Geological Survey supervised stream gaging on 150
licensed projects during 1951 at the request of the Commission.
During 1951 Fedral agencies made available more than $3,200,000,
by transfer or reimbursement, to provide for investigations to be
made by the Geological Survey, because the Survey’s direct appropriations
did not permit the collection of the amount of water data
required for Federal water-development projects. These Federal
agencies include the Bonneville Power Administration, Bureau of
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 217
Reclamation, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Fish and Wildlife Service,
National Park Service, Soil Conservation Service, Forest Service,
Weather Bureau, Department of the Army, Department of the Navy,
Department of the Air Force, Department of State, Department of
Justice, Tennessee Valley Authority, Atomic Energy Commission,
Reconstruction Finance Corporation, and Veterans’ Administration.
Cooperation With States and Municipalities
Most of the water-resources investigations of the Geological Survey
are made in cooperation with States and municipalities. The information
on water supplies collected by the Geological Survey benefits
all and is available to all, yet it is so important to State and local
governments that they have long supplemented Federal appropriations
to carry on these investigations. Through the years, the funds
offered by local governments for cooperation with the Geological
Survey have usually exceeded the funds regularly appropriated to the
Survey for cooperative work. The appropriation for cooperative
work in 1951 was $3,068,000. The amounts available for cooperation
in fiscal year 1951 in each State and territory were:
State: Obligations
Alabama-------------- _____ $36,462
Arizona 78,144
Arkansas_________ _____ 50,284
California________ _____ 266,143
Colorado_________ _____ 76,600
Connecticut-----------______ 16,205
Delaware______________ 16,015
Florida___________ _____ 103,250
Georgia__________ _____ 38,035
Idaho____________ _____ 33,576
Illinois___________ _____ 65,045
Indiana__________ _____ 75,233
Iowa_____________ _____ 62,739
Kansas___________ _____ 47,951
Kentucky_________ ______ 102,380
Louisiana________ _____ 69,111
Maine____________ ______ 8,999
Maryland______________ 58,578
Massachusetts____ _____ 34,055
Michigan_________ _____ 48,402
Minnesota________ _____ 26,722
Mississippi_______ _____ 11,391
Missouri _____ 43,326
Montana_________ _____ 34,914
Nebraska-------------- _____ 54,812
State: Obligations
Nevada__________________ $43, 083
New Hampshire------------- 10, 910
New Jersey_____________ 62, 224
New Mexico____________ 87, 509
New York______________ 141,197
North Carolina_________ 46, 247
North Dakota___________ 30, 872
Ohio_____________________112,076
Oklahoma---------------------- 75, 002
Oregon_________________ 75, 858
Pennsylvania___________ 128, 957
Rhode Island___________ 7, 268
South Carolina_________ 19, 836
South Dakota___________ 6, 673
Tennessee______________ 73, 363
Texas__________________ 334, 333
Utah___________________ 99, 096
Vermont----------------------- 6, 921
Virginia________________ 91, 790
Washington________ 130, 992
West Virginia---------------- 24, 857
Wisconsin______________ 26, 096
Wyoming_______________ 26, 236
Hawaii____________ 70, 397
Total_______________ 3,190,145
218 -I- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Funds aggregating nearly $11,500,000 were obligated for water investigations
in the fiscal year 1951. Of that amount, about 45 percent
was appropriated directly to the Geological Survey by the
Congress, 27 percent was contributed by States and municipalities, and
about 28 percent was provided by other Federal agencies.
Field Offices
In 1951 the water-investigations work was conducted from more
than 120 principal field offices, with one or more strategically located
in nearly every State and in the Territories of Alaska and Hawaii.
This decentralization results in a high degree of efficiency and economy
of work and in better service to the public. Close contacts are maintained
with local Federal, State, and municipal officials, and the
interests of cooperating agencies are served. The Survey’s field
offices are local sources of information as to available water resources,
fluctuating stage and discharge of surface streams, fluctuations of the
water table, and the chemical and physical quality of surface and
ground waters.
Although the water-resources investigations are conducted along
three lines—surface water, ground water, and quality of water—for
operational purposes and for reporting, the activities are so interrelated
that only by giving comprehensive attention to all three can
a balanced water-resources investigation be made.
Surface Water
The year 1951 was one of continued increase in the demands for base
stream-flow data. Information in regard to stream-flow characteristics
was an important factor in the selection of several sites for new
atomic-energy plants. About 100 gaging stations were added during
the year, so that the total number of gaging stations now in operation
in the United States and in the Territories of Alaska and Hawaii is
well over 6,300. The stations were operated in 1951 through 44 district
offices in cooperation with 160 agencies of State and political
subdivisions and with 14 Federal agencies. Detailed records of discharge
for these gaging stations were computed and published in the
annual series of water-supply papers entitled Surface Water Supply
of the United States.
The stream-gaging program in Alaska has been steadily expanding
since it was reactivated in 1947 with the establishment of seven gaging
stations. At the end of 1951, a total of 52 gaging stations were in
operation and several more were under construction. Occasional
measurements of discharge are collected at other locations.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 219
Flood-frequency analyses were in progress' in several districts; one
district completed its studies during the year, and the results were
published as a Geological Survey circular. Several flood reports were
being prepared for publication as part of a series on floods of 1950.
Several districts were conducting studies of low-flow characteristics
of small, ungaged streams by correlation with adjacent gaged streams
on the basis of simultaneous discharge measurements. The verification
of discharge as determined by slope-area and other indirect methods,
a program begun in 1949, was' continued in 1951. Progress was made
on a program conducted in close cooperation with the Bureau of
Public Roads and various State highway departments to promote
greater use of stream-flow records in solving hydraulic and hydrologic
problems connected with highway structures.
The report on the effect of backwater on the determination of the
discharge of rivers, prepared in 1949, was revised on the basis of
further analysis. A report on factors influencing water levels in ponds
in limestone sinks in southwestern Georgia was completed. Two reports
pertaining to stream flow in the Missouri River Basin were prepared
and published as Geological Survey circulars. In addition,
seven project-type cooperative reports were completed and transmitted
to the cooperating State agencies for publication.
New items of equipment were developed in the equipment laboratory
to improve the accuracy of, or to expedite, current-meter measurements.
Of particular note are a special current meter for measuring
steams under ice cover; the B-50 reel, which features a depth
indicator that automatically computes the meter setting; and a crane
mounted on a jeep, with power take-off from the jeep motor.
Ground Water
Continued intense interest in, and accelerated development of,
ground water characterized fiscal year 1951. As in World War II, an
increasing proportion of ground-water investigations related to defense
activities at some sacrifice to the nondefense investigations that
had been under way. Fortunately, however, most of the defense-type
investigations result in data that will be useful in future projects, and
many of them involve expanded research resulting in improved techniques
applicable to ground-water problems of all types.
An important example is the sonic method of depth measurement
that is being developed in cooperation with several other agencies.
The method, previously limited to measuring the depth of water
bodies, is being adapted successfully to the determination of the thickness
of various earth materials and rock formations. It promises to
be an exceedingly useful supplement to existing earth-resistivity and
220 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
seismic geophysical methods of extending the results of test drilling.
Research was extended during the year on the use of underground
reservoirs for waste disposal as related to both radioactive materials
and other waste products such as spent brines. Disposal of such materials
into water-bearing formations that contain salt water or that
are unusable for other reasons represents the most economical method
in many areas. However, intensive study in each area is required
to determine how the recharge wells must be constructed and operated
for continued effectiveness and to obtain assurance that the disposal
will not affect usable water supplies or have other deleterious effects,
even in the distant future.
The study of microfossils from wells near the Brookhaven National
Laboratory on Long Island, N. Y., led to important conclusions
as to the character and continuity of the containing clay stratum, a
matter of considerable importance in evaluating the recharge of and
hence the dependability of the water supply of the sand and gravel
under the clay, and also of importance in relation to disposal of radioactive
wastes.
Studies of mine-drainage problems, on which pioneer work was
done in Michigan several years ago, were expanded there and begun
in Minnesota, Tennessee, and Arkansas. Fundamental research on
the movement of water in and adjacent to ore-bearing formations gives
promise of cheaper and more effective methods of mine unwatering
and thus of exploiting ores that cannot be worked economically at
present.
A research project on the relation of ground-water recharge and
stream flow to soil and vegetal conditions was started in New Jersey,
and a similar project is just beginning in New York. This field is
one of great practical importance and one in which much remains to
be done.
A paper was prepared on the use of cyclic fluctuations of water
levels in observation wells, such as those caused by ocean tides, in computing
the hydraulic properties of water-bearing formations. These
computations previously had been based largely on analysis of data
gathered in controlled pumping tests of wells. A technique involving
similar principles was developed for computing hydraulic properties
from the results of bailing tests made in wells where the depth
to water or the cost involved precludes making conventional pumping
tests. The technique was developed in a bailing test of a well in Arizona
where the water level was more than 1,000 feet below the surface.
A report on Seneca County, N. Y., confirmed the suspected northward
extension of buried, drift-filled valleys now occupied by two of
the Finger Lakes. The buried extensions contain water-bearing
glacial deposits, so that their existence is a matter of practical imANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 221
portance as well as geologic interest. Studies in west-central Ohio
resulted in substantial revision of the then current conception of the
pattern of buried preglacial valleys.
Advances were made in equipment development. A set of compact,
lightweight electrical well-logging instruments, developed during
the last few years, was adapted for truck mounting. Several of
the instruments composing the set are of a design that is expected to
be particularly useful in ground-water studies, A sensitive electrical
temperature-measuring instrument was adapted for showing the direction
and velocity of movement of water in drilled wells. This instrument
will supplement the deep-well current meter, inasmuch as its
small size will permit its use in wells having only small access openings
and in some wells equipped with pumps. An electrical tape gage
was developed that depends on completion of an electrical current
between dissimilar metals when the electrode makes contacts with the
water in a well. The fact that the instrument does not require batteries
gives it an advantage over existing electrical tapes.
Work by ground-water hydrologists in foreign countries continued
at the request of those countries or other agencies, with projects in
Saudi Arabia, Greece, India, and Japan. The flow of foreign
hydrologists to this country for training in methods of ground-water
study likewise continued; India, Japan, the Union of South Africa,
Canada, Haiti, and other nations were represented.
During fiscal year 1951, ground-water investigations were made on
more than 400 projects in the United States, Hawaii, Puerto Rico,
the Virgin Islands, and Alaska. The studies were made through 37
district offices in financial cooperation with 88 State, county, and
municipal agencies and 8 Federal agencies. More than 200 formal
reports and papers were prepared, and several thousand requests for
information on ground water were answered.
Quality of Water
An integral part of the change water undergoes in its progress
through the hydrologic cycle is the persistent alteration in the chemical
quality. The type of material with which the water has been in
contact and the length of time in contact governs the degree of mineralization
and ultimately the use of the water. Water of unsuitable
quality will affect adversely every phase of human living.
The growing number of chemical analyses made of the Nation’s
water resources provides a storehouse of factual information. During
fiscal year 1951, the chemical quality of nearly 50,000 samples of
water was determined in 13 laboratories located in Washington, D. C.,
and throughout the country. One such laboratory was established
222 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
during the year at Davis, Calif., to handle the State cooperative work.
Other cooperative investigations of the chemical quality of ground and
surface waters were in progress in Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware,
Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisana, New Mexico, North Carolina,
Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, and
Virginia. Surface-water samples were collected daily at 215 stations
on streams for chemical analysis in connection with these programs.
Thirty-three daily sampling stations were established as Federal network
statioiis on Western streams to follow trends in mineral content
in order to insure continued successful operation of existing irrigation
projects. In addition, samples were collected on an intermittent
basis at 145 stream-sampling sites. Samples were also collected and
analyzed for cooperative studies of ground water in other States.
Data concerning the larger municipal water supplies throughout the
country are being assembled, and analyses have been made by all
laboratories to culminate in an over-all report on the chemical characteristics
of the public water supplies of the United States.
Quality-of-water data concerning the use of water for national defense,
public health, agriculture, industry, and recreation are essential
in sound development of Federal projects and the protection of Federal
property. Analytical results, intrepretation of analyses, or advice
about water problems was furnished to the following Federal
agencies: Atomic Energy Commission, Department of the Navy, Department
of the Army, Department of the Air Force, Public Health
Service, Veterans’ Administration, Bureau of Reclamation, Bureau
of Mines, Public Housing Administration, Federal Works Agency,
and Fish and Wildlife Service. During fiscal year 1951 about 4,000
analyses were made at the request of the above-mentioned agencies;
nearly 700 of these were analyses of samples collected at defense installations
in this country and at offshore bases.
The importance of measuring the large quantities of sediment transported
by the rivers of the Nation is rapidly becoming more widely
recognized. The demand for the construction of large dams to impound
greater quantities of water in reservoirs for irrigation, power
development, and industrial use has focused attention on the probable
useful life of these reservoirs. As the greater part of the sediment
carried in streams is dropped in the reservoirs, it is essential that
systematic studies be made to determine the quantities of sediment
that will have to be taken into account in the construction of the
dams and the operation of the reservoirs.
Sediment-measure studies of the Geological Survey were extended
to include new cooperative programs in Ohio and Virginia during
the year. Sediment samples were collected daily or more frequently
at 148 stations, largely in the Rio Grande, Colo., Schuylkill (Pa.),
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 223
and Missouri River Basins with a few stations scattered in Delaware,
Kentucky, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Ohio, Texas, and Virginia.
Eight of the stations were established as Federal index stations to
evaluate rates of sediment production in areas where no studies have
been made; one each is in New Mexico, Texas, North Carolina, Kentucky,
Ohio, and Virginia, and two are in Pennsylvania. In addition,
miscellaneous sediment samples were collected on an intermittent basis
at 39 sites in these river basins and States. In all, more than 125,000
sediment samples were collected and analyzed during the year in 14
laboratories throughout the country.
Missouri River Basin
The coordinated projects of the Bureau of Reclamation and the
Corps of Engineers for the development of the Missouri River Basin
require extensive water investigations. These investigations are generally
conducted in cooperation with States and municipalities. Additional
activities to meet the needs of the departmental program include
measurements at 261 stream-gaging stations; 67 projects related to
ground-water supplies or to changes in ground-water conditions that
may result from reservoir construction or irrigation in the vicinity of
reclamation units; more than 60,000 measurements of the sediment
content of surface waters at 77 regular stations and 34 stations for
miscellaneous measurements; 6,000 analyses of the chemical quality of
the waters at 23 regular stations and at 60 stations for miscellaneous
records; 1,200 chemical analyses of ground waters from various
sources; and hydrologic and utilization studies related to the proposed
plans of development. The information obtained through these investigations
is furnished to the interested agencies currently or periodically.
v • vc
Interstate Compacts
Interstate compacts providing for the division between States of
waters of interstate streams and authorizing or requiring the establishment
and operation of gaging stations, generally by the Geological
Survey, are now in effect as follows: Colorado River (Wyo., Utah,
Colo., N. Mex., Ariz., Nev., Calif.), Upper Colorado River (Wyo.,
Utah, Colo., N. Mex., Ariz.), Belle Fourche River (Wyo., S. Dak.),
Republican River (Nebr., Kans.), Rio Grande (Colo., N. Mex.), Costilla
Creek (Colo., N. Mex.), Cheyenne River (S. Dak., Wyo.), Pecos
River (N. Mex., Tex.), Arkansas River (Colo., Kans.), Snake River
(Idaho, Wyo.), and Canadian River (N. Mex., Tex., Okla.). Similar
compacts are in process of negotiation for the Yellowstone River
(Mont., N. Dak., Wyo.) and the Bear River (Idaho, Utah, Wyo.).
224 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
International Treaties
International problems related to water are increasing. The Geological
Survey, using funds transferred by the Department of State,
makes the water-resources investigations along the Canadian boundary
that are required by orders issued by the International Joint
Commission, United States and Canada, under the treaty of January
11, 1909. In addition to these continuing investigations needed for
division and control of waters along the international boundary, several
special investigations were made in 1951 in connection with
references before the Commission, particularly those relating to the
Columbia River Basin, Sage Creek and the Waterton and Belly Rivers
in Montana, the Souris and Red Rivers in North Dakota and Minnesota,
and the St. John River in Maine. The Geological Survey,
through agreement with the department of State, has continuing
obligations for obtaining water-resources information along the Mexican
boundary as required by the Mexican water treaty of 1944.
Members of the Geological Survey serve on several international
engineering boards.
Reports on Investigations
The results of the varied studies and computations made by the
Water Resources Division are made available for public inspection
as soon as practicable by placing manuscript copies of observations,
measurements, chemical analyses, and interpretative reports in the
open files of the district offices concerned. The availability of this
information is made known through public announcements. Streamflow
and ground-water conditions in the United States and Canada
are summarized monthly and semiannually in the Water Resources
Review.
The published work of the Water Resources Division during the
fiscal year 1951 consisted of 29 new water-supply papers, a large number
of shorter reports in the technical press, and 61 reports transmitted
for publication by cooperating State agencies. In addition,
a number of miscellaneous processed reports were issued.
CONSERVATION DIVISION
The Conservation Division classifies the Federal lands as to mineral
and water resources and supervises mineral-recovery operations
under leases, permits, and licenses on Federal, Indian, and naval
petroleum reserve lands. A small headquarters staff and a field staff
of competent geologists and engineers are maintained. This force
makes field surveys, prepares maps and reports dealing with water
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 225
power, fuels, minerals, and chemicals essential to the mineral-resource
economy of the United States, and conducts on-site supervision of
mining and drilling operations necessary to assure the safe and economical
production by private enterprise of coal, oil, gas, and other
minerals.
Mineral Classification
All phases of the service rendered by the Mineral Classification
Branch were maintained at an active pace throughout fiscal year 1951.
In all, some 16,600 cases involving either the outright disposal of
Federal lands with no reservation of any mineral, the disposal of
such lands with the reservation of one or more specified minerals, or
the exercise under the Federal leasing laws of the Government’s right
to explore for and produce one or another mineral substance from
lands under its jurisdiction were acted upon during the year. This
represents an increase of about 5 percent as compared with 1950,
reflecting increased public interest in the acquisition of Federal lands
for settlement under the desert-land laws, for use under the publicsale
laws, and for oil and gas prospecting and development under
the mineral-leasing laws. This increase was more than sufficient to
offset a concurrent decrease in applications concerned with coal, phosphate,
potassium, and sodium. In addition, the Branch prepared and
promulgated initial or revised definitions of the known geologic structure
of 15 producing oil and gas fields containing Federal land and
revoked two such definitions; appraised geologically 139 unit-plan
or participating-area submissions; drafted or approved 87 determinations
of leasehold relations to the productive limits of oil and gas
deposits as found to exist on August 8,1946; reported for appropriate
administrative action the fact and geologic significance of 126 new
discoveries of oil or gas made on or affecting Federal-land leaseholds;
and prepared six mineral-advisory reports on properties in
process of disposal by the Federal Security Agency.
From field offices in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, California,
New Mexico, and Oklahoma, Branch geologists made numerous
“spot” investigations which resulted in geologic reports and maps for
official use in the Mineral Classification Branch, other branches of
the Conservation Division, other bureaus of the Department, and the
National Military Establishment. Noteworthy were completed reports
on the coal resources of the Dickinson Reservoir area, Stark
County, N. Dak.; on the oil resources of the Huntington Beach tideland
area, Orange County, Calif.; on the oil potentialities of the
Fishtail Creek area, Stillwater County, and a part of the Marias
River Valley, Toole and Liberty Counties, Mont.; and on three dam
226 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
sites near Lake City, Hinsdale County, Colo., and seven dam sites on
the Cowlitz River and its tributaries, Lewis and Cowlitz Counties,
Wash.
Water and Power Classification
The field work of the Water and Power Branch during 1951 was
directed mainly toward obtaining basic information on the waterpower
resources and storage possibilities of Federal lands on which
projects were proposed for early development. Work was done in
Alaska and New Mexico and in the Colorado and Columbia River
basins. Topographic surveys were made of 4 reservoir sites, 11 dam
sites, and 122 miles of river channel. The Branch supervised the
construction and operation of 134 power projects under licenses with
the Federal Power Commission, 512 such projects under permit or
grant from the Department of the Interior, and 192 in cooperation
with the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Classification activities resulted in the addition of 17,714 acres to
power-site reserves and the elimination of 14,270 acres, increasing
the outstanding reserves in 23 States and Alaska to a net total of
6,851,062 acres.
Maps published covered 70 miles of stream channel on five rivers,
nine dam sites, and two reservoir sites.
Final action involving hydraulic determination was taken on 734
cases received from departmental sources and the Federal Power
Commission and on 4,423 cases that also involved mineral classification.
Investigations were in progress on the power and water-storage
possibilities of 32 rivers. Six reports on the power possibilities of
streams and three reports on dam and reservoir sites were completed.
Four of the reports have been made available for public inspection.
Mining Branch
The Mining Branch is responsible for the supervision of operations
concerned with the discovery and production of numerous minerals
from leases on acquired, Indian, and public lands. Minerals produced
under such outstanding leases include copper, manganese, uranium,
asbestos, limestone, gravel, coal, sand, marble, silica rock, iron, gypsum,
vermiculite, pumice, clay, fluorspar, feldspar, lead, zinc, barite,
mica, tungsten, and garnet.
The Branch is charged with the responsibility of reporting on applications
for leases and prospecting permits; recommending lease
terms; enforcing regulations and lease terms governing the conduct
of prospecting, mining, and beneficiation operations and the safety
and welfare of employees; protecting natural resources and preventANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 227
ing waste; determining the royalty liability of lessees and permittees;
preparing statements of accounts; and receiving payment of royalties
and rentals. The Branch acts in an advisory capacity to the Secretary
and to other bureaus of the Department in the handling of leases,
permits, and licenses.
As of June 30, 1951, the Branch was supervising 1,250 properties
under leases, permits, and licenses, of which 906 were on the public
domain, 92 on acquired lands, and 252 on Indian lands. These properties
involved lands in 17 States west of the Mississippi River, 12
Eastern States, and Alaska. Production from lands under supervision
during the year is estimated at 19,133,000 tons, valued at $106,-
735,000, with accrued royalties amounting to $3,844,000, as compared
to a production of 13,674,550 tons, valued at $89,256,553, with royalties
of $2,887,661, during the previous fiscal year.
The production of coal from public lands in the United States and
Alaska, including the former Chickasaw-Choctaw segregated coal
lands in Oklahoma purchased by the Government from the Indian
owners on May 1, 1949, was approximately 8,946,000 tons, as compared
with 7,459,000' tons mined during the previous fiscal year from
the same lands. The increase was achieved in the face of increased
competition from other fuels and reflects the increased industrial
tempo.
Potassium production is estimated at 5,393,000 tons of salts, as compared
with an actual production of 4,422,892 tons during the fiscal
year ended June 30, 1950, and 4,952,930 tons during the fiscal year
ended June 30, 1949. The decrease during 1950 was due to the prolonged
strike of the potash-mine workers in New Mexico; the 1951
production reflects a return to normal conditions. Two new operations
in the New Mexico area are in the initial stages of development; one
is expected to start production late in 1951 and the other early in
1952, representing an estimated additional 1 to 1% million tons annual
capacity. Seventy-three core tests were completed during the fiscal
year, resulting in a substantial increase in indicated reserves. The
number of potassium permits in effect in all States on June 30, 1951,
was 244 as compared to 270 on June 30, 1950.
The principal source of sodium from public lands is the Searles
Lake brine deposits in California. Refined salts produced from these
brines under the provisions of potassium leases include potassium
chloride, borax, soda ash, salt cake, bromine, burkite, and sodium
lithium phosphate. During the year, operations under 94 sodiumprospecting
permits were supervised in the States of California,
Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming.
Westvaco, now operating on Government and adjoining Union Pacific
228 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Railroad lands near Green River, Wyo., is at present considering the
construction of a refinery at a cost of $10,000,000.
Phosphate leases on public lands in Arizona, Idaho, Montana, and
Wyoming, increased from 29 to 33 during the fiscal year. In addition,
there are 33 phosphate leases on Indian lands in Idaho and 1
phosphate lease on acquired lands in Florida. The total phosphateore
production decreased from 514,369 tons in 1950 to 479,181 tons in
fiscal year 1951. Surplus stocks of phosphate rock which had accumulated
at Trail, British Columbia, account for the decline in the production
from mines on public lands in Montana from 263,500 tons
during 1950 to 69,900 tons during 1951. With the completion of a
third electric furnace at Pocatello, and of another at Silver Bow,
Mont., the potential output of elemental phosphorus in the Western
States will be doubled early in the coming fiscal year.
The production of lead and zinc concentrates from Quapaw Indian
lands in Oklahoma will approximate the 47,863 tons produced during
fiscal year 1950. The tonnage of ore mined is greater, but the
grade of the ore is slightly lower. A substantial tonnage of uraniumvanadium
ores was mined from Indian lands in Arizona, New Mexico,
and Utah.
Coal, fluorspar, quartzite, sandstone, bentonite, and feldspar accounted
for most of the production from acquired lands. A phosphate
lease for the development of a coloidal phosphate deposit in
Florida and manganese-clay leases involving acquired lands in Tennessee
were issued during the year. Wide interest is being shown in
coal deposits on acquired lands in Ohio, Virginia, Kentucky, and
Alabama.
A total of 84 awards for achievement in safety of mine operation
were made in 1950 by the Joseph A. Holmes Safety Association to coal
mines in the United States; 11 of the mines cited were west of the
Mississippi, and of these, 5 were on Government land. In the industrial-
minerals group, one out of six awards was received by a
potassium lessee. The Sentinels of Safety award for bituminous coal
mines, given to a single industrial group each year, has been made
to one lessee 12 times out of 18 since the mine was entered in the competition.
These awards for safety achievement bear witness to the
cooperation of mine management and employees in the conduct of
safe mine operations on Government land.
Oil and Gas Leasing
The Oil and Gas Leasing Branch supervises operations for the discovery,
development, and production of crude oil, natural gas, and
products extracted from natural gas on public, acquired, and Indian
lands. These duties were carried out during the year by means of
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 229
21 field offices and suboffices in California, Colorado, Montana, New
Mexico, Oklahoma, Utah, and Wyoming.
On the public lands 38,916 oil and gas properties were under supervision
at the end of the fiscal year, aggregating 29,776,704 acres in
22 States and Alaska, an increase of 34^ percent in the number of
properties and 26^ percent in the acreage under supervision at the
close of the previous fiscal year.
Drilling on public lands during the year included the spudding of
1,039 wells and the completion of 974 wells, of which 666 were productive
of oil and gas and 308 were barren. In all, 15,449 wells,
including 9,125 capable of oil and gas production, were under supervision
on June 30, 1951. The production from petroleum deposits
on the public lands during 1951 was substantially greater than during
1950. Production from the public lands during fiscal year 1951
amounted to about 89,650,000 barrels of petroleum, 137,265,000,000
cubic feet of natural gas, and 160,178,000 gallons of gasoline and
butane, with royalty returns to the United States of approximately
$25,752,000.
Drilling on acquired lands during the year included the spudding
of 68 wells and the completion of 66 wells, 38 of which were productive
of oil or gas and 28 of which were barren. In all, 185 acquiredland
wells, including 135 capable of oil or gas production, were under
supervision on June 30, 1951. The production from acquired lands
during fiscal year 1951 amounted to about 2,484,000 barrels of petroleum,
550,000,000 cubic feet of natural gas, and 1,036,000 gallons of
gasoline and butane, with royalty returns of approximately $724,000
during the year.
The Branch supervised operations on 7,040 leaseholds on Indian
lands in 14 States, which contained at the end of the year a total of
8,502 wells, 4,151 of which were productive of oil or gas and 318 of
which had been completed during the year. The total revenue from
royalties, rentals, and bonuses amounted to $8,304,000.
On behalf of the Department of the Navy, supervision was continued
in 1951 over the production of oil, gas, gasoline, and butane from 19
properties under lease in Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 2 in California.
Production from 258 active wells in this reserve aggregated 2,615,000
barrels of petroleum, 1,087,000,000 cubic feet of natural gas, and
7,483,000 gallons of natural gasoline and butane, with an aggregate
royalty value of $913,340.
On Department of the Army lands in the Rio Vista gas field, the
work included the consideration and approval of numerous revisions
in participating percentages and the computation of royalties due the
United States. The gas production allocated to the lands was 4,125,-
000,000 cubic feet, with a royalty value of $379,745.
230 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Activities leading to the unitization of oil and gas operations involving
Federal land were reflected in the approval of 24 new unit
plans during the year and the termination of 27 previously approved
unit plans, leaving 178 approved plans, covering 2,492,862 acres, outstanding
on June 30,1951. About 59 percent of the petroleum obtained
from public lands during the year was produced under approved unit
agreements, as well as 45 percent of the natural gas and 71 percent of
the gasoline and butane. In addition, two Indian-land unit agreements
covering 3,430 acres were approved during the year, leaving five
such approved plans covering 36,066 acres outstanding on June 30,
1951. Also, 29 drilling-unit agreements were approved during the
year, making a total of 133 approved as of June 30, 1951. These
agreements involve isolated small tracts which are consolidated to
form a logical drilling unit; in effect, they constitute an agreement
similar to a unit agreement, although they involve only a small segment
of a single field or pool.
WORK ON PUBLICATIONS
Texts
During the year 174 new manuscripts were received by the Section
of Texts, 174 manuscripts were sent to the printer, and 158 publications
were delivered by the printer. Work on these included 15,050
pages of manuscript edited and prepared for printing; 1,949 galley
proofs and 7,064 page proofs revised and returned; indexes prepared
for 41 publications, covering 2,075 pages and consisting of 6,279 entries.
Copy edited in preparation for mimeographing included 83
pages of miscellaneous material.
Reports delivered were as follows: Professional Papers, 142-1,
221-E, 221-F, 221-G, 221-H, 222, 223, and 229; Bulletins 955-D,
955-E, 955-F, 962-B, 962-D, 963-B, 963-C, 963-D, 964-D, 964-E,
965-B, 969-A, 969-B, 969-C, 969-D, 969-E, 973-A, 974-A, 974-B,
974-C, 976-B, 976-C, 976-D, 977, 978-A, and 981-A; Water-Supply
Papers 1050, 1068, 1072, 1081, 1085, 1092, 1093, 1095, 1096,1097, 1098,
1100, 1101, 1104, 1112, 1113, 1114, 1115, 1116, 1117, 1118, 1119, 1120,
1121, 1122,1124,1127, and 1149; Circulars 40, 67, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80,
81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 90, 91, 92, 94, 95,97,98,99,100,101,102,103,
104, 105, 108,110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 121, 123; chapters 2A1, 2D1,
2D2, 4D5, and 6A3 of Topographic Instructions; and miscellaneous
reports. These reports cover a wide range of subject matter—general
geology of particular areas, mining districts, and local mineral deposits
in the United States, Alaska, Brazil, Hawaii, Mexico, and Palau IsANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 231
lands; studies of. fossils and the rocks in which they are found; a
collection of papers on geochemical research; Geophysical Abstracts,
a quarterly serial; measurements of stream flow and of water levels and
artesian pressure in wells; general studies of underground water and
of the occurrence of floods, with consideration of the influence of
geology and physiography.
In order to keep the public informed, 12 lists of new publications
were issued. Also printed during the year were 29 State index circulars;
34 pamphlets to accompany index circulars; and the second
supplement to Publications of the Geological Survey, 1948. Copy
for the third supplement was prepared.
Illustrations
Of a total of 24 reports on hand at the beginning of the fiscal year,
21 were in various stages of completion. Fifty-nine reports were received
and 45 were completed and transmitted, leaving a total of 38
reports on hand, 19 of which were in various stages of completion.
Those transmitted included 14 professional papers, 22 bulletins, and
9 water-supply papers, which contained 1,074 completed drawings
and photographs. Illustrations were prepared for 16 circulars. In
addition, a large number of miscellaneous pieces of drafting were
completed.
Map Reproduction
During the year 6 newly engraved topographic maps, 763 multicolor
topographic maps, 17 river survey maps, 6 planimetric maps,
9 geologic index maps, 37 topographic index maps, 127 geologic preliminary
maps, and 37 special maps were printed, making a total of
1,002 new maps printed and delivered. Reprint editions of 290 engraved
topographic maps, 33 multicolor maps, and 67 photolithographed
State, geologic, planimetric, preliminary, and other maps were
printed and delivered. Of new and reprinted maps, 1,392 different
editions, amounting to 3,307,417 copies, were delivered.
Work was done for 51 units of the Government, including branches
of the Geological Survey, and for the States. Charges for this work
amounted to $793,674.64, for which the Geological Survey appropriation
was reimbursed.
Transfer impressions and velox and plate prints numbering 182
were made during the year.
Including topographic maps and contract and miscellaneous work
of all kinds, a grand total of 3,594,529 copies were printed and
delivered.
973649—52------ 18
232 4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The photographic laboratory made 9,011 negatives, 9,626 prints,
5,717 photolith press plates, and 532 lantern slides; developed 84 film
packs and 190 rolls of film; and developed and printed 49,300 feet of
aerial film.
Distribution
There were received during the year a total of 1,446 publications,
comprising 108 new book reports and pamphlets and 10 reprints; 17
oil- and gas-investigations maps and charts, 7 coal-investigations
maps, 74 geophysical-investigations maps, and 14 other geologic maps
(including 11 geologic quadrangle maps); 5 river surveys; 814 new or
revised topographic and other maps and indexes (including 52 maps
turned over to the Survey by the Army Map Service and 40 Tennessee
Valley Authority maps with contours); and 370 reprinted maps.
The total units received numbered 165,294 books and pamphlets (including
16,517 reprints), 194,695 copies of revised index maps, and
3,265,505 topographic and other maps, a grand total of 3,642,011.
Units distributed included 117,955 books and pamphlets, 1,191 geologic
folios, and 1,726,200 maps, a grand total of 1,845,346, of which
1,190 folios and 1,162,047 maps were sold. Distribution of maps and
folios was divided among Survey offices as follows:
Washington______________________________________________ 1,141,246
Denver__________ -________________________________________ 577,143
Other field offices__________________________________________ 9> 001
Total____________________________________________________ 1,727,390
The net proceeds from sales of maps and folios amounted to $168,-
594.61. The breakdown of money received is as follows:
Washington______________________________________________ $118, 703. 87
Denver_________________________________________________ 45, 214.34
Other field offices------------------------------------------------------------ 4,676.40
Total_________________________________________________ $168, 594. 61
In addition, $14,900.68 was repaid by other Government agencies for
maps or folios furnished. The total net receipts for maps and folios,
therefore, amounted to $183,495.29, a decrease of $6,567.25. Local
Washington “over-the-counter” sale of maps to 8,916 private individuals
amounted to $6,123.72, a decrease of $283.26 below last year.
A total of 71,181 letters were handled.
The following table shows the publications on hand July 1, 1950,
those received and distributed during the year, and the totals on hand
June 30,1951.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 233
On hand
June 30,
1951
Received Distributed
On hand
June 30,
1951
Geologic folios ______ 13, 222
20, 056,677
1,191
1, 726,200
12,031
MapsT________________________________________________
Books and pamphlets:
3, 265, 505 21,595, 982
Complete volumes________________________________
Separate chapters, extracts, and miscellaneous
136,196 55,963 40,217 151, 942
pamphlets_______________________________________ 209,426 118,464 77, 738 250,152
Total________________ r________________________ 20,415, 521 3,439,943 1,845, 346 22,010,107
FUNDS
During the fiscal year 1951 obligations' were incurred under the
direction of the Geological Survey totaling $36,373,066. Of this
amount 51 percent was appropriated directly to the Geological Survey,
37 percent was made available by other Federal agencies, and
12 percent was contributed by States and their political subdivisions.
Obligations incurred by the Geological Survey in fiscal year 1951 (by source
of funds')
Topographic surveys and mapping:
Geological Survey appropriation____________________________ $7, 521, 327
States, counties, and municipalities_________________________ 1, 248, 287
Department of the Interior:
Bureau of Reclamation________________________________ 2, 812, 249
Department of Commerce:
Bureau of Public Roads________________________________ 49, 965
Department of Defense:
Department of the Air Force___________________________ 623, 978
Department of the Army_______________________________ 618, 069
Department of the Navy_______________________________ 28, 631
Miscellaneous Federal agencies_________________ <___________ 256, 593
Sale to the public of aerial photographs and photographic copies
of records_____________________________________________ 27, 260
Total________________________________________________ $13,186, 359
Geologic and mineral-resource surveys and mapping:
Geological Survey appropriation__________________________ $4,073, 520
States, counties, and municipalities_________________________ 205,110
Department of the Interior:
Bureau of Indian Affairs_______________________________ 8, 079
Bureau of Mines______________________________________ 16, 417
Bureau of Reclamation________________________________ 454, 943
Defense Minerals Administration_______________________ 279,136
Petroleum Administration for Defense__________________ 54, 500
Department of Defense:
Department of the Air Force___________________________ 12, 787
Department of the Army_______________________________ 642, 814
Department of the Navy________________________________ 338, 249
234 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Obligations incurred by the Geological Survey in fiscal year 1951 (by source
of funds')—Continued
Geologic and mineral-resource surveys and mapping—Continued
Department of State---------------------------------------------------------- $476, 726
Atomic Energy Commission________________________________ 2, 946, 323
Economic Cooperation Administration_______________________ 160, 782
Miscellaneous Federal agencies_____________________________ 28,139
Total________________________________________________ $9, 697, 525
Water-resources investigations:
Geological Survey appropriation___________________________ $5,155, 734
States, counties, and municipalities_____________________ ____ 3,065, 497
Department of the Interior:
Bonneville Power Administration________________ —___ 17, 362
Bureau of Indian Affairs______________________________ 106, 346
Bureau of Reclamation_______________________________ 1, 469, 284
Department of Defense:
Department of the Air Force___________________________ 12, 900
Department of the Army------------------------------------------------ 885,140
Department of the Navy_______________________________ 47, 714
Department of State______________________________________ 107, 887
Atomic Energy Commission______________________________ — 192,344
Economic Cooperation Administration______________________ 2, 666
Tennessee Valley Authority_______________________________ 83, 388
Miscellaneous Federal agencies____________________________ 305, 006
Permittees and licensees of the Federal Power Commission----- 51, 500
Total________________________________________________ $11, 502, 768
Soil and moisture conservation:
Geological Survey appropriation_____________________ ______ 40, 518
Classification of lands:
Geological Survey appropriation___________________________ $322, 791
Department of the Interior:
Bureau of Reclamation________________________________ 5, 886
Miscellaneous Federal agencies________________ ___________ 593
Total________________________________________________ $329, 270
Supervision of mining and oil and gas leases:
Geological Survey appropriation------------------------------------------ $838, 696
Department of the Interior:
Petroleum Administration for Defense__________________ 2, 788
Department of Defense:
Department of the Navy_______________________________ 29, 013
Miscellaneous Federal agencies____________________________ 588
Total________________________________________________ $871, 085
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 235
Obligations incurred by the Geological Survey in fiscal year 1951 (by source
of funds')—Continued
General administration:
Geological Survey appropriation___________________________ $476, 480
Department of the Interior:
Bureau of Indian Affairs______________________________ 3, 314
Bureau of Reclamation_______________________________ 128, 519
Defense Minerals Administration_______________________ 1, 800
Department of Defense:
Department of the Air Force___________________________ 9, 800
Department of the Army______________________________ 61, 457
Department of the Navy_______________________________ 7, 679
Department of State___________ ___________________________ 300
Atomic Energy Commission________________________________ 50,192
Economic Cooperation Administration_______________________ 6, 000
Total________ ________________________________________ $745, 541
Summary:
Geological Survey appropriation___________________________ $18, 429,4)66
States, counties, and municipalities________________________ 4, 518, 894
Other Federal agencies____________________________________ 13, 346, 346
Permittees and licensees of the Federal Power Commission___ 51, 500
Sale to the public of aerial photographs and photographic copies
of records____________________________________________ 27, 260
Grand total_________________________________________ $36, 373, 066
Oil and Gas
Division
Hugh A. Stewart, Acting Director
ON MAY 6, 1951, the Oil and Gas Division began
its sixth year of coordinating and unifying oil and gas policy and
administrative activities of the several departments and agencies and
serving as the channel of communication with the petroleum industry.
During the first 5 years of its existence, OGD had also kept
informed with respect to the adequacy and availability of supplies
of petroleum and its products to meet current and future needs of
the Nation. Therefore, early in the fiscal year when there was grave
threat to the peace of the world which required that the United States
give military assistance to South Korea following aggression by North
Korea, OGD having continuously studied the petroleum supply and
demand situation was already proceeding with plans to assure prompt
and effective petroleum mobilization in event of a national emergency.
Immediate attention and consideration were given to the problems
which confronted the petroleum industry and the Federal Government
because of the increased demands for high octane aviation gasoline
required by the military services. The Military Petroleum
Advisory Board was asked on July 26 to make an investigation of
the current and potential production of high octane aviation gasoline
by the refining industry. The Division participated in the work and
determined the action necessary to assure an adequate supply of aviation
gasoline and its components. The Armed Services Petroleum
Purchasing Agency called upon the Division for assistance in connection
with difficulties being experienced in obtaining sufficient
aviation gasoline to meet their requirements. Because of the problems
encountered in obtaining additional emergency supplies, in
response to a request by letter of July 21, 1950, of the Secretary of
the Interior, the National Petroleum Council reactivated its Committee
on Military and Government Petroleum Requirements to assist
the Federal Government in meeting its needs for various petroleum
products. In August, the Secretary of the Interior made a public
appeal to the petroleum industry calling for increased production of
aromatic blending components of aviation gasoline and urging the
236
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 237
industry to eliminate the use of aviation alkylate in motor gasoline
and to blend this component into aviation gasoline, and requested
that alkylate plants be operated at full capacity. Then, on September
1, 1950, the Secretary of the Interior sent telegrams to the 35
principal refiners of aviation gasoline calling attention to the critical
aviation gasoline supply for the military services, the necessity for
supplying 30 percent more avgas than previously estimated and suggested
seven principles to be followed by refiners in their operations.
As the fiscal year ended, all demands of both the military and civilian
economy were being met.
The Division advised and assisted the Department of State on
foreign petroleum policy matters and actively participated in the
work of the Interdepartmental Committee dealing with international
petroleum policy matters.
The Division made a study of the oil import policy and its relation
to the over-all petroleum and fuel policy. It was concluded that no
action by the Federal Government should be taken currently to
restrict imports of petroleum.
The entire Department’s concern and interest in matters affecting
export policy and export control were maintained by the Division
through representation on Department of Commerce committees and
its various task groups and by the close working relationships which
the Division established with agencies within the Department.
The Division also served as a member of an Interdepartmental
Rubber Committee, under the chairmanship of the National Security
Resources Board. The Division advised the Rubber Reserve Corporation
that butylene from petroleum was in tight supply and provided
information on and assistance in securing additional sources
of supply.
The Division assisted the Water Resources Policy Commission and
represented the Department on its Committee on Domestic Water
Navigation Projects and National Transportation Policy.
The Division continued to represent the Department at the quarterly
meetings of the Interstate Oil Compact Commission, and maintained
liaison directly with the State regulatory authorities and also through
the Federal Petroleum Board, under the supervision of the Oil and
Gas Division.
About mid-June the National Petroleum Council had given 5 years’
service providing the Federal Government with advice and information.
Since its etablishment, NPC had complied with 56 requests for
information and data on which 106 reports were made. Eight
requests were rejected by NPC.
In gearing its activities to the Nation’s preparedness program for
security and defense, the Oil and Gas Division and the Department
238 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
of Defense not only called upon but relied greatly on the Military
Petroleum Advisory Board for advice and information on matters
classified in nature. More than 200' industry representatives served
on the Board’s panels and committees in the preparation of material
for use of the Board in giving advice and service to the Federal Government.
The following transfer of certain Oil and Gas Division functions
was made on December 1, 1950 (Order No. 2602), by the Secretary of
the Interior: Except with respect to the performance of functions relating
to the administration and enforcement of the act of February
22,1935, as amended (15 U. S. C., 1946 ed., secs. 715-715k) and except
with respect to the performance of functions relating to the
operations of the Bureau of Mines, the Geological Survey, and
the functions of the Bureau of Land Management and Bureau of
Indian Affairs respecting the leasing of mineral lands, the functions
of the Oil and Gas Division, provided for in order No. 2193, shall be
performed by the Petroleum Administration for Defense. The personnel,
files, records, papers, and equipment of the Oil and Gas Division,
except those required in the administration of the act of February
22,1935, and in the administration of the additional functions referred
to above, are transferred to the Petroleum Administration for Defense.
Conservation of oil and associated mineral resources of the Nation
is of far greater concern today than it was when the Connally “Hot
Oil” Act was enacted by Congress in 1935, as a necessary complement
of the oil conservation laws of the several States. The act is adminitered
by the Federal Petroleum Board, under the direction of the
Secretary of the Interior and the supervision of the Oil and Gas
Division of the Department of the Interior. Its principal purpose
and effect is to prohibit the shipment or transportation in interstate
and foreign commerce of all oil and oil products produced in excess of
amounts permitted to be produced under State law and regulations
prescribed thereunder.
The Board, with a personnel of less than 30 people, consisting of a
chairman, member, alternate member, and some 13 to 14 field examiners,
together with a clerical staff, carries on its functions through a
headquarters office at Kilgore, Tex., and suboffices located at Midland
and Houston, Tex., and Lafayette, La.
While the act is applicable wherever State laws limit the rate of
production and prescribe conditions for producing and handling oil,
its chief application occurs in the States of Texas, Louisiana, and New
Mexico, where regulations prescribed under the act are actively enforced
by the Board and its staff. Enforcement activities are also
carried on in the States of Mississippi, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas,
and other oil-producing States.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 239
In administering the act, the primary aim is to secure the widest
possible adherence to its provisions, and to this end sanctions are judicially
applied whenever violations of a substantial nature are discovered.
This purpose is achieved primarily through continuous
field investigations carried on by the examining staff, observing and
inspecting, producing, transporting, storing, and processing operations,
and by the inspection and auditing of prescribed records and
reports, aided whenever necessary through the conduct of investigative
hearings.
In order that the burden upon the oil industry may be kept at a
minimum, the regulations prescribed under the act limit the requirements
for the keeping of daily operating records and the filing of
monthly reports to those areas where, because of relatively high differential
between potential and allowable production, and the presence
of other factors tending to result in circumventions of the act, violations
are deemed most likely to occur. This area, known as the
designated area, is defined in the regulations and, while subject to
change, presently consists of 106 counties in the State of Texas, the
counties of Lea and Eddy in the State of New Mexico, and all of the
State of Louisiana.
From the designated area, the Board receives and processes each
month approximately 5,700 monthly reports, some 5,000 of which are
filed by producers, about 550 by transporters and storers, and the remainder
by processors and refiners. These reports cover operations
in over 1,000 separate oil fields, and account for crude oil produced
from more than 62,000 wells, with a total average monthly production
in excess of 68 million barrels of crude oil, or about 39 percent of the
entire production of crude oil in the United States.
At the beginning of the fiscal year, 17 separate cases were pending
on the dockets of the Board, 4 of which were awaiting disposition in
the Federal District Courts in Texas and Louisiana, 5 were undergoing
further investigation by the Board, 2 were pending review and administrative
disposition by the Board, 1 was pending review by the
Solicitor of the Department of the Interior, and 5 were pending
initiation of prosecution by the Department of Justice. During the
year investigations were formally initiated in 12 new cases, making
a total of 29 cases receiving consideration during the fiscal year.
During the year 12 cases were fully closed and 1 other closed only as
to some phases of the violations, 1 by acquittal, 1 by dismissal, 1 by
grand jury no bill, 2 by administrative action, and the remainder by
successful prosecution, resulting in the imposition and collection of an
aggregate of $33,000 in fines and one 2-year prison sentence. This
compares with 14 cases disposed of the previous year, 10 by successful
prosecution, resulting in imposition and collection of $52,950 in fines.
240 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
At the close of the year 17 cases were pending, 5 in an investigative
status, 3 pending review by the Board, 2 awaiting administrative disposition,
that is, 1 by the Oil and Gas Division, and 1 by the Department
of Justice, 5 pending disposition by United States Attorneys, and
2 pending in the United States District Courts.
The traditional policy of full cooperation with other public authorities
dealing with the same subject matter continued to characterize
the activities of the Board, and resulted in suits for penalties being
filed by local authorities in the States of Mississippi and Texas, with
a fine of $25,000 imposed in one case concluded in Texas.
Thus while instances of violations of the Connally Act are still quite
numerous in the aggregate, the general adherence to its provisions
fostered by the constant vigil of the Board is very satisfactory.
Division of
Land Utilization
Lee Muck, Director
WITH THE ISSUANCE by the Secretary on December
1, 1950, of order No. 2600, the Office of Land Utilization was reorganized
and established as the Division of Land Utilization to provide
“technical staff assistance for the Assistant Secretary for Public Land
Management on land use and community service management and in
the development and coordination of programs in these areas.” This,
therefore, constitutes a final report of progress achieved by the Office
of Land Utilization, as well as a statement of the proposed program
of service which the new Division of Land Utilization intends to provide
for the Assistant Secretary for Public Land Management.
During the nearly 11 years in which the Office of Land Utilization
acted as the pioneer staff agency of the Department in the field of
land management, three generally successful methods of coordination,
founded on cooperation, were evolved, namely: programing,
which included the approval of bureau project plans and the preparation
and justification of integrated budgets and fiscal control; the
review of action documents for the Secretary leading to further
Bureau work or final action by the Secretary; and the dissemination
of timely authoritative information through documents, conferences,
or field inspections to induce as complete as possible discussion of
problems leading to closer cooperation and coordination among the
land managing agencies. Little change is contemplated under item
2 and 3 above, except to expand the field of responsibility from one
of land management alone to include the broader field of community
service management. It is with respect to operational programing
that a major shift in emphasis has been effected.
Specific fields of programing, as supervised by the Office of Land
Utilization during its history, included the Soil and Moisture Conservation
program instituted in 1940; the White Pine Blister Rust
Control program instituted in 1942; the Emergency Fire Control
program instituted in 1942, terminated in 1945, and now in process
of reactivation as the Wildland Fire Planning program; the Civilian
241
242 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Public Service program transferred to the Office of Land Utilization
in 1943 and terminated in 1947; and the Forest Pest Control program
instituted in 1948. These programs had a common foundation,
namely; similar needs for identical project activities on comparable
public lands, which provided the basis for coordinated programing
at the Department level.
Since 1945, a shift in administrative philosophy within the Department
has tended to emphasize the delegation of operating authority
and the coordination of bureau activities through the medium
of long-range planning and more tightly drawn and detailed policies.
Specifically, this shift in emphasis has tended to eliminate the preparation
and justification of integrated budgets and fiscal control at
the Department level. In the case of the Soil and Moisture Conservation
program, these functions have been transferred to the operating
bureaus. In the case of the White Pine Blister Rust Control
and Forest Pest Control programs, fiscal control was shifted to the
Division of Administrative Services. If the Wildland Fire Planning
project is implemented with funds, it appears that it will be
supervised by the Division of Land Utilization in a manner quite
similar to that followed during World War II.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN COORDINATION
The specific accomplishments heretofore made in the formulation
and application of a complete and coordinated program for the
Department in the field of land and resource management follows.
1. The planning of a systematic and orderly program looking toward
the conservation of the soil resources on all the lands under the
jurisdiction of the Department.
2. The development of a more effective forest and range protection
program and the coordination of forest management activities.
3. The establishment of sound land classification activities and the
clarification of land policies.
4. The harmonizing and adjusting of the respective resource management
programs.
5. The development of closer cooperation in dealing with other interests
and other departments and agencies in the conservation field.
SOIL AND MOISTURE CONSERVATION PROGRAM
For generations prior to 1940 large segments of the public and
Indian lands had been deteriorating through neglect and improper
management. At that time, it was estimated that 133,000,000 acres
of the 282,000,000 acres under the jurisdiction of the Department
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 243
were seriously impaired by erosion and in need of soil and moisture
conservation treatment.
The past decade was one of the most critical periods in United
States agricultural history. The American farmer responded to, and
met, the greatest demand for agricultural production ever before
required of him. In this same period, the Soil and Moisture Conservation
program has been a tremendous force in attaining increased
yields on crop and grazing lands. Concurrently, efficient management
of natural resources has been stressed and strengthened to the
point where it dominates the Department’s activities on public and
Indian lands.
It is estimated that some soil conservation practices have been initiated
on about 30,000,000 acres of public and Indian lands. The productive
capacity of the Federal range lands was considered to be not
more than 50 percent effective. On those areas where seeding, water
control and utilization, rodent and weed control, and other soil conservation
practices have been instituted, the productive capacity is
believed to be increased at least 15 percent. On Indian crop lands,
where complete soil and moisture conservation practices are being
applied, crop yields have increased an average of 35 percent.
The productive capacity and effective use of over 25,000,000 acres of
public and Indian lands are very seriously curtailed by weeds and
brush. Recent surveys disclose 4,400,000 acres infested with noxious
and poisonous weeds; 220,000 acres with plants consuming excessive
amounts of water in arid regions; and over 21,000,000 acres of brush.
National needs dictate that some definite and effective means be provided
to make these lands more useful.
WHITE PINE BLISTER RUST CONTROL PROGRAM
There are within the lands administered by the Department approximately
600,000 acres of valuable white pine stands which require
protection from the white pine blister rust—a fungus disease of foreign
origin. This disease is fatal to white pines, including three of the
most valuable timber trees in the United States, namely, the eastern
white pine, the western white pine, and the sugar pine. The purpose
of the white pine blister rust control operations is to protect these
valuable pines by the eradication of Ribes (currant and gooseberry
bushes), the alternate host of the disease.
Progress of the control work on lands under the supervision of the
National Park Service, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Bureau
of Land Mangement since 1942 has been very satisfactory. As of
December 31, 1950, 478,959 acres had received initial eradication, or
79 percent of the total acreage requiring protection.
244 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
FOREST PEST CONTROL PROGRAM
This program authorized by the act of June 25, 1947, provides
for a national drive against all serious epidemics of forest insects and
diseases attacking the valuable forests of the Nation—Federal, State,
and private. After being placed on a fully coordinated basis within
the Department in 1947, it has provided for control work against
many minpr attacks, as well as several major infestations, namely,
mountain pine beetle infestation on lodgepole pine in western Wyoming,
spruce budworm infestation on Douglas fir in Oregon, mistletoe
in Arizona, and western pine beetle in California. Ordinarily, the
damage caused by these pests is less conspicuous than is fire damage,
but the task of providing for the prompt detection and evaluation of
the control problem is much more difficult than with respect to fire.
The degree of protection afforded our forests from insects and diseases
will determine how successful our management may ultimately be.
WATER RESOURCES COORDINATION
In accordance with order No. 2574 of July 17, 1950, which provided
specific supervisory functions for the assistant secretaries, the staff
of the Water Resources Subcommittee, formerly attached to the Office
of Land Utilization, was transferred to the Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Water and Power.
LOOKING FORWARD
The technical staff assistance which order No. 2600 requires to be
provided by the Division of Land Utilization to the Assistant Secretary
for Public Land Management will be furnished through routine
day-to-day operations, regular planning of operational programs, and
long-range program planning.
The routine day-to-day operations of the Division will consist of
the review of action documents, including appeals and periodic reports;
day-to-day dealings with bureaus, including field inspections,
tending toward the improvement of bureau performance; collaboration
with the bureaus in the formulation, revision, and expedition
of regulations and legislation; and the performance of special tasks,
including service on inter and intradepartmental committees and
boards.
Allied to the day-to-day routine are the regular operational planning
activities of the Division, including staff supervision over soil
and moisture, white pine blister rust, and forest pest control operations,
and the review of river basin development programs of agencies
of the Department. These day-to-day tasks mesh into the long-range
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES > 245
planning program which seeks to secure for each resource field the
nature, use, and importance of the resource; its production and depletion
; proportion of resource under Department of Interior responsibility;
the objectives to be sought in its conservation, development
and use; the adequacy of present programs to achieve the objectives
sought; and the relationship of one resource to another.
The ultimate objective is to assist the Assistant Secretary for Public
Land Management to achieve complete coordination and integration
of the land management functions and activities of the Department
of the Interior in accordance with a master plan designed to reach all
categories of public lands with the over-all view of administering and
developing the natural resources under the management of the Department
at the highest possible level of efficiency and economy.
Bureau of
Land Management
Marion Clawson, Director
REALIZING THAT THE LAND and the protection
and development of the land and its resources are a Nation’s primary
line of defense, the Bureau of Land Management during the past year
has geared its activities to a program that will serve not only present
emergency needs but will protect and develop natural resources on
the public lands for continuing strength and solidarity of the West
and the whole country.
Reports from the seven regional offices of this agency, which has
jurisdiction over 500 million acres of public lands in the United States
and Alaska, reveal the importance of these federally administered
acres to national security and prosperity.
Operating on the belief that a Federal program, like a large business
enterprise, should show a net gain, the Bureau of Land Management
balanced its books at the end of fiscal year 1951 and is able
to show the following figures: $8,786,543 in appropriations for management
of land and resources contrasted with an estimated $49,082,-
331 in receipts payable to State and Federal treasuries.
The record thus reveals approximately $6 for every dollar of appropriation.
This does not account for returns in the form of homes
for veterans, and more minerals and timber and forage supplies for
defense.
Although each activity of the Bureau of Land Management is an
integral part of the whole program, the six basic divisional activities
are as follows: cadastral engineering, land classification and planning,
adjudication, range management, forestry, and administration. This
repoit not only provides a brief account of each of these operations,
but it also includes a discussion of some of the legal responsibilities of
the Bureau, which was formed in 1946 by consolidation of the General
Land Office and the Grazing Service.
^ Looking at this year’s record against an historical background of
139 years’ service to the people, it is encouraging to note that the public
lands from which 29 States and a Territory have been carved and
973649—52------ 19
248 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
from which millions of privately owned homesteads have been provided
to veterans and others, still offers present and potential resources
of inestimable value to the Nation. These resources, many of them
renewable if properly administered, are in the form of timber, oil,
forage, coal, uranium, and other strategic materials in demand for
defense and necessary for stabilization of western as well as national
economy.
The activities of the Bureau of Land Management during recent
years have shown, as indicated in the six-to-one return on each dollar
appropriated, the monetary worth of wise management of these resources.
Related benefits in the form of homes and small businesses
have not and cannot be weighed on counting-house scales, but these
benefits are national assets that figure high in preservation of the
democratic concept in this and other countries. People of other nations,
looking to their own lands for recuperative powers, are calling
on Bureau of Land Management specialists for assistance in solving
land problems such as tenure of title, surveying, and maintenance of
land records.
The Bureau of Land Management, even while providing technical
knowledge wherever possible and where funds are provided under the
President’s point 4 program, is, of course, giving priority to its manifold
home activities.
With the closing of this year’s books, the Bureau of Land Management
continues to move efficiently forward on a program which will
protect the land interests of present and future generations of Americans
and to guarantee continuing natural resources from the publicdomain
lands under its jurisdiction.
CADASTRAL SURVEYING ACTIVITIES
Basic to the work of all Bureau of Land Management operations
and that of other Federal agencies, the States and the general public
are cadastral surveys that create, reestablish and identify land
boundaries and subdivide areas into usable economic units. The intermingling
of privately owned lands with the public lands has made
this function one of outstanding importance. The cadastral surveying
program carried on during the year has been geared to meet the
need for resource development created by the national emergency.
Surveys in the Continental United States
Completion of the original surveys in Continental United States
is one of the major projects remaining for the Bureau of Land Management.
The value and need for timber, the potential value of mineral
deposits and the necessity for making surveys to satisfy school
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 249
250 4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
grants to the States as provided by law, constitute the primary need
foi this work. Approximately 100 million acres of public lands remain
to be surveyed in the United States. In addition, due to the
obliteiation of the monuments established in the original surveys,
there is an actual demand for the resurvey of over 50 million acres
located in the Western States. Title to about 50 percent of the area
of the 11 Western States is still in the Government and the resurveys
aie necessary for proper resource development and management.
Only the most urgent projects, basic for the development and management
of resources have been possible with available funds. Projects
of this character initiated and carried on during the fiscal year
included the cadastral survey of lands for the Atomic Energy Commission
in connection with the development of uranium deposits;
identification of lands leased for oil and gas; survey of areas in the
Missouri River Basin and the Big Thompson project for the Bureau
of Reclamation; surveys needed for the administration of the public
lands in connection with range and forest management activities; for
lands classified for administration under the Small Tract Act; for
O & C lands; and other areas not previously surveyed for administrative
purposes and to identify the school sections in order that title
may pass to the States.
In addition to these projects, surveys or resurveys were made for the
Bureau of Indian Affairs on the Navajo Indian Reservation, Ariz.
and N. Mex., and along the Red and Arkansas Rivers in Oklahoma
needed for the exploration of minerals; areas in Nevada to afford
descriptions for stock-watering holes and to identify land for the
construction of water reservoirs; boundaries of the Dugway Proving
Ground in Utah for the Department of the Army; an airport in
northern California for Civil Aeronautics; and islands, omitted lands,
and accretion areas in North Dakota, Alabama, Florida, Louisiana,
Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
Surveys in Alaska
. The cadastral engineering program should be accelerated materially
in Alaska. Lack of surveys is seriously retarding the settlement and
the development of resources in that Territory. The identification of
land areas by cadastral surveys is necessary for the acquisition or use
. e . d’ homesteading, the establishment of townsites, the adjudication
of applications, providing areas for homes under the Small
Iract Act, and the administration of many of the public land laws.
High priority has been given to surveys in the vicinity of Anchorage
o provide small tracts for those engaged in the military development.
During the fiscal year the most urgent Alaskan projects consisted
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 251
of the survey of 15,620 acres and the resurvey of 15,280 acres located
in the vicinity of Anchorage and Haines, for settlement purposes.
This area was further subdivided into 1,072 5-acre tracts and 528
2%-acre tracts. Sixty miles of the center line of highways were
traversed; 612 townsite lots located in the Anchorage, Kenai, Ninilchik,
and Aniak areas; 389 homesites in National Forests in southeastern
Alaska; and 34 individual tracts scattered through the Territory
were surveyed.
LAND CLASSIFICATION AND PLANNING
In the domestic field, land classification objectives of the Bureau
of Land Management are to determine the highest and best uses of
the Bureau’s lands and the land-tenure arrangements that will promote
such uses. Its planning efforts are devoted to the development
of a well-integrated program wherein all tenure, protection, rehabilitation,
development, and use activities are properly and effectively
balanced and implemented. In the international field, the Bureau
is seeking to make available to the underdeveloped nations of the
world the know-how of modern public-land management and the principles
of resource utilization.
Land-Use and Tenure Activities
During the year, the Bureau took significant steps to maximize the
effectiveness of its available facilities. Primary responsibility for the
examination of the Bureau’s lands and for the initial determination
of their highest and best use was decentralized to the area managers.
In addition, the Bureau during the year developed further its policy
of making small-area studies and classifications. The small-area technique
was used throughout the West and included studies of Fish Lake
Valley (Calif, and Nev.), Raft River area (Idaho), Inyokern Naval
Station area (California), Dove Creek (Utah), and several basins in
Arizona. Many other studies have been projected, such as Rogue
River Basin (Oreg.), Hells Canyon Dam area (Idaho), and the Lower
Colorado area (Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah), but sufficient
staff is not yet on hand to undertake them. The studies which have
been completed have helped to solve difficult land-use problems. However,
the urgency of demands on the Bureau forced the staff during the
year to concentrate largely on examination of individual tracts.
Experience with the Missouri River Basin investigations continues
to show the great advantages of full-scale basin studies. Without such
studies, the classification operations of the Bureau are largely controlled
by the nature and location of applications for resources. Considerable
attention has to be devoted to problem areas which suddenly
252 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
become critical in various parts of the West, calling for disproportionate
exenditures of time and effort. In the Missouri Basin region,
the basin studies have enabled the BLM to undertake a directed positive
program of land-use adjustment and of other land-use programs
also. Among the beneficiaries of the Bureau’s adjustment activities
in that Basin are the Theodore Roosevelt National Memorial Park,
Custer State Park, Casper Alcova irrigation project, the Nebraska
and other national forests, various State wildlife projects, and many
private individuals. During the year the Bureau classified 1.8 million
acres of public lands in the Missouri River Basin. Classification
of these public lands involved also the study of intermingled nonpublic
lands totaling more than 1% million acres. Towards the end
of the year, the Bureau initiated field studies in connection with the
comprehensive program for the Arkansas-White-Red River basins.
These studies, when completed, will permit the Bureau of Land Management
to inaugurate a positive program for its holdings in those
basins.
In Alaska, classification activities of the Bureau were concentrated
largely upon supplying lands to satisfy the manifold demands engendered
by the defense program. Large areas were transferred to
the military and naval authorities for defense installations. Before
completing such transfers, every effort is made by the Bureau to reduce
the conflicts between military and civilian needs through negotiations
with military personnel and other interested parties. During
the year a large number of sites were also made available for individual
residences, airports, housing projects, businesses, industries,
and recreation. Homesteaders and others were given assistance to
facilitate their settlement on the land. Shore space reserves, forest
eliminations and other withdrawals were studied to make additional
lands available for use and development. Potential grazing areas
were examined and opened to lease. Presettlement studies were completed
for the Kenai-Kasilof settlement area and forwarded to the
Interagency Committee on Group Settlement in Alaska.
Other developments during the year included some progress in the
Bureau’s plans for a review of existing withdrawals and reservations.
With financial help from four Interior agencies (Alaska Railroad,
Alaska Roads Commission, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Fish
and Wildlife Service), the Bureau of Land Management undertook
an inventory of all withdrawals and reservations in Alaska. At the
end of the year the inventory was close to completion. Plans are
being made to have the results studied looking to the opening to other
uses of areas which no longer should be withdrawn. In the States,
the Bureau is expediting the review of selected withdrawn areas on
its own motion and in cooperation with other interested agencies.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES > 253
Ever-widening interest in lands for recreation has increased the
Bureau’s cooperative activities with the various recreational agencies,
Federal, State, and local.
Program Plans
An outstanding development in planning during the year was the
report of the President’s Water Resources Policy Commission. Of
particular interest to the Bureau was the Commission’s findings as
to the basic unity of land and water resource programs. This principle
has been a primary concept of the Bureau’s program planning
and has been a major influence in BLM’s active participation in interagency
program committees. With jurisdiction over 25 percent of
the land area of the Far West, the Bureau has an important responsibility
to develop internally consistent programs integrated with those
of other land and water interests in the West.
The Bureau’s program plans are initiated at the area level, under
the guidance of the regional and Washington offices which provide
internal coordination. Interagency coordination is developed
through the various interagency groups and through bilateral and
multilateral direct contacts. Under these procedures a large body
of area working plans have been constructed and a measure of interagency
coordination has been achieved. Far more, however, has yet
to be done.
Interagency committees have been making ever-increasing demands
on the time of the small planning staff of the Bureau. The Bureau
has submitted to various committees, such as the Columbia Basin Interagency
Committee, the Alaska Field Committee, and the Colorado-
Great Basin Field Committee, its 6-year programs in their areas of
interest. Since land-management activities are generally far less advanced
than water-development activities, these reports serve to point
up the weak spots in the Government’s resource-development programs,
as well as their current status. In addition to these Committee
reportings, BLM is called upon for special reports from time to
time on land-management problems. All this activity has emphasized
the need for a comprehensive Federal resource program based
on adequate basic data and effectively coordinated throughout all its
parts.
International Activities
The world situation of rapidly growing interrelationships in economic
interests and the resultant desires for the exchange of technically
trained personnel has drawn heavily upon the resources of the
Bureau. Bureau personnel have participated in international pro254
+ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
grams and conferences in Pakistan, New Zealand, Germany, and most
Latin American countries. Requests are accumulating from numerous
countries for assignments of technicians on extended bases up to
2 years. About 70 technicians are being processed for these foreign
sei vices. Concurrently with the above, plans are being formulated
and programs are being established to train qualified persons from
other countries in the United States for the periods up to 1 year,
including training on the job, institutional training, and supervised
individual study and research.
ADJUDICATION ACTIVITIES
An increasing efficiency and closer cooperation between the field
offices and Washington on the day-to-day adjudication operations has
led to a speedier and more effective processing of the ever greater
numbers of applications for military and civilian activities.
Food From Federal Lands
Increased food production for defense and for the bolstering of
America s expanded needs both here and abroad has been helped by
the issuance of permits for clam digging and canning operations in
the Katmai National Monument, Alaska, and the many sales of isolated
tracts in continental United States facilitating their maximum
production and usefulness as additions to food-producing farms.
Exchanges under the Taylor Grazing Act have consolidated Federal
patterns by aiding conservation and rounding out the land holdings of
large cattle producers—adding to the Nation’s supply of beef for food,
hides for military and civilian equipment, medical supplies, and other
allied products.
Airports and Other Special Uses
Coordination between this Bureau and the Civil Aeronautics Administration
has augmented the establishment on the public domain of
the many airports set up during the year in the United States and
Alaska under the I federal Airport Act. A valuable contribution to
the defense of Alaska and the North American continent from attacks
over the rooftop of the world was the opening of airports in Alaska
at Dillingham, Ninilchik, Kotzebue, and Fort Yukon during the
summer of 1950.
Such airports have aided materially in solving some of Alaska’s
transportation problems. They have also helped to promote the
growth of this area by creating closer contact between the outlyingareas
and the centers of population in Alaska and elsewhere,
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 255
Large tracts of lands for defense have been withdrawn for the use
of the Army, Navy, and Air Force for training camps, bombing and
target ranges, and other military installations both here and in
Alaska.
Granting of right-of-way for highways and telephone and telegraph
lines, and advance approval to begin their construction have substantially
added to the communications network across the country. The
growth of a better understanding between Bureau officials and State
highway officials has paved the way for improved administration of
the Federal Highway Act. This act has contributed to a greatly extended
highway system throughout the United States.
Patenting of the school sections during this past year has aided in
the field of education by making available to the States additional
revenues for building schools and extending and improving their
educational systems. These revenues have been derived from the leasing
of the surface of the school sections for grazing and other purposes,
and the leasing of subsurface minerals.
Expediting of Oil and Mineral Leases and Patents
The greater emphasis on the use of machinery in the civilian economy
as well as the mechanization of the Armed Forces has caused an
unprecedented growth in the demand for oil and gas. The intensified
exploration for these resources has increased the interest in the oil and
gas content of privately owned and public domain lands.
During the year patents on land claims in Mississippi and Louisiana
were issued to perfect titles to privately owned lands, where the link in
the chain of title from the Federal government to the first private
owner was missing. This has given the oil companies the opportunity
to extend their exploration for oil and gas in these areas. The unusual
rush for oil and gas leases on the public domain has resulted in the
issuance of more than 2,500 oil and gas leases covering over 1,500,000
acres in Nevada and Utah, 49 oil and gas leases for lands in Alaska,
and thousands of leases in other areas.
On October 13, 1950, the suspension was removed on oil and gas
leases for acquired lands subject to the act of August 7, 1947. The
removal of this suspension will bring additional revenue, through
rentals—to the Federal Government, the States and the counties in
which the lands are located—and will promote further exploration
and development of this resource. Already more than 200 acquired
lands oil and gas leases have been issued since October 13.
The act of September 6, 1950, authorized the Secretary of Agriculture
to sell to surface owners the mineral interest in certain lands
acquired by the United States and later resold with all or part of
256 > ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
the minerals reserved to the United States. Action on all pending
oil- and gas-lease applications was suspended to protect the interest
of the surface owners and the Government, and to provide an opportunity
to classify the lands and to develop proper operating procedures
for disposal of these mineral resources.
Competitive bidding on oil and gas leases under the Mineral Leasing
Act of 1920 involved a number of producing fields in California,
Colorado, and other States, embracing more than 3,500 acres, from
which cash bonuses were received totaling over $107,600.
Since July 1, 1950, additional action has been taken in connection
with the coal lands in Oklahoma purchased from the Choctaw and
Chickasaw Nations of Indians, resulting in the leasing of approximately
7,600 acres. Other action relating to coal deposits was the
revision of the coal regulations, bringing about a more expeditious
processing of leases thereunder, and a better conservation of both
surface and coal resources. Coal-prospecting permits have also been
issued since July 1,1950, embracing over 22,000 acres. Such an aid to
the exploration for coal deposits helps to build America’s stockpile
of this natural resource.
Considerable activity in other leaseable minerals has made available
over 118,700 acres of land from which income was derived of
about $89,000 for leases and permits for phosphate, bentonite, sodium,
and potassium.
On December 11, 1950, the Supreme Court entered decrees favorable
to the United States in the Gulf of Mexico submerged lands cases.
Authorization was granted for the continuation of the operations
being conducted in the Gulf of Mexico adjacent to the Texas and
Louisiana coasts by the holders of State leases. This authorization
also provided for the payment of rentals and royalties on the
oil and gas extracted from the submerged lands, and other payments.
These moneys are being deposited in a special account in the Treasury
of the United States, pending further action as may hereafter be
directed by Congress. The collections on these Louisiana and Texas
submerged land operations, as well as those from the California submerged
land area, amounted to more than $8,000,000.
Better “Across the Counter" Service
The frequent meetings and discussions between Washington and
field personnel have produced a much better understanding of the
problems involved in adjudication, and have created more consistency
of action and speedier processing of applications for the defense requirements
and the needs of the civilian population.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 257
UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
ORGANIZED MANAGEMENT AREAS
IMPACT OF NATIONAL DEFENSE ON GRAZING RESOURCES
The importance of the public lands to the range livestock industry
of the West is indicated by the fact that about 99 percent of the 186
million acres of public lands in continental United States, administered
by the Bureau of Land Management, are situated in the 11
Western States. These lands supply approximately 16 million AUMs
(or animal unit months,” which is feed for one cow, one horse, or
five sheep for 1 month) of forage, annually, which amounts to onethird
of the annual requirement of the range livestock, an essential
link in such livestock operations.
258 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The continuing of the range livestock industry on a sound and
stable basis is contingent, therefore, on the wise management of the
public lands and their resources with the view of bringing these
ranges up to their maximum potential production. It is most essential
also that other uses of the public lands, such as the harvesting
of timber, minerals, and other resources, be carefully and fully integrated
with the adminstration of grazing.
Range Conditions
Forage production on the ranges for fiscal 1951 varied from a crop
of abundance in some areas to almost complete failure in others.
Climatic factors on the ranges of Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Oregon,
northeast California and northern Nevada were very favorable, and
forage conditions were generally above average in fall, winter, and
late spring months. Most of these ranges were very dry during
April, but May rains relieved this condition and resulted in a fine
forage growth in May and June. Forage conditions in northern
Nevada were particularly favorable as a result of a near record-high
rainfall. I orage growth in northern Utah and northwest Colorado
was about average. The winter throughout these northern regions
was relatively mild and livestock came through in better than average
conditions.
In sharp contrast to these favorable conditions was the critical
drouth situation on the ranges of the Southwest. This was a continuation
of similar adverse conditions which prevailed in 1950 in the
south half of Nevada and California, southwest Colorado, and most
of Arizona and New Mexico. Forage conditions on the Federal range
were far below normal. In House Rock Valley, northern Arizona,
for example, stockmen were forced to remove nearly all of their cattle
from the range. Equally grave conditions confronted the stockmen
in northwest New Mexico and other areas. Storms starting in early
March and extending into late May were sufficient in some areas to
start a good growth of grasses and weeds.
Grazing Administration
Shortage of manpower on grazing work continued as a serious handicap
this fiscal year. The forces available, amounting to about 70
percent of the minimum staff proposed in the Nicholson report, were
entirely inadequate to carry out the program to the desired degree and
in an acceptable manner. This is reflected in the inadequacy of accomplishments
in enforcement and supervision of range uses, range utilization
studies, dependent property surveys, range inventories, the
development of badly needed management plans, etc. Based on the
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 259
nearly unanimous recommendation of the Advisory Boards the grazing
fees were increased from 6 cents to 10 cents an AUM, effective
May 1, 1951.
The organization meeting of ranchers who will apply for grazing
privileges in the new district in Nevada was held at Tonopah on May
10. An advisory board of 12 members was elected to represent the
livestock interests and advise the Bureau in the management of this
district. Present plans call for the development of data on the
Federal range and ranch properties which have been used in connection
with it so that term permits can be issued to the majority of applicants
when this district goes into active operation early in 1952.
The plan for a represenative of the Director’s office to make an
investigation of grazing administration in all districts in at least one
region, annually, was continued with an inspection being made of
grazing districts in Colorado and Utah. A proposal for the regional
offices to conduct similar examinations in at least three districts,
annually, also went into operation this year. In Region V, Arizona-
New Mexico, inspections were made of 8 of the 10 grazing districts.
The purpose of these inspections is to improve and unify administrative
practices.
During 1951, authorizations were issued to 19,876 permittees and
licensees, to graze 8,254,990 head of livestock on the public lands in
grazing districts, including 2,218,638 cattle, 73,961 horses, 5,942,481
sheep, and 19,910 goats. Of the above authorizations, 10,277 of the
operators are holders of 10-year grazing permits. This represents an
increase of 124 term permits reported in 1950. This is brought about
by the expiration of the permits issued in 1941. The issuance of new
permits or the renewal of expired permits is contingent upon a close
check of the supporting base properties, correlation of the grazingprivileges
with the carrying capacity of the Fecleral range, and equitable
distribution between the qualified applicants.
As of June 30, 1951, 14,063,905 acres of the vacant public lands
outside of grazing districts were covered in grazing leases issued
to 11,268 stockmen. This represents an increase of acres leased
during this fiscal year over the total area under lease at the
beginning of the year. There are 14 million acres available for lease.
Cooperative Relationships
There is a growing evidence of benefits to the administration of
public lands and the management of extensive acreages of interspersed
private- and State-owned land through cooperative arrangements between
the Bureau and other agencies, private and public. Of particular
concern at this time is the expanding requirement for Federal
rangeland for bombing and other military and defense activities. In
260 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
the neighborhood of 11 million acres are now embraced in these military
withdrawals and requests for additional areas continue. Some
of the existing and pending withdrawals are in desert areas which
have but slight grazing value at best, but others contain land of fairly
high grazing capacity. By agreement, grazing uses of some of the
latter are allowed to continue with minor adjustments, and there are
others in which grazing must be excluded. The location and boundaries
of these withdrawals and the continued use and management
of them are matters for negotiation between representatives of the
Bureau and military agencies.
Wildlife Management
The rapid recovery in wildlife numbers from the severe losses during
the heavy winter of 1948-49 continued this year. These increases
tended to aggravate the already knotty problems in the management
of a number of winter game ranges, including concentrations in the
Red Rock-Granite Peak area in Nevada, the Deer Flats area in Utah,
and the Gunnison area in Colorado. There are a number of areas
in Wyoming where the antelope herds are getting out of hand. Highly
successful predator campaigns are responsible in large measure for
the rapid increase in big game. Special hunts in one form or another
designed to alleviate this problem are being set by the game departments
of the various States. Also of assistance are the roads constructed
into areas hitherto inaccessible to hunters, and reseeding of
depleted ranges. There is a strong spirit of cooperation in all of these
activities between the Bureau, State game departments, and sportsmen’s
organizations.
Soil and Moisture Conservation
The reports of the President’s Water Resources Policy Commission
have emphasized the importance of water conservation and control in
the Western States where water is a limiting factor in economic development.
The public lands under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of
Land Management form important segments of the major river basins
in this region. Recognizing its responsibility for proper use of these
lands, the Bureau has directed its soil and moisture conservation operations
toward a program of watershed treatment.
Although some progress has been made in developing and applying
measures for the conservation and improvement of the public lands
under the jurisdiction of the Bureau, when compared with the total
job the program is little more than started.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 261
Range Improvement
The emphasis on range improvements has been directed to those
types of projects such as water developments and fencing, which facilitate
proper distribution of livestock. Much of the responsibility for
an active maintenance program has been assumed by the range users
who keep in repair and operate many of the Government-owned improvements
in accordance with cooperative maintenance agreements.
Halogeton Control
Halogeton glomeratus, an introduced poisonous plant, is rapidly
spreading on western rangelands and is becoming a dangerous threat
to the range livestock industry. It is estimated that approximately
640,000 acres of the public lands administered by the Bureau are infested
with this weed. If funds are made available to the Bureau, a
comprehensive program of control will be initiated in cooperation
with other Federal and State agencies and with private individuals
and corporations.
Range Revegetation
Range reseeding continued to play an important role in the rehabilitation
of depleted rangelands, and those areas infested with undesirable
plants. During the fiscal year, about 60,000 acres of depleted and
invested rangelands were reseeded to hardy drought-resistant grasses,
an increase of 30 percent over accomplishments in 1950.
ACCELERATED FORESTRY PROGRAM
A greatly accelerated demand for sawtimber and other forest products
has developed, exceeding that of World War II and the postwar
period.
Permanent lumber and other forest-using industries are wholly dependent
in some localities and partially in others on the forest products
harvested from these public lands.
Role of Forestry Staff
The functions of the forestry staff include: (1) Protection of forest
and range resources against destruction by fire, insects, and disease;
(2) marketing 500 million board feet of mature timber annually
from the O & C Lands, and 100 million board feet annually from other
public lands; and (3) the development of better timber stands for
maximum productivity.
262 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Operational problems include intensification of fire prevention and
suppression, and disease and insect control; collection of basic data
regarding mature timber and growing stocks of younger timber on
the O & C lands and the public domain; preparation of management
plans for timber and woodland areas within and outside grazing distorts;
marketing programs; wood-waste utilization studies; improvement
of growing stock and reforesting of denuded lands; construction
of access roads to reach inaccessible mature and overmature timber ;
and development of complementary resource values such as recreation,
wildlife, soils, and watersheds.
Protection of Forest Resources
Successful management of this Bureau’s natural resources is dependent
upon its ability to protect these resources.
Fire control. Development of a fire-control organization that can
adequately protect 390 million acres of public domain requiring continued
protection on a peacetime basis was given high priority. Obsolete
communication and suppression equipment is being replaced
with modem mechanized units, as rapidly as funds will permit. A
radiotelephone employing very high-frequency-radio is used with
satisfactory results in one district and plans for the use of VHF radio
aie undei development in all the regions. High-pressure pumpers
mounted on four-wheel drive trucks for fire suppression have been
purchased in several grazing districts. These units have proven highly
satisfactory in the reduction of areas burned and the number of fire
fighters required on individual fires. The latter is of special importance
during the present manpower shortage. In addition the Bureau
has developed operational wildland fire-control plans for Civil Defense,
as a part of the integrated Nation-wide planning of all agencies,
Federal, State, county, and private.
This Bureau has the larger of the two fire organizations in Alaska
and was therefore charged with the responsibility for coordinating
all Civil Defense wildland fire plans for Alaska. Estimates and
plans were entirely geared to meet the defense schedule and plans of
the Alaska Command. These plans call for intensification in all
operational phases of fire control—including personnel, equipment,
supplies, and operating funds.
In the States of California, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, Washington,
Arkansas, and Minnesota, 5,804,000 acres of timberlands located in
areas too far from our grazing district fire control units to permit
economical fire control by the Bureau directly are protected under
contract by the States, State protective associations and the Forest
Service. This area includes 2,148,000 acres of O & C lands in Western
Oregon, bearing high value stands of Douglas-fir timber.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 263
Disease control.—The control of forest tree diseases, which is at all
times essential to sound forest management and the production of
high quality timber, is even more critical under the burden of the
national emergency.
White pine blister rust, a disease common to the 5-needle pines,
requires two host plants, white pine (sugar pine, eastern and western
white pines), and plants of the genus Ribes (currants and gooseberries).
It can be controlled by destruction of the Ribes hosts. A
Ribes eradication project was started in 1942 in 150,000 acres of commercial
sugar pine timber on the O & C lands in western Oregon.
During the 1950 calendar year, 3,159 acres of O & C lands and national
forest lands were treated with initial eradication and 226 acres
with reeradication.
Insect control.—Protection from insect damage is also of paramount
importance to the defense effort. Despite all efforts, insect pests take
a heavy toll of timber stands each year. An infestation of spruce
bud worm in western Oregon and Washington built up to epidemic
proportions in 1949 and threatened wholesale destruction to 2,267,000
acres of Douglas-fir forests. The control program of 1951, following
those of 1950 and 1949, will have covered nearly all the critically
infested areas. Lack of sufficient funds may prevent completion
of the treatment on BLM lands in 1951. The 1951 program includes
treatment of approximately 6,000 acres of public domain adjacent
to and intermingled with lands of other agencies in the Blue Mountains
of Oregon and 600 acres in the Blue Mountains of Washington.
Results of treatment, which consists of spraying the infested area
with DDT from airplanes, have been highly effective.
Getting the Facts
Lack of specific knowledge about the forests and woodland resources
of the public domain continues to be the most fundamental
problem confronting the foresters of the Bureau. Basic data are
needed concerning the location and extent of the lands; the character,
quality and volume of timber present; the silvicultural requirements
of the forest; and economic, geographic, and other information about
communities and industries partially or wholly dependent upon the
timber resources.
As a result of the completion of more intensive and accurate inventories
reflecting higher utilization on several O & C administrative
units, it is being found possible to increase greatly the sustained-yield
allowable cut for these units. If inventories for other units show
the same trend, it is estimated that the annual sustained-yield cut
may be raised from the present 650 million to a volume of 800 million
board feet upon the completion of the inventory project.
973649—52-------20
264 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau forestry personnel in region I worked with the Roseburg,
Oregon Chamber of Commerce and the Oregon Forest Products
Laboratory in making and publishing the results of an economic
survey of the Inland Umpqua Basin in southern Oregon.
In California, type mapping of all public domain in the north coast
counties was completed during fiscal year 1951 in preparation for
planning for more intensive management of the timber resources
situated there.
During fiscal year 1951 a preliminary forest and woodland inventory
was completed in New Mexico and Arizona. All available data pertinent
to these resources were compiled by township tabulations and on
individual management area maps. A status check was made of the
land within these two categories.
In Alaska basic data concerning forest resources are needed so that
the Bureau can furnish facts for the information of investors who wish
to consider establishing forest products industries in the Territory. An
inventory of white spruce stands is needed to indicate new areas of
supply for local mills now cutting out their present stands. During
1951 the Bureau is endeavoring to contract aerial photographic coverage
of certain key areas.
Management Plans
During the fiscal year 1951 the first comprehensive forest development
plan was prepared covering a portion of the Mohawk River
administrative unit.
In Colorado and Utah a program of preparing woodland management
plans for each grazing district was continued during fiscal year
1951. The plans are simple and based on the limited basic data available
to the regional forester and range managers. Provision is made to
adjust these plans as additional data become available. Most of the
grazing districts now have these plans which are an important step
toward providing the intermountain country with an assured supply
of woodland resources, particularly fence posts and other round wood
products used for ranch structures. Since most of the woodlands are
also grazing lands, the woodland management program serves dual
purposes and produces dual incomes.
Similar management plans for other regions are in preparation.
Marketing
The revenues derived from the sale of forest products from the public
domain, mainly the O & C and CBWR lands, have increased from
$4.4 million in fiscal year 1950 to $7.8 million in fiscal year 1951. This
represents the sales of 495 million board feet in 1950 and 494 milANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 265
lion in 1951. There has been an upward trend in stumpage prices
during this period which, in part, explains the increase in gross receipts.
An improved timber sales procedure introduced January 1, 1950,
has been continued during calendar year 1951 on the O & C lands with
excellent results, enabling the same staff of foresters to place on the
market an appreciably larger volume of timber.
Briefly the procedure is this: A sales program tailored to fit sustained-
yield plans is developed a year in advance in consultation with
advisory boards. The advantage of this procedure to the industry is
that it gives interested operators ample time to investigate tracts of
timber to be marketed. It also aids the forestry staff in avoiding timeconsuming
work on indiscriminate applications unrelated to a unit
plan for timber sales.
For the fiscal year 1951 the advance timber sale program resulted in
the sale of 395 million board feet. The average selling price for all
species was $21.65 per thousand board feet, an increase of 78 percent
over fiscal year 1950. Receipts from O & C and CBWR lands,
principally from timber sales, aggregated $6,717,445 in fiscal year
1951.
Forest Development
Improvement of growing stock with the ultimate objective of an
expanded timber yield is one of the two most important aspects of forest
development work. It is being accomplished by the following program
: (1) Timber sales operations are concentrated in stands of overripe
timber until such stands are replaced by vigorous young growth;
(2) all timber sales contracts require practices of proven success in
obtaining prompt reforestation of all openings created by timber
removal; and (3) all denuded areas on which reforestation by natural
processes appears unlikely or liable to be too long deferred, are to be
replanted.
Fiscal year 1951 marked the first time that funds were specifically
appropriated for reforesting BLM lands. In region I a particularly
favorable agreement was reached with the State of Oregon for aerial
forest seeding. Under this agreement the State provided BLM with
supervisory personnel without cost. The Bureau had the additional
advantage of the same low contract prices for seeding and rodent
poisoning as the State. This resulted in considerable saving to the
Federal Government because of the low-cost contracts the State has
developed through its large annual seeding program. Also, under
the terms of an agreement with the United States Forest Service, this
agency supplies the Bureau with planting stock and certain reforestation
services, at cost.
266 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
In the 1945 Polk County burn area located in the Salem forest district,
1,584 acres of O & C lands were baited and seeded by helicopter.
Several different sites and conditions were included in the area seeded.
These will serve as experimental sites and will be checked annually
as guides for future aerial seeding. An additional 500 acres were
reforested with young seedlings in the Coos Bay forest district. •
In view of the fact that in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho alone,
some 150,000 acres of BLM lands require artificial reforestation, it is
apparent that the surface has merely been scratched. There is an
urgent need for a restocking program that will bring the nonproducing
lands back into production. Aerial reseeding is a costly operation
and hand planting of seedlings even more so, but the long-run cost
of permitting potentially productive land to lie idle is even greater.
The second aspect of forest development is the construction of necessary
improvements. Access roads, because of their special significance,
are discussed separately. There is critical need also for the construction
of headquarters buildings, warehouses, and transportation and
communications facilities in Alaska.
Access Roads
The projected access road program of the Bureau of Land Management
in western Oregon is the key to making the full amount of the
sustained-yield of timber from the O & C lands accessible. There is
an estimated 8 billion board feet of inaccessible over-mature O & C
timber that could be sold and cut if necessary access roads were built.
The estimated cost of the principal arteries needed to tap this timber
approximates 11 million dollars, all of which will be recovered in
revenues from the timber hauled out over such roads.
Multipie Use of Forest Lands
Even though the primary functions of the forestry staff involve the
managing and marketing of the timber resource, attention is also being
given to other resource values in the forest. The Bureau is proceeding
as far and as fast as possible to develop and utilize such complementary
resources as scenery, recreation possibilities and wildlife. All resources
of the public lands are being managed with the objective of
maintaining maximum uniform flow of water-yielding areas, and of
protecting all sites against excessive runoff, with its attendant problems
of aggravated erosion and siltation.
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPROVEMENTS
The defense emergency has placed a heavy burden on the administrative
machinery of the Bureau in many ways. Some of the key
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 267
personnel have been assisting in many defense activities such as salvage
drives, bond sales, and in aiding newly created agencies in getting
organized. The effect of the emergency has hit the Bureau hardest
in its attempt to recruit personnel to fill vacancies, particularly in the
lower levels, and in its attempt to obtain necessary supplies and equipment.
In spite of its additional burden the Bureau has made substantial
improvements in the administrative field.
Fiscal Procedures
Outstanding improvements have been made in the fiscal field. The
billing and collecting of approximately 80,000 accounts was decentralized
from the Washington office to the regional offices, and recently to
the district offices. Since this change these accounts have increased to
120,000, or 50 percent, as a result of additional oil and gas and other
leases.
In decentralizing the accounting work, many procedures were
greatly simplified and a number of modern accounting practices not
generally used before by the Government were adopted. These
included the elimination of individual ledger accounts, which formerly
made necessary the maintaining of several thousand individual sheets
in the various offices.
Another substantial improvement was the development of the
voucher and schedule of payments, which permitted the listing and
certification of 10 vouchers on 1 page, as compared to the former
method* of preparing individual vouchers for each item.
Perhaps an even more important improvement was the complete
elimination of vouchers on items bought by the Bureau and in lieu
thereof the acceptance of certified invoices from the vendors. The
Bureau pioneered in this change of procedure, which has since been
extended to other Government agencies.
Another important improvement pioneered by the Bureau was the
arrangement made with the General Accounting Office to perform site
audits at the operating level. As part of this procedure, the Bureau
made arrangements by which the former practice of sending to the
General Accounting Office in Washington original copies of contracts,
leases, and other accounting documents was discontinued. This has
saved the Bureau substantial man-hours by eliminating the work
necessary in the former procedure.
These improvements and simplification in performing the accounting
job of the Bureau have permitted it, in spite of its limited staff, to
accomplish many important tasks not heretofore possible, the most
outstanding being, perhaps, the maintenance of the accounts on a
current basis. This has been the goal of the Bureau for many years.
268 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The Bureau has also been able to prepare accounting manuals for the
use of field personnel, and institute many other training techniques in
the accounting field.
The Bureau was instrumental in having the budget preparation
work greatly simplified—primarily by reducing requests for material
from the regions to once a year. The budget presentation has been
improved by reducing it more than 50 percent in volume, at the same
time highlighting the important parts of the Bureau’s program.
These improvements would not have been possible without the active
support of the Secretary’s Office and the excellent cooperation of the
Accounting Systems Division of the General Accounting Office. Even
though tremendous strides have been made in fiscal procedures, the
Bureau is progressively continuing its efforts in this field. In the
immediate future it is planned to eliminate the records of individual
cash receipts by providing an additional copy of the original receipt.
When this is approved, it is believed this will be the first time this
procedure has been adopted to Government accounting operations.
The Records Program
The defense emergency situation has emphasized the problem of
preserving as well as modernizing the Bureau’s public land records
system. In many cases, the records in Washington are the only existing
ones and their destruction would bring chaos to the entire public
land records system. The Federal Records Act of 1950 directed the
Secretary of the Interior to establish and maintain an active, continuing
program for the economic and efficient management of the records.
In accordance with this act, and because of the importance of
the Bureau’s records, a Branch of Records Management was established
in the Division of Administration in April. This Branch thus
brings together for the first time all the record-keeping functions of
the Bureau under one centralized management.
Revision and modernization of the land records system is one of the
most important needs of the Bureau if it is to perform its management
functions efficiently. The present land records system had its
beginning in the late lTOO’s, and was primarily devised to provide
only for a disposal program. Within the past 40 years, and with the
great concentration within the last 10 years, the emphasis has shifted
from disposal to management. As management operations are dependent
on the land records system organized primarily for a disposal
program, the Bureau’s operations are often greatly handicapped and
delayed. The huge volume of these records is, in itself, a handicap, as
well as their age, as in many cases valuable records have almost completely
deteriorated. Immediate steps must be taken if the records
are to be preserved. They are being used constantly by the general
public, State, county, and other Federal agencies.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 269
Supplies-Equipment
In accordance with the President’s directive, the Bureau is analyzing
thoroughly all requisitions submitted by operating officials in
order to conserve critical materials needed in the defense program.
Inventories of office furniture, furnishings, and equipment have been
strictly limited to minimum requirements. Property formerly discarded
has been salvaged and repaired, permitting the return of excess
property to the General Services Administration amounting to several
thousand dollars. The purchase of heavy equipment has been greatly
facilitated by the development of procedures permitting the regional
offices to handle their own bids as far as possible. Procedures were
developed whereby supplies and equipment are ordered and delivered
on a monthly basis, which has eliminated considerable paper work by
reducing the orders, thus permitting more efficient processing and
more prompt delivery on the part of the General Services Administration.
Standardization of property procedures has been undertaken
in all the regions.
Management Improvement
In accordance with Title 10 of Public Law 429, Eighty-first Congress
and Executive Order 10072, the Bureau has initiated an aggressive
management improvement program. This provides for a Bureauwide
survey of each of the functions every 3 years. It also requires
annual administrative and technical reviews for each operating division
at the regional level. The program also requires a semiannual
report from the regions as to the identification and solution of management
problems. In addition, the monthly reports from the regions
contain a section devoted to management improvement in order that
this matter may be constantly kept before all operating personnel.
The survey of the adjudicating function was begun this year and will
be completed shortly. The management improvement report from the
regions for the 6 months’ period ended December 31, 1950, indicated
substantial improvement in nearly all phases of the Bureau’s operations.
A report on this period listing the specific improvements was
submitted to the Office of the Secretary under date of May 28.
Some of the major improvements under this program were made
in the modernization of the regulations and procedures, particularly
with respect to oil and gas leasing, small tract leasing and section 15
grazing leases. The new procedures and methods have reduced substantially
the time formerly taken to handle these three types of
applications, which comprise approximately 60 percent of the Bureau’s
work load in the adjudication field. Reports from all land offices
covering a period of 4 months show that in some offices the new oil
270 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
and gas leases are being issued 5 days after being filed by the applicant,
as compared to periods varying in the past from 3 months to 2
years. As a part of this program a work measurement study has been
conducted of all land offices. As soon as a thorough analysis has been
completed, the result of this study will be published. However,
sufficient information is now available to indicate that the Bureau will
soon be in a position to estimate with a minimum of error the number
of man-hours required by the various types of personnel to process
the different categories of applications which are received in the land
offices.
An intensive forms control program requiring critical analysis and
review of all forms requested, including reprints, as well as analysis
of the procedures and regulations prescribing their use has been found
to be one of the most effective management tools in improving the
Bureau’s operations. Many of our most important changes have
stemmed from this program.
Incentive Awards
In accordance with a Secretarial order, all of the incentive awards
activities were centralized in one committee, combining the honor
awards, suggestions awards, and cash awards and salary increases for
inventions, superior accomplishments and savings. This action, along
with the delegation to the Bureau from the Secretary’s Office to take
final action on a large percentage of recommendations expedited this
work and made the program much more effective in emphasizing its
importance in the over-all management improvement program.
During the year the committee considered 123 suggestions, 15 recommendations
for salary increase, awards for superior accomplishments
and 28 recommendations for service honor awards. The committee
approved suggestions awards in 20 cases out of 70 on which final report
was made. Eight salary increases for superior accomplishment were
approved, averaging $138 per employee. Fourteen meritorious service
awards were approved and 12 commendable service awards.
Personnel Management
The Bureau made important strides in its personnel management
program, particularly in the field of employee-employer relations
and in orientation and training. The decentralization of authority to
the regions to hire employees in grades up to and including GS-7 has
assisted the regions greatly in their recruitment program. Substantial
progress was made in the reclassification of positions and
bringing them into line with the organizational studies which have
been conducted. A review of all personnel actions by the management
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 271
staff facilitated the maintenance of proper organization structure.
As a part of the training program there was an increase in the interchange
of selected personnel between the Washington and field offices.
During the period covered 21 employees in the field were brought into
Washington, while at the same time 16 Washington employees were
detailed to the regions. It is planned to develop this program to a
greater extent in the immediate future, as its value has been thoroughly
demonstrated.
Another important part of the Bureau’s training program was the
Second Resources Management Field Conference held in September
at the Squaw Butte Ranch and Livestock Experiment Station which
was participated in by 48 Bureau employees and representatives from
other Government and State agencies. Two Bureau employees received
fellowships in the Littauer Graduate School of Harvard University.
These fellowships are offered by the Conservation Foundation for the
purpose of providing advance training in public administration of
natural resources.
Average employment of all types of employees except District Grazing
Supervisors was 1,221. Average employment in the Washington
office was 206, and in the regions as follows: Region I, 262; region II,
143; region III, 196; region IV, 175; region V, 130; region VI, 15;
region VII, 95.
PUBLIC LANDS LEGISLATION
Two laws enacted by the Eighty-first Congress in the early part of
the fiscal year are of special interest to efficient public land management.
Public Law 644 provides that a more equitable return to the
Bureau for the work it does in preparing copies of documents on
private orders and Public Law 744 facilitates the disposal of materials
such as sand, stone, and gravel from the reserved school sections in
Alaska with the proceeds going to the Territorial Treasury.
Included among bills pending before the Eighty-second Congress
are: a bill to except temporary employees of the Bureau from restrictions
on holding public lands. This would enable the Bureau to utilize
persons who are available but are now ineligible for employment in
such positions as fire fighters, grazing district advisory board members,
temporary survey aids, etc.; a bill to amend the Materials Act
to permit easier and quicker procedures in sales of materials such as
timber, sand, stone, and gravel on the public lands; a bill to provide
for the classification of lands in Alaska which would aid in the proper
development of those lands and of their resources; a bill to permit the
leasing of boat and ship land-sites in Alaska; a bill to provide for
the recordation of outstanding land scrip rights so the Bureau may
272 4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
formulate a program for satisfying them; a bill to repeal a number
of obsolete timber laws; and a bill to broaden the law which now
provides for the lease and sale of land to public bodies for recreational
purposes.
The Bureau has prepared for the House Committee on the Judiciary
extensive comments on the current applicability of laws now collected
in Title 43 of the United States Code and of public land laws on other
titles in order to assist the committee with its editorial revisions of
the code.
Litigation
During the past year a number of legal problems were closely related
to defense efforts. Among the more significant of these is the effort of
the Bureau of Land Management and the Department to secure better
utilization of natural gas and electric power through enforcement of
the law requiring that natural gas pipelines crossing public lands be
operated as common carriers and of the regulation which requires that
the Government be given the opportunity to use any excess capacity, at
its own expense, in power transmission lines crossing public lands.
The efforts in both fields have been resisted by the companies involved
and at the close of the year lawsuits were pending on both issues. Another
legal item of interest is a Solicitor’s ruling recognizing the
Bureau of Land Management’s statutory authority to sell gypsum and
other important minerals in situations where disposal under the mining
laws is prevented by law.
Legal Opinions and Memoranda
Among the more important legal problems considered by the Bureau
during the year, other than those previously discussed, were the giving
of full effect to the Department’s current authority to accept contributions
toward the administration of the public lands, the review of draft
material relating to public lands for the President’s Water Resources
Policy Committee, the consideration of the extent of the Government’s
rights to water on the public lands, the continuation of the monthly
supplements to the legal monographs dealing with the adjudicating
functions of the Bureau which are performed in the field, the relationship
between the loan standards of the Defense Minerals Administration
and the standards for determining the validity of mining claims,
the legality of mining claims located in Alaska for gravel on valuable
school lands and segregated public lands, the preparation and approval
of the deeds conveying lands from the Choctaw and Chickasaw Indians
to the United States in return for an $8,500,000 payment, and the effect
of asserted Indian and aboriginal claims to various areas of public
lands.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 273
REGIONAL REPORT HIGHLIGHTS
Because many activities have been decentralized to its 7 regional
offices, the following highlights from headquarters covering 29 States
and the Territory of Alaska provide an appropriate summary to the
Bureau of Land Management report.
Region I, Headquarters, Portland, Oreg.
Region I of the Bureau of Land Management during the past year
intensified its activities in the administration of some 29 million acres
of Federal lands in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. The land-management
program has helped the Pacific Northwest grow at the same
time that Federal forest, range, watershed, and other values have
been maintained and improved.
The timber resource managed by region I, comprising 3.2 million
acres of O & C, Coos Bay Wagon Road, and forested public-domain
274 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
lands, is a vital element of economic strength. A full discussion of
these lands is given under the forestry section of the report.
The administration of the logging road right-of-way regulations,
the O & C access road program, and other forest policies has required a
heavy work-load of legal studies and negotiations which are paying
dividends in the form of rights and agreements on behalf of the Government
to enhance the accessibility of the Federal timber.
Advisory boards in both the O & C and grazing areas were again
an asset to the region’s program. They brought advice and constructive
criticism which was valuable to guide administration, and served
to help interpret the Bureau’s program to the groups they represent
and to their communities.
To adjust range use to the carrying capacity of the range, each of
the 10 district range managers selected an area to be given priority
in adjudicating and apportioning the range. In the Gooding-King
Hdl area of Idaho District No. 5, an emergency reduction of 1 month’s
use in 1950 was appealed by the stockmen, but was upheld by the Examiner,
Director, and Secretary. With cooperation of the District
Advisory Board an agreement for use was developed.
An allotment of $51,000 in special range reseeding funds was used
mainly for reseeding halogeton-infested areas in southeastern Idaho.
Experimental methods are being followed in range reseeding work to
lay the foundation for an accelerated program.
The Squaw Butte-Harney Range and Livestock Experiment Station
continued its basic research on methods of management and
use of rangeland, forage crops and livestock, and served as the site
of the annual Bureau-wide resource management training conference.
The region’s cadastral survey program continued to emphasize
the original monumentation of highly valuable Forest Service and
BLM timberlands in western Oregon, with some progress toward remonumentation
of old surveys elsewhere in the region.
Progress was made and additional groundwork was laid toward
land planning activities, including a start on several small-area land
classification surveys, improvement of individual tract classification
procedures, and guidance of program planning and interagency operating
relationships. The demand for individual tracts is increasing,
adding to the difficulty of overcoming the accumulated backlog of
land cases. The backlog of mineral examination work was increased
by new requests from the Forest Service requiring extensive area examinations
in Oregon and Washington.
The over-all regional adjudication backlog was decreased substantially
during the year, although new and reactivated cases were received
at a higher rate than in 1950.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 4 275
Region II, Headquarters, San Francisco, Calif.
First consideration was given to protection, conservation, and use
of maximum forage resources within sound policy of range management
practices.
Oil and gas leasing activity increased in California and in Nevada
assumed boom proportions with over a million acres put under lease
during the year.
Nearly 14,000 cases were closed in the 3 land offices with a net reduction
of over 3,000 cases, which brought the number of pending to less
than 7,000 or about a 6-month workload basis.
Microfilming of survey plats and records was completed for all of
Nevada and most of California. These microfilm records will be made
available for public use at the respective land offices during the next
fiscal year.
Interest in the small-tract program increased with a substantial
number of leaseholders making application for purchase following
completion of their homes.
Sales of timber were more than doubled during the year, with other
materials, mostly of defense nature, made available in considerably
increased quantities.
There was considerable stepup in services of the regional counsel as
a result of work on mineral and grazing hearings and liaison with the
National Park Service and the Forest Service.
Region III, Headquarters, Billings, Mont.
The Land and Survey Office at Cheyenne, Wyo., and the Land Office
at Billings, Mont., as well as the regional office of the Division of Adjudication,
have continued to process expeditiously all forms of application
for use or disposition of the public domain and related resources.
This work is now operating on a current basis.
Cadastral resurveys were made for the identification of oil and other
mineral leases covering 115,000 acres being administered by the United
States Geological Survey in the State of Wyoming. Thirty-five thousand
acres have been surveyed in and adjoining national forests near
Boulder and Basin, Mont. These serve the multiple purpose of identifying
timber sales, range improvements, and also the identification of
mineral claims and tracts of public lands being extensively prospected
for uranium.
During fiscal year 1951, a total of 870,660 acres were resurveyed
on reclamation projects in this region. Of this total, 364,800 acres
were resurveyed in Montana; 332,400 acres were resurveyed in South
Dakota; and 173,460 acres were resurveyed in the State of Nebraska.
276 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
A small-tract survey was made in the Worland, Wyo., area covering
50 small tracts in connection with a low-cost housing project. Plats
of the survey of 157 homesites near Rawlins, Wyo., 50 cabin sites on
the shores of Lake Hattie near Laramie, Wyo., were filed during the
year.
Under the comprehensive program for the development of the resources
in the Missouri River Basin, carried on by the Department of
the Interior, the examination and classification was completed of 1%
million acres of public-domain lands located principally in the Powder
River and Bighorn River Basins, Wyo., and in the Upper Missouri
River Basin, Mont. Four land-planning and classification reports
were published; one describing the Bighorn Basin in Montana and
Wyoming, one covering the public lands in the State of Kansas, a third
covering public lands in the White and Niobrara River Basins in
Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wyoming, and a fourth considering the
watershed aspects of the Cheyenne River Basin in Wyoming. A
detailed land-classification report was also made on the watershed of
the Glendo Reservoir on the North Platte River.
Statistical tabulation of federally owned lands by States is complete
for Wyoming and 70-percent complete for Montana.
Mineral investigations w’ere concerned with bentonite, chromium,
gold placer, and other claims.
More productive use of water and maximum productivity of grass
are special points of this year’s soil and moisture conservation program.
Throughout the region emphasis has been placed upon the
trapping of wasted range runoff waters and the conversion of these
to beneficial use.
A tentative survey of halogeton indicates that this poisonous plant
has scattered through some 400,000 acres but does not cover more than
2,000 acres in any degree of concentration.
National defense has increased emphasis on timber sales. Heavy
sales applications have precluded field work on timber inventories
and management plans. Defense planning in cooperation with the
Forest Service and other Federal agencies highlights BLM’s fire organization.
Region IV, Headquarters, Salt Lake City, Utah
During the fiscal year, region TV’s long-range program in the conservation
of water and mineral resources was submitted to the Colorado
River-Great Basin Interior Field Committee.
Detailed studies were initiated in the Arkansas River Basin and
erosion conditions, land-use capabilities and vegetative types were
mapped on 225,000 acres.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 277
Evaluation engineers of the Bureau spent considerable time in
field studies of mining claims on lands withdrawn for the Dugway
Proving Grounds. This project has high military priority in connection
with the current war situation. Cadastral surveys are also
in progress in the Dugway Proving Grounds.
In Colorado, requested cadastral surveys were completed on the
Granby Dam and Reservoir and the Shadow Mountain Reservoir
units of the Big Thompson reclamation project. Cadastral surveys
were in progress at the end of the fiscal year on the Willow Creek Reservoir
and the West Portal Road, at the request of the Bureau of
Reclamation.
Cadastral surveys are in progress in southwestern Colorado and
southeastern Utah, initiated at the request of the Atomic Energy Commission,
and this work is a direct vital contribution to defense.
During the year cadastral planning and programing were intimately
integrated with the plans drawn up for the development of the
Colorado River, the Missouri River, and the Arkansas-White-Red
Rivers.
In the land offices, applications for oil and gas leases continued in
increasingly large numbers. The Salt Lake office averaged 184 new
applications for lease and 39 reactivated cases each month, while the
Denver office averaged 119 new applications and 57 reactivated cases
each month. Applications for homesteads and public sales are still
being filed in large numbers.
The regional backlog of all open cases will be reduced during fiscal
year 1951 from 7,625 on July 1, 1950, to approximately 5,500 on June
30, 1951.
Region V, Headquarters, Albuquerque, N. Mex.
In January 1951, region V intensified decentralization by setting up
in its 10 grazing districts a system of area administration designed to
broaden the authorities and responsibilities of their personnel. So
far, emphasis in this direction has been placed on sharing with the
regional office personnel, the soil and moisture conservation and range
improvement planning, the making of land classification investigations
and reports and on full execution of the S&M and R. I. programs.
The newly established grazing district, New Mexico 7, bordering the
Navajo Reservation on the east, has progressed amazingly well as
regards general administration and collaboration with the Navajo
Service, since many Navajo families living outside the reservation are
involved. The area, unfortunately, is in the grip of an extended
drought and accordingly, in consideration of an absence of range
forage, all grazing fees for the fiscal year 1951 up to May 1, 1951,
278 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
have been, waived, and for that matter extension has been allowed until
the drought breaks.
Deeds for the conveyance to the United States of the segregated
coal and asphalt lands in southeastern Oklahoma were executed by
the Governor of the Chickasaw Nation and the Principal Chief of the
Choctaw Nation Indian tribes. The Indians received $8,500,000 for
their coal and asphalt lands, which fulfilled an obligation of the
United States to the Indians under the Atoka Treaty of nearly 50
years ago. Under the congressional authority for the acquisition of
the lands, the lands became a part of the public domain, but the use
of the land was limited to oil and gas and asphalt leasing. This
posed an immediate problem of the proper use of the surface lands
included in the coal and asphalt subsurface resources which were
reconvened. Considerable study of this problem resulted in the
recommendation of legislation which the region concluded was essential
for this purpose. These recommendations were submitted to
Washington. In the meantime, surface use is being authorized by
special land-use permits.
Agreement was reached and field work and report on the long-pending
New Mexico-Forest Exchange Applications, commonly known as
“New Mexico 2-21,” were completed to the satisfaction of the State,
the Forest Service and the Regional Office of BLM; and the applications
are pending adjudication and final consummation by the Washington
office.
Region VI, Headquarters, Washington, D. C.
This region, with jurisdiction over 13 States extending from the
Canadian border to the tip of Florida and from the Atlantic Ocean
to one tier of States west of the Mississippi River, spans in geographical
area approximately one-third of the United States. Because the
public domain lands are located in the most densely settled part of this
country, there is at all times a great demand for them.
During the past fiscal year this region has been able to make a substantial
contribution towards national defense by screening the public
lands in the coastal and other areas most suitable therefor, and arranging
for the use thereof by the Army, Navy, and Coast Guard.
In Florida and Alabama, new subdivisions were opened up to meet
the increased demands for individual homesites under the Small Tract
Act.
The region actively participated in the current studies being made
for the better utilization of the resources within the areas of several
river basins.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 279
Many conferences were held with the representatives of other Federal
agencies looking to the transfer of public domain lands for such
purposes as additions to national forests, national parks, and fish and
wildlife refuges.
Region VII, Headquarters, Anchorage, Alaska
Residents of .Alaska are living and working in an area which is
on the defense perimeter of our country. The occasional boom of a
heavy gun and the rattle of smaller arm fire on the several military
reservations does not cause the surveyor to miss a stroke as he hacks
a straight line through the brush, but the foresters watch the distant
hills apprehensively for the tell-tale wisps of smoke that could mean
the start of a crackling forest fire.
The Bureau of Land Management has the larger of the two fire
organizations in Alaska, and is therefore charged with preparing not
only its own but also an over-all civil defense operational wildland fire
plan for the Territory. The widespread fires which plagued Alaska
until December 1 brought out the realization that fires must be
controlled and extinguished. Smoke prevents airplanes from flying,
and airplanes must fly in Alaska. Over 2 million acres were burned
over in the Fort Yukon area alone during the drought months of the
year.
The acquisition of two more airplanes, making a total of three, and
the improving of radio communications through the acquisition of
military salvage has made the Division of Forestry a harder hitting
fire suppression organization.
The tremendous demand of the military for building materials is
accelerating in importance the sale of timber for local needs of the
civilian economy and stressing the importance of conserving the timber
resources on the public domain.
In the field of land use and planning, hundreds of thousands of
acres of land in various parts of Alaska have been made available for
the exclusive use of the Department of Defense for military installations,
maneuver areas, bombing and artillery ranges, radar installations,
air bases, and communication centers.
Numerous conveyances of land for development of airports and
air navigation sites have been expedited.
Vital contributions have been made to the settlement and development
of Alaska. More than 700 small tracts have been made available
in the Territory, 600,000 square feet of commercial and industrial
areas were sold at Anchorage, 141,000 acres of grazing land at Kodiak
Island, Sitkinak Island, and the Knik Hay flats near Palmer have
973649—52-------21
280 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
been made available under leases, unneeded shore space reservations
were eliminated for several hundred miles of shoreline in the Susitna
and Tanana Valleys and on other waterways.
Lots in 5 townsites were being sold during the year and arrangements
were almost complete for selling lots in 10 others, lhe selection
of lands and townsite designs have been completed for three
townsites still in the planning stages.
Over 1,000 cases involving applications under the public land laws
were investigated.
Land was rapidly being put into private ownership as more than
425 final certificates were issued by land offices during the year. More
than 395 oil and gas cases were handled by the Anchorage land office,
and the Division of Cadastral Engineering, the region’s status office
for unsurveyed land, and were approaching the actual lease stage at
the end of the year. Development of the area covered by these applications
will be started immediately as oil company men are already on
the ground.
Reports were completed as to BLM plans for administering 125,000
acres of Land that is to be eliminated from national forests in Alaska.
Aboriginal claims are beginning to complicate the disposal of public
lands, particularly in southeastern Alaska.
The cadastral survey work has been directed principally to projects
of a high priority nature during fiscal year 1951, in order to satisfy
immediate needs, so that congested or essential areas could be properly
administered. The demand for this work resulting from the rapid
expansion of commercial and private holdings, as well as those of
military and other Government agencies throughout the Territory
has caused the retarding of the execution of an orderly system of
planned surveys through general extension of the rectangular net.
The tremendous importance of cadastral surveys in Alaska cannot
be overemphasized as title to no public domain can be vested in private
hands without surveys. The Territory of Alaska cannot get title to
land upon which airports are planned without surveys. The small
tract act, which is one of the most useful vehicles for settling Alaska,
cannot be invoked on unsurveyed land. Therefore, the settlement of
Alaska, which often has been quoted as a must in the defense plan for
the Territory has great dependency upon the facility with which surveys
are conducted.
The Division’s regional office in Juneau received and plotted approximately
500 oil and gas lease applications and 450 notices of settlement
or location, and made status reports as to conflicts with othei
surveys, withdrawals, shore space reservations or other reasons for
objection to the allowance of the entry.
Fish and Wildlife
Service
Albert M. Day, Director
WITH FOOD AS ESSENTIAL AS GUNS in the
mobilization program, the Fish and Wildlife Service has emphasized
its food-related activities during the past year, particularly those
pertaining to the commercial fisheries which supply not only valuable
food but also a great number of byproducts. In 1950 the commercial
fishery catch of the United States and Alaska amounted to 4.9 billion
pounds. Nearly one-half of this catch is used in the manufacture of
byproducts such as fish meal, oils, and shell products for animal feeding;
vitamin-bearing medicinal oils; and industrial oils used in the
manufacture of paints, soap, oilcloth, linoleum, and printer’s ink—
all of value in wartime.
There has been no letup in the Service’s efforts to administer the
Alaska salmon fisheries so as to yield a maximum stable production
both for military and civilian use. The west-coast fish hatcheries
have continued to plant young salmon which are the seed stock for
continuing Columbia River runs. The Service has pushed more vigorously
than ever the so-called Lower Columbia River development program
(a vast undertaking designed to offset the damage to the salmon
fisheries arising from the construction of hydroelectric dams).
Through the cooperative program which the Service spearheads for
the control of destructive predatory animals and rodents, American
stockmen and farmers are able to produce from 10 to 20 percent more
meat and wool in the more important meat-producing areas of the
country than would be possible otherwise. This extra margin of production
helps the Nation to keep its own defense workers and fighters
on a high caloric diet while sending large quantities of food to other
nations engaged against the common enemy.
The 99 Federal fish hatcheries continued to propagate and release
game fish in streams and lakes throughout the country for the benefit
of those who find their best relaxation with rod and reel. Priority
is being given to the stocking of waters near military reservations and
281
282 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
veterans’ hospitals because of the recognized value of fishing as a
morale booster for disabled veterans and men in training.
As in World War II days, the Service has devoted considerable
time to realining many of its programs to provide maximum assistance
for the national defense while continuing to discharge normal responsibilities.
While priority, of course, is being given to defense requirements,
we hope to maintain our wildlife refuges and our fish hatcheries
and to continue the research, enforcement, predator control, and
other functions essential to wildlife and fishery conservation. These
programs must go forward not only in the interest of maintaining
essential commercial supplies of seafood but to preserve recreational
resources of fish and game during and following this period of
national emergency.
UTILIZING THE FISHERY RESOURCES
With the advent of a national emergency situation, investigations
dealing with exploration, development, and utilization of the Nation’s
commercial fishery resources were pressed vigorously during the year.
Activities of the Service’s exploratory fishing vessels have been varied
and widespread. The exploratory fishing vessel Oregon, operating in
the Gulf of Mexico, demonstrated the existence in the late summer
and fall of hitherto unused fishable concentrations of large browngrooved
shrimp in depths of from 30 to 50 fathoms off the coasts of
Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The exploration is not yet
complete. Additional work is in progress to cover the remainder of
the Gulf waters adjacent to the United States and to obtain some idea
of the seasonal fluctuations in concentrations of shrimp.
The vessel John N. Cobb, based at Seattle, Wash., completed a 4-
month survey of albacore tuna in the fall of 1950. Extensive gear
tests indicated that albacore could be taken in commercial quantities
with gill nets, a type of gear new to that fishery. Two exploratory
shellfish cruises to southeastern Alaska resulted in locating unfished
shrimp populations in inland waters adjacent to the areas of
Sitka and Juneau. Excellent catches of pink and other species of
shrimp were made in limited areas using conventional trawling gear
and traps.
In New England a survey of the commercial possibilities of bluefin
tuna is under way. A Pacific-coast type purse-seine vessel will be
used in a 4-month operation to determine availability to the fishing
industry of bluefin tuna in these waters. Simultaneously, another
project was started on the south Atlantic coast to investigate the
practicability of commercial fishing for the “little tuna.” A preliminary
survey indicated that these tuna are present at various times
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 283
of the year over a wide range of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts and
may be a new source of food from the Nation’s expanding fisheries.
Research on fish refrigeration was emphasized in an effort to improve
the quality of the fish landed in New England ports. A proposed
new method of handling these fish at sea will be tested on a commercial
scale. For this purpose a surplus Government trawler was
obtained and is being reconditioned and equipped with fish-handling
and refrigeration machinery. Laboratory tests have indicated the
superiority of fish fillets prepared from fish frozen whole immediately
after catching for later defrosting, filleting, and refreezing ashore as
compared to fillets prepared from fish handled in the usual manner by
gutting and icing aboard ship. The first commercial-scale tests will
begin in the summer of 1951.
A full-scale commercial test of a recently developed chemical method
of preserving salmon eggs for fish-hatchery food will be made during
the 1951 season. Practical commercial methods for collecting and
shipping frozen salmon viscera from Alaska to fish hatcheries in the
United States will also be tested.
With the inauguration of the national-defense program, the importance
of daily fisheries information on production, marketing, distribution,
and prices collected by the seven field and the Washington
offices of the Fishery Market News Service has become increasingly
evident. During the year, plans were made to realine current coverage
to meet the needs of the emergency program. This unit rapidly
collected, tabulated, analyzed, and distributed through the use of daily
reports, monthly and annual summaries, and the monthly periodical
Commercial Fisheries Review, market information and news (including
directives of defense agencies) of interest to the fishery industries.
A continuous daily and summarized record of fishery production and
marketing data for the principal areas is provided by these reports.
They are used by the fishery and allied industries; by governmental
agencies and institutions in conservation work; by financial firms in
granting loans for fishery enterprises; by legislators; by fishery-research
organizations (governmental and private) ; and for determining
the economic importance of the fisheries.
Under the present emergency situation the accumulated data are
proving of inestimable value to the governmental defense agencies in
determining the place of the fishery industries in the Nation’s emergency
food program; in establishing allocation of scarce materials to
these industries; and in determining ceiling prices for fishery products
and byproducts.
Likewise, general fishery statistical surveys were conducted covering
all sections of the United States having commercial fisheries of
any importance. The last year for which a complete survey of this
284 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
type was made was 1931, although surveys have been made in all
areas except the Mississippi River in various years since then.
Monthly and annual bulletins on the landings of fishery products in
Maine and at the principal Massachusetts ports, and monthly bulletins
on the landings in Texas were continued. In cooperation with
the various State conservation agencies, publication of monthly data
on landings of fish and shellfish in Florida, Alabama, and Mississippi
was initiated. Compilation and publication of monthly statistics on
the freezings and holdings of fishery products and on the production
of fish meal and oil were continued.
In accordance with the authority vested in the Department by the
Fishery Cooperative Marketing Act of 1934, numerous fishery cooperative
marketing associations throughout the United States were
visited and reports made concerning their condition and activities.
As of May 1951, there were 73 active fishery cooperative marketing
associations in the United States as compared to 75 in May 1950.
Aid was given the fishery industry in cases involving transportation
rates or charges brought before Government regulatory bodies. Exhibits
and testimony were prepared and submitted to show the effect
on distribution of fishery products of proposed changes in transportation
rates and charges in dockets Ex Parte 175, Ex Parte 177, and
I & S 5804 before the Interstate Commerce Commission, and docket
702, Sub. 1, Sub. 2, and Sub. 3, before the Federal Maritime Board.
During the year, a fisheries adviser to the Department's representative
on the Trade Agreements Committee and the Committee for
Reciprocity Information was designated to assure coverage. Responsibilities
in this field as well as in the entire field of tariffs and international
trade in fishery products were assumed.
The home economists of the Service conducted 170 fish-cookery
demonstrations for homemakers, institutional managers, educational
groups, and school-lunch supervisors. A project to promote the use
of fishery products in the national school-lunch program was carried
out in 11 States. In previous years this activity had been confined
to coastal States but now has been extended to 4 inland States also.
Surveys made after the demonstrations proved that there had been a
large increase in the consumption of fish by the children in the schools
of these States.
Special monthly reports on the fishery supply situation have been
provided to national restaurant, food-chain, and fishery associations.
A quarterly market-outlook report also was released for the guidance
of Government organizations and the trade in planning and developing
fishery activities.
One educational motion picture was produced in cooperation with
industry. The menhaden industry financed the project, while the
Service was responsible for production and distribution of the film.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 285
This picture, The Story of Menhaden, in color and with sound, has
been chosen for showing in the two European film festivals. Three
Service fishery educational pictures have been cleared for showing on
television and were televised over 200 times during the past year.
In addition to the regular distribution channels, the Service’s
educational films are distributed through 65 film libraries, mainly
in universities.
ADMINISTRATION OF ALASKA FISHERIES
Management of the Commercial Fisheries
While having contributed substantially to the Nation’s food requirements
for more than 80 years, including two world conflicts, the fishery
resource of Alaska continues as the Territory’s major industry. Accounting
for 90 percent of the annual 100-million-dollar fish harvest,
the salmon runs of “silver horde” fame require ever-increasing restrictions
to safeguard their continuing contributions. The increasing
pressure of commercial exploitation emphasizes the need for greater
effort in enforcement, and sound, long-range planning so that this
resource may be kept at a high level of production to fulfill current
requirements and at the same time provide sufficient reserves to meet
any national emergency.
Within limits prescribed by statute the revisions of the regulations,
effective for the 1950 season, were promulgated on March 4,1950. The
provision for the late opening of the pink-salmon season in southeastern
Alaska, which had produced such favorable results in early escapements
to the spawning grounds last year, was continued in order to
cover the second cycle of this species. The results, however, were disappointing,
as the runs in 1950 were the poorest in years. As a result
of a tremendous influx of gear, it was necessary to curtail the Cook Inlet
fishing season at its height to provide for the required escapement
of spawning fish to the Kenai River, one of the important runs in this
district. Curtailment was made in the offshore trolling season to coincide
with that permitted by Oregon, Washington, and California
under the Pacific Marine Fisheries Commission’s plan. Postponement
for 1 year of a change in regulations to permit power gill-net boats in
Bristol Bay, headed the list of other changes, mostly minor, for 1950.
As part of the regionalization of the Fish and Wildlife Service’s field
activities, certain key personnel in the Alaska region, trained in fisheries,
were delegated authority, within prescribed guide lines, to control
the take of salmon by shortening or lengthening seasons by field
announcement as conditions required. Fifteen such announcements
were issued for this purpose during the season.
286 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Twenty-one permanent fishery-management biologists and enforcement
agents, of whom 6 were on detail from the States, were active
in Alaska during 1950. In addition, approximately 100 temporary,
seasonal assistants and stream guards, together with about 13 temporary
enforcement personnel of the Territorial Fisheries Board, augmented
the permanent staff in enforcement of the fishery statutes and
regulations. Seven seagoing patrol vessels, 15 speedboats, and more
than 60 outboard-powered small craft, together with 13 aircraft, provided
the transportation required in management and enforcement
activities. Aircraft patrol accounted for almost 60 percent of the violators
apprehended. A total of 180 court actions were brought
against the individuals apprehended, resulting in 164 convictions, 12
acquittals, and 4 dismissals. Fines, forfeitures of bonds, and proceeds
of sales of confiscated fish totaled over $46,000. In addition, jail
sentences of 3,251 days were meted out, of which 2,025 were suspended.
Forfeiture of gear totaled 230 fathoms.
To assist in securing full compliance with the statutory requirement
that there be at least a 50-percent escapement of salmon to spawning
waters, 16 counting weirs, of which 7 were in southeastern Alaska,
2 in Cook Inlet, 4 in Kodiak, 2 in Bristol Bay, and 1 in the Chignik
area, were operated during 1950. The weirs also furnish precise information
on the time of arrival and duration of the runs of the several
species. In addition, four migrant or downstream sampling weirs
were maintained in southeastern Alaska to obtain data on the hatch
and survival of pink salmon from the spawning of the preceding year.
In continuing the stream improvement which has been under way for
several years, more than 100 obstructions, mostly beaver dams, were
removed from spawning streams entering Cook Inlet.
Pribilof Islands Fur-Seal Industry
A total of 60,204 fur-seal skins was taken on the Pribilof Islands
in 1950. These included 60,090 obtained during the regular summer
sealing season, and 114 from animals killed for research purposes
between September 8 and October 3. The 1949 take, by comparison,
was 70,991. Twenty percent of the 1950 production of sealskins was
delivered to the Canadian Government under the terms of the Provisional
Fur-Seal Agreement of 1942 with Canada. The byproducts
plant on St. Paul Island produced 340 tons of fur-seal meal and
42,000 gallons of oil. One ton of meal was transferred to the Fur
Animal Experimental Station of the Department of Agriculture at
Petersburg, Alaska. The remainder of the meal and the oil was sold
through competitive bidding for the gross amount of $72,869.10,
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 287
Foxing operations were suspended on the islands during the 1949-50
season, owing to the poor demand and low prices for blue-fox pelts.
Two public auction sales of fur-seal skins were held at St. Louis,
Mo., during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1951. A total of 25,697
fur-seal skins was sold on October 9, 1950, for the* gross amount of
$2,454,515. At the same sale 279 Pribilof Islands fox pelts brought
$2,412. On April 9, 1951, there were sold 25,740 Government-owned
seal skins for the gross sum of $2,591,796.
RESEARCH IN FISHERY BIOLOGY
River Fisheries
Studies of pink salmon in Alaska revealed that temperature of the
water in the streams influences greatly the time required for salmon
eggs to hatch and, therefore, the time when the young salmon go downstream
to sea. Also it has much to do with determining the rate of
infant mortality.
By marking experiments, biologists have been charting routes of
migration of the adults in the intricate passes from the sea to their
spawning streams. They are also studying the various elements of
the environment that may affect the survival of pink salmon during
their ocean sojourn.
At a small lake near Karluk Lake, a pilot experiment was conducted
to estimate the value of fertilization for increasing production
of food for young salmon. Results look promising and are being
followed up.
By tagging hundreds of shad at the mouth of the Hudson River,
Service biologists have been able to estimate the total run of shad
entering the river. The spawning area in the Hudson has been defined
and the abundance of young shad estimated. The 5-year shad investigation,
authorized by Congress in 1949, includes concentrated work
in successive areas proceeding southward from the Hudson and including
some North Carolina rivers.
Although the scales of shad, as of other fishes, show annual marks,
scientists had previously been able to interpret them only in terms of
number of spawning seasons. Now, thanks to a method developed
at the Beaufort, N. C., laboratory, total age can be determined. This
important contribution makes it possible to obtain the essential information
for measuring mortality rates, hence for designing means of
rehabilitating the low-ebb shad runs along the Atlantic coast. The
shad-producing States of the Atlantic seaboard, through the Atlantic
States Marine Fisheries Commission, are cooperating with the Fish
and Wildlife Service in this investigation.
288 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Inland Fisheries
At the end of the second year of the investigation of the sea lamprey
in the Great Lakes, the Service held a more optimistic view about the
control of this parasite than appeared justified a year ago. Studies
have shown that there are three vulnerable periods in the life history
of the sea lamprey, (1) when the adults enter the streams to spawn,
(2) during the three or more years the larvae live in the mud of the
stream, and (3) when the newly transformed lampreys move downstream
to begin their parasitic lives in the Great Lakes. Mechanical
control devices (weirs and traps) were used exclusively during the
first year to capture upstream and downstream migrating lampreys.
During the second year the same weirs were used primarily as checking
structures for testing other experimental control devices and for controlling
Jampreys on an experimental basis along about 100 miles of
shoreline in northern Lake Huron.
A contract was awarded to the Cook Electric Co. to develop, install,
and test various electric devices designed to direct movements of
lampreys toward their destruction. These experiments have proved
that lampreys are much more difficult to kill at given voltage levels
than any kind of fish native to the Great Lakes.
Poisons are being sought that will kill lampreys but that will be
harmless to other fishes.
Because adult lampreys live in very deep water, it is necessary to
study in the laboratory such features of their biology as growth and
the frequency and mode of attack on their victims. These studies may
give clues to means of controlling the lamprey in the Lakes proper.
Tremendous over-winter losses of trout occur in most streams in
the United States. In an effort to explain this loss, and to prevent it,
native and hatchery trout have been stocked in four experimental
stream sections at the Convict Creek Experimental Station in California.
In these four sections, which have a total length of 1 mile,
water flow and fish movements can be controlled. Experiments
planned over several years propose complete drainage, and removal
of the fish for counting each fall and spring. At the same time all
features of the environment which may affect trout are being recorded,
for example, stream flow, air and water temperatures, snowfall, ice
formation, abundance and distribution of food animals and of enemies.
Research to improve fish-hatchery production and efficiency was
expanded. New drugs and chemicals are being tested to develop
better prophylactic treatments for hatchery fish. Results of experiments
indicate that although sulfonamides are effective in treating
several common fish diseases, they are unsuitable for others. Antibiotics,
such as terramycin and Chloromycetin, have been employed
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 289
successfully in curing and preventing some diseases for which no
cure was previously known.
Several new vertical egg incubators have been developed for saving
space in hatcheries and are now undergoing tests for refinement of
techniques and for any necessary structural modifications.
Marine Fisheries
The Fish and Wildlife Service, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography,
the California Division of Fish and Game, and the California
Academy of Sciences, with the support of the industry
(through the California Marine Research Committee), are cooperating
in a study of the Pacific sardine, which declined sharply in abundance
after 1944. Goals of the several collaborators include a determination
of the variations in the amount and in the extent of sardine
spawning, in the productivity of the area, in the prevailing current
patterns, and in other characteristics of the marine climate off the
west coast of North America, as these relate to the sardine.
In the central Pacific, studies are being made of the far-reaching
western seas not only to collect information on the ranges and distribution
of the several species of tunas, but also to obtain the basic facts
on the life histories and migrations of these important fishes. Because
the lack of live bait for tuna fishing is the major obstacle to a greater
development of the mid-Pacific tuna fisheries, one vessel is engaged in
determining whether tunas may be caught with a conventional purse
seine, a form of fishing gear which does not require bait.
Biologists, acting as official observers for the high commissioner of
the trust territories and for the Fish and Wildlife Service, accompanied
Japanese postwar tuna-fishing expeditions to tropical waters. These
observers record biological, commercial, and technical features of the
operations.
Cruises have just begun, and will be made each season of the year,
in the Gulf of Mexico to study currents, to discover spawning areas of
various fishes, and to resolve the distribution pattern of fish larvae and
juveniles, consequently to estimate abundance and determine distribution
of fishery stocks. A biochemical study will be made of the Gulf
bearing on the problem of total biological potential, and what part of
this potential can be made use of for human needs. The Office of Naval
Research, through the Department of Oceanography of the Texas Agricultural
and Mechanical College, is cooperating by conducting the
physical oceanographic studies on these cruises.
Four experimental clam farms set out recently in Maine should determine
the practicability of clam farming on the Atlantic coast. In
Massachusetts, studies on growth and survival of transplanted clams
290 > annual repo rt of the sec ret ary of the interior
in protected and unprotected plots indicate the need for biological
studies on the numerous enemies of the clam. Traps have been built to
study the seasonal abundance of green crabs, and their relation to
the uneven distribution of clams.
At Milford, Conn., chemical compounds are being tested to find
repellents, attractors, or poisons to control the common drill, enemy of
oysters.
Research in Chesapeake Bay has found the supply of marketable
oysters to be low except where the State of Maryland had planted seed
oysters in recent years. Lack of clean hard cultch, suitable for the
young oysters to settle on, contributed to scarcity of oysters in the
Potomac River.
At Beaufort, N. C., the Fish and Wildlife Service under contract
with the Atomic Energy Commission is applying radioactivity in studies
on nutrition and other aspects of physiology of oysters and other
marine animals.
MAINTAINING THE INLAND FISHERIES
This program is directed toward meeting the greatly increased demand
for fish for stocking purposes and, at the same time, laying the
groundwork for maintenance of the stock of inland fishes on a continuing
basis. It is complicated by such factors as a continued
increase in the population of industrial areas, depletion of forests by
the lumber and pulp industries, pollution of streams, and the construction
of multiple-purpose dams—factors which have greatly reduced
the areas that are available for the natural spawning of game fish.
As one part of the program, Congress provided funds for continuing
the construction and expansion of hatcheries in fiscal year 1950 to
increase the production of fishes for stocking purposes. The construction
of new hatcheries is well under way at McNenny, S. Dak.; Bald
Hill Dam, N. Dak.; Millen, Ga.; North Attleboro, Mass.; and Pendills
Creek, Mich. The program to enlarge and improve fish-cultural facilities
was continued at the units in Berlin, N. H.; Bozeman, Mont.; Cape
Vincent, N. Y.; Corning, Ark.; Dexter, N. Mex.; Ennis, Mont.; Erwin,
Tenn.; Farnsworth, Pa.; Hagerman, Idaho; Harrison Lake, Va.; Hebron,
Ohio; Hot Springs, N. Mex.; Lamar, Pa.; Leadville, Colo.;
Meridian, Miss.; Nashua, N. H.; New London, Minn.; Quilcene,
Wash.; Tishomingo, Okla.; Uvalde, Tex.; Warm Springs, Ga.; Williams
Creek, Ariz.; and White Sulphur Springs, W. Va. The construction
funds were supplemented by an allotment of $135,000 for the maintenance
of other hatcheries not included in the extensive expansion
and improvement program.
On the Columbia River the salmon fishery annually produces 32
million pounds of food fish, currently valued at 17.5 million dollars.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 291
After the construction of Grand Coulee Dam, the Service undertook
to preserve the upper-river salmon runs by transplantation to streams
entering the Columbia River below the dam. After a decade of artificial
propagation, this program has been pronounced a success. The
return of adult blueback salmon to the Grand Coulee project is at
present considerably in excess of the number ascending the Columbia
to that area before the construction of the dam. Furthermore, the
operations have resulted in an increase in the number of spring
chinook salmon ascending to the upper Columbia River. However,
very few salmon seek to pass Grand Coulee Dam; instead, they turn
into the tributaries or return to the hatchery streams where they were
released as fingerlings.
The construction of Shasta Dam across the Sacramento River in
California posed a problem similar to that on the Columbia. In the
Sacramento Valley, the program is based upon both natural and artificial
propagation, but the emphasis is on hatchery operations. This
program, too, appears to have been successful. Reports indicate that
hatchery-reared salmon, upon their return to the river as adults, made
up an important part of the total catch of the commercial fishery in
the San Francisco Bay area. Each year since 1942 the production of
the Coleman hatchery has been increased to maintain this run.
During the fiscal year 1951, the Branch of Game-fish and Hatcheries
took over the Sacramento River Fisheries Investigation which was
previously handled by the Branch of Fishery Biology. This program
involves the study of environmental changes in the Sacramento River
resulting from the manipulation of these waters at Shasta and Keswick
Dams. As data on the migrations, spawning number, and spawning
success, as well as on water temperatures and flows, were obtained
from this study, the Bureau of Reclamation has been advised regarding
water releases from Shasta Dam. In order to evaluate the effect
of the pumping plant now under construction by the Bureau of Reclamation
at Tracy, Calif., the Service has begun a study of the effect
of the diversion of water in the Delta area of the Sacramento and San
Joaquin Rivers. Studies of fish populations in the Delta area and of
the effectiveness of various types of screens and other facilities are
under way.
The program for stocking suitable waters within or near military
reservations, rest-camp centers, and hospital areas with fish to provide
military personnel and veterans with fishing for recreation or
relaxation was continued during the year, to the limit of funds and
facilities available. Although these services have necessarily been
conducted on a limited basis, the results in improved morale, the
rapid recovery of hospital patients, and the rehabilitation of personnel
in rest-camp areas were outstanding. It is expected that this
292 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
service will be expanded to provide a well-coordinated program to continue
through the emergency period and for as long thereafter as
needed.
The production of game fish was continued at a high level during
1950. This was accomplished at a time when production costs were
at the highest point in history and operations at a number of hatcheries
were curtailed because of the initiation of an improvement and
expansion program. The following is a summary of the production of
Federal hatcheries for the calendar year 1950.
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION IN CONSERVATION
International Conservation Agreements
During the fiscal year 1951 the Fish and Wildlife Service has been
primarily concerned with the formulation of international conservation
agreements, with their implementation, and with performing
appropriate functions in connection with agreements already in operation.
The year has witnessed significant developments in this regard.
Table 1.—Summary of the production of fishes and eggs by Federal hatcheries
during the year ended Dec. 31, 1950
Group Eggs Fry Fingerlings
6 inches or
over Total
Largemouth black bass___________________ 1,012,995 9,194,150 15,120 10, 222, 265
Smallmouth black bass___________________ 759,300 349,765 1, 550 1,110, 615
Rock bass________________________________ 1,150 — 1,150
Warmouth bass__________________________ /10 710
Bluegill__________________________________ 35, 229, 740 16, 525 35, 246, 2(it)
Redear sunfish___________________________ 5,060 205 5, 265
Green sunfish------- ,-----------------------------------
111, 730
14,000
940
14, 000
Channel catfish________________________ 124, 230 236, 900
Catfish___________________________________ 410,550 9,030 419, 580
Black crappie____________________________ 10, 325 245 10, 570
White crappie_______________ _____________ 55,355 60 55, 415
Yellow perch -------------------------------------------
8,329,230
14,825 2,110 16,935
Rainbow trout___________________________
325, 000
6, 705,850 929, 610 15, 964,690
Brook trout______________________________ 13, 214,500 2,887, 080 546, 330 16.972,910
Brown trout______________________________ 2, 762, 705 — 1, 284,035 276,470 4, 323, 210
Lake trout_______________________________
15, 673, 540 1, 620,480
372, 460 1, 425 373,885
Cutthroat trout__________________________ 4, 099,100 12, 005 21, 405,125
Steelhead trout___________________________ 261, 755 1, 615 263, 370
Dolly Varden trout_______________________
2, 928, 000 2, 390,180
59, 410 59, 410
Northern pike____________________________ 1, 980 — 5, 320, 160
Walleyed pike____________________________ 500, 000 13, 403, 000 28,150 — 13, 931,150
Atlantic salmon__________________________
7. 939, 600
41 7, 3 25 385 417, 71 ()
Chinook salmon__________________________
5, 899, 670
43, 585, 605 — 51, 525, 205
Chum salmon___________________________ 3, 412, 560
1, 462, 335 28, 645
9, 312, 230
Red salmon______________________________ 167,155 — 1, 658,135
Silver salmon_____________________________ 72,120 — 468,185 — 540, 305
Sebago salmon___________________________
102, 000
51,100 — 51,100
Kokanee salmon__________________________ 782. 540
853,845
680, 540 —
Grayling_________________________________ 800, 000 1, 653, 845
Flounder_________________________________ 80, 069. 000 — 80, 069, 000
Pollock___________________________________ 14, 847, 580 14, 847, 580
Lobster___________________________________ 398, 000 — 398, 000
Total__________________5_5_, _8_5_3_, _2_5_5___1_21,738, 935 107, 774, 770 1, 842, 270 287, 209. 230
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 293
The International Commission for the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries
provided for by the terms of the International Convention for the
Northwest Atlantic Fisheries, which was signed at Washington under
date of February 8, 1949, and entered into force on July 3, 1950, held
its first meeting at Washington from April 2 through April 10, 1951.
Three United States Commissioners were appointed to this Commission
by the President on January 15, 1951—Dr. Hilary J. Deason,
Chief, Office of Foreign Activities, Fish and Wildlife Service; Dr.
Bernhard Knollenberg, author and lawyer of Chester, Conn.; and
Francis W. Sargent, Director, Division of Marine Fisheries, Department
of Conservation, Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The first
meeting of the Commission was devoted primarily to the development
of a sound organizational foundation for the future operation of the
Commission. Dr. Deason was elected chairman of the Commission for
a 2-year term. Five of the original signatory Governments have taken
the necessary action toward ratification, namely, Canada, Denmark,
Iceland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It is anticipated
that the remaining signatory governments, France, Italy, Norway,
Portugal, and Spain, will take such action in the near future. In
accordance with the provisions of Public Law 845, Eighty-first Congress,
approved September 27,1950, the United States Commissioners,
before the first meeting of the Commission, appointed an advisory
committee consisting of 14 members representing all phases of the
Northwest Atlantic fishing industry.
The Convention between the United States and Mexico for the establishment
of an International Commission for the Scientific Investigation
of Tuna, signed at Mexico City, January 25, 1949, entered into
force on July 11, 1950, upon the exchange of ratifications by the two
Governments. This convention has been implemented by Public Law
764, Eighty-first Congress, approved September 7, 1950. The following
United States Commissioners have been appointed by the President
: Milton C. James, Assistant Director, Fish and Wildlife Service;
Lee F. Payne, newspaper executive, Los Angeles, Calif.; Eugene D.
Bennett, lawyer, San Francisco, Calif.; and Gordon Sloan, lawyer,
Astoria, Oreg.
The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission provided for under
the terms of a Convention with Costa Rica, which was signed at Washington
on May 31, 1949, and entered into force on March 3,1950, held
its first meeting at San Diego, Calif., in July 1950, and its second
meeting at San Jose, Costa Rica, in February 1951. As its director
of investigations the Commission appointed Milner B. Schaefer,
formerly a fishery-research biologist with the Fish and Wildlife Service.
Although the agreement is open to adherence by other interested
governments, no such adherences have taken place. This agreement
294 > ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
was implemented by the same public law as noted above in connection
with the United States-Mexico tuna agreement.
The Convention between the United States and Canada for the extension
of certain port privileges to halibut-fishing vessels on the
Pacific coasts of the two countries, which was signed at Ottawa on
March 24, 1950, entered into force on July 13, 1950.
The International Whaling Commission held its second meeting at
Oslo, Norway, from July 17 to 21,1950. Its third meeting will be held
at Capetown, South Africa, in July 1951. The President recently
appointed Dr. Remington Kellogg, Director of the United States
National Museum, as United States Commissioner to the Commission,
and Dr. Hilary J. Deason, of the Fish and Wildlife Service, as deputy
commissioner. The Department of the Interior has issued a license to
a shore station in Eureka, Calif., to operate for the calendar year 1951.
International Technical Cooperation
The Service continued to give assistance to underdeveloped countries
of the world under the point 4 program, administered by the
Technical Cooperation Administration of the Department of State.
The fishery mission to Mexico which was established in 1942 has
been in force since that time. There is urgent need for increased production
of fishery products for domestic consumption in Mexico, and
gratifying progress has been made in developing the fisheries of both
inland and marine waters. At present, the Mexican Government and
the Rockefeller Foundation are engaged in a project to increase the
number and efficiency of ponds for culture of native species of fish.
There has been a remarkable development of the shrimp industry in
the past decade, in which production increased from 5 million pounds
to 40 million pounds. In 1950, about 400 trawlers were in operation
and the investment in the industry totaled 25 million dollars. Most
of the equipment, machinery, and fishing gear was purchased in the
United States. The present need is for formulation of a plan of
management of the resource which will insure a maximum sustained
yield. The mission has assisted in the establishment of the Institute
de Pesca del Pacifico, an organization financed by industry and the
Mexican Government, to collect the basic data necessary for development
of a program of conservation of the marine fishery resources.
In 1949, upon request of the Government of Peru, and in cooperation
with the Institute of Inter-American Affairs, the Service established
a mission to Peru to assist in solving numerous problems concerned
with administration and management of the fish and wildlife
resources. Significant progress has been made in attaining the objectives
of the mission. In May 1951, two specialists were added to
the staff of the mission. A fishery-products technologist will devote
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 295
6 months to the development of methods of preservation of products
for domestic consumption, and train a staff of cannery-inspection technicians.
A fishery biologist will advise the Government of Peru on
the design, staffing, and operation of a marine-biology laboratory and
exploratory vessel. The staff will study the marine resources with a
view toward increase in production and improvement of facilities for
preservation, distribution, and marketing.
Training of qualified students and specialists of foreign countries
in several phases of biological science and management in relation to
conservation continued during the year. This work was carried out
under several programs sponsored by the United States Government,
including that of the Economic Cooperation Administration. Visitors
and trainees under these programs came from such diverse and
widely separated areas as Brazil, Peru, Portugal, Finland, Thailand,
the Philippines, and Japan. In addition, the Service gives assistance
to many foreign visitors who visited the United States under
programs sponsored by their own governments. Instruction in the
principles and techniques of conservation is an important adjunct to
the mission program, for it provides a growing body of competent
scientists and technicians to continue projects initiated by the missions.
FEDERAL AID TO STATE PROJECTS FOR THE RESTORATION
OF WILDLIFE
The Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Program continued the
general pattern of recent years with the greatest emphasis being given
to restoring and improving the habitat. This is a natural sequence,
for considerable lands have been acquired and results of surveys and
investigations have pointed the way to better management. The scope
of activities undertaken indicates that great strides are being made
in the effort to produce an annual increment of wild game birds and
mammals adequate to satisfy the tremendous demands of sportsmen
for recreation and food.
Habitat improvements, designed to benefit small game, were undertaken
by 38 States during the year. Food and cover plantings, fencing,
and construction of shallow impoundments are among the developments
that were placed on private lands under cooperative agreements.
Increased availability of planting stock permitted a substantial
expansion in this gigantic task of furnishing the necessities
of life to these game species. Nine southeastern States distributed
over 30 million lespedeza plants and thousands of pounds of lespedeza
seed to augment the supply of quail food and cover. The Plains States
continued to expand their tree- and shrub-planting programs. Conifers
and food-bearing shrubs were set out by the millions in the north-
973649—52------ 22
296 ♦ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
ern States. Multiflora-rose seedlings were planted in vastly greater
numbers to serve a dual purpose as living fences and wildlife cover.
Emphasis in the western part of the country was on food- and coverproducing
shrubs and the providing of assured water supplies for
several species of western quail. Toward that end, California completed
its thousandth “gallinaceous guzzler” during the year, while
six other States and Hawaii continued to build these rain-water
catchments.
Upland game on State-owned lands received its share of attention
in many States as the tempo of acquisition of these areas increased.
Waterfowl projects were under construction in 33 States. Development
of the 15,000-acre Cheyenne Bottoms refuge and public shooting
grounds in Kansas continued at a rapid pace; the diversion dam and
canal were finished and construction of the outlet canal and interior
dikes was initiated. Iowa’s important Sweet Marsh impoundment
was being rushed to completion as the year ended. Several Michigan
waterfowl flooding projects were completed and others started.
California continued work on several waterfowl areas, while Washington
began the rehabilitation of Skagit Flats for wildfowl. Minnesota
received approval to commence the development of the 53,000-acre
Roseau River Refuge. Located at the international border, it involves
construction of a diversion dam and canal in Canada in cooperation
with the Province of Manitoba. The ultimate completion of dikes
and control structures on the Minnesota side will provide some 18,000
acres of shallow impoundments for waterfowl and fur animals.
Over-browsed big-game ranges in the West, particularly wintering
grounds, were reseeded to browse and forage species in an effort to
bring these ranges to maximum wildlife productivity. Fencing to
control livestock use was another activity undertaken to benefit biggame
herds.
Trapping and transplanting of mammals and birds were conducted
by 27 States. In the East, turkey, deer, and beaver were species
resettled in new territories. In the West, Gambel’s quail, chukar
partridge, prairie chicken, turkey, antelope, deer, beaver, mountain
goat, and bighorn sheep were moved to new ranges.
The acquisition of areas for wildlife purposes continued at a normal
rate. Projects providing for the purchase or lease of lands were
submitted by 27 States. Negotiations were started on several new
areas of importance.
Research studies were in progress in 44 States, Alaska, Hawaii,
Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. From these fact-finding projects
the game departments are obtaining information with which to
manage better their wildlife resources.
After more than 10 years of urging by State technicians employed
on Federal-aid investigational projects, the Wisconsin Conservation
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 297
Department was finally able to overcome public opposition to a huntting
season on doe deer. In 1950 a hunter could take any kind of
deer, and a computed harvest of 167,911 was recorded. Subsequent
surveys revealed that the population was not reduced enough to bring
about the desired restoration of depleted deer habitat. West Virginia
was also successful in lifting the ban on does in certain sections of
the State, and during the 1951 season the entire State will be open
for deer shooting; without restrictions on sex or age of animals to be
harvested. It has definitely been established that better deer management
is being practiced in those States where either sex can be
harvested than where bucks only are legal game.
The ruffed grouse is famous as a cyclic species, and for years the
theory was advanced that hunting should be prohibited during years
of low population, so as to protect the remnants. An analysis of
10 years of hunting results, in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota,
by Michigan technicians showed that closed seasons apparently have
little influence on population recovery. Despite an interval of several
closed seasons, the population rise in both Minnesota and Wisconsin
did not appear to be significantly different from that of Michigan,
where the season remained open continuously throughout the whole
cycle. If Michigan had closed the season from 1945 to 1947 as Wisconsin
did, sportsmen of the State would have lost an estimated 2
million hours of healthful outdoor recreation and a game bag of half
a million birds.
Little data have been available on the migrational habits and production
of waterfowl on the Alaska breeding grounds. Facts are
being accumulated as a result of Federal-aid activities. During the
summer of 1950, 4,738 ducks and geese were banded in the Territory,
a tremendous achievement in view of travel and weather obstacles
peculiar to the area. The information resulting from this effort is
paving the way to a much better understanding of the movements and
management of water fowl in the Pacific and Central Flyways.
During the year, 375 State publications depicting the wide range
of research accomplishments under this program were released for
public consumption.
Table 2.—Summary of penalties imposed during the year for violations of
wildlife conservation laws, 1950—51
Act Convictions
Fines and
costs
Migratory Bird Treaty Act_____________________________________________________
Migratory Bird Conservation Act______________________________________________
Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act____________________________________________
Lacey Act___________________________________ ,_________________________________■_
State prosecution from Lacey Act investigations (furs)__________________________
Cooperative prosecutions in State courts________________________ ________________
580
37
48
6
30
3,383
$24, 549.00
2,020.00
1,512.00
3, 000.00
422.65
98,748.50
Total______________________________________ ______________________________ 4, 084 130. 252.15
298 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Table 3.—Cases of violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, disposed of
during the year, and cases still pending on June 30, 1951
Disposition Number Pending Number
Convictions___________________________
Not guilty____________________________
Dismissal_____________________________
Nol-pros...___________________________
Closed without prosecution___________
Total______________________ ____
580
56
19
22
15
From preceding year_________________
New cases____________________________
Total__________________________
Disposed of during year______________
Pending at end of year_______________
395
680
1,075
692
383
692
A reduction is indicated in the number of Migratory Bird Treaty
Act cases reported for Federal prosecution. In addition 1945 cases
obtained by Federal agents or in cooperation with State game law enforcement
officers relating to the illegal taking of migratory birds in
violation of both Federal and State laws were disposed of in State
courts.
RESEARCH IN WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT
The 1950 waterfowl breeding ground surveys indicated that water
fowl production was up for the Central Flyway, down for the Mississippi
and Pacific Flyways, and about the same for the Atlantic Flyway.
Waterfowl hunting season investigations indicated the hunters’
harvest to be about 17 percent below that of 1949-50. The average
hunter went afield about 7 times during the season and bagged about
10 ducks, 0.4 geese, and 0.6 coots. The 1951 inventory of North American
waterfowl indicated upward trends in the wintering populations
of both ducks and geese.
The cooperative wildlife research unit program, in which the Service
participates with the Wildlife Management Institute, the landgrant
colleges, and State conservation departments, was expanded by
the establishment of the Arizona unit, bringing to 17 the number of
these cooperative projects. The program facilitates the training of
wildlife personnel, conducts research, promotes education, and provides
technical assistance to conservation agencies. During the school
year of 1950, more than 300 wildlife students were graduated from
Unit schools. Approximately 160 wildlife publications appeared
during the year under the authorship of unit personnel. The Federal
expenditure of $123,000 for the unit program was matched by several
times this amount in State and private funds, supplies, and manpower.
The introduction of desert-bred game birds from the Middle East
to similar localities in this country where native species are depleted is
approaching realization. In 1950, Dr. Gardiner Bump, the Service’s
foreign game-bird specialist, spent 6 months in the desert and mountain
country of Turkey, Iran, and Iraq investigating and collecting deANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 299
sirable species which, would not be destructive to crops or native American
birds. In studying these species through 18,000 miles of travel by
jeep, particular attention was paid to habitats, food, general characteristics,
ability to withstand predation, susceptibility to disease, relation
to agriculture, and potentialities for providing good hunting.
During this time he found four species—chukar, “seesee” or sand partridge,
black partridge or francolin, and oriental sand grouse—worth
a trial introduction in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. Small shipments
have already been made. In 1951 much larger numbers are to
be trapped by Dr. Bump and shipped for liberation on carefully
selected and controlled test areas, chosen in cooperation with the game
departments of each State. Selection of these sites was based on similarity
of topography, water quantity, climate, and food supply to those
of countries in which the birds now live. The Fish and Wildlife Service,
the Wildlife Management Institute, and the State game commissions
will work under a cooperative agreement insuring close scientific
control for the new inhabitants. In this way the importation of
foreign game birds is more likely to succeed than other large-scale
attempts in the past that lacked adequate biological research and
proper habitat investigation.
The section of Biological Surveys cooperated with other institutions,
some of which have originated projects with the Office of Naval
Research, by use of the Service study collections. Such work inolved,
in part, identification of mammals of economic importance, their distributional
spread, and their effect on public health.
At the Patuxent Research Refuge in Maryland, in collaboration
with the Bureau of Animal Industry, a study is being conducted on
parasites and other disease factors of Canada geese as they affect the
wintering population at the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge in
North Carolina. The disease laboratory of the Refuge has prepared
a review of the current status of trichomoniasis, a disease of the throat
of mourning doves which has caused extensive losses in southeastern
States. Further studies are in progress. A successful investigation
on waterfowl habitat development involved Federal and State cooperation
on a weed-control project in a Delaware marsh area. More than
100 test plots were established to ascertain the most effective agents
and the best time for controlling two important pest plants—Hibiscus
and Phragmites. Encouraged by results in the small-scale tests, the
State of Delaware is now planning a large-scale attack on these undesirable
marsh plants. The resulting information, to be summarized
in a bulletin with other aquatic-weed-control knowledge, will be a
valuable guide to the improvement of marshes in many places.
Continued studies on repellent chemicals for reducing economic
losses from rodent attacks upon stored commodities have resulted in
300 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
the selection of several promising materials as additives to the glue
lines, as surface coats, and in plastic films. Preliminary trials have
shown that rodent damage can be prevented for periods of several
months, and final evaluation studies are in progress. Two of the more
active protective materials were developed in the chemical laboratory
at the Patuxent Refuge.
A method has been developed for the eradication of Japanese honeysuckle
from plantings of bicolor lespedeza, a leguminous shrub extensively
used in quail management. Cultural methods have been improved
and demonstrated by which a stockproof fence of multiflora
rose can be grown in 3 years, even on extremely poor sites. Rugosa
rose, a native American species, is being tested for use as an attractive
farm hedge, and various planting patterns of other deciduous shrubs
are being observed for their value as wildlife cover. Simplified
methods for maintenance and the increase of seed production in bicolor
field borders and food strips for quail are being developed in cooperative
work with the regional office of the Soil Conservation Service in
the Southeast. Managers and owners of 12 quail preserves are cooperating
in a program for the improvement of habitat-management
measures for this species.
Studies on the nutritional requirements of quail and pheasants are
being continued and an up-to-date book on the pheasant is being compiled
for publication by the Wildlife Management Institute. An
ecological investigation of the pheasant has been established for a
determination of regional limitations and requirements.
Hazards to wildlife which may be involved in widespread and
increasing mosquito abatement programs are the subject of many
inquiries received by this Service. A 2-year study of salt-marsh
spraying with DDT was made by research personnel at the Brigantine
Wildlife Refuge near Atlantic City, N. J. Results indicated that
dosages now in use may be harmful to fish, blue crabs, fiddler crabs,
and other invertebrates that are important foods for fish and ducks,
rails, and other birds. The only commercial species studied, the blue
crab, was temporarily eliminated or greatly reduced by dosages of
1 to 1.5 pounds of DDT per acre. At lower concentrations less mortality
resulted. The work indicates the need for moderation and
supervision of such control programs.
Studies also were made at Princeton, N. J., on the effects on wildlife
of heavy application of DDT now being used for control of the
beetles carrying Dutch elm disease. Tests resulted in relatively heavy
mortality to birds and indicated modifications of technique by which
immediate losses can be reduced. Long-term effects of DDT residue
cannot yet be measured.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 301
Nine biologists of the section of Wildlife Investigations on Public
Lands were active on 27 projects of Southern, Midwestern, and Western
public lands. These investigations center on difficult problems,
long-range in nature, with solutions widely applicable in public-land
management. Division of projects is as follows: 8 concern the ecology
of deer—their place in forestry, range management, and as a game
species; 14 involve study of damage to forest and range by small
animals—deer mice, snowshoe hares, porcupines, and pocket gophers;
and 3 pertain to game-bird ecology and management. Regular periodic
reports make results available to public agencies.
The section of Wild Fur Animal Investigations, in cooperation with
the States, assembles and publishes each year Wildlife Leaflet No. 315,
Annual Fur Catch of the United States, and No. 326, Abstract of Fur
Laws. Further information has been obtained on the size of the furseal
herd and the number of seals migrating to Japanese waters, and
cooperative investigations of management methods for fur animals in
Louisiana and other Southern States are progressing. With the exception
of muskrats, most fur-animal populations are increasing.
RIVER BASIN DEVELOPMENT AND WILDLIFE NEEDS
During 1951 the Office of River Basin Studies completed and released
approximately 180 reports on development projects planned
by other Federal agencies or private interests under Federal permit.
Of this total about 84 were on Corps of Engineer projects, 37 on Bureau
of Reclamation projects, 8 on Soil Conservation Service projects,
50 on private water-power projects licensed by the Federal Power
Commission, and one was prepared jointly with the Bureau of Reclamation
on a special area related to a project operated by that agency.
These reports contain recommendations which, if adopted, will result
in the prevention of considerable damage to fish and wildlife and
the improvement of these resources in many cases.
A couple of the projects are worth particular mention. One is the
joint report issued by the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau
of Reclamation on a portion of the Central Valley project in California.
This report, prepared in cooperation with the California
Division of Fish and Game, marked the conclusion of a comprehensive
study of the relationship of waterfowl in the lower San Joaquin Valley
to the Grasslands and the Central Valley project. Purchase of
floodwater rights to 98,234 acres of the grasslands on the west side of
the San Joaquin River by the Federal Government for Central Valley
project purposes threatens a significant portion of the waterfowl habitat
in the lower valley. In order to prevent much of this loss, the
report recommended that, as an added feature of the project, there
302 4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
be developed (1) a water supply for supplementing rights on the existing
Los Banos State Waterfowl Refuge, (2) a proposed enlargement
of that refuge, and (3) a proposed Federal waterfowl-management
area. It further recommended’that return flows and underground
water be developed to perpetuate the private grassland area as waterfowl
habitat. This would be accomplished by the land owners
through an organized water-use district.
Another project of particular concern to the Service is the Bureau
of Reclamation Project for River Control Operations on the Colorado
River between Needles and Topock, in California and Arizona.
Channel dredging and straightening operations together with levee
construction have closed off secondary channels supplying water to extensive
marsh areas of the Havasu Lake National Wildlife Refuge.
This refuge is considered essential to the maintenance of waterfowl
populations within the Lower Colorado River Valley. The Service
conducted an investigation of this project and released its report in
July 1950. On the basis of its recommendations, the Department has
approved plans for the restoration of damaged portions of the refuge
and the construction of additional levees and other facilities to improve
the value of the refuge to water fowl.
The wildlife habitat development program in the Missouri River
Basin advanced during the year. Work was begun on developments
at Heart Butte Reservoir in North Dakota, Shadehill Reservoir in
South Dakota, and Bonny Reservoir in Colorado. Work was continued
on previously initiated developments at Angostura Reservoir
in South Dakota, Medicine Creek Reservoir in Nebraska, and Enders
Reservoir in Nebraska. These are located on lands adjacent to Federal
reservoirs and are used to replace wildlife habitat destroyed by
the reservoirs or to improve the conditions for wildlife.
Work was initiated on two new basin-wide surveys. The first is
concerned with the Arkansas-Red-White River Basins and the second
with a similar survey of the New York-New England area. The
President requested the appropriate Federal agencies to conduct these
surveys in cooperation with the area States to develop comprehensive
plans for multiple-purpose water-resources development.
A new section of Drainage Liaison was created in the Office of
River Basin Studies on July 1, 1950, to work with all public agencies
having land-drainage programs which may affect wildlife. Its main
objectives are to (1) delineate the wet areas of the United States;
(2) classify these areas as wildlife habitat; and (3) evaluate the lands
for wildlife use. Upon completion this will provide an inventory of
remaining wet lands in the United States with their value to wildlife.
Investigations are already under way in North Dakota, South
Dakota, and Minnesota to determine the relative value of various
types of “potholes” and other small water areas for wildlife. The potholes
region of these States is used extensively by waterfowl as a
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 303
breeding ground. The drainage of these potholes, implemented by
Government subsidies, has been severely criticized by wildlife
conservationists.
life and agricultural values, (3) the damage that will accrue to wjld-
A cooperative field study has been inaugurated jointly with the
Soil Conservation Service in the Gulf Coast Soil Conservation District
in Louisiana to determine (1) the type of wet lands, (2) their wildlife
from drainage for agricultural purposes, and (4) possible development
and improvement of these lands to produce a wildlife crop.
This section of Louisiana is highly important for wintering waterfowl
as well as for muskrats.
ADMINISTRATION OF FEDERAL STATUTES FOR PROTECTION
OF FISH AND WILDLIFE
During the fiscal year 1951,21 new United States game-management
agents were selected for appointment from United States Civil Service
registers. Most of these men saw action in World War II and all
but one had been employed by State fish and game departments for
some years before joining the Fish and Wildlife Service. At the
present time the field force numbers 100 men.
Increased manpower permitted the temporary assignment of additional
agents to areas in immediate need of attention. In the States
in which migratory birds threatened agricultural crops, Service personnel
utilized aircraft, pyrotechnics, electric beacons, and other devices
to aid in the dispersal and, where necessary, issued permits to
landowners to herd, disperse, or kill depredating birds.
Special enforcement crews were temporarily assigned to several
States in which serious violations of the Federal conservation laws
and regulations were occurring. The crews utilized the services of
game-management agent-pilots, two-way radio communication, and
other special equipment. In most instances radios were tied into
State fish and game department networks.
Organized groups of game-law violators who are engaged in illegal
traffic in game for profit use automobiles, trucks, fast boats, and in
some instances aircraft. To detect and apprehend these market
hunters, the Service has recently developed an efficient air-ground
communication system whereby agent-pilots keep in constant touch
with ground crews and direct them, with a minimum of delay, to
individuals who are observed to be in violation. Areas formerly
notorious for game-law violations are now being rigidly patrolled.
Eight agents were temporarily assigned to assist in the enforcement
of commercial fishing regulations in Alaska. During the spring
several Alaska agents were detailed to work on the Pacific flyway.
304 > ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The program was intensified on the Pacific coast to enforce both
the sockeye salmon and halibut regulations. Service personnel
equipped with a twin-engine flying boat, as well as seagoing vessels,
inspected fishing craft and apprehended a number of individuals
found in violation. This particular program, as is true of most
engaged in by the Service, was coordinated with State enforcement
activities.
Some of the outstanding violations during the year were the following
: The manager of a west coast fish company who was charged
with receiving and illegally possessing over 19,000 pounds of halibut
entered a plea of guilty in Federal court at Seattle, Wash., on November
22,1950, and was fined $1,000. The seized fish were sold at auction .
for $4,387.
Twelve prosecutions for the taking of sockeye salmon during the
closed season contrary to the regulations of the International Pacific
Salmon Fisheries Commission and the State of Washington were
concluded in State court at Friday Harbor, Wash., during August
1950, by pleas of guilty. Fines and costs totaling $1,124 were imposed.
For using an airplane to circle and spot big game in the open season
contrary to regulations under the Alaska Game law, an offender was
fined $300. The plane was seized, libel proceedings filed, and the
court ordered the plane to be forfeited to the Government.
Two persons who possessed beaver skins contrary to the game laws
of Washington and who offered to sell them to Federal agents were
prosecuted in a Washington State court on March 12,1951, entered not
guilty pleas, and were adjudged guilty on each of two counts. Each
defendant was fined $1,000 and also given a 90-day jail sentence. The
jail sentence and half of the fine were suspended in each case.
COOPERATIVE CONTROL OF PREDATORS AND RODENTS
Several forms of wild animals are at times so destructive to resources
essential for man’s economic welfare that their local control is necessary.
Selective methods for their removal have been developed by the
Service as a result of extensive research and long experience in managing
wildlife populations. Although facilities were not available in
1951 for expanding such control operations, results from the work were
further improved through greater efficiency of methods and the teaching
of these techniques to the public by means of demonstrations, extension-
type technical-guidance projects, and Service-supervised
programs.
A new rat and mouse poison, known as warfarin, was one of the
most spectacular contributions to improved control methods during
the past year. This chemical is less hazardous to human beings and
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 305
domestic animals than most other commonly used rodenticides and is
equal or superior to them from the standpoint of effectiveness. Its
introduction and widespread use were accomplished through prompt
and effective cooperation of county agricultural agents, newspaper
and magazine publicity, and issuance of a Service leaflet which
describes methods for proper application. The leaflet was widely
distributed throughout the United States and to many foreign countries
in response to thousands of inquiries. As a result of this prompt
conversion of scientific knowledge into practical information, unusually
rapid progress was made in introducing the chemical. It now
promises to be an effective means for materially reducing tremendous
losses caused by rats and mice to foods and feeds. Technical aid was
also given to manufacturers of warfarin rodent bait formulations. In
this field the work was closely integrated with that of the Department
of Agriculture, which enforces compounding and labeling requirements
for rodenticides. Through unified effort of the two Government
agencies, it was possible to aid manufacturers in rapidly placing large
quantities of effective products on the market.
Further progress was made during the year in attaining greater
selectivity of methods for predator control. Investigations in Colorado,
Wyoming, and Idaho resulted in improved techniques for controlling
coyotes by means of Compound 1080 without danger to valuable
fur animals. In practically all cases it proved unnecessary to
carry control operations directly into the principal habitats of fur
animals. For example: Colorado statistics showed that 97.6 percent
of the commercial fur catch was made in relatively small areas which
comprise not more than 19.7 percent of the land area within the State.
Coyotes frequenting many of these localities were removed by placing
lethal stations on portions of their range in adjoining areas where
fur bearing animals were not present.
A number of valuable game herds, particularly antelope, have been
saved from heavy losses by improved use of 1080 to reduce predation.
Investigations of the Arizona Game and Fish Commission revealed
that coyote-control programs resulted in antelope fawn crops as great
as 96 percent (the highest ever recorded in the State) as contrasted
with survivals as low as 21 percent in areas where depredation was
not controlled. Comparable benefits from predator control are reported
by game managers and sportsmen with respct to big-game
animals in several other Western States.
The outstanding accomplishments in conserving game are matched
by even more spectacular results in the protection of domestic livestock.
Before the use of modern methods of predator control it was
generally accepted that sheepmen of the western ranges would sustain
sheep and lamb losses of from 5 to 15 percent. During the past year
306 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
members of sheep and cattle associations have stated that depredations
are at an all-time low; many livestock raisers reported no losses.
Direct savings of meat and wool can be conservatively estimated, under
current price levels, at over 40 million dollars a year. There have
also been indirect benefits through a decided decrease in the amount
of manpower required to guard and handle the livestock, and through
proper use of the range by animals that can be left free to spread out
and graze. The relief from predator pressure has, for the first time,
permitted extensive adoption of range sheep management under fence
rather than under the usual herding system. Results have also been
particularly gratifying to cattle raisers in the Sandhills section of
Nebraska. In this area a single 1080 station accounted for 28 coyotes
within a 5-week period.
The control of wolves and coyotes on certain game and reindeer
ranges in Alaska was continued. As a result, the Nelchina herd of
caribou has shown a decided increase in numbers. Indian owners
of reindeer report similar benefits from the prompt and effective control
of wolves by airplane hunters of the Service. Special predatorcontrol
methods, often time-consuming, are necessary in order to
guard against damage to valuable fur resources in the area. Although
little or no livestock aside from reindeer is jeopardized in Alaska,
conservation of game resources has a more direct economic bearing
than in the States. Many natives and other residents are dependent
upon game for their existence, and hunting is also one of the few
forms of recreation available to Armed Services personnel in that
Territory.
Since facilities were not available for direct participation on the
scale requested by the public, the Service has given more attention
to educational extension programs in control methods for certain
species, particularly in the eastern United States. For example, a
rat-control conference was held in Baltimore in October 1950 in cooperation
with city, county, and State officials. Key men from communities
and organizations in 21 States participated and were thus
better prepared to conduct rat-control programs in their own communities.
Representatives of the Service participated directly in local
demonstrations and schools in many communities. Methods for con-,
trolling animal pests in Utah and Idaho were shown in cooperation
with the Union Pacific Railroad, which furnished a demonstration
car for this purpose. Similar educational exhibits were displayed
at a number of county and State fairs, and at conventions of trade
associations.
Recognition of the Service as an authority in mammal-control techniques
continued to attract increased international attention, and
inquiries for technical information have been answered from many
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 307
areas outside the United States, including Costa Rica, Guam, Puerto
Rico, France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Israel, Burma, the Philippines,
and India. A short course on rodent control was also given
to a conference of agricultural missionaries, held in Washington,
D. C. Representatives of the Service made short visits to Saskatchewan,
Canada, and to Sonora and Chihuahua, Mexico, to demonstrate
predator-control methods at the request of the respective governments.
The Mexican activity was a continuation of previously
conducted work arranged through the Pan American Sanitary Bureau
as an aid in guarding against rabies epidemics along the international
boundary.
Operations for the suppression of rabies among wild animals within
the United States were carried out in San Diego County, Calif., and
in local outbreaks in Arkansas, east Texas, Georgia, Alabama, North
Dakota, and Montana. Most of these related to rabies among foxes,
but coyotes were also involved in the San Diego County suppression
program, and skunks were locally controlled in North Dakota and
Montana.
It became evident early in 1951 that large amounts of natural resources,
particularly range forage, were being lost through depredations
by rodents on public and Indian lands. Increased operating
costs during the past 5 years have made it necessary to reduce the
work on public lands where cooperative funds to do the work were
not generally available. When officials of the Indian Service, the Forest
Service, and the Bureau of Land Management became acutely conscious
of the large amount of range forage that was being diverted
from the production of meat and wool through the ravages of ground
squirrels, gophers, and prairie dogs, the three agencies joined the Fish
and Wildlife Service in a quick survey of the extent of such damage.
The results show that some 19 million acres of public and Indian lands
require rodent control to conserve properly range and forest resources.
The study indicates that 250,000 head of additional cattle could be
grazed on public ranges if destructive rodents were eliminated.
The recorded catch of predatory animals included 60,445 coyotes,
1,378 wolves, 13,343 bobcats and lynxes, 733 stock-killing bears, and
229 mountain lions. In rodent-control operations 10,995,464 acres
of land were treated for the elimination of prairie dogs, ground
squirrels, pocket gophers, jack rabbits, field mice, cotton rats, kangaroo
rats, porcupines, woodchucks, and moles. In addtion 563,300
premises were treated in cooperative campaigns for the control of
house rats. Special equipment and supplies used in predator and
rodent control, and 342,415 pounds of rodent bait were distributed
to cooperators throughout the country by the supply depot at
Pocatello, Idaho.
308 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
THE NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE PROGRAM
The importance of the national wildlife refuge system as a major
factor in safeguarding an adequate breeding stock of migratory waterfowl
and certain big-game animals is constantly challenged by demands
to use these lands for other purposes.
Requests for use of refuge lands for national defense, while not
so extensive as during World War II, have encompassed many of the
same needs. Airfields, gunnery ranges, and bombing targets have
been located on refuge lands, particularly in the West, where extensive
Federal ownership precludes the need for additional purchase.
This Service has approved requests, particularly for gunnery ranges,
where there is reasonable assurance that wildlife populations will be
undisturbed and undamaged, where satisfactory arrangements are
made for fire protection, and finally, where relinquishment of such
use is specified.
Military use of lands has been opposed when complete exclusion of
refuge personnel is required for periods of several days. The inability
to maintain water-control structures, patrol against trespass,
guard against fire, and control predators can offset refuge gains of
several years. The interruption of research may nullify studies undertaken
over several seasons.
Another threat to existing refuges is the increasing demand for
public shooting grounds. Protection, coupled with other forms of
management which increase food and cover and otherwise improve
environment, brings about a growing concentration of birds on the
refuges. This naturally results in pressure to open refuges for public
hunting. Where areas were large enough and the supply of birds
was considered sufficient to permit hunting, portions of 17 refuges
were opened.
Demands for public hunting have resulted in the evolution of a
more flexible type of project, namely, the waterfowl managementrefuge
area, now being used with such success in Missouri, California,
Wisconsin, and other States. Under this type of project, development
and operation are carried out jointly by the State and the Federal
Government. The State manages the public shooting portion and the
Service the refuge. Projects of this sort encourage the States to
participate in waterfowl management.
On the Horicon National Wildlife Refuge in Wisconsin, the 21,500
acres in Federal ownership have been matched by a comparable purchase
by the State. The same is true of the Mingo National Wildlife
Refuge in Missouri, and of the new Stillwater Wildlife Management
Area in Nevada. In California, under the Lea Act, a joint endeavor
of the Service and the State of California, State acquisitions have
augmented the Federal refuges and in most instances are not contiguous.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 309
Amendment of the Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act in 1949, increasing
the cost of the “duck stamp” from $1 to $2, has provided
additional funds for refuge acquisition, development, and operations.
These funds were available for the first time during the 1951 fiscal
vear. This increased income has permitted the resumption or undertaking
of important engineering developments which had been previously
deferred.
On the 39,000-acre Necedah National Wildlife Refuge, in central
Wisconsin, the Sprague-Mather pool was completed which will create
a 3,000-acre impoundment to furnish a summer water supply for the
Rynearson pools. The restoration of the 21,500-acre Mingo National
Wildlife Refuge is southeastern Missouri was begun this year after
having been deferred for some time. Water controls, including the
gate structure and spillway, are being built. With the completion
of the levees in 1952, restoration of this famous marsh will be accomplished.
Fresh-water pools, in a normally salt-water environment,
have been completed on the 6,500-acre Parker River National Wildlife
Refuge in Massachusetts and are under construction on the 7,000-acre
Willapa National Wildlife Refuge in Washington. The building of
a water-control structure on the 15,000-acre Rice Lake National Wildlife
Refuge in eastern Minnesota has now been started—a project
which had been postponed for several years. It will create an additional
marsh area.
The cooperative development with the State of Stillwater wildlife
management area in western Nevada will provide marshes and ponds
of nearly 30,000 acres. Approximately 10,000 acres are managed as
a Federal refuge. The water impoundment program, now under way,
includes the construction of canals, ditches, and .water-control structures.
Another important restoration on which development has continued
is the 21,500-acre Horicon National Wildlife Refuge in central
Wisconsin. The dam and controls are expected to be completed in
1952 and permit regulation of water levels. The dragline work on
the 142,000-acre Sabine National Wildlife Refuge in Louisiana has
continued for some time, but during the past year this work was accelerated
in order that the 24,000-acre fresh-water pool may be pushed
to completion. Work on the control structure is under way.
Control gates have been replaced at a number of points on the
65,000-acre Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in Utah. These concrete
structures are replacing wooden gates built as early as 1932.
Water from the Bear River is distributed by canals, which lead off
across the marshes, delivering the limited supply of water to the higher
ground and to the various marsh areas on the refuge. Nearly 40
miles of earthen dikes with gravel beach lines, most of them topped
with roadways, divide the refuge into five impoundments, each com310
+ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
prising about 5,000 acres. The dikes exclude the salty waters of the
lake and impound fresh water from the river. They have also brought
about the drying of shallow waters and mud flats beyond the dikes
areas which w’ere centers for outbreaks of botulism. Similar problems
of fresh-water conservation have been developed on the 31,000-acre Salt
Plains National Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma by constructing a check
dam to divert Salt Creek.
The 3-year construction program on the 24,000-acre Lower Klamath
National Wildlife Refuge on the Oregon-California line has been
aided by duck-stamp funds and is ahead of schedule. Dikes, water
controls, and ditches for handling excess waters are being built.
In southern California dragline work continues on the 39,000-acre
Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge. Similar work is under way
on the 24,000-acre Bitter Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in New
Mexico, and the 39,000-acre Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife
Refuge in southern Texas. The construction or rebuilding of channels
is under way on the 9,000-acre Reelfoot National Wildlife Refuge
in Tennessee, and the 7,000-acre Squaw Creek National Wildlife
Refuge in Missouri.
Water control on the 162,000-acre Malheur National Wildlife Refuge
in southeastern Oregon, in both the Blitzen Valley and the “Double-
O” unit, will provide an improved area for the trumpeter swans
which were established here by transferring young birds from the Red
Rock Lakes Migratory Bird Refuge in Montana. A water control
and dikes were constructed on the 15,500-acre Bowdoin National
Wildlife Refuge to create a new unit. Work on the 58,000-acre
Lower Souris National Wildlife Refuge, the 23,000-acre Long Lake
National Wildlife Refuge, and on several easement refuges in North
Dakota was done to repair damage from the 1950 flood in the Red
River Valley and other parts of the State. Similar damage was repaired
on the 21,500-acre Sand Lake National Wildlife Refuge in
South Dakota and on the 61,000-acre Mud Lake National Wildlife
Refuge in Minnesota.
On the 94,000-acre Seney National Wildlife Refuge, located on
the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, repairs were made to dikes and
wooden water-control structures were replaced. Another unit is being
developed on the 14,000-acre Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge
in Delaware, while fresh-water pools are being developed by diking
on the 9,000-acre Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge on the Eastern
Shore of Virginia and Maryland.
Biological development on existing and new refuges has been
aided by duck-stamp funds, and by new techniques in control of pest
plants and undesirable animals. Some progress is being made in
studies of wildlife diseases, particularly botulism, while fowl cholera
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 311
and lead poisoning continue to cause heavy annual losses. An unusual
mortality occurred among the sea otter on the Aleutian Islands
National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska after several years of very
encouraging increases.
Herds of buffalo, elk, deer, and long-horned cattle continued in
healthy condition on the four fenced big-game preserves. The number
of buffalo on these preserves constitutes about one-fourth of the total
United States population. Owing to drought condition on the National
Bison Range in Montana, disposition of 166 of these animals
was completed during the fall of 1950. At the same time, 445 mule
deer were live-trapped and donated to the Flathead Indians for use in
restocking their lands. There are nearly 400 long-horned catttle on
the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma and on the Fort
Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge in Nebraska.
LAND ACQUISITION
The acquisition of two important additions to the national migratory
waterfowl refuge program was initiated during the year. In
Florida an agreement was reached with the Central and Southern
Florida Flood Control District whereby there would be made available
to the Fish and Wildlife Service approximately 100,000 acres of
land in water conservation area No. 1, in Palm Beach County. This
area, comprised of ponds, sloughs, and marshes with interspersed
hammocks, will be an important addition to the wintering areas for
waterfowl.
Under the California wuldlife-management program, a contract has
been entered into for the purchase of 2,550 acres of land in the San
Joaquin Valley. This tract, located in Merced County, will provide a
feeding area for migratory waterfowl and will aid in the reduction of
crop depredation on nearby agricultural lands. Approximately 700
acres of the total area have been leveled and placed in agricultural
production to supplement the food supply for waterfowl. All or
part of the area will be open to public hunting when the size of the
waterfowl population warrants such action.
Negotiations are under way with the Corps of Engineers, Department
of the Army, to make available for the management of wildlife,
both by the several States and by the Fish and Wildlife Service, areas
of land and water acquired by the Department of the Army for flood
control or navigation purposes. The most important areas presently
being considered are the Harlan County Reservoir in Nebraska, the
Enid Reservoir in Mississippi, and the lands along the Mississippi
River in the States of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Missouri, Iowa, and
Illinois.
973649—52------ 23
312 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The status of lands acquired and in process of acquisition for wildlife
conservation purposes is shown in table No. 4.
Table 4.—Acreage acquired or in process of acquisition for wildlife conservation
purposes under the Migratory Bird Conservation Act by exchange and
other acts of Congress, July 1, 1950—May 31,1951
State Refuge
Acquired
other than
by purchase
Purchased Total
acquired
Pending
title conveyance
Alaska___________________ Lake Hood_______________ 17 17 —
Arizona___________________ Cabeza Prieta____________ 1
Do___________________ Kofa_____________________ 1 1
2,550
7,103
California------------------------- Merced------------- ---------------
Florida___________________ Chassahowitzka__________ 2,786 2,786
Do___________________ Loxahatches______________
959 959
560
Georgia___________________ Blackbeard Island_______
Do___________________ Piedmont________________ 2, 083 2, 083 242
Idaho____________________ Deer Flat________________ 74
Iowa_____________________ Union Slough____________ — 34
Do___________________ Upper Mississippi------------ 2 2
Kentucky________________ Kentucky Woodlands------ 23 99 122 86
Maine_______________ Moosehorn_______________ 198
Maryland------------------------- Blackwater______________ 417
Minnesota________________ Rice Lake__________ ______ 46
Do___________________ Tamarac_________________ 2 2 —
Do___________________ Upper Mississippi________ 57
Mississippi------------------------ Noxubee_________________
818 818
1, 216
Missouri__________________ Mingo___________________ 90
Do___________________ Swan Lake...----- - ------------
2,560 2,560
88
Nebraska_________________ Crescent Lake____________
120
—
Do------- —----------------- Valentine________________ 984 1, 104 —
New Jersey_______________ Brigantine._______________
963 963
795
New Mexico_____________ Bosque del Apache-----------
New York________________ Wertheim________________ 11 11 8
North Dakota____________ Lake Zahl------------------------- 640 640 745
Do___________________ Lower Souris_____________
5
2
Do___________________ Upper Souris_____________ 5
Oklahoma________________ Salt Plains________ _______ 549 549 80
Oregon____________ _______ Malheur __________________ 4, 298
South Carolina----------------- Carolina Sandhills-----------
135 135
50
Vermont_________________ Missisquoi_______________
Virginia__________________ Chincoteague____________ 151
Washington______________ Lenore Lake_____________ 55 55
Do___________________ Little Pend Oreille----------- 119 119 1,042
Do___________________ Turnbull____________'------- 1,192
Do___________________ Willapa__________________ 228
Wisconsin________________ Horicon__________________ 107 947 1,054 133
Do___________________ Upper Mississippi________ 133
Total_______________ ----------------------------------------- 3,483 10, 502 13,985 21,619
National Park
Service
Arthur E. Demaray, Director
IN THE YEAR JUST ENDED more persons than
ever before have sought the enjoyment—the re-creation of body and
mind and spirit—which is offered by the most striking examples of
the American natural scene and by those acres of land and those structures
which are most significant in the human history of our United
States. We who are charged with protecting these possessions and
making them serve the desires and the needs of Americans in the best
and most satisfying fashion carry in our hearts the deep conviction
that their service is one of profound value; that, in times when our
fundamental beliefs are challenged and threats to the peace of the
world hang over us, they help to strengthen our loyalty to and love of
our country and our will to defend it courageously and unselfishly.
Upon us in the National Park Service rests the obligation on the one
hand to defend them against destructive encroachment and on the
other to seek constantly for ways in which to make them serve their
fundamental purposes better.
The National Park System is only a part—but a tremendously important
part—of this country’s provision of places and facilities in
which its people may make pleasant and beneficial use of their leisure
time. An important corollary responsibility of the National Park
Service is to act, to the extent that it can, as a sort of catalyst in bringing
about better planned and better distributed systems of parks and
recreational areas throughout the United States. Its responsibilities
in this respect have grown steadily in extent and importance during
the past two decades; it will continue to meet them as best it can,
both to provide for genuine needs and in the interest of greater economy
in meeting them.
In the National Park Service we have turned our attention particularly
to the way in which the National Park System can best
serve those who wear the uniform of the Armed Forces of the United
States, many thousands of whom have had to be separated from homes
and families and the normal routines of business and social life.
313
314 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Many of them will have opportunities that would not otherwise
have come to them to visit the great places of nature and of history that
have been set aside for their enjoyment and, through acquaintance with
them, perhaps to acquire a greater love of and admiration for the
country they are called upon to defend.
As a helpful first step, Secretary Chapman approved a recommendation
of the Director that, as during World War II, all fees
be remitted for men and women in uniform. Further, through the establishment
of an effective liaison with representatives of Army, Navy,
and Air Force here in Washington, and by supplying them with
printed material, the opportunities offered by the parks have been
brought to the attention of all commands and field stations, with a
warm invitation to make use of them. At the same time, our superintendents
have been instructed to study carefully all possibilities for
individual or group use that might be made of the areas they administer
by men and women in uniform.
In the year just ended, there have been a number of significant developments
within the System, of which the most important was the
transfer of administrative responsibility for Independence Hall, with
its Liberty Bell, and its associated structures to the National Park
Service. That is a responsibility which the Service has accepted with
a determination to accord these priceless buildings the utmost in
protection and to encourage, in every way possible, public understanding
and use of them.
Events of the year particularly worth noting include the highly
satisfactory revision of concessions policy approved by the Department,
and agreement on standard concession contract terms; steady
progress in acquiring key inholdings; the passage of legislation consolidating
most of Jackson Hole National Monument with Grand
Teton National Park; final establishment of the George Washington
Carver and Castle Clinton National Monuments; acquisition of all
remaining private lands within Everglades National Park and much
improved law enforcement there; completion of the reorganization
of the four regional offices of the Service; and stricter control of watercontrol
investigations in the parks.
INDEPENDENCE SQUARE GROUP
The National Park Service, on January 2,1951, assumed the administration,
for the Department of the Interior, of the most important
group of historic structures in the United States. These are Independence
Hall, Congress Hall, the old City Hall, and associated structures
in Philadelphia’s Independence Square. On that day, Secretary
Chapman received the keys of Independence Hall from Mayor
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 315
Bernard Samuel of Philadelphia, to mark the formal transfer of the
buildings from city to Federal administration. These structures,
birthplace of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution
of the United States, and the seat of government during much of the
American Revolution and in the period 1790-1800, will remain the
property of the city of Philadelphia. In every other way the responsibilities
of the Service are identical with those borne with respect to
the federally owned areas it administers.
In his acceptance speech, Secretary Chapman called for a rededication
to the principles of American freedom symbolized by the Independence
Hall group of buildings.
As quickly as possible after assuming administrative authority and
responsibility there, the Service launched a series of measures designed
to provide effective administration and maintenance, as w ell as to
further the larger Independence National Historical Park project.
A permanent park staff, headed by a superintendent, and including a
number of form pt custodial and administrative employees of the city
of Philadelphia, was established. This included both interpretive
and research personnel. Important renovation work—painting, replacement
of worn timbers, and the repointing of exterior brickwork—
was launched, and much of it has been accomplished. Within Independence
Hall an urgently needed program of restoring historic paintings
was carried out. To acquaint the public more thoroughly both
with the significant history of the site and with the national historical
park project required an active program of public interpretation.
This included such items as specially conducted tours for school
groups and organized parties, collaboration with the Philadelphia
public schools on a series of educational broadcasts, and the opening
of a public information center, where exhibits explain the historic
structures and the events which have taken place in them, and where
literature of many kinds is available.
The acquisition of historic properties within the projected Federal
area moved forward with the filing of a “declaration of taking” on
28 properties. Another declaration is pending on 10 additional parcels;
options have been obtained on 11 others. Secretary Chapman
has also accepted a tract of land at the Benjamin Franklin homesite,
which was donoted to the project by the city of Philadelphia. Cooperative
agreements, designed to protect two extremely important
historic structures—Christ Church and Carpenters’ Hall—against
undesirable changes in appearance, and which also permit the Service
to include them in its guide and interpretive program, were concluded
with the Vestry of Christ Church and with The Carpenters’ Co.,
owners of these properties.
316 -4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
CONCESSIONS
As was stated in last year’s report, the Department undertook a further
study of its concessions policy, since it had become apparent that
little progress was to be expected under the policy enunciated in 1948
(by former Secretary Krug). Before the end of the year, Secretary
Chapman had approved certain basic principles which, in most respects,
supported procedures which the National Park Service had
developed through three decades. The revised statement of policy,
embodying these principles, was issued last October after numerous
conferences with representatives of the concessioners and after careful
consideration of all comments and recommendations received. The
policy is generally acceptable to a majority of the concessioners, as is
the standard language for concession contracts based upon it. This
standard language, approved in March by Secretary Chapman, provides
the basis for concession contract negotiations, subject to such
modifications as any individual case may require.
Relatively minor concessions are to be covered by permit rather than
contract. After regional directors and field offices had been given a
full opportunity to review proposed standard provisions for such
permits, these were distributed to the field in the form of a general
memorandum.
The important features of the present statement of policy were summarized
briefly last year. One of the major provisions concerns franchise
fees. As a rule, these will consist of a reasonable flat charge,
lor ground rent, plus an additional amount based on percentages of
gross revenue. There is a proviso, however, that no fees will be required
(except for ground rent) unless there are current net profits
from which to pay them. In addition, the policy recognizes that
in certain situations some other basis than percentage of gross revenue
might be justified; it allows the necessary degree of flexibility to permit
this.
Concessioners’ Rates and OPS Regulations
The impact of the war in Korea has gradually made itself felt in
the operating activities of virtually all concessioners. This impact
became most acute with the issuance by the Office of Price Stabilization,
on January 26, 1951, of general ceiling price regulations. These
raised several problems as to the rates concessioners may charge. Service
approval of rates has been based on the principle that prices
should be such as to permit a fair profit; OPS regulations, on the
other hand, froze prices completely or set up formulae permitting
fluctuating prices, depending on certain costs. This difference in basic
procedure raised many difficult questions. To clear them up, the Department
has asked that National Park concessioners be exempt from
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 4- 317
the OPS regulations. The matter is now under consideration in the
Office of Price Stabilization.
Operation of Recreational Facilities in D. C.
A 5-year contract satisfactory to the Department has been negotiated
by the Service with the S. G. Loeffler Co. covering the operation
of golf courses and related facilities in the National Capital Parks.
The contract would permit the District of Columbia Recreation Board
to purchase the Loeffler property, if funds should be provided to it
for that purpose, before the end of the first 2 years of the contract
period, and to take over operation of the golf courses. A resolution
of the Recreation Board expresses appreciation for the cooperation of
the Department of the Interior and for the sincere efforts of the
Service to include in the contract provisions recommended by the
Board.
Isle Royale Transportation
The problem of assuring adequate and safe transportation across
Lake Superior to Isle Royale National Park is still unsolved. However,
the situation is at least slightly improved. Arrangements were
made with National Park Concessions, Inc., operating accommodations
in the park, also to transport park visitors on the Service’s vessel,
Ranger II. This boat, with a Coast Guard limitation of 16 paid
passengers, will operate during the season between Houghton and
Isle Royale, making 2 round trips each week. This arrangement
has met with warm approval in the communities of the Upper
Peninsula.
In Everglades National Park
Occupying temporary structures, National Park Concessions also
operated a snack bar and a gasoline service station at Coot Bay from
late December to the end of April. These facilities filled a real need
and were well received. During slightly more than 4 months of operation,
7,064 meals were served. Charter boats and skiffs, serving visitors
seeking the excellent sport fishing, also worked out of Coot Bay
under Service jurisdiction.
Glacier National Park Facilities
With its contract expiring on December 31, 1951, the Glacier Park
Co. has stated that it is not interested in seeking a 20-year renewal.
It proposes to continue operations on a year-to-year basis until such
time as it is able to dispose of its facilities for a satisfactory amount
to another concessioner. A subsidiary of the Great Northern Railway,
the company has operated in Glacier almost since the establish318
+ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
ment of the park more than 40 years ago. Its hotels, lodges, and
chalets were provided primarily to promote railway travel. In the
beginning, travelers by rail comprised almost the total patronage of
the park. Of recent years, they have amounted to only about 2 percent
of all visitors.
Audit of Concessioners9 Annual Reports
Progress in clearing the heavy backlog of concessioners’ annual
reports was seriously slowed down by the Service’s inability to hold
fiscal auditors in the grades authorized for them, in the face of opportunities
to move into higher grades in other Federal offices. Four
were so transferred during the year and only one of the vacancies
has been filled.
At the beginning of the fiscal year, 570 reports were on hand to be
audited; 215 were audited in the 12-month period, during which 157
new reports were received. The net gain was thus only 58. However,
the work performed resulted in recommendations by the auditors
for the collection of additional fees, in a substantial amount. The
total may, of course, be reduced in final settlement, since contracts
call for an administrative determination on disputed items. It does,
however, show an indication of additional revenue to be received in
the future as the result of discontinuing irregular practices and maintaining
better records. With very few exceptions, the concessioners
audited maintained adequate records and only minor technical accounting
differences were noted.
Increased Accommodations
Additional overnight accommodations, sufficient to care for a
maximum of 715 persons, are available in various areas for the summer
of 1951. Those added in Yosemite National Park will house 211
persons; those in Yellowstone, 164.
WATER-CONTROL PROJECTS AND THE PARKS
Order No. 2618, issued by Secretary Chapman, was a significant
step in protecting national parks and monuments as well as established
wilderness areas in national forests and national wildlife
refuges against water-control investigations. This order prohibits
any such investigations by Interior agencies in those several types
of areas unless specifically authorized by the Congress or given prior
written approval by the Secretary.
Though Secretary Chapman decided to recommend the construction
of the Echo Park and Split Mountain Dams as parts of the development
of the waters of the Upper Colorado, the opposition of
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 319
many conservation organizations throughout the country continues.
With the concurrence of the Secretary, the Service has continued to
supply factual information regarding the proposed dams and dam
sites to all who requested it and regardless of their attitude toward
the dams. It has similarly supplied photographs, or arranged for
them to be supplied, in response to legitimate requests, and upon the
same impartial basis. Several groups of persons, representing organizations
of standing, have visited the monument, and the Service has
assisted them to see it satisfactorily but its representatives have sedulously
avoided any attempts to rouse or strengthen opposition to the
dams.
The decision of the House Committee on Interior and Insular
Affairs to table legislation which would have authorized the Bridge
Canyon Dam, until California and Arizona resolve their differences
over allocation of Colorado River waters, defers indefinitely a project
which would have backed Colorado River waters through the
Grand Canyon National Monument and for some miles into Grand
Canyon National Park. The status of the Glacier View Dam proposal
of the Corps of Engineers, which would flood some 20,000 acres of
Glacier National Park, and of the Mining City Dam proposal, also a
Corps of Engineers project, which would affect Mammoth Cave National
Park, remain about as reported a year ago. A representative
of the Corps recently reported that several locks on the Kentucky
River would be permanently closed. These included lock No. 6, which
has already caused serious silting of the underground Echo River
within Mammoth Cave; it is hoped that the Corps may be persuaded
to leave it open and give the river a chance to cleanse the cave of silt.
Construction of the Lower Cumberland Dam and Reservoir on the
Cumberland River, if authorized, would result in occasionally flooding
part of Fort Donelson National Military Park, Tenn. It is believed,
however, that ways can be devised to avert significant damage to park
values.
DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION
The master plan has been accepted for more than two decades as the
basic planning document for development of an area in the National
Park System. Yet the 1951 fiscal year was the first in which funds
were appropriated specifically for master plan preparation.
Although nearly 300 new or revised drawings were submitted during
the year, they are only the first step in bringing the master plans up
to date after 10 years of chronic shortage of personnel. Approximately
1,000 drawings, and their supplementary development outlines,
still require revision. Some areas administered by the Service still
320 4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
have no master plans. Yet such plans, constantly adjusted to meet
current and expected trends of public use, offer the only economical
and practical method of providing an adequate program for necessary
expansion.
Communications
Adequate communications are the lifeline on which fire-fighting,
rescue work, and ordinary administrative routine largely depend. Allotments
totaling $427,269.50 were made during the year to buy and
install FM radio communications equipment. This is being set up in
Acadia, Big Bend, Everglades, Glacier, and Isle Royale National
Parks and in Death Valley, Fort Sumter, Glacier Bay, Organ Pipe
Cactus, and Fort Jefferson National Monuments. FM radio communication
has been specified by the FCC for the parks and must replace
other systems by 1953.
In order to assure itself of satisfactory performance by radio equipment,
the Service has had to establish its own radio laboratory. There,
during the past year, it “type tested” 107 pieces of equipment submitted
by manufacturers. Radio surveys were completed in 16 areas,
and plans, system drawings, and bid specifications were prepared
for 10.
Roads and Trails Under Defense Conditions
Though more than 5 years have passed since the end of World War
II, and park visitors are still harassed by road deficiencies and other
problems created by that conflict, the Service again finds itself handicapped
by limitations arising out of the current period of defense
planning and mobilization. The yearly allotment for these purposes
is scheduled to be reduced to $1,500,000 or less, though there is a reconstruction
backlog of $84,500,000. New work is estimated at
$108,500,000 for either basic development in recently established areas
or for elements necessary to expansion of existing facilities.
Parkways
As with many other Government activities during the past year,
parkways became a part of the defense program, besides serving their
usual recreational purpose. With the placing of emphasis on projects
of a defense nature, the Baltimore-Washington ParkwTay became the
major item of the program. This, considered a vital link in the defense
network of the National Capital, was authorized by Congress in
August 1950; and $3,000,000 of the $4,000,000 appropriated for parkways
was programed for it. The remaining $1,000,000 was for work
on the Blue Ridge Parkway, and for minor construction on the
Natchez Trace and Suitland Parkways. In December, another
$1,500,000 of contract authorization was made available for the
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 321
Baltimore-Washington route. No funds were available for other
authorized parkways.
During the year, 36 major road projects were either completed or
under way on the parkways, in collaboration with the Bureau of Public
Roads—15 on the Blue Ridge, 8 on the Natchez Trace, 2 on the
George Washington, 1 on the Suitland, and 10 on the Baltimore-Washington.
Major projects completed amounted to $3,632,851.63; work
to cost $7,865,596 was under construction at the end of the year. Construction
was also either completed or under way on about 160 projects
directly supervised by the National Park Service, for roads, trails,
buildings, and utilities along the parkways. Four maintenance
areas—two each on the Blue Ridge and Natchez Trace Parkways—
were also in the construction program. It included numerous public
service features such as picnic areas, parking overlooks, comfort stations,
trails, and a variety of other facilities.
It is estimated that it will require approximately $202,760,000 to
complete the eight national parkways which Congress has authorized.
Physical Improvements
National Production Authority restrictions on use of building materials,
increases in labor and materials costs, and reduced construction
appropriations have seriously curtailed the building program of the
Service. Great increases in numbers of visitors, virtual suspension
of construction during the war and the years immediately following,
and the deterioration of existing facilities have created an enormous
backlog of urgently needed improvements throughout the System.
Concessioners are suffering from similar deficiencies and for very
similar reasons. Construction of additional overnight accommodations
is frowned upon because of the large amount of materials and
equipment required.
In spite of these handicaps, certain projects show real progress. In
Olympic National Park, work is proceeding rapidly on the road giving
access to Hurricane Ridge, construction of the Service building
there, and provision of utilities for its operation. Completed, the
building will provide dining facilities and shelter to visitors, at a
point reached by automobile road, where they may enjoy magnificent
panoramas of the wild Olympic Range and of the Strait of Juan de
Fuca.
During the year, Federal Hall Memorial (the old Sub-Tresaury
Building on Wall Street), on the site once occupied by Federal Hall,
the first seat of the Federal Government, was vacated by the Federal
agencies which had been occupying it since before it was given national
historic site status. Restoration of the rotunda on the first
floor is under way as is establishment of the Zenger Memorial Room
322 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
on the second floor, made possible by a donation of funds by the Zenger
Memorial Associates.
Employee housing construction, so vital in many areas administered
by the National Park Service, continues to lag seriously behind need.
However, the past year has brought some improvement. Fiscal year
1951 funds were available for the construction of 16 residences, of
which 11 were started by June 30. Six, financed from 1950 funds,
were completed during the year. In addition, 23 older residences
were improved by addition of a room or by conversion to year-round
usability.
Storm Damage Was Heavy
Approximately $1,000,000 in damage was caused by floods, wind,
and ice storms last winter in several of the areas administered by this
Service. Particularly severe and costly damage was caused by floods
in Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon National Parks. Entire
sections of roads were washed out, as were numerous bridges and other
drainage structures. Great quantities of earth and rock were deposited
on the roads as the result of slides. Water, sewer, and telephone
systems, electricity, and other utilities were disrupted or severely
damaged. Buildings and campgrounds were inundated and campground
equipment washed away.
In the East, storms along the Great Lakes and Atlantic Coast did
great damage to park facilities. In the South, unprecedented ice and
snow storms, accompanied by low temperatures, damaged thousands
of trees at Mammoth Cave, Shiloh, and Vicksburg and along the Blue
Ridge and Natchez Trace Parkways.
Mississippi River Parkway Survey
Authorized by Congress to determine the feasibility of developing
a parkway to follow generally the course of the Mississippi River from
its source to its mouth, the 2-year Mississippi River Parkway study
is nearly completed and work has been started on a report to Congress.
The survey has been a joint undertaking of the National Park Service
and the Bureau of Public Roads.
The project, for which $250,000 was made available to the two
agencies, probably involved the longest road reconnaissance in history—
a total of nearly 9,000 miles of existing highways and possible
new road locations. Besides its collaboration with the Bureau of
Public Roads in locating feasible routes for the roadway itself, the
Service made special studies of historic sites, points of scenic or
geologic interest, and existing or potential recreational areas, with a
view to integrating them with the broad plan for the parkway.
As the survey nears completion, it appears to point to the desirability
of recommending a new-type parkway within the Federal-aid
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 323
Highway System as a joint Federal-State undertaking, with the
National Park Service acting as advisor. This might involve additional
apportionments of Federal funds, above the usual Federal share,
to aid in the preservation and development of scenic, historic, and
recreational lands.
Certain existing State highways would be usable for the parkway,
particularly in agricultural regions, if scenic easements or other forms
of control were acquired to prevent roadside exploitation. Studies
indicate that 40 percent of the parkway roadway should be built new.
HISTORY “WRITTEN ON THE LAND”
The National Park Service administers 100 historic and 19 prehistoric
areas. In 71 of these it offers information, guide, and lecture
service, made more effective, in most areas, by the use of varied
graphic devices. To supplement the direct personal services provided
to heighten visitors’ understanding of America’s history, there are
50 historical museums, ranging from 1-room temporary exhibits to
full-scale installations, and a series of readable publications, both sales
and free.
During the last travel year, the historic and prehistoric areas in
the National Park System had 12,481,471 visitors, virtually all of
whom were served by interpretive personnel or interpretive devices.
Preservation of Historic Sites and Structures
Preservation efforts have been devoted to a diverse group of historic
sites and structures. Completion of the McLean House well house
at Appomattox Courthouse National Historical Monument concluded
one of the most important reconstruction programs in the Service’s
history. At Castle Clinton National Monument a general renovation
program was started. The beginning of renovation at Federal
Hall Memorial has been noted elsewhere. The walls of the library
structure at Adams Mansion National Historic Site were stabilized
and waterproofed and much other improvement work was performed
there.
Excavation of the sixteenth-century earthwork at Fort Raleigh
National Historic Site, N. C., was completed and the excavated earth
was used to reconstruct the earthen parapet, thus restoring the ancient
fort. Rehabilitation or repair to historic buildings was completed
at Chalmette National Historical Park, La.; Salem Maritime National
Historic Site, Mass.; Saratoga National Historical Park, N. Y.; Hopewell
Village National Historic Site, Pa., Fort Laramie National
Monument, Wyo., and Great Smoky Mountains National Park, N. C.
and Tenn.
324 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
In the program of stabilizing prehistoric ruins, substantial progress
was made under skilled direction at Aztec Ruins, Chaco Canyon,
and Hovenweep National Monuments and Mesa Verde National Park.
Historical Research
Research by Service historians, and by students who pursued studies
helpful to the Service, added materially to our historical knowledge.
At Philadelphia, a project was set up for the summer months, with
three students of architecture under the supervision of a University
of Pennsylvania faculty member, to produce measured drawings of
all buildings on which repair, restoration, or stabilization might be
necessary within the Federal Government’s portion of the Independence
National Historical Park project. Studies regarding the furnishings
of the historic buildings on Independence Square contributed
much to the restored appearance of the structures as they were
readied for the celebration of the one hundred and seventy-fifth anniversary
of the Declaration of Independence.
Other research related to the Battle of Saratoga and the Schuyler
House, now a part of Saratoga National Historical Park; both the
Jamestown and the Yorktown portions of Colonial National Historical
Park; Fort Necessity, Fort Jefferson, Fort Matanzas, Fort Frederica,
Death Valley, Joshua Tree, and Aztec Ruins National Monuments;
the Natchez Trace Parkway; Theodore Roosevelt National
Memorial Park; and Hopewell Village and San Juan National Historic
Sites. A research study entitled “Apache Prisoners at Fort
Marion 1886-87” was completed at Castillo de San Marcos National
Monument. A valuable study of the proposed Grand Portage National
Historic Site wTas also completed.
The first archeological study undertaken by the Service in Hawaii
National Park was begun there recently. Made possible by a small
allotment of funds for the purpose, the study is being made by Henry
E. P. Kekahuna and Theodore F. Kelsey, students of Hawaiian
archeology, who have appointments as collaborators. They are
working in the new Puna section of the park, which possesses a wealth
of archeological values including temples of worship, ancient village
sites, petroglyphs, etc.
Donations of Historical Materials
Last July, the gift by Dr. Ellison Orr, Waukon, Iowa, to Effigy
Mounds National Monument of all his archeological books, papers,
and relics, as well as books and papers on geology and geological
specimens, was accepted by the regional director of Region Two.
Following the death of Dr. Orr at the age of 93 last winter, these
materials were brought to the monument. They represent a long lifeANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 325
time of study, and will be particularly valuable in interpretation of
the area to vistors.
Mrs. Eva Porter Doggett, daughter of Maj. Gen. Fitz-John Porter,
added to previous donations by presenting a valuable and interesting
group of original letters to the Manassas National Battlefield
Park library.
Special Ceremonies
Historic Dorchester Heights, in South Boston, Mass., an important
point in Washington’s successful effort to force the British evacuation
of Boston on March 17, 1776, was made a national historic site,
and was dedicated with appropriate ceremonies on March 17, 1951.
Title to the site remains with the city.
The Washington County Historical Society of Maryland presented
the historic Dunkard Church site on the Battlefield of Antietam to
the Service. Assistant Director Lee, who delivered the principal address
at ceremonies at the site on May 30, also accepted the deed to the
property, lhe Georgia Society of Colonial Dames dedicated and presented
to the Service a tablet placed at the site where John Wesley
first landed and offered prayer on American soil. The site lies within
Fort Pulaski National Monument, Ga. Assistant Director Tolson
delivered the address of acceptance at ceremonies held last fall.
Salvage Archeology in the River Basins
The program under which the Service contracts with State universities,
State historical societies, and State museums for the excavation of
important prehistoric sites in the impoundment areas of numerous
dams, under construction or projected, has continued with gratifying
results. For work in the Missouri River Basin, contracts were executed
with Montana State University and the State Historical Society
of North Dakota (Garrison Reservoir, N. Dak.); Nebraska State Historical
Society, University of Kansas, and University of South Dakota
(Fort Randall Reservoir, S. Dak.) ■ University of Nebraska Graduate
College (Harlan County Reservoir, Nebr.) ; University of Nebraska
State Museum (Medicine Creek Reservation, Nebr.) ; and University of
Wyoming (Keyhole Reservoir, Wyo.). For work elsewhere, contracts
were entered into with the Museum of New Mexico and School of
Administration (Chamita Reservoir, N. Mex.) ; University of Mississippi
(Grenada Reservoir, Miss.) ; University of California (Farmington
Reservoir and Death Valley National Monument, Calif.) ; University
of Oklahoma (Eufaula Reservoir, Okla.) ; and University of
Washington (McNary Reservoir, Wash.).
The cooperative archeological program of the Service with the
Smithsonian Institution for work within reservoir areas was also con326
+ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
tinued with notable success. Scientific personnel of the institution
carried out surveys and excavations in 18 in 7 States in the Missouri
River Basin. Elsewhere it conducted archeological surveys in 15
in scattered locations throughout the United States. It also completed
“digs” in 8 reservoir areas in New York, Texas, California,
and Washington.
Seventy-fifth Anniversary of Little Big Horn Battle
With Lt. Gen. Albert C. Wedemeyer, commanding general of the
Sixth Army, as speaker of the day, and with other distinguished military
and naval officers and public officials among the guests, the seventyfifth
anniversary of the Battle of the Little Big Horn River, June
24-25, 1876, was observed at Custer Battlefield National Monument
on June 25, 1951. With cooperation from the National Park Service,
the program was sponsored by the American Legion, with other service
and civic organizations of Hardin, Mont. Of particular interest
was the presence of several Sioux Indians who had participated in
the battle.
ANTIQUITIES ACT ENFORCEMENT
The period from July 1 to December 30,1950, established an all-time
peak for field research authorized by the Office of the Secretary in the
form of Antiquities Act permits. During the calendar year 1950, 32
applications for field work permits were received; with favorable
recommendations from the Smithsonian Institution, the National Park
Service, and the heads of the land management bureaus concerned, 29
permits were issued. Of these, 21 were for archeological field work,
8 for paleontological. Work was authorized, in cooperation with the
National Park Service, at Mesa Verde and Carlsbad Caverns National
Parks, and at Arches, Badlands, Bandelier, Channel Islands, Canyon
de Chelly, Death Valley, Dinosaur, Hovenweep, Natural Bridges, and
Petrified Forest National Monuments.
The international situation and consequent defense preparations
caused a sharp reduction in the number of applications received during
the past 6 months. These totaled only 13 (11 in archeology, 2 in
paleontology), all of which were granted, for work in 5 States and
Alaska. Included within permit areas are Zion National Park and
Canyon de Chelly, Capitol Reef, Death Valley, Navajo, and Petrified
Forest National Monuments.
Violations of the terms of the Antiquities Act on Interior Department
lands have been reported to the Bureau of Land Management
for investigation and appropriate action, and to other responsible
officials when violations occurred elsewhere on Federal lands. At the
same time, there has been constant effort to educate the public as to
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 327
the necessity of safeguarding the prehistoric treasures of the Federal
lands against the unscientific and unskilled investigator and the
pothunter, and the destruction caused by modern machinery on
construction projects.
Pipeline and Archeology
An interesting example of the application of Antiquities Act
requirements is found in connection with the El Paso Natural Gas
Co.’s construction of a 451-mile pipeline system from northwest New
Mexico, to near Topock, Ariz., on the Colorado River.
The company extended maximum cooperation, continuing the archeological
survey across non-Federal lands as well as along feeder and
distribution lines.
IN THE SCENIC-SCIENTIFIC AREAS
Healthy curiosity about the wildlife, the plants, and the geological
phenomena of the nature areas administered by the National Park
Service shows no sign of diminution among the millions of persons
who visit and enjoy them. In fact it greatly outruns the ability of
the Service to gratify it effectively. Though the interpretive programs
in Wind Cave, Yosemite, and Mount McKinley National Parks
and on the Blue Ridge Parkway have benefited considerably from the
filling of new naturalist positions, the addition of such positions for
the Service as a whole has not kept pace with need.
Direct personal service, whether to individuals or groups, is undoubtedly
the most effective and most satisfying. When it cannot
be provided fully, how’ever, it becomes necessary to explore all possible
substitutes. Therefore, the Service has continued its special attention
to the expansion of self-guiding nature trails and other similar
devices; to the improvement of visual materials; to in-service training;
and to improved program planning to utilize the inadequate facilities
and staffs to enlist the cooperation of visitors in using the parks with
a minimum of wear and damage.
The areas in which these programs are carried on recorded more
than 16,000,000 visitors last year and more than 12,000,000 interpretive
contacts of various kinds. These cover a wide range—conducted
trips, lectures, personal services at museums and other attended stations,
and a variety of unattended devices.
Wildlife Control Activities
While a number of parks offer problems of controlling populations
of animals which have increased beyond range capacity the most
aggravated situation continues to be in Yellowstone where the northern
elk herd last fall had an excess of about 7,000 animals. Hunting
328 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
outside the park removed only 1,265 of these. Live-trapping and
transplanting eliminated 406 more; 482 were slaughtered in the park
by Service personnel. The total reduction of 2,300 animals, including
the estimated winter kill, is only approximately equal to the annual
increase; there was virtually no progress toward a real reduction. A
program, looking to the reduction of the herd to approximately 5,000
animals over a period of 3 years, has been formulated and was
approved at the spring meeting of the Absaroka Conservation.
Association.
At Yellowstone also, 258 antelope were removed to reduce pressure
on their forage. Seventy-five were transferred to Theodore Roosevelt
National Memorial Park, restoring the species there; 12 were placed
in Wind Cave National Park, where poaching and other factors have
reduced the herd.
Public Law 787, which added most of the former Jackson Hole
National Monument to Grand Teton National Park, passed too late
to permit application of its provisions for the controlled killing of elk
in a portion of the park lands formerly in the monument; without
such control, 685 elk were killed. For the coming season, a kill of
600 on park lands has been recommended on the basis of joint studies
by the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission and the Service. These
are to be taken by licensed Wyoming hunters deputized as rangers,
as provided in the new law.
The completed 5-year study of coyote migrations in and around the
northern part of Yellowstone showed that about one-quarter of the
animals raised or summering in the park leave it permanently in the
fall and winter. To protect livestock from possible damage, the Fish
and Wildlife Service will institute control measures outside the park.
Do Not Feed the Bears
The education of visitors to understand that bears are wild animals,
and dangerous, continues to be a major problem in those parks
which have black bear populations. While enforcement of the regulation
which prohibits feeding, teasing, or molesting bears is a difficult
matter, special effort is being directed toward it. As reinforcement,
the Service has issued, for distribution with informational publications,
a small insert, depicting an upraised bear with formidable
claws and teeth, and carrying a short warning legend.
Endangered Species of Plants and Animals
The sanctuary character of the national parks and monuments and
the careful protection of plant life within them make them particularly
important in preserving endangered species. In Everglades
National Park the survival of the manatee seems assured; recent
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 329
studies by Service personnel, particularly the biologist assigned to
Everglades, have added greatly to our knowledge of this remarkable
and rare mammal.
The bighorn sheep has now become permanently reestablished in
Mesa Verde National Park, and bighorns are on the increase in Rocky
Mountain National Park. They appear to be decreasing in Glacier
and Yellowstone National Parks. The status of the trumpeter swan
is improving slowly. Considerable numbers of black-footed ferret,
once thought extinct, have been found near Wind Cave National Park.
Steps are being taken to introduce them into the park and into
Theodore Roosevelt National Memorial Park, in an attempt to reestablish
this vanishing species.
In Mount McKinley National Park, the Dall sheep continues to
show a gratifying increase in numbers.
Seven nene, the rare Hawaiian land-loving goose—the first flock
seen in 3 years, and the largest since 1937—were observed in Hawaii
National Park early in June. Once abundant throughout the islands,
particularly on Hawaii, they have been so reduced by hunters, predators,
and adverse land uses that they are rarely seen. This flock
was discovered on the Mauna Loa strip, a narrow parcel of land jutting
up to the summit of Mauna Loa.
Hurricane winds in August and September of last year destroyed
many of the sooty and noddy terns which each year nest on Bush Key,
in Fort Jefferson National Monument. A census of these birds is
taken annually. That taken last spring shows a drop in the sooty
tern population from 191,000 in 1950 to 168,770 this year. However,
the noddy terns showed an increase from 538 to 570 and roseate terns
from 126 to 140.
Until recently, there was but a single known specimen of the plant,
Hibiscadelphus giffar dianus, a native of Hawaii. During the past
year, however, slips from this plant have been successfully propagated
in Hawaii National Park. Seedlings of such rare native plants
as the silversword, loa, wiliwili, and kaula have been germinated and
planted in the park in an attempt to restore important species to
something like their former abundance.
Fishing Regulations for Everglades Issued
Previous annual reports have indicated the need of regulation of
fishing and fishing practices in Florida Bay and other salt-water
areas of Everglades National Park. Following publication of proposed
regulations in the Federal Register, a public hearing was held in
Homestead, Fla., last November to learn the public reaction to them.
Interest was keen; organizations with a total membership of 30,700
were represented. Main target of the regulations was the drag seine,
330 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
which was destroying the fisheries of Florida Bay, and was endangering
the bird and animal life of the area by destroying their food.
The regulations were promulgated by Secretary Chapman in March.
Sports fishermen, conservationists, and most commercial fishermen
strongly endorsed his action.
Scientific Projects
In recent years, observers both within and outside the National
Park Service have been concerned over the possibility that the necrosis
affecting the mature saguaro cactus in Saguaro National Monument,
Ariz., was killing off these giant cacti much more rapidly than it was
being replaced by new growth. Preliminary studies indicate that this
extraordinarily interesting plant is holding its own or even gaining
a little. * * * University of Arkansas scientists conducted studies
on the radioactivity of thermal waters and its relationship to the geology
and geochemistry of uranium, at Hot Springs National Park.
The study is being continued under a grant from the Atomic Energy
Commission. * * * Although a number of Service-administered
areas are likely to be directly or indirectly affected by current cloudseeding
projects, all requests for permission to install cloud-seeding
generators within any of these areas have been denied. * * *
There is need of detailed biological studies in a number of areas, particularly
in Olympic, Yellowstone, and Grand Teton National Parks,
to provide a completely scientific basis for any wildlife management
measures which may be required.
IN THE MUSEUM FIELD
The responsibilities of the National Park Service in what, for want
of a better term, is referred to as the museum field are extraordinarily
varied. They include museum planning in all its stages; the design and
construction of a wide range of exhibits; protection of fragile and destructible
exhibits; the repair of various artifacts—paintings, tapestries,
draperies, and furniture—in historic buildings; and the training
of personnel in the care of museum materials.
For the first time, funds were allotted for the prevention of deterioration
of valuable and, in many cases, irreplaceable, museum collections.
Dehumidifying equipment was obtained for 4 areas and storage
cabinets for 19. Expert treatment of specimens in a state of deterioration
can now be given in limited amount by the small staff of preservation
specialists. The jobs performed were varied—preservative
treatment of metal objects at Colonial National Historical Park, of historic
portraits at Independence Hall, of western scenic paintings at
Yosemite National Park, of valuable furniture at Vanderbilt Mansion
National Historic Site, and of important portraits at Adams Mansion
National Historic Site.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 331
More exhibits were prepared than in any year since 1941. Among
the more important ones were those for Chickamauga and Chattanooga
National Military Park, Ocmulgee National Monument, Custer Battlefield
National Monument, Hawaii National Park, and the Independence
National Historical Park project. The completion of the museum
at Ocmulgee, begun in the 30’s, and the building of the museum at
Custer Battlefield were the two major construction projects of the year.
The third in-service training course, for a small group of persons with
responsibilities in museum work in field areas, was conducted in Washington
during the spring.
Hui O Pele (Society of Pele), with a donation of $2,500, brought its
total donations for museum development in Hawaii National Park
during the last year and a half to approximately $10,000. Only persons
who visit Kilauea Volcano are eligible to membership in the society.
Membership certificates sell for $1 and are held by more than 30,000
persons throughout the world. Funds so obtained by the society are
devoted wholly to the provision of facilities for the benefit and enjoyment
of visitors to Hawaii National Park.
THE FORESTS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM
Both during the calendar year 1950 and the fiscal year just ended,
by far the greater part of the acreage burned over in the National
Park System was in Everglades National Park. In the calendar year—
the period required to be covered by fire reports under the Clarke-
McNary Act—a fire swept into the park early in May during a period
of severe drought and high winds. Before it could be controlled, it had
covered 31,120 acres of park land. Though conditions were severe, this
fire was controlled without benefit of rain—the first time on record that
such a fire had been controlled in the Everglades solely through human
effort. This single fire burned 91.7 percent of the total areas burned
inside park areas during the year.
June of 1951 brought further damage to the vegetative cover of
the Everglades. The water table was much below normal because
of under-average spring rains; forests and glades were highly susceptible
to fire and, in stiff winds, to exceptionally rapid spread.
Though few Everglades fires have been caused by lightning, seven
such fires were started, and six resulted in extensive burns. A tentative
estimate at the end of June places the burned-over area at
42,000 acres, mostly grassland.
During calendar 1950 there was also an unusually heavy incidence
of lightning fires in the Southwest and California, relatively few in
the Northwest and the Northern Rocky Mountain areas. Despite
record-breaking public use, there was a material reduction in the
number of man-caused fires.
973649-52—24
332 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Civil Defense—Forest and Range Fire Control
The National Park Service, other wild-land management agencies
of the Department, other Federal agencies, and State conservation
departments have prepared plans for intensified protection from fire
damage in the event of hostilities. Park fire control plans have been
reviewed to assure that all personnel and facilities from all currently
available sources are included. Cooperative agreements and mutual
assistance provisions with adjacent agencies were strengthened wherever
possible.
Important in this connection has been the holding of joint meetings
by the key personnel of this Service in several areas with personnel
of adjacent national forests and State forestry organizations
to improve cooperative action on large fires. Park Service personnel
represent the Department in a number of States in the development
of coordinated civil defense wild-lancl fire control plans.
Disease and Insect Enemies of the Forest
In continued cooperation with the Division of Plant Disease Control
of the Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine, steady
progress has been made in the protection of white pine forests from
blister rust. Of the control area of 357,260 acres in the parks and
monuments, approximately 82% percent has now been worked once
to remove currant and gooseberry bushes (the alternate host of the
disease), and a substantial acreage has been reworked to remove
sprouts and new seedlings. About 56 percent of the total control area
is now considered to be in a condition which requires only occasional
attention.
Based upon recommendations of and assistance by the Division of
Forest Pathology of the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural
Engineering, a project was initiated to control dwarf mistletoe,
which threatened to wipe out ponderosa pine over a considerable
area along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Aggressive coordinated
action by the Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine,
the Forest Service, and the National Park Service was continued in
an effort to control the very serious epidemic of the mountain pine
beetle which has ravaged extensive areas of lodgepole pine in four
national forests and Grand Teton National Park. It is hoped that
control work performed in the spring of 1951 in Grand Teton will
stop further spread of this epidemic toward the vast lodgepole forests
of Yellowstone National Park.
For several years, western pine beetle attacks in Kings Canyon,
Sequoia, and Yosemite National Parks, in California, had been successfully
checked by a moderate amount of maintenance control
work. Early last fall, however, it became apparent throughout the
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 333
Sierra region that the infestation had increased to epidemic proportions.
Accordingly, aggressive action was undertaken last winter
by both Forest Service and Park Service to reduce the infestation to
endemic status in the parks and the adjoining national forests.
By regular inspections to detect insect attacks and by prompt control
of new infestations, the park forests were maintained in a generally
healthy condition. This procedure is important in protecting
these valuable forests. Small annual expenditures for prompt control,
before any infestation becomes widespread, has proven economical
and effective—from the standpoint of both dollar expenditure
and the saving of the forests.
Tree Preservation
A tree preservation crew of six skilled workers is a field unit of the
Region One office. Its responsibility in the care of important individual
trees, particularly in the many historical areas, including cemeteries.
Mobile and fully equipped, it has proved highly effective in
necessary tree maintenance work. During the year, the crew worked
in 20 areas. Its labors were sharply increased by the very destructive
sleet and windstorms of the South and Northeast during the winter.
PUBLICATIONS
Four historical handbooks, numbers 6, 7, 8, and 9 in this series,
came off the presses of the Government Printing Office during the past
year. These cover Gettysburg National Military Park, Fort McHenry
National Monument, Lee Mansion National Memorial, and Hopewell
Village National Historic Site. Readable, accurate, and well-illustrated,
they are also handsome in outward appearance—first-rate examples
of the sort of work performed by the Division of Typography
and Design, Government Printing Office. Handsome also, and a real
contribution to the archeology of the Southeast, is Archeology of the
Bynum Mounds, Mississippi, by John L. Cotter and John M. Corbett,
Service archeologists. This is the first of what is hoped will be a
series of publications on archeological research.
The Service has continued to produce and distribute the various
kinds of. free informational literature that are required for satisfactory
use and enjoyment of the parks and monuments. During the year,
orders were placed for 6,354,000 pieces of such literature, for a total
of 103 items.
Literature issued by the Service is valuably supplemented by publications
of cooperating natural history associations and similar organizations.
More than a score of these were produced during the
past year.
334 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
FOR GREATER SAFETY
During the calendar year 1950, there were 33 accidental fatalities
among National Park System visitors, a decrease of 16 from the 49
recorded the year before. Of this total, motor-vehicle accidents were
responsible for 14, drownings for 13, and falls for 4. One death
resulted from accidental shooting; for one, the cause is unknown.
In the hope of reducing motor-vehicle accidents still further, maps
have been prepared to show trouble spots, with a view to correcting
conditions which may contribute to accidents.
The Service’s Chief Safety Engineer made a thorough study of
Independence Hall and its associated buildings soon after administration
of these priceless structures was assumed by the Service.
Some of the important changes recommended have already been
made and others are in progress.
NECROLOGY
Oliver G. Taylor, Chief of the Public Services (now Concessions
Management) Division, * died suddenly in Washington, D. C., on
August 26, 1950. Mr. Taylor, whose service with the Federal Government
began with the Geological Survey in 1909, and who came
with the National Park Service in 1919 as park engineer at Yosemite
National Park, thereafter occupied with distinction a succession of
increasingly responsible positions. Among them were those of chief
engineer of the Service, regional director of Region One, and chief of
Public Services. Few men in the history of the National Park Service
have earned as great a degree of respect and affection as did Oliver
Taylor.
Ernest F. Coe, whose long labors in behalf of the establishment of
Everglades National Park were crowned with success in 1947, died in
Florida last December.
Duncan McDuffie, for many years a member of the Yosemite Advisory
Committee, and a courageous and wise leader in conservation,
died at his home in Berkeley, Calif., on April 21, 1951.
Luther Ely Smith, of St. Louis, widely regarded as the founder of
the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial on the St. Louis waterfront,
died on April 2.
COOPERATION OF MANY KINDS
It is highly important to the people of the United States that
adequate consideration be given to the conservation and development
of outdoor recreation resources which will be affected by water-control
projects. Federal programs for power, flood control, navigation
improvement, erosion control, and irrigation are radically changing
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 335
the natural character of rivers and lakes, the recreational use of which
people have taken for granted for generations. Many of these projects
probably will enlarge existing recreation opportunities and,
when properly planned and developed, create new ones. Some projects,
however, are destructive of recreation resources of great public
importance. Rapid acceleration of the basin-wide recreation studies,
which the National Park Service is conducting in cooperation with
other Federal agencies and the States, is of vital importance both for
the protection and best use of outdoor recreation resources and to
bring balance into the vast water-control programs of the Federal
Government.
River Basin Studies
It is encouraging, therefore, to report that basin-wide recreation
studies have been begun in the Arkansas-White and Red River Basins
and the Missouri River Basin, and a recreation study of the New
England-New York area was started. Study of the Rogue River
Basin in Oregon was continued, and the University of Oregon agreed
to assist by making a study of the economic importance of recreation
in the Basin.
Continuing its cooperation with the Bureau of Reclamation, and,
upon request, with the Corps of Engineers, the Service made recreation
planning studies on 70 reservoir sites and continued such studies
on 30 others. Community planning consultant services also were
rendered to the Bureau. During the year an agreement was entered
into with the Nebraska State Game, Forestation and Parks Commission
for the management of the recreation facilities at Reclamation
reservoirs in the State. The Idaho Legislature authorized the State
to enter into an agreement for the management of recreation developments
at American Falls and Lake Walcott Reservoirs; similar agreements
for State and local management of reservoir recreation facilities
were being negotiated in several other western States. Though advocated
by the Department, authority for Federal development of recreational
facilities on a nonreimbursable basis, such as the Corps of
Engineers possesses, has not been granted with respect to Reclamation
reservoirs.
Cooperation With the States
During the year the Service sought and received excellent cooperative
assistance from the States in river basin recreation studies. Likewise,
it gave information and advice, upon request, on the administration,
planning, development, operation, and maintenance of State
parks to nearly every State which has a park system. Data and interpretation
concerning National Production Authority orders affecting
336 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
the construction and maintenance of recreation facilities in State parks
were also provided. Advice was also given on State parks enabling
legislation and on State civil-service examinations. Service personnel
participated in several in-service-training institutes.
State Park Statistics—1949, issued during the year, contained an
extensive study of State park personnel. It listed all classes of employees
for headquarters offices and areas, and salary scales for each.
List of State Parks, With Acreages and Accommodations, a complete
up-to-date inventory of State parks and related recreation areas
throughout the country, and State Recreation Areas, containing brief
descriptions of the major State parks and other recreation areas in
each State, were also issued during the year.
Surplus Property Disposal
The program of surplus property disposal, for recreational and
historic site purposes, was confined largely to the investigation and
determination of compliance, by the grantees of surplus properties,
with the terms and conditions of the instruments of conveyance. Only
four new disposals were processed. All surplus properties were rescreened
by the Munitions Board for possible military use. As a result,
many installations that were being considered by State and local
government agencies have now been withdrawn from surplus.
Cooperative Agreement With Reclamation Approved
Last July, Secretary Chapman approved a joint agreement between
the National Park Service and the Bureau of Reclamation defining the
responsibilities of each in the cooperative relationships which have
existed between them for a number of years. From the Service’s
standpoint, major importance attaches to the provision for early information,
at the regional level, regarding all projects to be investigated
and all projects authorized for construction; and for early consultation,
during the planning stages, so that the Service can advise
on location of roads, structures and other elements of construction, for
appearance and to obtain maximum recreational benefits.
Several of the principal provisions are similar in character to those
in previous agreements which have been limited in application to single
projects or groups of projects. The general agreement eliminates the
need of such special agreements in the future.
International Cooperation
Interest in the National Park System and the way in which it is
managed seems to increase with each year among residents of other
countries, though perhaps heightened at present by programs sponANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 337
sored by the State Department for bringing specially selected foreigners
to the United States. The launching of a national park
program in Great Britain has certainly heightened the interest of
visitors from that country in the parks of the United States.
After several years of acquaintance with the National Park Service
through correspondence, Col. Mervyn S. Cowie, who heads the Royal
National Parks of Kenya Colony, British East Africa, spent about 2
months last fall on a tour of our national parks, during which he was
given every opportunity to see them in operation and to observe administrative
practices and public use. He was an honored guest at the
Service conference in Yosemite National Park.
Minoru lijima, Director of National Parks of Japan, made a study
of the national parks of the United States last summer and autumn,
having been selected for the study by the Supreme Commander of
Allied Powers in Japan. During his 11 weeks in this country he visited
many of the major parks, West and East, as well as numerous historical
areas of various kinds. National park administration is a function
of Japan’s Ministry of Welfare.
At the request of the National Parks Board of Trustees of South
Africa, Chief Biologist Victor H. Cahalane spent 4 months in a
study of their national parks. A grant from the Carnegie Corporation
of New York financed the mission. His report to the Board
made recommendations concerning a wide variety of phases of park
planning, development, and management. At the invitation of the
Portuguese Government, he also spent 10 days in Mozambique advising
officials regarding park and nature protection in that province.
Mr. Cahalane was also invited to visit the national parks of Belgian
Congo and Kenya to consult with officers in charge on management
and protection of the reserves.
The National Park Service was represented by Mr. Cahalane at the
second general assembly of the International Union for the Protection
of Nature at Brussels last October. He was appointed chairman of
the Consultative Commission of the Union’s Survival Service.
Interested in the proposed restoration of the Cocospera Mission in
Sonora, Mexico, Governor Soto, of Sonora, and Lions Clubs District
Governor Urquides, of Magdalena, Sonora, sought advice as to
methods and procedures for accomplishment. To supply it, Superintendent
Jackson, of Tumacacori National Monument, Ariz., spent a
week in May on a study of mission churches in Sonora, and prepared
a report, with detailed suggestions on stabilization possibilities at Cocospera.
Governor Soto was given a copy of the Service’s Stabilization
Manual, and was assured of advisory assistance in connection with the
restoration, if desired.
338 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Alaska Recreation Resources Study
The survey of the recreation resources of Alaska, begun in 1950, was
continued on a somewhat larger scale during the past year when
extensive investigations were made of scenic, historical, archeological,
and biological resources. Studies of social and economic conditions
were also undertaken by the University of Washington under contract.
The survey is intended both to appraise the territory’s recreation
resources and to formulate a program for meeting recreational and
tourist needs, to serve as a guide to both Government and private
enterprise.
PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT
In the field of personnel management there were few notable developments.
However, recruiting difficulties which the emergency situation
had brought about began to be felt at the start of the year, and at
its close were becoming greater. Shortages in certain fields, including
engineering, archeology, stenography, and typing, were as severe as
at any time during World War II. Turnover in these fields, particularly
in stenographic and typing positions, was at a high rate which
had begun to increase somewhat toward the end of the year; many
employees were leaving to accept higher paid defense-agency jobs.
The increasing rate of turnover and the difficulty of finding adequate
replacements have had their effect in lowering the ability of the
Washington office and of many of the field areas to meet the workload
demands. These factors also have pointed up the need for taking
whatever measures can be taken to reduce turnover and to train new
employees more effectively. So that the training program might be
developed more rapidly to meet the new needs of the Service more
effectively, a training officer position was filled at the end of the fiscal
year.
The workload and the complexity of procedures in handling personnel
transactions were somewhat increased when, effective December
1, the Civil Service Commission suspended the regular civil-service
rules and instituted temporary regulations which are closely similar
to those in effect during World War II. Although the rate at which
our employees have been entering the Armed Forces has been low, it
has been increasing in recent months somewhat, and the cumulative
total of military furloughs is beginning to assume significant
proportions.
THE LAND PROGRAM
On July 1, 1950, non-Federal lands and waters within the areas of
the National Park System were estimated at 662,000 acres, including
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 339
approximately 128,000 acres in Everglades National Park of which all
were acquired during the year just past. Some 22,000 acres in other
areas were acquired.
Purchases and Options
Title was accepted on approximately 1,500 acres of land and improvements
costing about $175,000 and option contracts were obtained
on an additional 12,600 acres and improvements to cost about $120,000.
These transactions involved lands in 13 areas of the National Park
System. They included 16 separate parcels, containing 1,140 acres
and costing $72,000, in Rocky Mountain National Park; 10 parcels,
totaling 400 acres and costing $50,000, in Glacier National Park; 4
parcels, including two highly important tracts, containing 175 acres
and costing $45,000, in Yosemite National Park; and 11,819 acres in
Joshua Tree National Monument, being purchased from the Southern
Pacific Railroad for $10,785. Included also were important properties
in Colonial National Historical Park and in Gettysburg and Petersburg
National Military Parks.
On December 4, 1950, the United States, through a “declaration of
taking,” obtained title to the 128,000 acres, until then privately owned,
within the “1944 boundary” of Everglades National Park. Two
months later, by court order, the United States obtained physical possession
of most of this acreage; on June 1, 1951, it obtained possession
of the remainder. At the end of the fiscal year the Service had expended
about $1,100,000 of the $2,000,000 donated by the State of
Florida in 1947 for the purchase of lands within the 1944 boundary.
The total expended includes $320,459 paid into the court as estimated
just compensation for the lands included in the declaration of taking.
The acquisition program in connection with the Independence National
Historical Park project is summarized elsewhere in this report.
Progress on Authorized Projects
The prospect of establishing Harpers Ferry National Monument,
authorized by Congress in 1914, became considerably more real
when the State of West Virginia appropriated $350,000 for the purchase
of lands in that State for the project. This money was to become
available on July 1, 1951. A year later, Maryland will have
$40,000 for the purchase of its portion of the area.
The State of Tennessee, Hamilton County, Tenn., the city of Chattanooga,
and private donors would join in purchasing lands in the
famous Moccasin Bend of the Tennessee River, authorized by Congress
for addition to Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military
Park.
340 4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Revised tentative boundaries for the Cape Hatteras National Seashore
project were worked out with the State of North Carolina. The
State has not resumed its acquisition activities, however, though there
continues to be considerable local interest in going ahead with the
project.
Additions and Subtractions
Grand Teton National Park was enlarged from 95,360 acres to
298,738 acres with the passage of Public Law 787, Eighty-first Congress.
This act of Congress added to the park most of the former
Jackson Hole National Monument, and made it possible to go ahead
with the planned protection and development of this magnificent
area. * * * Joshua Tree National Monument was reduced by
289,500 acres to 427,096 acres by the act of September 25, 1950. This
eliminated mining properties unobtainable for monument purposes.
* * * Lava Beds National Monument was enlarged by Presidential
proclamation to include lands at the detached petroglyph section
and the southern portion of Mammoth Crater. These additions, 211.13
acres in extent, brought the area of the monument to 46,162 acres.
* * * Part of Hackberry ruin which was inadvertently omitted
from Hoven weep National Monument, in Colorado and Utah, at the
time of its establishment, and Goodman Point ruin, were added to
it by Presidential proclamation. * * * With the concurrence of
the Department, Wheeler and Holy Cross National Monuments, both
in Utah, were abolished by congressional action and the former monument
lands were reincorporated in national forests. * * * Also
with the concurrence of the Department, Congress authorized the
transfer of the Atlanta Campaign Markers, a national historic site,
to the State of Georgia. It awaits the enactment of State legislation
to permit acceptance. * * * Muir Woods National Monument
was also enlarged by Presidential proclamation. Of the 72 acres
added, 42 were donated to the United States by the William Kent
Estate Co., owned by the heirs of the late Representative and Mrs.
William Kent, who gave the people of the United States the land
comprising the original monument. Part of Mount Tamalpais State
Park (19.09 acres) is also included under a 25-year lease entered into
with the State of California last fall.
In June, an important tract of 4.77 acres was added by purchase to
Fort Frederica National Monument. Congress had previously authorized
an increase in the size of the monument from 80 to 100 acres.
* * * At Acadia National Park, 85.73 acres of land were added by
donation; 13.35 acres passed out of the park, under authority granted
by Congress—4.90 for the Jackson Memorial Laboratory (for which
60 acres were given in return), and 8.45 for a school building site.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 341
The Sand Beach and Great Head properties, donated by Mrs. Eleanor
Morgan Satterlee in 1949, subject to life tenure of a part of them, will
soon be in unrestricted Government ownership, Mrs. Satterlee having
died last April.
The Twentynine Palms Corp, donated 57.84 acres at Twentynine
Palms to Joshua Tree National Monument for use as headquarters and
contact station. The Iowa Legislature passed an act authorizing the
Conservation Commission to transfer to the United States 204.39
acres which lie within the boundaries of Effigy Mounds National
Monument. * * * Secretary Chapman executed a quitclaim deed
to the city of Greenville, Tenn., for 656-foot-long Monument Avenue,
a city street, which had been a part of Andrew Johnson National
Monument.
Donations of Land
Some 6,200 acres of land were donated to the Federal Government
for inclusion in units of the National Park System. Jackson Hole
Preserve, Inc., through Mr. Laurence S. Rockefeller, its president,
added 1,158 acres to the many thousands previously received through
Rockefeller generosity and inducted in Grand Teton National Park.
The State of Tennessee provided 1,063 acres for the Natchez Trace
Parkway. The National Board of Missions of the Presbyterian
Church gave a 0.30-acre lot at the entrance to Sitka National Monument.
Other land donations are noted elsewhere in this report.
Exchanges
Approximately 7,000 acres were acquired through exchange. About
5,500 acres of Southern Pacific Railroad land in Joshua Tree National
Monument were obtained in exchange for public domain lands
outside the monument. The State of South Dakota conveyed 1,310
acres of State land, for inclusion in Wind Cave National Park, in
exchange for part of the former Custer Recreational Demonstration
Area. In Olympic National Park, salable windthrown timber was
exchanged for 194 acres of privately owned land, including the La
Poel Resort and Beach on Lake Crescent and Storm King Inn. Many
thousands of additional acres are involved in other exchanges still
pending, particularly at Joshua Tree and Saguaro National Monuments
and Theodore Roosevelt National Memorial Park.
Two New Monuments Established
Early last July, Castle Clinton National Monument, on the southern
tip of Manhattan Island, was established in accordance with legislation
approved by Congress nearly 4 years earlier. Title to the historic
structure, successively fort, auditorium, immigration station, and
342 4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
aquarium, was transferred to the Federal Government by the city of
New York, under authority granted by the New York State Legislature.
In June 1951, George Washington Carver National Monument was
finally established. Authorized by Congress in 1943, establishment
was delayed by the limitation of $30,000 for acquisition and development
imposed in the 1943 act. Last October, after condemnation proceedings
had resulted in an award of nearly $79,000, the limitation
was amended to $150,000—a sum still inadequate to provide necessary
development for visitors. Dr. Carver, the distinguished Negro scientist,
who was born of slave parents on the site of the monument in
1860, died in 1943.
THE PARK SYSTEM OF THE NATIONAL CAPITAL
The new amphitheater in Rock Creek Park, completed in 1950 with
National Capital Sesquicentennial funds, was dedicated as the “Carter
Barron Amphitheater” on May 30, 1951, honoring the memory
of the late Carter T. Barron, vice chairman of the National Capital
Sesquicentennial Commission, who died November 16, 1950. * * *
The four 19-foot equestrian statues cast in Italy as a gift to the people
of the United States from the people of Italy arrived in Washington
on June 7 and have been placed on the pedestals at the entrance of the
Arlington Memorial Bridge and the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway.
They will be dedicated on Columbus Day, October 12, 1951.
* * * A new 1,148-acre park, tentatively named Greenbelt Park,
was added to the National Capital Park System by transfer from the
Public Housing Authority. The Baltimore-Washington Parkway
will pass through this area. Extensive recreational development is
planned for it, to serve both parkway travelers and residents of
Northeast Washington. * * * The germination of two Indian
lotus seeds, believed by Japanese and American paleontologists to
have great antiquity, by National Capital Parks horticulturists received
widespread notice in the press and in scientific journals. The
seeds were provided for experimentation by Dr. Ralph W. Chaney,
University of California paleontologist and member of the Advisory
Board on National Parks, Historic Sites, Buildings, and Monuments.
Roads and Parkways
Upon completion of a contract for a 3.46-mile section of the Baltimore-
Washington Parkway let last December, 9.5 miles of the 18-
mile development will have been graded. Contract drawings were
prepared, contracts let and work begun on seven grade separations
and two river crossings during the year. These provide for all major
structures on the parkway and represent an expenditure of $2,964,-
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 343
180.75. * * * Following final inspection early in the month, the
0.9-mile sector of the George Washington Memorial Parkway above
Key Bridge in Virginia was opened to traffic on December 16, 1950.
INVITING IN THE NEIGHBORS
Chamber of Commerce, store, restaurant, and hotel employees and
many other persons in communities in the neighborhood of national
parks and monuments are important sources of information about
them. They are so important, from the standpoint of assuring visitors
correct information, that it is worth some effort to educate
them. This has been done, with real benefit to the public, at several
areas, and the “students” have had a pleasant time of it while absorbing
their education.
One of the notable efforts in this direction is that of Grand Canyon
National Park. With the cooperation of the Fred Harvey Co. and
of Navahopi Tours, business people and public contact employees of
Flagstaff and Williams have been given an opportunity to see the
park, to learn how it is operated, and to acquaint themselves with
available provisions for the visitor. The success of the 1950 “Show
Me” day in which Williams people participated led the American Automobile
Association office in Phoenix to request a similar privilege,
and last April the office manager and 10 employees spent a full day
in the park.
Last October, the Superintendent of Big Bend National Park arranged
for a group of leading citizens of Alpine and Marathon to
acquaint themselves at first hand with the only national park in the
Lone Star State. Superintendents throughout the National Park
System are encouraged to make a special effort to see that their neighbors
are accurately informed about the areas of which they have
charge. Several of them have done particularly valuable work in
widening public understanding of the Antiquities Act and the importance
of its enforcement as a means of conserving the treasures of
prehistory.
CHANGES IN SERVICE PERSONNEL
With the resignation of Director Newton B. Drury, effective April 1,
he was succeeded by Arthur E. Demaray, associate director since 1933.
Conrad L. Wirth, assistant director, became associate director.
Ronald F. Lee, chief historian, was made an assistant director. All
three are career men, and promotion on a career basis throughout the
Service is more firmly established by their appointments.
Death, retirements, and the reorganization of the regional offices
occasioned an unusual number of shifts and promotions of Service
personnel, of which the more important are:
973649—52------ 25
344 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
In the Washington Headquarters, Office: Donald E. Lee, assistant
chief counsel to chief of concessions management; Herbert E. Kahler,
assistant chief historian to chief historian; Leland F. Ramsdell, as^
sistant personnel officer to personnel officer; William A. Schnettler.
administrative assistant to chief of general services; Irving C. Root,
superintendent of National Capital Parks to townsite planner.
In the regional offices all four associate regional directors became
assistant regional directors. In addition: O. A. Tomlinson, regional
director, Region Four, retired; Lawrence C. Merriam, regional
director, Region Two, to regional director, Region Four; Howard
W. Baker, assistant regional director to regional director, Region
Two; E. S. Zimmer, chief, Major Roads Branch, Design and Construction
Division, Washington, D. C., to assistant regional director,
Region One; John S. McLoughlin, superintendent, Grand Teton
National Park, to assistant regional director, Region Two; James V.
Lloyd, chief of public services, Region Three, to assistant regional
director, Region Two; Robert G. Hall, chief, Landscape Architecture
Branch, Design and Construction Division, Washington, D. C., to
assistant regional director, Region Two; Hugh M. Miller, personnel
officer, Washington, D. C., to assistant regional director, Region Three;
Harvey H. Cornell, regional landscape architect to assistant regional
director, Region Three; Sanford Hill, regional landscape architect
to assistant regional director, Region Four; Raymond E. Hoyt,
regional chief of land and recreational planning to assistant regional
director, Region Four.
Alfred C. Kuehl, park landscape architect to regional landscape
architect, Region Four; Duncan Mills, Bureau of Reclamation to
regional chief of concessions management, Region Four; W. L. Bigler,
park landscape architect to chief, California Central Valley division,
Region Four; J. N. Gibson, Department of Agriculture to chief, State
Cooperation Division, Region Four; Merritt Barton, attorney, chief
counsel’s office, Washington, D. C., to regional attorney, Region Three;
A. M. Koehler, Federal Bureau of Investigation to chief of concessions
management, Region Three; Jerome C. Miller, regional landscape
architect, Region Two, to the same position in Region Three; Louis
P. Croft, chief, Basin-wide Surveys Branch to chief recreation
planner, Region Two; C. E. Krueger, landscape architect to chief
landscape architect, Region Two; J. B. Cabot, architect to regional
architect, Region Two; James W. Holland, superintendent, Shiloh
National Military Park, to regional historian, Region One.
In the field areas: Thomas Boles, superintendent, Hot Springs National
Park, retired; Donald S. Libbey, superintendent, Carlsbad
Caverns National Park, to superintendent, Hot Springs; R. Taylor
Hoskins, superintendent, Mammoth Cave National Park, to superinANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 345
tendent, Carlsbad Caverns; Thomas C. Miller, superintendent, Platt
National Park, to superintendent, Mammoth Cave; Perry E. Brown,
assistant superintendent, Mesa Verde National Park, to superintendent,
Platt; Edward D. Freeland, superintendent, Shenandoah National
Park, to superintendent, Grand Teton National Park; Guy D. Edwards,
chief recreation planner, Region Two, to superintendent, Shenandoah;
Melford O. Anderson, assistant project manager to superintendent,
Independence National Historical Park project; Edward J.
Kelly, assistant superintendent to superintendent, National Capital
Parks; Harry T. Thompson, assistant superintendent to associate
superintendent, National Capital Parks.
Alfred A. Knopf, New York publisher, and Charles G. Woodbury,
of Washington, D. C., prominent in many conservation activities, were
appointed to the Advisory Board on National Parks, Historic Sites,
Buildings, and Monuments by Secretary Chapman, as successors to
Dr. Waldo G. Leland, of Washington, D. C., and Mrs. Reau Folk,
of Nashville, Tenn., whose terms had expired. Dr. Leland, long chairman
of the Board, continues to assist the Service as a collaborator.
Mrs. Folk had been a member of the Board since its establishment
in 1936.
NOTES FROM AROUND THE FIELD
Zion National Monument
Zion National Monument, established in 1937, possesses distinction,
particularly as a geological exhibit. Adjoining Zion National Park
on the north, it is known to comparatively few people and has remained
undeveloped. Service employees and others have made a number of
trips into it during the past year to analyze its values and to formulate
a policy of development and use for it. Of great interest is the
fact that a natural bridge on a small tributary of La Verkin Creek
may be the largest of its kind known in the world.
Study of Yellowstone Travel
An indication of Yellowstone National Park’s drawing power as a
travel objective and of its influence on the economy of the surrounding
communities is found in Yellowstone National Park Tourist
Study—1950. This report, published by the Wyoming Highway Department,
was based on a study conducted in the park last August
by that department in cooperation with the Bureau of Public Roads
and the National Park Service. It shows that nearly half of all
the visitors to the park left their homes primarily to see it. In and
near the park they left nearly $19,000,000—$6,000,000 in the park,
$6,076,055 in Wyoming, $4,790,710 in Montana, and $2,116,536 in
Idaho.
346 4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Cooperating Associations
The interpretive programs of the Service are assisted in steadily
greater degree by the cooperating associations which exist in a number
of national parks and monuments or which represent a group of
areas. Supported largely by contributions, and by the issuance and
sale of publications, they have again supplied funds for the purchase
of a great variety of books and equipment for which appropriated
funds were not available. The Glacier Natural History Association
bought and conveyed to the Government an additional tract of private
property in the park, and increased its available funds for land
acquisition.
Winter Use
Mount Rainier, Olympic, Crater Lake, Lassen Volcanic, Yosemite,
Sequoia, and Rocky Mountain National Parks continued to offer winter
sport facilities. However, there were fewer demands upon the
National Park Service for the provision of additional conveniences.
This was due to improved winter sports developments outside the
parks and a better understanding of Service problems of winter
maintenance and operation.
Yosemite’s Field School
The Yosemite Field School of Natural History had one of the most
successful sessions in its 25-year history during the summer of 1950.
The school has given important training to many park naturalists
employed by the Service now and in the past, or employed by other
public or semipublic agencies. Primarily it provides instruction,
based on practical experience, in the techniques of natural history
interpretation as practiced by the Service.
Helicopters at Grand Canyon
The Arizona Helicopter Service began operating flights over Grand
Canyon National Park in June 1950. Tusayan Auto Court, just
outside the park on highway 64, was the starting point of the flights.
The operator of this service had been denied permission to establish a
business in the park, but there was neither law nor regulation to prevent
his operating over it; nor do the safe height limits for airplanes
apply to helicopters. Deliberately irritating incidents were a
daily occurrence, with very low flying over the Grand Canyon Village
area disturbing visitors and residents and, in some cases, scheduled
programs.
One machine was wrecked in a rescue operation in June 1950 when
two members of the Hudson Marston Expedition were brought out of
the canyon, A forced landing, followed by a crash on attempted takeANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 347
off, wrecked another machine. Since then, no further flights have
been made.
Service Conference at Yosemite
A biennial conference of Service personnel, chiefly superintendents,
was held in Yosemite National Park October 16 to 20, inclusive. Part
of the conference was attended by Assistant Secretary Dale E. Doty,
who addressed the opening session. A morning and an afternoon session
were held at Glacier Point and the Mariposa Grove, respectively.
Awards for Distinguished Service
Theador McCarrell, who died on August 2, 1950, as a result of injuries
received while fighting forest fire in the Jones Hole section of
Dinosaur National Monument, was awarded posthumously the Department’s
Distinguished Service Award for his supreme devotion to
duty.
The same award was given to Owen A. Tomlinson on his retirement
from the post of regional director, Region Four, and to Dr. Waldo G.
Leland, in recognition of his notable service as member and chairman
of the Advisory Board on National Parks, Historic Sites, Buildings,
and Monuments.
Temporary Administration of Angel Island
Under a memorandum of understanding with the Bureau of Land
Management, to which Angel Island, in San Francisco Bay, had been
transferred for disposal, the National Park Service has undertaken
temporary responsibility for its administration and protection.
Funds to meet the costs of administration and protection have been
furnished by the Angel Island Foundation, a nonprofit corporation of
San Francisco.
Long’s Peak Climbs
Long’s Peak, 14,255 feet high, in Rocky Mountain National Park,
continues to offer one of the most popular climbs in America; 1,851
persons ascended it during 1950. The difficult East Face was ascended
by 118 of these, a new record for this climb.
Mojave Lake, Filled, Attracts Fishermen
Mojave Lake, impounded by Davis Dam, and a part of Lake Mead
National Recreational Area, has now reached the elevation at which it
is expected to be maintained. Concessions established at three points
on the lake have provided acceptable service, but the lake has attracted
fishermen and those who seek enjoyable boating far beyond their
capacity to care for them. Negotiations for establishment of another
concession operation are progressing encouragingly.
348 A ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Assignments to Glacier Bay
Assistant Chief Ranger Duane D. Jacobs of Yosemite National Park
was given a temporary assignment during the summer of 1950 to
Glacier Bay National Monument, Alaska—the first time that the
Service has assigned any employee to that vast area to give it a measure
of protection. On May 1,1951, District Ranger Oscar T. Dick was
transferred from Mount Rainier National Park to serve as special
ranger at Glacier Bay. During the summer of 1950 Canadian Pacific
Steamship Lines operated excursion trips into the monument, and the
National Park Service produced a twofold informational folder on
it—the first such publication produced for this magnificent but littlevisited
area.
Giant Geyser More Active
The Giant Geyser, in Yellowstone National Park, which ordinarily
erupts once or twice a year, was recorded as having erupted six times
during the month of May alone. These were normally between 5 and
6 days apart, though the first and second were separated by only a.
little more than 2 days.
Trash Bags
Careless disposal of trash has long been a serious maintenance problem
of the National Park Service. However, experience over the past
year has shown that it can be considerably alleviated. At the suggestion
of District Ranger Gordon K. Patterson, Superintendent
Preston, of Mount Rainier National Park, obtained a quantity of stout
paper bags. On them was printed a message inviting park visitors
to use the bags as a container for trash until it could be deposited in
a trash can, and urging them to help maintain the beauty of their
national park.
Results were so good that last year’s original order for 10,000 bags
was increased by 50,000. The time required for roadside clean-up has
been greatly reduced. This season, such bags are being used throughout
Region Four. Another year will doubtless see them being distributed
from all Service areas where contact points are maintained.
Crash of Plane on Mount Moran
On the evening of November 21, an airplane owned by the New
Tribes Mission, en route from Chico, Calif., to Billings, Mont., crashed
on the northeast ridge of Mount Moran, in Grand Teton National
Park. All of the 21 persons aboard lost their lives in the crash.
Starting on November 23, Paul Petzoldt, guide concessioner at Grand
Teton, who had returned to the park from his home at Riverton, Wyo.,
for the purpose, and Blake Vandewater, park ranger, made the very
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 349
hazardous climb to the scene of the crash, where they arrived about
noon of November 25 after spending 2 nights on the mountain.
An attempt to dispatch rescue forces to the scene on November 22 had
proved unsuccessful, due to blizzard conditions. Paul A. Judge, chief
ranger and acting superintendent of the park, was in charge of all
rescue operations.
A board of inquiry, which convened on November 26 and in which
three representatives of the Civil Aeronautics Board and two representatives
of the Civil Aeronautics Administration participated, concurred
in recommendations by Messrs. Petzoldt and Vandewater that
no attempt be made during the winter to remove material from the
wreckage or even to climb again to the site because of the heavy
hazards involved.
Visitors
The visitor total for all areas administered by the Service during
the 1950 travel year (Oct. 1, 1949, to Sept. 30, 1950) was 32,782,238.
The 31,864,180 total for the year before included 1,980,876 at Lake
Texoma, no longer administered by the Service. On a fair basis of
comparison, therefore, the increase over the 1949 travel year was
2,898,934—approximately 10 percent.
Dutch Elm Disease in the Capital
The Dutch elm disease, first discovered in Washington, D. C., in 1947,
has increased significantly each year since then. From a single case in
1947, the number of infected trees discovered increased to 102 in 1950,
and 133 in the first 6 months of 1951. At year’s end, groundwork was
being laid for much closer cooperation between the Office of National
Capital Parks and the District of Columbia Government to control
the disease.
■
■
Bureau of
Indian Affairs
Dillon S. Myer ^Commissioner
FOUR MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS stand out in the
wide range of activities carried on by the Bureau of Indian Affairs
on behalf of the 400,000 Indians of the continental United States and
the 35,000 natives of Alaska during the fiscal year 1951.
The first was the launching of a 10-year special program designed to
promote the basic welfare of two especially needy Indian groups—the
Navajos and the Hopis. Authorization for such a program was provided
by Congress in April 1950, and an appropriation of $8,645,520
was subsequently made available for the first year of operations.
Because of a delay in appropriations, work was not started on a really
significant scale until the last quarter of the calendar year. Throughout
the winter and spring, however, substantial progress was achieved
in assembling the necessary personnel, drawing up plans, and initiating
the work program on a number of different fronts. The program includes
such basic developments as the improvement and enlargement
of school facilities, construction of roads connecting key points on the
Navajo and Hopi Reservations, soil and water conservation and range
improvement, relocation of Navajo and Hopi families on irrigated
lands of the Colorado River Reservation, completion and extension of
existing irrigation projects, and the development of additional employment
opportunities for the Navajo and Hopi people both on and off the
reservations.
The second major development of the year was a strengthening of
the basic organizational structure developed by the Bureau during the
previous year to carry on its activities with a maximum of effectiveness
and economy. In essence, the organizational pattern was built around
three levels of administration: (1) The national office (2) the 11 area
offices, and (3) the agencies or other field jurisdictions.
During 1951, the “housekeeping” functions, such as payrolling and
vouchering, formerly performed at the agency level, were transferred
to the area offices in order to free the agency personnel for more direct
operations with individual Indians and Indian groups.
351
352 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Another move of similar character was the placing of the nine detached
field offices, which were formerly directly responsible to the
Commissioner, under the supervision of the appropriate area offices.
In this transfer the area office at Phoenix, Ariz., assumed supervision
over the Carson agency at Stewart, Nev., and the Western Shoshone
agency at Owyhee, Nev.; the area office at Anadarko, Okla., extended
its jurisdiction over the Osage agency at Pawhuska, Okla., as well as
the Haskell Institute at Lawrence, Kans., and the Chilocco (Okla.)
School; the area office at Muskogee, Okla., became responsible for the
Choctaw agency at Philadelphia, Miss., and the Seminole agency at
Dania, Fla.; the area office at Window Rock, Ariz., took on supervision
of the Intermountain School at Brigham City, Utah; and the Minneapolis
area office assumed jurisdiction over the Cherokee (N. C.)
agency. With the completion of these administrative moves, all field
operations of the Bureau were brought under supervision of the 11
area offices.
A third development of prime long-range significance involved a
major decentralization of the functions of the Bureau from the Washington
level to the area offices and field jurisdictions. Starting in the
summer of 1950 the Bureau undertook a comprehensive and systematic
examination of the authorities and responsibilities affecting Indian
affairs which were exercised by the Commissioner or the Secretary
and which might more expeditiously be performed by area directors or
agency superintendents located closer to the major centers of Indian
population. Before these authorities and responsibilities could be comprehensively
delegated, however, the Bureau had to prepare a substantial
volume of procedural material designed to inform the area and
agency personnel in detail about the proper exercise of their newly
assumed responsibilities. This material was planned in the form of an
Indian Affairs Manual to consist of more than 150 separate chapters
covering every important phase of Bureau activity. By the close of the
fiscal year'a total of 31 chapters had been completed and distributed to
the field and 90 additional chapters were at some stage in the process
of preparation or duplication. It was anticipated that the entire job
would be completed early in the fiscal year 1952. Meanwhile, a large
number of delegations of authority, chiefly affecting land matters and
credit operations, had been made from the Commissioner to the area
directors.
The fourth development, perhaps the most significant of all, involved
a fundamental liberalization of the regulations governing the
disbursement of money held by the Bureau’s disbursing agents in the
accounts of individual Indians (25 CFR 221.1-221.40). Under the
regulations previously in effect, only very limited amounts could
be disbursed from these accounts to the individual owners without
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 353
some form of Bureau approval and large numbers of the withdrawals
had to be approved by the Washington office. In line with
the Bureau’s basic policy of gradually withdrawing its supervision
over Indian affairs and transferring to the Indians an increasing
measure of responsibility for decisions affecting their lives and welfare,
it was determined during the year that these regulations should
be substantially amended. Under the revised regulations, which
were approved by the Secretary and published in the Federal Register
toward the end of the fiscal year, the great majority of the approximately
80,000 individual Indian money accounts were freed of all
Bureau supervision. Restrictions were retained, however, over the accounts
of minors and mental incompetents. The regulations governing
the individual accounts of the Osages of Oklahoma, which are
different from those affecting the accounts of other Indians, were not
modified during the fiscal year but were being studied with a view to
similar modification some time in fiscal 1952.
The year 1951 was, in summary, a period of administrative realinement,
of continued operation of normal Indian Service functions, and
of preparation for more intensive effort to accomplish the Bureau’s
two long-range objectives: (1) A standard of living for Indians comparable
with that enjoyed by other segments of the population, and
(2) the step-by-step transfer of Bureau functions to the Indians themselves
or to appropriate agencies of local, State, or Federal Government.
In order to accomplish these objectives, the basic need was for
a group of qualified personnel, free of responsibility for the everyday
administration of Indian affairs, who could devote their full attention
to the job of developing cooperatively with each of the major
Indian groups an individualized program of resource development
accompanied by constantly expanding Indian control over the management
of their individual and tribal affairs. It was hoped that a program
development activity of this kind could be launched on a significant
scale in the fiscal year 1952.
HEALTH SERVICES
The mortality and morbidity rates among Indians for whom the
Bureau is responsible for providing a health program, continue to
decline slowly but still closely parallel the rates that prevailed
among the general population some 40 to 50 years ago. During the
past year an adequate number of personnel has not been available to
staff properly the Indian service hospitals nor to provide field nursing
service and an organized disease-prevention program on a scale
commensurate with the need. Management improvement studies,
however, are being actively conducted in each area to make the health
program as effective as possible with the limited personnel available.
354 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Individual service programs, including tuberculosis case finding
through the use of mobile X-ray diagnostic units, BCG vaccination
in the control of tuberculosis, topical application of fluoride among
preschool and school-child age groups as a dental caries preventative,
and blood surveys for the detection of syphilis, have been actively
carried out to the extent possible with the funds and personnel that
have been available. To stress the importance of these services, program
planning in the various areas has been given high priority and
has involved detailed inspections by area supervisory personnel, the
assessment of community needs and facilities, and the priority to
be given the several component parts of the program.
Hospital Care
As of June 30 the Bureau was operating 62 hospitals, ranging in
size from 15 to 420 beds. At Mount Edgecumbe, Alaska, 420 beds
are now available. An additional floor has been opened for tuberculosis
patients at Tacoma. The 100-bed addition to the Montana State
Sanatorium for Indians is under construction and should be in service
early in 1952. Plans for a 200-bed general hospital at Albuquerque,
X. M., under management by Bernalillo County, have been drawn.
When completed, this hospital will provide for 80 Indians. At Am
chorage, Alaska, a 400-bed hospital is under construction. A medical
center, staffed by specialists in medicine and surgery, has been established
to care for referred cases at Pine Ridge, S. D., and will be
staffed by four physicians, one of whom is a qualified surgeon. A
full-time dentist will also be located at Pine Ridge.
During the year the hospital at Bethel, Alaska, was destroyed by
fire. An emergency appropriation was made by Congress for its replacement.
Plans have been drawn and purchases are being made
for beginning construction during the fiscal year 1952.
During the past several years the turn-over in personnel has been
great and recruitment has been particularly difficult. The past year
has been no exception. The Armed Forces and foreign-aid programs
have taken some of the Bureau’s experienced personnel while others
have resigned to enter private practice or to accept more remunerative
positions with other agencies. At the year’s end 125 clinical medical
officers were on duty in Indian hospitals, of whom 88 were full-time
employees of the Bureau appointed through civil service. Thirtyseven
were on detail from the Public Health Service for periods varying
from 24 to 28 months. To fully staff all Indian Service hospitals
and provide for needed specialized professional personnel, including
ophthalmologists, pediatricians, and public health administrators,
about 250 physicians are needed—40 for field service and 210 for hospital
duty.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 355
Many of the hospitals are operating with only one full-time physician.
Two hospitals are operating without full-time medical officers,
the medical service being furnished entirely by local practitioners on
a part-time basis. Supervisory medical service is rendered by 13
medical officers in the central and area offices, 7 of whom are on detail
from the Public Health Service. Progress has been made in developing
arrangements with local practitioners and nearby hospitals for
health services to Indians on a contractual basis. For example, at
Fort Berthold, N. D., where the site of the present Indian Service
hospital will be submerged as a result of the construction of the Garrison
Dam, plans have been completed for service to Indians at nearby
hospitals.
Dental Services
During the year material progress has been made in the expansion
of the dental program for Indians. The chief dental officer, assigned
to the Bureau from Public Health Service in November 1950,
was, after 2 months in the central office, reassigned in February with
headquarters in Denver, Colo., where he could operate from a point
centrally located with reference to the Indians who reside in the
western part of the United States. Since his assignment to Denver
he has visited 46 Indian Service installations (hospitals and agencies)
for the purpose of reviewing caries conditions among Indian children,
evaluating dental care and prophylactic measures, and planning
an expansion of the dental program within the limits of funds
available.
These visits have been made in 8 of the 11 administrative areas
of the Bureau. Also, during the month of May a service-wide inventory
of dental material (equipment on hand and needed) was accomplished
with 90 percent of the Bureau installations reporting. Following
this inventory a great deal of needed dental equipment and
supplies were obtained, much of which was transferred to Indian
installations as surplus property from other Government agencies.
Of 37 dental officer positions allowed under 1951 budgetary limitations,
35 dental officers are now on duty and 2 are on orders to report
for duty, 1 in the month of July and 1 in September. Of the 35
dental officers on duty at the close of the fiscal year, 12 were assigned
during the year from the Public Health Service for military service
periods (18 to 24 months) and 5 have been recruited during the year
for full-time employment under civil-service status.
Nursing Service
Because of the Nation-wide shortage of nurses, the Bureau of
Indian Affairs has found it difficult to obtain an adequate number of
356 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
nurses to properly staff its hospitals. As the demand for nurses by
the military services and by other agencies has increased, the maintenance
of adequate nursing service for Indian Service hospitals has
become increasingly acute. While a considerable number of nurses
has been lost to the military services, other equally important factors—
such as remoteness of stations, long hours of work, and lack of
educational, social, and recreational activities—played a major role in
the loss of personnel in this critical category.
As compared to last year, there has been a loss of 45 in the actual
number of nurses on duty, but there is a total increase of 60 positions
unfilled. This difference is due to 15 new nurse positions allowed in
the 1951 budget for the Tacoma Hospital and Alaska to take care of
the additional patient load.
Much time and effort have been spent in nurse recruitment. Various
nursing schools were visited and talks given to senior students. Brochures
on nursing opportunities in the Bureau have been distributed
to some 700 hospitals with schools of nursing. Enrollment of students
at the Bureau’s Kiowa School of Practical Nursing (in existence
since 1935) has been increased and the course lengthened from
9 to 12 months. Limited hospital and housing facilities at the school
make it necessary to admit two classes yearly in order to accommodate
all students.
A consultant in nursing has been added to the staff and is assigned
to the Window Rock area. An additional consultant in nursing will
report for duty in the area office in Phoenix in September.
A survey has been made of the nursing resources in Alaska in contemplation
of a school of practical nursing at Mount Edgecumbe.
Tentative plans have been developed for the program.
Sanitation Activities
The greater part of the activities of the sanitary engineer has been
concerned with efforts to promote expansion of sanitary services at
Indian areas on the part of State and local public health units. Sanitary
surveys were conducted at 31 reservations and agencies in 16
States, comprising about 70 percent of the reservation population in
continental United States. This is the first time in the history of the
Indian Service that such surveys were undertaken on this scale.
Factual data were gathered on the incidence of communicable diseases
conventionally attributed to faulty environment and the level of sanitation
in general. The reports and recommendations submitted have
been supplemented in most instances with color photographs.
Contact has been maintained with State and some local health departments
in the interest of determining the extent of financial assistance
that may be necessary to permit State and local units to
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES 4- 357
extend to the Indian population sanitation services commensurate
with those now rendered to non-Indians within the general areas.
This has particular reference to public health education, including
demonstration of sanitary facility development.
State health department codes of rules, regulations, and requirements
have been secured from each 1 of the 26 States having any
registered Indian population. This is in anticipation of ultimate
adoption of such codes by tribal action at various reservations in
order that they may apply equally to reservation and nonreservation
areas.
Arrangements have been completed with the Training Division,
Communicable Disease Center, United States Public Health Service,
Atlanta, Ga., for a 6-week or 3-month course of training in general
and environmental sanitation for a group of selected Indians. This
course will be conducted on any Indian reservation designated by the
Bureau, and at various times during fiscal year 1952. As many as
20 trainees will be accepted for the initial course of training.
Tuberculosis Control
Hospital utilization within budgetary limitations continues near
capacity. Reports regarding the use of the newer antibiotics in the
treatment of selected (early) cases of tuberculosis indicate that healing
processes are accelerated. This fact emphasized the greater need
for early diagnosis and prompt treatment. Three Bureau mobile
X-ray units continued operation in case-finding procedures. A total
of 23,169 Indians were examined during the past year. During the
summer months three additional units were on loan from the Public
Health Service.
The number of beds available for treatment is inadequate. During
April a survey of all State, County, and privately owned sanatoria
in the Western States in which Indian reservations are located, indicated
that at least 400 beds are available for treatment of Indians
in nongovernmental facilities. Funds to hospitalize patients in these
facilities are not available.
A BCG demonstration program for the benefit of State and County
health personnel was arranged for Oklahoma in Caddo County. A
service-wide vaccination program for the newborn is being developed
for fiscal year 1952. This is made possible by the development of
BCG vaccine, the viability of which, is reported to be for 30 days.
Thus the Bureau will be able to supply vaccine to isolated hospitals
for use in vaccinating all children delivered in hospitals at the time of
birth. This will be a continuing program and will be supplemented
by school-age programs, eventually covering the entire Indian youth
population.
358 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
An evaluation of the original BCG vaccination program, now in
its fourteenth year, is being conducted. The results, as shown by preliminary
examination of the records, are encouraging. BCG offers a
practical means of supplementing the control program, which is inadequate
from the standpoint of hospitalization and isolation facilities.
Considerable assistance in hospitalizing tuberculous Indians is
being given the Bureau by states, especially in the northern areas.
A chest X-ray survey of Indians living on reservations in Arizona
and Nevada was conducted during the year. Over 11,000 X-rays were
taken, indicating a large percentage of Indians cooperating in the
survey. Summaries prepared covering 10,427 of the X-rays show 292
active tuberculosis cases, 252 tuberculosis suspects, and 2,187 healed
primary tuberculosis cases.
In November 1950 a complete serologic survey was made of the
Havasupai tribe, most of whom live in a remote canyon in Arizona
near the Grand Canyon. The entire population of the village, except
two who were away on business, was covered by the survey. The high
degree of cooperation shown by the Havasupais and their eagerness
to avail themselves of modern medical services were most impressive.
During the fiscal year 1951 a contract for health services was entered
into with the State of Nevada for Indians under the Carson and Western
Shoshone agencies. This contract provides for public health
services to Indians the same as those rendered to other citizens of the
State, and for 28 Indian clinics. It has proved extremely beneficial
to the Indians, and is an important step in bringing the Indians of
Nevada into the normal life of the State.
EDUCATION
The Branch of Education is charged with the responsibility of developing
comprehensive long-range educational plans to meet the
needs of the Indians within the continental United States and Alaska
and to prepare them to take their places on a basis of equality with
their non-Indian neighbors.
In many areas where Indians live no public schools are available;
therefore, it is necessary for the Bureau to provide school facilities
for these children. The Bureau operates reservation and nonreservation
boarding schools for Indian children requiring institutional care,
and day schools for those who live in isolated communities where there
are no public schools. More than half of the Indian children in school
at the present time are attending public schools. The transition from
Indian schools to public schools is, of necessity, a gradual process.
For the fiscal year 1951, the Bureau of Indian Affairs continued
contracts under the Johnson-O’Malley Act with 13 State Departments
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 359
of Education and negotiated 1 new contract for the education of
Indian children. Such contracts are now in effect in the following
states: Arizona, California, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska,
Nevada, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas,
Washington, and Wisconsin. The State of South Dakota was added
to the list over the previous fiscal year. Other contracts will be
negotiated for the transfer of Indian pupils to local public schools
when the children are, able to adapt themselves to the public school
environment and the public schools are open to them.
The Bureau also negotiated contracts with state and private institutions
for education and care for the deaf, dumb, blind, mentally
deficient, and physically handicapped Indian children.
During the fiscal year 1951 the Bureau of Indian Affairs operated
89 boarding schools and 140 day schools within the continental United
States, and 3 boarding and 93 day schools in Alaska.
The Bureau is now in the process of reclassifying professional
education positions based upon the class specifications issued by the
Civil Service Commission in April 1949. This action will generally
raise salaries of education personnel to the point where the Bureau can
compete somewhat with the salary schedule of the public school system.
This, in turn, will make recruiting of a higher type of personnel
possible, will hold outstanding personnel in the service, and will
increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the education program.
A research specialist has been added to the branch of education who
will make an analysis of the curricula and course content, including
the state courses of study which are now in use in the Indian Service
schools. These findings will determine what the course content and
curricula should be, in order to strengthen the existing program. He
also will make a study of the vocational and high-school graduates
at the Pine Ridge agency in South Dakota, covering the past 10 years
in order to evaluate the impact that the educational program at that
agency has had upon the students and the Indian communities served
by these schools.
A specialist in guidance and loans has been appointed to a position
in the branch of education to help outstanding students who desire to
further their training in colleges and universities.
Of the estimated 103,970 Indian children of school age, approximately
33,300 are in Federal boarding and day schools; 36,215 are in
public schools; 8,000 are in mission and private schools; and 18,400
not in any school.
In Alaska, an estimated 5,400 are in Federal schools, 3,700 are in
Territorial schools, 600 in mission schools, and 1,400 not in any school.
973649—52----- 26
360 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Promoting Navajo Education
When the plight of the Navajo Indians was brought to the attention
of the general public in 1946, there were approximately 5,000 school
seats for almost 24,000 Navajo children of school age. Practically ah
of these seats were occupied by elementary children below the age of 12.
Of the more than 10,000 children between the ages of 12 and 18, fewer
than 500 were attending high schools of any kind. The great proportion
of the remainder were either without any educational experience
or with such limited educational experience as to have difficulty in
securing employment away from the reservation.
With aroused Congressional concern over the education of Navajos,
steps were taken to increase the enrollment of younger children on
the reservation, to provide opportunity for the education of older
children in off-reservation Federal schools, and to increase the reservation
school facilities. Even these proposals, if carried to completion,
would provide educational facilities for little more than half
the school-age population on the reservation.
In the 5 years which have elapsed, progress has been made in all
three directions with the result that today some 12,000 Navajo children
are enrolled in schools of all kinds, Federal, public, and mission,
with the great majority—in excess of 10,000—enrolled in Federal
schools.
Of the children enrolled in Federal schools, the most spectacular
progress has been made with some 4,200 children, beyond the age of
12 years and with little or no schooling, who have been enrolled in
off-reservation Federal boarding schools for a speedup course of 5
years designed to equip them with the ability to speak English and
the vocational skills to secure and hold permanent employment away
from their home reservation.
Funds and facilities to care for these older children have progressively
increased during the 5 years from the first 291 who registered
at Sherman Institute in 1946 to a total enrollment this year of 4,200
in all schools. These older illiterates have been enrolled in eight
schools: One in Oregon, one in California, one in Nevada, one in
Arizona, one in New Mexico, two in Oklahoma, and the last and largest
in Utah. In 6 of the schools enrolling from 48 to 250 Navajos, these
students represent a minority of the entire student body. Of the
remaining 2, Sherman Institute in California enrolls 600 Navajos
to 150 Papagos; and Intermountain Indian School at Brigham City,
Utah, enrolled 1,300 Navajos this year, and next year will increase
this enrollment to 1,850 Navajos with 150 Papagos rounding out the
total capacity of the school. In addition, there are 2 other Oklahoma
schools enrolling between them 100 Navajo high school students in
the regular high-school program of these institutions.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 361
This program is significant, because for many years the great bulk
of Nava] os actively resisted the acquisition of the English language
as well as any formal education. When it was originally proposed
that a speed-up program of educating adolescent Nava]’os within a
period of 5 years would be productive, it was severely criticized by a
majority of the educators both inside and outside of the Indian
Service who have previously dealt with the Navajo problem. However,
George Boyce, at that time director of education on the Navajo,
and Mrs. Hildegard Thompson, who had for a number of years been
an elementary supervisor on the Navajo Reservation, agreed with
director of education, Willard W. Beatty, that such a program, properly
taught, could be productive of intensive learning.
The initial program provided for 3 years of intensive emphasis
on general academic work with an hour to an hour and one-half daily
experience in the use of tools. The vocational experience was
broadened during the fourth year to half-time in specialized vocational
instruction, and in the fifth year, to a minimum of three-quarter
time specialized vocational instruction with some continuing emphasis
on the reading, writing, and speaking of English language.
It was the firm conviction of the leaders of this special program
that the greatest speed in the acquisition of English and in the comprehension
of the cultural, as well as intellectual, adaptations to
non-Indian life could best be achieved when there was thorough comprehension
by the students of every step being taken from entry to
school until graduation.
In order to economize on time, much instruction during the first
6 months that the child is in school takes place in the Navajo language.
What is expected of the student with regard to wearing
apparel, home living in the dormitories of the off-reservation schools,
the acquisition of table manners and other culture patterns of the
majority culture are carefully taught in the Navajo language. It
was also noted that much of the work in basic arithmetic lent itself
equally well to instruction in Navajo as in English.
To the extent that they were available, these schools were staffed
with college-educated Navajos, of whom there were only a few. In
the remainder of the classes, the most competent available elementary
teachers were teamed with a competent English- and Navajo-speaking
high-school graduate who became a teacher-interpreter. Each day
the lesson plan of the day following was carefully worked out between
the expert teacher and the teacher-interpreter so that each step of
the lesson could be of maximum help to the students on the following
day.
During this first 6 months, considerable emphasis is placed upon
learning English as a separate and foreign language. The success
362 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
of the teacher-interpreter and of the straight English teaching has
been such that with the beginning of the second 6 months it has proved
possible to carry on much of the classroom instruction in English and
Navajo, and in the second year, English becomes the basic language
of classroom instruction. This, however, does not dispense with the
services of the teacher-interpreter, for it has been found a basic
economy for the teacher-interpreter to remain active during the second
year to see that nothing which takes place within the classroom
shall escape full understanding on the part of the students. When
there is the slightest doubt as to the meaning of an English word or
phrase or any confusion, the student can immediately request a careful
translation into Navajo so that he is fully cognizant of exactly
what is taking place in the classroom.
As a result of this intensive instruction, the class medians have
recorded an achievement of 2% to 3y2 years of progress during the
first year.
The rate of progress has gradually decreased as the students have
advanced and as the academic accomplishment has more nearly approximated
that of their chronological age. It has been found that
as a result of the instruction offered, non-English-speaking beginners
show a capacity to know and use about 330 words out of some 500 used
in instruction and common intercourse. It is believed that at the end
of the second year, this capacity has increased to approximately 1,000
words.
All of the pupils have been encouraged to seek and engage in Saturday
employment, and after the first summer when the children are
encouraged to return to the reservation, an effort has been made to find
employment during the summer months for the children engaged in
this off-reservation program.
During the fourth year, some effort has been made to secure opportunities
for on-the-job training in various types of activity in the
area in which the school is located.
During the fifth year, that attempt extends to an effort to place all
of the fifth-year students in on-the-job training away from the campus
for at least half of the school year.
Sherman Institute at Riverside, Calif., the first school to enroll
Navajos in the off-reservation special program, brought the remaining
members of its first-year class to graduation in May of 1951. One
hundred and one students completed the course after almost 80 percent
of the students had enjoyed on-the-job training experiences away
from the campus during the closing year. As a result of the training
offered by Sherman Institute, every one of these completing students
were offered permanent employment at the conclusion of the course.
A number of the boys were not able to accept permanent employment,
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 363
because they were called into the military service under Selective
Service. However, all the girls were placed, and all the boys who
were available to accept full-time employment.
The boys found placement with cabinet makers, sash and door manufacturers,
glaziers, manufacturers of building hardware, plant nursery
men, painters, bakers, poultrymen, and in restaurants as cooks and
helpers.
The girls found employment in day nurseries, drapery shops, private
homes, motels, restaurants, and hotels. A dozen of these students
have accepted permanent paid employment on the reservation
as cooks, day school housekeepers, dining room attendants, and in
similar jobs.
All of the students received payment for on-the-job training; the
boys wages ranging from $0.75 an hour to $1.50, and the girls wages
from $7.50 to $22.50 per week, room and board included.
All of the students engaged in on-the-job training have lived away
from the campus, and have either received room and board as part
payment for their services or have paid for their room and board out
of the compensation received.
Employers near the Los Angeles area have been found to be entirely
receptive to these Navajo students, and little difficulty has been found
in placing them.
At Phoenix Indian School in Arizona, on-the-job training has been
tried with a number of fourth-year students, and has been similarly
successful despite the fact that the initial reaction of many employers
was averse to employing Indians. The result of this has been that
most of the on-the-job training at Phoenix has been done without
compensation, but has, in the majority of cases, led toward permanent
employment with the same firms and has opened the way for further
employment of Indians in the area.
At Santa Fe and at Albuquerque, the concern displayed in the onthe-
job training and placement of the Navajo students has been extended
to the non-Navajo attending these two schools and has been
equally successful in finding them satisfactory placement. Again,
of course, the draft law has interfered with the employment of a
large number of the boys completing their high-school course.
The success of these placement efforts carried on at the Bureau’s
southwestern schools is resulting in more concrete plans for similar
placement of the students of the northern schools where the students
do not successfully find employment for themselves.
On the Navajo Reservation, further progress is being made in the
construction of dormitories in the new Shiprock School project, and
the reconstructed Tohatchi School was opened for occupancy for 120
children in early January.
364 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Funds were received to provide for the construction of dormitory
facilities in connection with the Thoreau School on the Navajo Reservation,
which will provide space for an additional 120 children.
Funds are also available for the construction of dormitories at
Hunters Point and at Cheechilgeetho, which will regularize the boarding
school operation at these two plants.
Further steps toward the erection of dormitory facilities at others
of the old day schools have been delayed somewhat by a decreased rate
of appropriation growing out of the Korean emergency.
There has been a follow-up study on the general achievements of
Indian pupils in Federal, public and mission schools at the fourth-,
eighth-, and twelfth-year levels to correlate with the result obtained
by Dr. Shailer Peterson of the University of Chicago in a study in
1946.
Plans are being made for a similar study of the effectiveness of high
school education for Indians in Federal and public schools of Oklahoma
during the fiscal year 1952.
CREDIT AND EXTENSION WORK
During the fiscal year 1951 Indians continued to maintain their good
credit record on loans from the revolving fund. Because of the
revolving nature of the fund, which makes payments of principal and
interest available for further financing, loans totaling over $16,400,000
have been made from the $8,350,000 appropriated for loans, and over
$500,000 remained available for additional loans. Repayments of
more than $8,200,000 were made on principal, and over $440,000 interest
was paid. The unpaid balance was about $8,200,000.
On these loans of over $16,400,000, losses totaling $31,700 have been
suffered, or 0.2 percent. Payments of more than $8,670,000 were due
on these loans, of which nearly 97 percent was paid, 2 percent extended,
and about 1 percent was either delinquent or uncollectible.
Indian tribes are now using more than $4,200,000 of their own funds
in their credit operations, to supplement funds borrowed from the
revolving credit fund.
In addition to the more than $12,400,000 of revolving credit and
tribal funds being used for loans, about 42,000 head of cattle which
originated in purchases from emergency funds for drouth relief in the
1930’s are under contract to Indians on a repayment-in-kind basis.
These cattle, which would have gone to slaughter had they not been
made available to the Indians for the purpose of establishing foundation
herds for them, represent an asset on the present market of more
than $4,000,000. The act of May 24,1950 (64 Stat. 190) authorizes cash
settlements of “in kind” indebtedness, the sale of livestock repaid to
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 365
the United States, and deposit of the proceeds in the revolving credit
fund. Loans of livestock are gradually being converted to cash.
Three different types of loans are made: business enterprises of
tribes, cooperative associations, and individual Indians. As examples
of business enterprises of tribes, four salmon canneries in Alaska are
being operated with loans. A fifth cannery is now being operated entirely
with tribal funds, supplemented with loans obtained from
banks. About 32 percent of the total amount loaned has been to finance
such enterprises.
As examples of cooperative associations, the development and
marketing of Indian arts and crafts products are being fostered by
the Northern Plains Arts and Crafts Association at Browning, Mont.,
and the Southern Plains Arts and Crafts Association at Anadarko,
Okla., both of which have received loans. About 5 percent of the total
amount loaned has been to finance cooperatives.
Individual Indians receive loans for any purpose which will help
them to become self-supporting, including loans for educational purposes.
About 63 percent of the total amount loaned has been used to
finance individual Indians. More than 21,200 loans have been made
to about 11,400 different Indians.
As a result of these loans and the supervision and assistance of
Indian Service extension workers, it is estimated that about 4,900 of
these borrowers are now self-supporting.
Loans from the revolving fund are made to Indians unable to obtain
financing elsewhere and consequently involve a high risk element.
Efforts are made to reduce risk by careful planning and supervision
of loans. As soon as borrowers reach a point in their economic
development where they are in a position to obtain financing
from the same sources serving other citizens and institutions in the
area, they are encouraged to do so. As an example of the progress
being made along this line, the Hydaburg Cooperative Association in
Alaska received loans from the Bureau for the construction and
operation of a salmon cannery. The construction loan has been repaid,
and the plant is now appraised in excess of $400,000. In 1950
a loan of $300,000 from the revolving fund was required to operate
the cannery. As a result of successful operations in 1950, the association
will be able to finance part of its 1951 operations with its
own funds. It also has been successful in making arrangements
with a bank to supply financing up to $100,000. The operating loan
from the revolving fund for 1951 has been reduced to $150,000. It
is hoped that within the next few years, the Government will be
able to withdraw entirely from financing the operations of this cannery.
Similar procedures are being followed with other borrowers
from the revolving fund.
366 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Despite a decrease in the number of Indian families engaged in
farming and stock-raising activities during the past calendar year,
total agricultural income received by Indians increased from $48,-
000,000 in 1949 to $49,600,000 in 1950. Income from livestock activities
alone increased over $2,000,000. Part of this increase was due
to the record high prices received for beef cattle; many reservations
reported receiving the highest prices for livestock in their history.
The increased livestock income was not due solely to the high prices,
however. Improved quality of Indian-owned cattle and improved
marketing procedures were also reflected in the increase.
Indian stockmen at a number of agencies have established a reputation
for the high quality of their stock, and their sales attract more
cattle buyers each year. At the Standing Rock agency in North
Dakota, the San Carlos agency in Arizona, the Mescalero agency in
New Mexico, and the Colville agency in Washington, Indian stockmen
have made outstanding progress in the beef cattle industry. An
unfavorable factor in the beef cattle activities among the Indians was
the overselling of breeding stock. Many sold below the minimum
numbers necessary for an economic unit, chiefly because of high prices
but also to meet the rising cost of living.
The extension program provides for continued emphasis on the keeping
of dairy cows to supply milk for family needs. There was a 5-
percent increase in dairy cattle numbers during the year. There was
a somewhat smaller increase in the numbers of hogs raised by Indian
farm families; this project also is encouraged chiefly to provide for
family food requirements.
Indian farmers harvested more acres of crops during 1950 than
in 1949, although the total output was below that of the previous
year. Income from crop sales decreased from $8,800,000 in 1949 to
$7,600,000 in 1950. Total yields of forage crops were valued at $5,700,-
000. Total cereal grain yields were valued at $7,200,000. An increasing
number of Indian farmers are following recommended practices
of seeding and cultivation and are conducting their operations in
accordance with approved soil-conservation methods.
Besides providing for their own needs the Indians have contributed
much to the Nation’s food supply. Emphasis is being placed on increasing
their food production to aid in the defense program. It
is believed they will respond wholeheartedly to this need as they did
during the years of World War II, when they made a remarkable Contribution
to national needs both in manpower and agricultural
production.
Home Extension Program
Improvement of the economic and social well-being of the Indians
is carried on by Indian Service home extension agents. They work
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 367
mainly with the family unit, particularly the women, but most of
them devote at least a third of their time to conducting 4-H and
similar work with girls. The program, similar in many ways to the
long-established home extension work of the Department of Agriculture,
includes efforts to increase Indian farm income through application
of science and farm machinery; improvement of family living
through more adequate housing, rural electrifications and home
equipment; and development of a better understanding of community,
county, State, and national affairs.
There are presently 13 field home extension agents in Oklahoma,
New Mexico, Arizona, and Nevada. Five new positions were added
during the year at Navajo, Colo., and Fort Berthold agencies. During
the past fiscal year, the agents spent a total of 1,967 days in the
field in visits to 2,742 homes, where some 4,500 improved home practices
were put into effect. They organized 118 clubs with 1,667 members.
There are about 4,000 Indian 4-H club members.
Arts and Crafts
The Indian Arts and Crafts Board has the responsibility of stimulating
and organizing production and marketing agencies, improving
quality and standards, and assisting in establishing marketing outlets
for Indian arts and crafts organizations.
In general, there is a noticeable increase of interest in arts and
crafts, not only in this country but in other countries as well; and
many of these other countries have become interested in the arts and
crafts program which is being carried on among the American Indians,
with the idea of developing arts and crafts in their own countries.
There is also evidence that the young Indian people of today
are becoming more interested in arts and crafts.
The supplemental income derived from arts and crafts means a great
deal to the Indian people, and in many instances the income from this
source is greatest among the poorest and neediest Indians. In some
areas this represents practically the only cash income they receive;
and potentially, arts and crafts, together with manual industries,
constitute one of the most promising sources of income available to
them.
The modern dress project begun by the Oklahoma Inter-Tribal
Crafts Association 3 years ago is now a thriving business. Here
styles and designs of traditional Indian costumes of the Southern
Plains Indians are adapted to dresses and accessories for modern wear.
Most of the marketing outlets so far have been established in resort
cities in the western part of the country, but there is a potential outlet
in the East also. Until a few months ago, the big problem was production
but recent reports from the association indicate that production
has increased and orders are now being filled promptly.
368 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
In the Aberdeen, S. Dak., area, interest in arts and crafts is increasing
; and the Board has made arrangements to assign a full-time arts
and crafts specialist to this area to assist in the craft programs in the
schools and to help the adult groups with their craft problems. A
manager-instructor in the fields of both ceramics and hand-weaving
will be employed for this area, and it is expected that a full-scale
program will get under way in the very near future.
Other areas, namely, the Minneapolis area and the Alaska area,
have requested assistance from the Board in their craft work, and
the greatest difficulty at the present time is lack of personnel to assist
the groups who wish to expand their craft activities.
The Qualla Cooperative of the Cherokees of western North Carolina
has had a successful year. In addition to their craft shop, which
carries only high quality Cherokee crafts, they have a tourist project
which includes a motor court, a dining lodge, and a filling station.
It is the plan of the Board to assign an arts and crafts specialist
to the eastern area which will include the North Carolina Cherokee
group, the Seminoles in Florida, and the Choctaws in Mississippi.
The Seminoles have an excellent craft program, but they need assistance
in stepping up their production and in finding new markets.
At one time some of the finest baskets came from the Choctaw group
in Mississippi, but interest in crafts has dwindled in this area. With
the help of an arts and crafts specialist, it is hoped that the Choctaw
people will rekindle their interest in arts and crafts.
It appears increasingly evident that the public is becoming aware
that many new and useful arts and crafts items are being made which,
while keeping closely to the Indian tradition, are being styled and
designed to meet demands of modern interior decoration and modern
dress. The modern dresses which are now being made by Indian
craftsmen in Oklahoma show how well traditional Indian styles and
designs may be adapted to clothing, and this is also true of the many
other arts and crafts now being produced by Indian craftsmen
throughout the United States and Alaska.
RESOURCES: LAND AND WATER
Inflated land values brought on by the high prices being paid for
farm products and livestock, coupled with the ability of many more
individuals to invest in real property have created a ready market for
Indian-owned land. This rising demand for land by non-Indians and
the high prices being paid have resulted in a large number of Indians
requesting supervised sales of their lands and the removal of restrictions
or trust so that they may dispose of their holdings. As a result,
transfer of Indian-owned lands to non-Indians has continued at a
rapid rate.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 369
To facilitate and expedite conveyances and adjustment transactions
affecting Indian-owned lands the Commissioner delegated additional
authorities to the directors of the several area offices. These new
authorities contained in order No. 551, issued March 29, 1951, pertain
to the approval of transactions involving the removal of restrictions,
issuance of patents in fee, and sales of Indian lands. Immediately
after the order was issued and a manual of procedures furnished
area officials, they began exercising the authorities delegated.
Since the delegation of authority, the area directors have approved
deeds covering sales and requests for the issuance of patents covering
a total area of approximately 14,300 acres of land.
Land transactions approved by the central office prior to the delegation
of authority involved the issuance of 316 patents in fee totaling
50,350 acres, and sales covering 41,048 acres, for a total consideration
of approximately $790,000.
During the previous fiscal year a total of 605 patents-in-fee were
issued comprising 96,555 acres, and 60 sales by deed covering 7,177
acres.
The heirship problem continues to be the most difficult and pressing
of those confronting the Bureau in the field of land activities. Various
tribes are joining the Bureau in an attempt to lessen the problems
by reducing the amount of heirship land through purchase of undivided
interests with tribal funds. However, there are not sufficient
funds available to reduce substantially the area of such lands.
The principal means of combating this problem is through the system
of exchanges between individual Indians and the tribes. The progress
of the land-adjustment programs was hampered considerably because
the field personnel necessarily had to expend a considerable amount
of time in processing the transactions relating to the conveyance of
lands to non-Indians. However, officials of the area offices have approved
a large number of transactions which have assisted in the consolidation
of Indian lands and a reduction in the administrative problems
relating to heirship lands. In connection with these activities,
2,700 deeds have been approved.
Minerals Exploration
Beginning a few years prior to Pearl Harbor, the Indian Service, in
cooperation with other agencies of the Government and the Indian
owners of the minerals, adopted a policy of more active encouragement
of discovery, increased production and simplified procedure in
making available the mineral deposits needed by the war industries—
all accomplished within the framework of sound conservation principles.
This policy has remained in effect.
370 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The policy of encouraging exploration under prospecting permits
has resulted in increased development. During the fiscal year ended
June 30, 1950, approximately 2,000 oil and gas leases were approved.
More than 20,000 barrels of oil were produced from slightly in excess
of 11,000 producing wells on Indian lands. Gas production totaled
more than 13 billion cubic feet. On the Osage Reservation, where it
appears that the peak of production has passed, there is a strong interest
in secondary recovery operations.
For many years the main source of Indian income from oil and gas
leases has been obtained from Indian leases in Oklahoma. The orderly
development and administration of the leases has resulted in profitable
production from many old stripper wells. Here also there has been
a renewed interest in secondary recovery and the reworking of old
productive areas to find new producing sands and small pools.
As the result of prospecting operations carried on over a period of
years under simplified prospecting permits issued locally the Jicarilla
Reservation has since 1948 received approximately $1,500,000 in bonuses
under oil and gas leases sold at competitive bidding.
At a sale held May 29, the bids received on 22,990 acres of Southern
Ute tribal land amounted to $926,245.36. At the same sale the bids
received on 19,520 acres of Ute Mountain tribal land amounted to
$1,164,720.
The approval of the ore commingling plan on the Quapaw Reservation
and the increased price for ore have served to increase the
production of low-grade lead and zinc ores and isolated high-cost
ores.
Since the first discovery of petroleum on the Navajo Reservation,
around 1924, income from oil has totaled $3,747,306.36.
Other minerals from the Navajo lands play an important part in
the defense effort. It is expected that the extensive diamond drilling
program of the Geological Survey on the Navajo Reservation will
serve to increase the output of carnotite ores.
The following table gives the Navajo income from vanadiumuranium,
coal, and sand and gravel for the fiscal year ending June
30,1950:
Production royalties (vanadium-uranium)
Rentals on vanadium-uranium leases_____________
Production royalties (Indian coal mining permits)
Sale of sand and gravel__________________________
Total________________________
Tribal
land
Allotted
land
$62,761.01 None.
2, 044. 90 None.
950.01 None.
328.67 None.
66, 084.59
From 1942 to 1950, the total income from vanadium-uranium leases
was $170,299.95. The development of the potential uranium resources
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 371
on the Navajo Reservation has received continuous attention. Cooperation
with the Atomic Energy Commission has been marked.
It is expected that the production of other useful materials from
Indian reservations—such as tungsten, asbestos, gypsum, and sand and
gravel will increase and play a part in the Nation’s defense program.
A new source of income for the Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians of
Oklahoma and the increased production of an item which was in short
supply during World War II may result from the proposed development
of vast gypsum (CaSO4) deposits in western Oklahoma in the
area where the Cheyenne and Arapahoes were allotted lands.
The task of revising the 1928 roll of California Indians was given
the Sacramento area office by the act of June 30, 1948. Despite an
unforeseen delay of 7 months, enrollment work under the 1948 act is
practically completed and work is now going forward on the tabulation
of applications from those Indians denied enrollment in 1928
and the making of per capita payments from the judgment fund as
provided by the act of May 24, 1950. As of June 26, 1951, per capita
payments of $150, totaling $1,954,500, have been made to 13,030 Indians
of California. Coincidental with the program, $25,000 have been
collected from the Indians on debts owed the United States for reimbursable
loans, probate fees and repayment cattle. It is estimated
that it will take another year to complete the 1950 enrollment and pay
the Indians on that roll.
The payments are being made in settlement of claims of about
$5,000,000 growing out of the so-called 18 unratified treaties of 1849.
The treaties with the California tribes were never ratified by the Congress
because gold was discovered on the Indian lands in 1849.
Conserving Indian Soil and Water
Increased soil productivity is indispensable in the present emergency.
During the past 10 years 8.9 percent of the soil conservation
work needed on Indian lands has been completed. The program is
not adequate, however, since erosion is making unfit for cultivation a
daily average of 80 acres out of a total of 3,260,000 acres.
Recognition of the seriousness of land loss by Indians is shown by
the money and work they have expended after learning the techniques
of conservation. The Indian Bureau completed a $13,118,770 soil and
water conservation job this year with a soil and moisture conservation
appropriation of only $1,561,470, because Indians spent $7.50 for
every dollar expended by the Bureau on work to preserve their soil
and water resources. Indians have continuously increased their proportionate
share of work, because they see on their own farms not only
stoppage of soil losses but progressively increasing yields.
A survey of 17 reservations showed increased farm production of
$27.15 for every dollar spent by the Bureau for soil-conservation pur372
+ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
poses, and $3.68 for each dollar spent by the land user. Numerous
examples of increased production from every section can be cited: At
northern Idaho, wheat increased per acre, 50 bushels or 580 percent;
at United Pueblos, oats increased 30 bushels an acre or 213 percent,
and corn, 22 bushels or 70 percent; at Osage, wheat increased 275
percent, with an added $44.80 per acre for vetch seed.
Conservation education was accelerated during the year. The
Branch of Education, in consultation with the soil conservationists,
integrated soil-conservation instruction into the school curricula. On
the Navajo and Hopi Reservations soil conservation was integrated
into the curricula of all elementary schools and entire courses were
prepared for the Fort Wingate and Hopi High Schools.
Participation in the Production and Marketing Administration
program was increased with Navajos on allotted land being permitted
to participate in the program for the first time this year. Users of
range lands are now permitted to participate as family groups. Over
$100,000 of PMA money was used by Navajos and Hopis this year.
Irrigation
On the Navajo Reservation in New Mexico 114,000 acres of class I
and II lands are available for gravity irrigation development under
the proposed Shiprock project. This acreage would be a large factor
in creating economic stability in the area and would effect a substantial
reduction in the Nation’s responsibility to the Navajo and Hopi
Indians. A comprehensive interim report was submitted covering
several plans with cost studies for this important project. Water
storage in a reservoir formed by the construction of the proposed
Navajo Dam on the San Juan River would be the first major step in
developing the project. The impounded water would be used primarily
for irrigation, river control, and hydroelectric power generation.
Final project reports and plans, however, must be deferred until
allocations of water flowing in the San Juan River have been established.
The prior water rights of the Indians to the river flows and
the many demands placed on the short supply have produced varied
and involved competition between the San Juan-Chama project for
transmountain diversion to the Rio Grande Valley; the South San
Juan project; and the Shiprock project. Nevertheless, substantial
progress has been made during the fiscal year in clarifying conflicting
claims and unifying efforts between the claimants. Determination of
the San J nan River water allocations is anticipated in 1952.
In expanding the Colorado River Reservation irrigation project to
its ultimate area of 100,000 acres of irrigated lands, 75,000 acres of
which will be for the colonization of Indians from less productive
reservations, 3,330 acres of land were completely subjugated with
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 373
canal and drain construction during the fiscal year. Electric service
for farm and domestic purposes was also supplied to the expanding
colonized area by the extension and installation of transmission and
distribution lines with necessary substation equipment.
Construction work continued during the fiscal year on the satus No.
3 unit of the Wapato irrigation project on the Yakima Indian Reservation,
which, when completed, will add an additional 10,000 acres
to the project area. Two pumping stations which will supply water
to the area are scheduled for completion in fiscal year 1952.
Power construction on the Flathead irrigation project in Montana
made service available to approximately 450 additional customers
during the fiscal year. This work involved the construction and enlargement
of approximately 35 miles of transmission and distribution
lines. The irrigation system was extended to serve approximately
1,000 acres of new land and to provide supplemental water to 3,000
acres.
Forest and Range Management
Forest, range, and wildlife resources comprise the keystone in the
economy of many of the larger Indian communities and of adjacent
non-Indian communities, particularly in the West, and make material
contribution to the national need for such products. Therefore, it is
in the public as well as the Indians’ interest to continue sustained
yield management of their forest and range lands and to provide
adequate protection against fire, insects, and disease.
During the calendar year 1950, the timber cut on Indian lands
approximated 688,791,000 board feet, with a stumpage value of
$6,067,847. Included in this volume is approximately 41,812,000
board feet produced by three Indian sawmill enterprises. The volume
of timber cut is well within the sustained yield capacity of the forests.
Funds are still inadequate for intensive forest management.
About 48,000,000 acres of Indian range lands provide forage for 620,-
000 cattle, 967,000 sheep, and 99,900 horses. During the past year the
Indians used 36,700,000 acres of their range lands for grazing their
livestock. In view of the importance of the livestock industry among
the Indians and of conserving the fertility of the soil, it is essential
that the range resources be managed properly. Management has been
such that in general the forage has been utilized in accordance with
the principles of conservation. In the Southwest, however, the prolonged
drought and heavy grazing have created major problems in
range management and the livestock industry among the Indians,
particularly on lands under the jurisdiction of the Navajo and United
Pueblos agencies.
374 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The value of the 1950 harvest of fish and wildlife on Indian lands
is estimated at $2,537,000. The fish taken by Indians had an estimated
value of $1,171,000. In some areas these resources have an
important part in the economy of the Indians.
On nearly 50,000,000 acres of Indian land under protection, it was
necessary to suppress 904 fires during 1950. These fires covered 33,000
acres and caused damage estimated at $147,700. Lightning caused 54
percent of the fires. Fort Apache Reservation, Arizona, had 297 fires,
approximately 33 percent of the total for the Service. Funds for
detection, patrol, and initial suppression are still inadequate despite a
steadily increasing hazard in the pine stands, which comprise major
portions of Indian forests.
ROAD CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE
Preparation for national defense was a distinguishing feature of
the Bureau’s 1951 road program. Several investigations were made
of proposed access roads to military establishments and sources of
critical materials. The Bureau of Public Roads has requested the
Indian Service to build these roads.
The Navajo-Hopi long-range program was started during 1951.
While only one-half of the funds authorized were appropriated, the
job of tooling up for the project was completed, and 51 miles of
primary roads constructed.
During 1951 the Indian Service graded and drained 86 miles of
road; 72 miles were gravel-surfaced; 22 miles of black top was laid;
and the equivalent of twenty-two 50-foot span bridges were built.
Road maintenance and repair was performed on 20,500 miles of roads.
Uranium ore deposits and Navajo-Hopi rehabilitation may speed up
the construction of a 20 million dollar highway program on the vast
Indian reservations of northeastern Arizona.
Congress is being urged to make funds available for completion of
the roads in 4 years instead of 10. The money would be used to crisscross
the now almost inaccessible Indian country with all-weather
roads.
These would tie in with national highways which skirt the reservations
on three sides and in some instances would become important
connecting links between transcontinental routes.
They would provide access roads to uranium deposits, improve
trade and travel facilities for the more than 60,000 Navajos and Hopis,
and open up tourist travel to some of the most picturesque scenery
in the United States, including the famed Monument Valley.
Expenditure of the funds already has been approved by Congress
as part of the 88 million dollar Navajo-Hopi rehabilitation program.
But only $960,000 actually has been appropriated to date.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 375
Meanwhile, a master highway plan for the reservations has been
drafted and approved by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Bureau
of Public Roads. It calls for a primary road system of 636
miles at an average cost of $20,000 a mile; a secondary system of 633
miles to cost no more than $10,000 a mile; and 950 miles of unimproved
roads at $1,000 a mile. The primary system would be surfaced with
gravel.
A total of 336 Navajo and Hopi Indians were employed during
the fiscal year 1951 in road building operations, with an average of
200 on the payroll. Of these 144 are in supervisory or skilled positions.
The Navaj os and Hopis thus employed have received an average
of $12,000-$13,000 per month as a group.
PLACEMENT
On most Indian reservations the land resources are insufficient either
in quantity or quality to support the present population. Population
is increasing much faster than the national rate, industrial development
is negligible, and a large portion of the inhabitants face the alternative
of remaining wholly or partially unemployed or of leaving
home to seek employment. In a study of 16 reservation areas where
the problem is considered most serious, it is estimated that resources
available within the reservation can support only 46 percent of the
reservation population even at a minimum standard of subsistence.
To attain a fully adequate standard of living comparable to that of
the national average, it is probable that more than half of all Indians
would have to seek their livelihood off reservation.
The objectives of the Bureau placement program are to make known
to Indians the opportunities existing for permanent off-reservation
work and living, to assist those who are interested in improving their
lot to plan for and successfully carry out their movement to places
of greater opportunity, to ensure their acceptance in employment, and
to facilitate their social adjustment in communities to which they may
go. Placement in the limited sense of completion of the hiring process
is, by formal agreements entered into during the past year, the
function of the United States Employment Service, State employment
services and of the Railroad Retirement Board. Preference is
given in recruitment to employment in industries essential to the national
defense.
A placement program to facilitate employment of Indians was
begun with the Navajo and Hopi tribes early in 1948 and was introduced
on a skeletal basis in five additional areas—Aberdeen, Billings,
Minneapolis, Muskogee, and Portland—during the early part of 1950,
and into Alaska in February 1951.
973649—52-------27
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Except for Navajo-Hopi in the Window Rock Area, the placement
staff has consisted of only one or two placement officers in each extensive
and diverse geographical area and has served to lay a groundwork
and to point to the need for more intensive and well-rounded
services rather than to accomplish large numbers of permanent placements.
For the Navajo and Hopi, the staff has been adequate to work
closely with Indians in the various districts on their reservations and
one placement officer has been assigned to each of four cities: Los
Angeles, Phoenix, Denver and Salt Lake City, to assist workers to
make adjustment when taking jobs in California, Arizona, Colorado,
and Utah.
The placement staff has worked with Indian organizations, Indian
leaders, and individual Indians to stimulate interest in employment,
educate them regarding working and living conditions off the reservation,
and assist them to use established employment agencies. The
staff has worked with employers, employer groups, community welfare,
civic and religious organizations, and other interested agencies
to promote acceptance of Indians as employees and as community
residents. The staff has assisted employment agencies and employers
to recruit workers, and has secured cooperation of State employment
agencies in extending special services to Indians. Traveling registration
offices were established by State employment agencies in several
States and State agencies have undertaken aptitude testing, vocational
counseling, and guidance in Indian schools.
The placement staff participated in more than 20,000 placements
during the 1951 fiscal year. Two-thirds of these placements were
Navajo and Hopi for whom staffing both on and off the reservation
was reasonably adequate. Over 90 percent were seasonal farm and
railroad jobs because this work is most available in and near Indian
country and because most Indian workers are unskilled. Seasonal
employment has introduced many Indians to off-reservation life and
work and will prepare them for the goal of steady, year-round employment.
Smaller but significant numbers of Indians are already
being placed in more permanent jobs. Navajos, for instance, now
form the bulk of the common labor supply at the ordnance depots at
Barstow, Calif.; Bellemont, Ariz.; Fort Wingate, N. Mex.; and Tooele,
Utah, with more than 1,000 Navajo and Hopi now employed in these
essential Army installations.
It is conservatively estimated that Navajo and Hopi earned approximately
$12,000,000 during the calendar year 1950 in off-reservation
employment, or approximately half their total income from all
sources. Of this total income resulting from off-reservation employment,
approximately $1,250,000 was received from railroad unemployment
compensation.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 377
WELFARE ACTIVITIES
Under the welfare program, the general assistance case load decreased
to about 6,500 cases during the fiscal year 1951, as compared
with 8,755 for 1950, because of the mild winter in the North Central
States. With the resultant reduction in case load, as well as a larger
appropriation for general assistance, it was possible to provide more
adequate monthly grants to cover subsistence needs.
Social services were extended to more children in need of foster
home placement, particularly to Alaska native children, many of
whose parents entered sanatoria for treatment of tuberculosis. The
monthly average of children placed in foster homes totaled 432, with
230 of that number accounted for in the Alaska program.
A growing awareness of social conditions on the part of the tribes
is reflected in their requests that provision be made for additional
social workers to be placed on the reservations to assist Indian families
in working out plans to meet social problems.
TRIBAL SELF-GOVERNMENT
Indian tribes, whether they operate under unwritten custom or
under constitutions, bylaws, and corporate charters adopted in accordance
with one of the three organization acts (Indian Reorganization
Act of 1934, the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act, or the Alaska Act)
have made measurable progress during the past fiscal year. Individual
tribes have adopted rules governing membership in the tribe,
the use and disposition of property, the expenditure of funds, the
enforcement of law and order procedures, and other matters. Also,
as they have gained experience in operating under their tribal governments,
the tribes have found it necessary to amend their written documents
and to consider the advisability of substituting written forms
for unwritten custom.
The Navajo Tribe of Arizona and New Mexico exhibited an increasing
interest in the budgeting of tribal funds to assist tribal members
in stockraising and resource development. By action of the Navajo
Council, over 2 million dollars was appropriated for loan and investment
purposes, emergency drought relief, fire suppression, and similar
purposes.
The Navajos demonstrated a highly developed civic sense in the
quadrennial election of tribal officers held in March 1951. The usual
printed election ballot proved unsuitable because of the high illiteracy—
80 percent cannot read or write English and fewer still use
the new written Navajo language developed by the Indian Service.
It was only until quite recent years that the Navajos have overcome
their active resistance to education of any kind.
378 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Nevertheless, they resolved not to let the language barrier stand
in the way of local self-government. They solved their electoral
problem by using the photographs of the contestants for the various
offices on the ballot. Here, too, the election committee had to overcome
the traditional resistance of the Navajos to having their photographs
made, and a few of the pictures had to be omitted. More than 75 percent
of the 16,000 registered voters cast ballots at 74 polling places
scattered around the vast Navajo Reservation. Some voters traveled
as far as 60 miles by wagon and horseback over rugged trails to reach
a polling place.
Planning by Tribal Groups
The Tribal Business Council of the Three Affiliated Tribes of the
Fort Berthold Indians in North Dakota, who are faced with the immediate
loss of 155,000 acres of their productive bottom lands for the
construction of the Garrison Dam and Reservoir, completed plans for
the use of the $7,500,000 made available to them by Public Law 437,
Eighty-first Congress. This sum was in addition to an appropriation
of $5,105,625 authorized in the same public law as compensation for
the taking of tribal and individual lands. After long consultation
among the tribal members, the Tribal Business Council created a
revolving loan fund of $2,500,000 for the rehabilitation of tribal members,
authorized a per capita payment of $1,000 to each tribal member
as immediate aid, and established a reserve fund to remain to their
credit in the United States Treasury. The council further authorized
the use of any part of the $7,500,000 to pay any tribal member, who
requested it, full payment of his pro rata share of tribal assets in
return for the relinquishment by the member, his heirs and assigns,
of all claims to any future tribal rights, income, and assets.
The Uintah and Ouray (Ute) Indians of Utah, after prolonged
study and numerous discussions, evolved a program for the use of
some $17,000,000 awarded them by the United States Court of Claims.
This represented 60 percent of a total judgment of $31,460,216.84
which the Uintah and Ouray Indians shared with their kinsmen of
the Ute Mountain and Southern Ute Reservations of Colorado. The
Tribal Business Committee of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation,
through capable leadership, won the approval of the entire tribe for
a program of economic and social development. The plan calls for
expenditure of $5,000,000 over a 3-year period to rehabilitate the tribal
economy. Items within the program include the purchase of Indian
allotments in heirship status; the purchase of winter range to balance
present holdings of summer range lands; the consolidation and blocking
out of range lands through purchase and exchange; the subjugaANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 379
tion of land; and the establishment of a credit fund for the benefit of
the tribal members. The plan also contemplates that all educational
facilities on the reservation will be transferred eventually to public
school administration.
MANAGEMENT
The Bureau of Indian Affairs is unique among governmental agencies
for the complex variety of activities entailed by its basic function.
The Bureau administers many different activities that range in scope
from the direct operation of supervising Indian land leases to the
involved operation of formulating and implementing broad economic
rehabilitation programs for Indian advancement. Aware of the importance
of maintaining a high level of management practices in such
a setting, the Bureau has acted in accord with Presidential and Secretarial
directives to establish a continuing management improvement
program.
Particular opportunities for management improvement existing in
the Bureau were highlighted in studies of its operations conducted during
the past year by the investigative staff of the House Appropriations
Committee, Princeton University, and a well known management consultant
firm. These studies delineated problem areas and in some cases
proposed remedial measures. Some of the measures proposed have
been initiated in the Bureau and others are under way.
The Bureau views management improvement as a continuing task,
with primary responsibility for its success resting on all administrative
personnel. Accordingly, field committees composed of key administrative
officers have been established in each of the area offices to
assume chief responsibility for the identifications of opportunities for
management improvement and to propose specific measures to attain
a smoothly functioning administrative mechanism. These proposals
are to be geared into area-wide management improvement programs
and rapidly scheduled for action. A small staff has also been provided
in the central office to give guidance to the management improvement
program on a Bureau-wide basis and to render assistance to field
organizations when needed.
While several projects have been undertaken during the past year,
there are three that are of significant importance to Bureau operations.
The Indian Affairs Manual is well along toward completion. This
basic document, established in a formal format, sets forth the objectives,
policies, delegations of authority, and detailed procedures for
each organizational function. It is written in a manner calculated to
relate the authority and responsibilities of each organizational function
to each other and to the over-all Bureau program. Aside from its
380 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
primary use as a ready reference for specific organizational units, it
will serve to acquaint all personnel with the basic structure and over-all
operations of the Bureau thereby leading to consistency in application
of Bureau policies and procedures. Twenty-eight chapters of this key
management tool have been released and others are being processed
with priority.
Another important management improvement undertaking of the
past year has been a study of the Bureau’s reporting system and component
reports. This study was begun by a study of central office
reports and is to be extended to field organizations. The objectives of
this study are to: (a) provide adequate data for program control at
successive levels of the organization, (b) consolidate related and
similar reports, (c) provide clear, concise, and complete reports, (d)
establish a central control of the reporting system, and (e) screen
reports on the basis of utility. The results of the study of central office
reports are currently being reappraised, and a list of approved reports
together with procedures establishing a Reports Control program will
be published in the Indian Affairs Manual.
With the inclusion of nine formerly detached field installations within
the area organization pattern, the way was cleared for completing
the centralization of housekeeping functions in area offices. The primary
benefit accruing from this move is an improved level of operation
enabling present staff to meet the workloads mandatory to continued
operation, whereas, formerly, it was inadequate for the task at hand.
THE LEGAL RECORD
Litigation
There were a number of significant court decisions on Indian matters
during the year. Among them was Begay v. Milter, in which the
Arizona Supreme Court held that a divorce in the Navajo Court of
Indian Offenses was entitled to recognition by the State despite
marriage under State rather than tribal law. In Taunah v. Jones,
the Circuit Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, reversing the
lower court’s decision, held that income from lands allotted under the
General Allotment Act is subject to Federal income taxation. Also
in the field of Federal income taxation, the Bureau of Internal Revenue
reversed a prior ruling to hold taxable the income from Osage oil and
gas royalties. An opinion of the Montana Supreme Court in State v.
Pepion interpreted Federal law to exclude State law and order jurisdiction
on non-Indian land within the exterior boundaries of Indian
reservations. Potential recoveries in the Court of Claims and Indian
Claims Commission on tribal claims were drastically curtailed by a
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 381
decision of the United States Supreme Court in Alaea Band of Tillamooks
et al. v. United States, which held that a Federal taking of
lands to which a tribe had original Indian title was not a taking under
the Fifth Amendment and therefore payment of interest on the value
of the land from the time of taking was not required.
An action on behalf of the natives of the Hydaburg Reservation in
Alaska was instituted against Libby, McNeil and Libby to recover
damages for unauthorized use of a fishtrap site within reservation
boundaries and to restrain future use of the site. Dismissal by the
Federal district court of a suit brought at the Department’s request
to enjoin certain Navajo Indians from trespassing on public lands in
Utah was appealed (United States v. Uosteen Tse-Kesi et al.) ; a
defense of aboriginal rights is an issue in the case. The Jimerson
case, discussed in last year’s report, to compel the Commissioner to
recognize a certain group as the governing body of the Seneca Nation
was dismissed. At the year’s close, additional information and legal
memoranda were transmitted to the Department of Justice in support
of an earlier request for legal action to recover possession of certain
lands on the Pyramid Lake Reservation in Nevada.
Legislation
Early in the year responsibility for coordinating the Bureau’s large
volume of legislative work was centralized in the office of the chief
counsel. The office prepared a proposed 1951 legislative program
of the Bureau, which covered nearly 50 public bills, initiated a weekly
reporting system and additional control procedures to expedite
preparation and clearance of bills and reports on pending legislation,
and played a large part in the drafting of major program bills, in
addition to providing legal review and assistance in formulating final
Bureau recommendations on many other bills. At the end of the
year, over 100 legislative reports or legislative proposals for submission
to the Eighty-second Congress, exclusive of reports on numerous
patent-in-fee bills, had been transmitted by the Bureau to the
Department.
Attorney Contract Policy
In November 1950 the Bureau issued a memorandum setting forth
policies regarding approval of proposed contracts between attorneys
and Indian tribes. Most of the policies itemized represented no substantial
departure from those theretofore generally applied by the
Bureau, and the primary purpose of the memorandum was to acquaint
tribes and attorneys with the criteria being applied. The memoran382
+ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
dum was, however, misunderstood and misinterpreted in some quarters
and thus became the subject of widespread discussion. In the process
there was full opportunity for expression of all points of view regarding
the Bureau’s policy on attorney contracts. Near the end of the
year the Solicitor issued an opinion, at the request of the Secretary, on
the extent of the Department’s statutory authority to approve or disapprove
attorney contracts, which in effect upheld the legal position
taken by the Bureau. The drafting of regulations to formalize Departmental
attorney contract policy is now contemplated.
Approximately 38 attorney contracts for the prosecution of tribal
claims or general counsel services were approved during the year. In
view of the impending deadline of August 12, 1951, for the filing of
claims with the Indian Claims Commission, instructions were issued
to the area offices in January to ascertain which tribes without claims
attorneys wished to prosecute claims, to advise them of the need for
early filing, and to obtain information on progress of claims of tribes
having claims attorneys. At the close of the year 4 claims contracts
were under review and the Bureau had information that 10 other
claims contracts were in process of negotiation.
Office of the
Solicitor
Mastin G. White, Solicitor
OPINIONS
DURING THE FISCAL year that ended on June 30,
1951, the Office of the Solicitor rendered 44 formal legal opinions. The
following summaries indicate some of the positions which were taken
by the office upon legal questions of importance to the Department:
M-33969.—The United States, acting through its authorized agents,
may withdraw, reserve, or appropriate for a public purpose any unappropriated
nonnavigable waters on the public domain, without
complying with State laws governing the appropriation of water, and
such action prevents the subsequent acquisition by private persons of
rights in such waters pursuant to State laws.
M-36028.—A statutory provision declaring that the right of persons
employed in the civil service to “petition Congress, or any Member
thereof, or to furnish information to either House of Congress, or to
any committee or member thereof” shall not be interfered with does
not restrict the authority of the head of an executive department to
determine with finality whether the disclosure of official information
under his jurisdiction would or would not be prejudicial to the public
interest, and does not prevent him from promulgating a regulation
prohibiting employees of the department, in the absence of permission
from the head of the department or his representative, from disclosing
confidential information to Members of Congress.
M-36040.—The provisions of the constitution adopted by an Indian
tribe pursuant to the Indian Reorganization Act cannot disregard or
dispense with a requirement imposed by an act of Congress in connection
with the leasing of tribal lands for mining purposes.
M-36047.—This Department cannot conduct soil and moisture conservation
activities on lands under its jurisdiction for the purpose of
benefiting privately owned lands in the vicinity or of protecting installations
that are under the jurisdiction of other Federal agencies.
M-36049.—The Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands is applicable
to lands in the Natchez Trace Parkway.
383
384 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
M-36060.—Functions vested in subordinate officers of the Department,
or in departmental employees or agencies, by legislation enacted
after the effective date of Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1950 are not
affected by section 1 (a) of that plan, which transferred to the Secretary
of the Interior all the functions vested in other officers of the
Interior Department or in departmental employees or agencies.
M-36064.—The payment of claims based upon property damage,
personal injury, or death arising out of nontortious activities of the
Bureau of Reclamation is discretionary with the Department.
M-36069.—In examining contracts between unorganized Indian
tribes and attorneys, the Secretary of the Interior may consider such
a contract as a whole and approve it or withhold approval from it as
his judgment may dictate, and he may condition his approval upon
such requirements as he deems to be necessary or advisable in order to
protect the interests of the Indians; but in examining contracts between
organized Indian tribes and attorneys, the Secretary’s authority
is limited to matters which have a reasonable relationship to the
choice of counsel or the fixing of fees, although the Secretary is vested
with wide discretion in determining what factors have a reasonable
relationship to such subjects.
M-36071.—The Secretary of the Interior has the authority to insert,
in patents conveying to States, counties, or municipalities public lands
chiefly valuable for recreational purposes, a provision barring racial
discrimination in the use of the lands.
M-36083.—An oil and gas lease on a tract of public land should be
granted by means of competitive bidding in a situation where the tract
was not within any known geological structure of a producing oil or
gas field at the time when the initial application for a lease was filed
by a qualified person but, as a result of subsequent developments on
other land in the vicinity, the tract is known to be within the geological
structure of a producing oil or gas field as of the time when the Department
is ready to grant a lease on the land.
M-36084.—Submerged lands lying seaward of the line of ordinary
low tide along the coast, and situated outside the inland waters of the
States, are not “public lands” and, accordingly, cannot be selected
under public-land scrip.
APPEALS
Personnel of the Solicitor’s Office devoted a great deal of time and
effort during the fiscal year 1951 to the preparation of decisions on
formal appeals taken to the head of the Department by persons dissatisfied
with decisions previously rendered by bureau officials. The
office disposed of 435 such appeals during the course of the fiscal year.
These included 22 appeals in connection with claims based upon
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES -+ 385
property damage or personal injury, 46 contract appeals, 19 appeals
involving Indian affairs, and 348 public-land appeals.1 Some of the
more important decisions that were rendered on appeals are summarized
below:
Davidson Hill and Kenneth M. Willson (A-25883).—The Secretary
of the Interior has the authority to restore to Indian tribes the ownership
of mineral deposits which were reserved to the United States
when the surface of ceded Indian lands was patented to private persons.
Jesse W. White et al. (A-25904).—The holder of a noncompetitive
oil and gas lease is not entitled to a 2-year extension of his lease with
respect to any tract covered by the lease which, on the expiration date
of the primary term of the lease, is situated within the known geological
structure of a producing oil or gas field, unless on such date drilling
operations are being diligently prosecuted on the tract; and the fact
that, on the expiration date of the primary term of the lease, drilling
operations are being diligently prosecuted on another portion of the
leased area, which is not within the known geological structure of a
producing oil or gas field, does not effect a 2-year extension of the lease
with respect to the tract first mentioned.
Idaho Power Company (A-25936).—It is within the discretionary
power of the Secretary of the Interior to impose, among the terms and
conditions which must be agreed to by applicants for rights-of-way for
electric-power transmission lines across lands under the control of this
Department, a condition that the applicant will permit the Department
to utilize the surplus capacity of the line, or to increase the capacity
of the line, for the transmission of Government power.
John Robert Claus; Richard H. Yoder (A-25937).—The cultivation
requirements for a commuted homestead entry are the same as those
for an ordinary homestead entry, i. e., the entryman must cultivate
one-sixteenth of his entry in the second year of the entry and oneeighth
of the entry in the third year of the entry and until the submission
of final commutation proof.
State of Alabama (A-25955).—A State may properly be regarded
as a “citizen of the United States” within the meaning of that term
as used in the Color of Title Act, and may apply for the benefits of
that act.
D. K. Edwards et al. v. Albert G. Brockbank et al. (A-25960).—
When two classes of land are dealt with in an order revoking a
previous withdrawal, and with respect to one class a future date for
the effectiveness of the revocation order is specified, while with respect
to the other class no date for the effectiveness of the revocation order
is mentioned, the lands in the latter class become subject to application
1 Approximately 200 of the public-land appeals involved the same legal point, i. e., the
applicability of the Mineral Leasing Act to submerged coastal lands.
386 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
when the revocation order is filed with the Division of the Federal
Register.
State of California (A-26141).—In determining whether land
should be classified as suitable for State indemnity selection, the
primary factor, but not the only factor, is whether any Federal interest
makes a negative determination advisable. The effect of the allowance
of the selection upon the pattern of land use in the area and
upon the use of adjoining land by the owners of such lands may also
be considered.
Estate of Fred White Eagle (IA-35).—Statutory provisions prohibiting
any person employed in Indian affairs from having any
interest or concern in trade with the Indians, except for, or on account
of, the United States, preclude the allowance of a claim for compensation
made against the estate of a deceased Indian by a person
who was an employee of the Indian Service during the period when
the alleged services were rendered to the decedent.
Estate of James Roberts (IA-37).—A substantive regulation issued
by the Department to govern the creation of a valid obligation to
provide compensation for care rendered to an Indian during his lifetime
should not be applied retroactively in disposing of claims relating
to a period antedating the promulgation of the regulation.
LITIGATION
Several important court decisions affecting programs of this Department
were rendered during the fiscal year 1951.
In United States v. Alcea Band of Tillamooks et al., 341 U. S. 48,
the Supreme Court ruled that, in an award of compensation to the
Indians for lands which had been held by them under aboriginal title
and had been taken from them by the United States, the Indians were
not entitled to receive interest on the value of such lands, since the
liability of the Government did not rest upon the Constitution but
upon the provisions of the special jurisdictional act pursuant to which
the litigation was instituted.
The case of Taunah et al. v. Jones, 186 F. 2d 445 (10th Cir,), cert,
denied, 341 U. S. 904, established the principle that the income from
lands held in trust for individual Indians by the United States is
subject to taxation under the Federal revenue acts.
In the three Preston cases, 181 F. 2d 62, 68, and 69 (9th Cir.), cert,
denied, 340 U. S. 819, the rule was announced that lands held in trust
by the United States for individual Indians may be impressed with
a lien as security for the payment of attorneys’ fees, and that the
lien may be enforced through the sale of such portion of the lands as
may be necessary to satisfy the lien.
It was held in West Coast Exploration Co. v. Oscar L. Chapman
(D. C., unreported), that the Secretary of the Interior acted correctly
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 387
in rejecting the plaintiff’s application to locate Gerard scrip upon a
tract of public land known to contain valuable mineral deposits.
In United States v. Harry Theodore Petersen et al. (S. D. Calif.,
unreported), it was held that the United States has exclusive jurisdiction
over privately owned lands located within the exterior boundaries
of Kings Canyon National Park, Calif., and that the Secretary
of the Interior has the authority to issue regulations governing the
sale of alcoholic beverages on privately owned lands within the boundaries
of the park.
The court’s decision in Continental Oil Co. et al. v. United States,
184 F. 2d 802 (9th Cir.), upheld the authority of the Secretary to
reserve in oil and gas leases the power to determine the value of the
oil and gas produced under such leases, for the purpose of computing
the amounts of the royalty payments due the Government.
SUBMERGED COASTAL LANDS
On December 11, 1950, the Supreme Court entered its decrees in
the cases of United States v. Louisiana, 340 U. S. 899, and United
States v. Texas, 340 U. S. 900. These decrees enjoined the respective
States, and their lessees, from conducting within the submerged
coastal lands any activities for the purpose of taking or removing any
petroleum, gas, or other valuable mineral products from such lands,
except under authorization first obtained from the United States.
It thereupon became necessary to consider the nature and basis of
the authority of the Secretary of the Interior with respect to the
continuation of the oil and gas operations which were in progress
within the submerged coastal lands on the date when the decrees were
entered. It was concluded that, under the implied power of the Secretary
of the Interior to protect property under his administrative
jurisdiction and control against damage or loss, he could permit the
continued production of oil and gas from wells which had been completed
prior to December 11, 1950, and that he could permit the completion
of wells which were in the process of being drilled on that
date. Accordingly, a general authorization to permit the continuation
of such operations was issued by the Secretary on December 11,
1950, following the entry of the Court’s decrees.
Personnel of this office collaborated in the drafting of a new stipulation
between the United States and California with respect to oil
and gas operations in the submerged lands along the California coast
pending the fixing by the Supreme Court of the line of demarcation
separating lands beneath the marginal sea, on the one hand, from
tidelands and lands beneath navigable inland waters, on the other
hand.
388 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
PATENT MATTERS
The Office of the Solicitor rendered during the fiscal year 1951 a
total of 47 decisions in adjudicating the respective rights of the Government,
on the one hand, and of departmental personnel, on the other
hand, in inventions made by the latter.
In one of these cases (P-87), it was held that the execution by an
employee of an assignment to the United States of all rights in an
invention precluded the Department from later authorizing the employee
to obtain, on his own behalf, patent rights on the invention
in foreign countries, even though the Government had decided that it
would not obtain any foreign patent rights on the invention.
The patent regulations of the Department (other than those dealing
with the subject of licenses) were revised in order to bring them into
conformity with administrative orders issued by the chairman of the
Government Patents Board, with the approval of the President.
TORT AND IRRIGATION CLAIMS
During the fiscal year 1951, the Office of the Solicitor disposed of a
total of 104 claims based upon property damage or personal injury.2
DEPARTMENTAL ORDERS
This office prepared or assisted in the preparation of numerous
departmental orders during the fiscal year 1951. Among the more
important of these orders bearing on the organization of the Department
were those establishing the Office of Assistant Secretary for
Mineral Resources, the Office of Assistant Secretary for Water and
Power Development, the Office of Assistant Secretary for Public Land
Management, the Division of Water and Power, the Division of International
Activities, and the several defense administrations. Orders
dealing with the internal management of the Department included
those relating to travel, personnel actions, the use of Governmentowned
vehicles, an incentive awards program, a departmental safety
program, and a records management program.
DEFENSE ACTIVITIES
The assignment to the Secretary of the Interior of major responsibilities
under the Defense Production Act of 1950 resulted in a
substantial increase in the work of the Solicitor’s Office. The services
of the office were required initially in connection with the establishment
of the five defense administrations in the Department.
Throughout the remainder of the year, the office was called upon to
consider numerous matters arising both from the defense activities of
2 This figure does not include the decisions rendered on appeals from the actions of field
attorneys upon such claims.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 389
the Department and from the activities of the other defense agencies
of the Government. The greater part of the work dealt with the
problems and procedures relating to priorities and allocations and to
financial assistance under the Defense Production Act of 1950. A
small Defense Division was established in the Solicitor’s Office for
the handling of legal work under the Defense Production Act of 1950.
LEGISLATION
Statutes of major importance to the Department of the Interior
enacted during the fiscal year 1951 are indicated below:
The people of Puerto Rico were given a larger measure of selfgovernment
through the enactment of Public Law 600, approved July
3, 1950. This law permits the people of that island to frame and
adopt an insular constitution, which will become effective upon approval
by the Congress. No change, however, can be made in the
political and trade relations between Puerto Rico and the United
States.
Authorization for the construction, operation, and maintenance of
the Eklutna hydroelectric power project in Alaska was granted by
Public Law 628, approved July 31, 1950. This project, located near
Anchorage, will supply power for essential military and civilian
needs in an area where a critical power shortage exists. The Eklutna
project is the first project for the development of the water-power
resources of Alaska to be authorized by the Congress.
The people of Guam were given statutory rights of self-government
through the enactment of Public Law 630, approved August 1, 1950.
Under this law, a civil government is now functioning in Guam for the
first time since that island came under the American flag by virtue of
the Treaty of Paris in 1898. The new law extends to the people of
Guam the same fundamental civil guarantees that are embodied in the
Bill of Rights of the Federal Constitution. It permits them to elect
an insular legislature, with the power to act on all subjects of local
application, although the insular legislation must not be inconsistent
with Federal statutes.
A comprehensive program of Federal aid to the States for the
restoration and management of fishery resources was authorized by
Public Law 681, approved August 9, 1950. This program is designed
to complement the similar program for wildlife resources established
in 193T. The funds to finance the fishery program will be derived
from existing Federal excise taxes on sport-fishing tackle, thus relating
the burden of its cost to the tax revenues received from the sport
fishermen who enjoy its benefits. Funds so derived will be available
for assisting the several States, on a matching basis, in undertaking
approved fish restoration and management projects.
390 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Considerations of national security led to the adoption of Public
Law 774, approved September 8, 1950, which is generally known as
the Defense Production Act of 1950. This act authorizes the President,
for the purpose of promoting the national defense, to control
the use of essential materials and facilities, to provide financial assistance
for industrial expansion, and to regulate prices, wages, and
credit. Delegations made under its provisions have placed upon
the Secretary of the Interior wide responsibilities with respect to the
administration of electric power, petroleum, natural and manufactured
gas, coal, coke and other coal byproducts, minerals, and fisheries.
The sound conservational use of one of the most majestic and colorful
areas of our country was assured through the enactment of Public
Law 787, approved September 14, 1950. The effect of this law is to
establish a new Grand Teton National Park, by adding to the existing
park of that name the larger part of the lands previously comprised
within the Jackson Hole National Monument. It also adjusts
satisfactorily a number of local issues that had impeded proper administration
of the monument ever since its establishment in 1943. The
new consolidated Grand Teton National Park will preserve for all
time a region of rare scenic, historic, recreational, and scientific
interest.
Continuance of the synthetic liquid fuels program was made possible
through the enactment of Public Law 812, approved September
22, 1950. This measure extends until April 5, 1955, the effectiveness
of the synthetic liquid fuels legislation, and increases to $87,600,000
the appropriation authorization contained in that legislation. The
research and development work now being conducted in this field
has already made much progress toward its goal of unlocking the
liquid fuel resources contained in our great reserves of coal and oil
shale, as well as in underground reservoirs of natural gas.
The construction, operation, and maintenance of the Canadian River
reclamation project in Texas were authorized by Public Law 898,
approved December 29, 1950. This multiple-purpose project will
materially assist the people of the Panhandle-South Plains area of
northwest Texas in overcoming water-supply problems of a serious
nature. These problems stem from the fact that the domestic and
industrial water supplies of this rapidly growing area are obtained
from a ground-water basin which is being depleted at a rate far greater
than the replenishment possible from the limited local rainfall. The
project will conserve this irreplaceable natural resource by diverting
unused surface water from the Canadian River to 11 cities and
towns now dependent on excessive pumping from the underground
basin. This legislation is also of interest as being the first instance
where the provision of water for municipal use has constituted the
primary inducement for the authorization of a Federal project.
Office of
Territories
James P. Davis, Director
THE PAST YEAR has brought a dramatic increase
in the responsibilities of the Office of Territories as Federal guardian
of the rights and interests of United States citizens who have not yet
achieved the benefits of statehood. Already accustomed to operations
over far-flung areas, the Office has seen its geographical influence
tremendously enlarged by transfer to its jurisdiction of the islands of
Guam, American Samoa, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific. In
the case of Samoa and the Trust Territory, the effective date of transfer
from control by the Navy was July 1, 1951, but the major work
of accomplishing the transfer was done during the fiscal year.
In all the areas under its jurisdiction, the Office of Territories has
continued to carry out the primary functions for which it was established.
The significance of these functions has been greatly augmented
by international events. In areas where full self-government
has not yet been achieved under the flag of the United States,
the Office of Territories is demonstrating the practical value of democratic
institutions as opposed to communism. By its encouragement
of political responsibility and by its efforts to give territorial peoples,
some of them in undeveloped lands, the fullest possible participation
in governmental activities, the Office is aiding in establishing barricades
against the baneful influence of totalitarian propaganda.
Except for specific economic enterprises in Alaska, Puerto Rico,
and the Virgin Islands, the Office of Territories is not an operating
agency. It is responsible through the Secretary for reporting to the
President and to Congress upon developments in the territories. It
seeks through policy planning and legislation, in cooperation with
territorial governments and other Federal agencies who serve the Territories,
to insure sound and rapid development. It acts in Washington
as representative of the governors and of any citizen of the territories
who wishes to call upon it for assistance. The Office cooperates
with both the terirtories and the State Department in matters
of foreign policy that are of concern to them. The operating respon-
973649—52—28 391
392 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
sibilities of the Office of Territories, while extensive, are confined to
the supervision of specific enterprises as the Alaska Road Commission,
The Alaska Railroad, the Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration,
the Virgin Islands Corporation, and the Public Works programs
in Alaska and the Virgin Islands.
The year has seen the United States engaged in a vast program of
national defense. This program requires major emphasis on industrial
capacity, agricultural production, and wise use of natural resources.
The Office of Territories, within its field, is directing its
efforts toward the establishment of the kind of economic and political
climate which is most favorable to the effective mobilization of economic
resources. The reports that follow of developments during
the year in Alaska, in the Caribbean, and in the Pacific are more in
terms of people than of things. They call attention again to the
fundamental fact that the primary resources of any land are the men
and women who are both bound and made free by the ties of citizenship.
ALASKA
Military considerations have made the development of Alaska a
matter of major importance to the entire United States as well as to
Alaskans. Its resources, actual and potential—its manpower, Indian,
Eskimo and white—its possibilities for economic expansion—all are
matters of major concern as never before in the history of the Territory.
In cooperation with the government of the Territory, with
other bureaus of the Interior Department and with other Federal
agencies, the Office of Territories is contributing to the growth of
Alaska by encouraging the adoption of progressive economic and
social policies.
Legislation for Statehood and Public Power
Though the outlook for enactment of FL R. 331, the Statehood Act
for Alaska, was favorable at the close of fiscal year 1950, the bill was
riot acted upon by the Senate after having passed the House of Representatives.
Legislation was again introduced in the Eighty-second
Congress to provide for the admission of Alaska into the Union and
the campaign will continue with the active help of the Office of Territories
until statehood has been achieved. The majority of Alaskans
want the rights and privileges which statehood brings, and under
democratic institutions, their wishes in the long run will not be denied.
Authorization for the construction, operation and maintenance of
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 393
the Eklutna hydroelectric power project was granted by Public Law
628, approved July 31, 1950. The project is designed to provide 30,-
000 kilowatts of electric power to Anchorage and Palmer, important
industrial and agricultural areas. It will meet essential military and
civilian power needs in an area where a critical power shortage exists.
Eklutna is the first Federal project to be authorized by the Congress
for the development of the water power resources of Alaska.
Territorial Reorganization
A further step was taken to provide a sound financial organization
for Alaska when the 1951 Territorial legislature passed a bill reorganizing
the fiscal system. The statute, effective July 1,1951, is based
on the results of a thorough study of the previously existing financial
agencies and provides for centralized budgeting, auditing, accounting,
property control, and treasury management. The new organization,
headed by a board of administration with the Governor as chairman,
and the attorney general, tax commissioner and four Territorial legislators
as members, reflects the fiscal requirements of the Territory of
Alaska, as well as the experience of the various States in controlling
their receipts and expenditures.
Meeting the Housing Shortage
During fiscal 1951, the Alaska Housing Authority continued
through its housing program to encourage the establishment of a
sound and self-sufficient building industry in the Territory. The
population growth of Alaska, 77.4 percent in the 1940-50 decade, had
seriously increased the pressure on housing, but toward the end of the
fiscal year the results of earlier construction of housing units began
to appear. Through the remote dwelling program, directly meeting
the problems of native housing, the Alaska Housing Authority provided
materials for 435 Eskimo homes located in 23 outlying villages.
Portions of the Government Hill area, Anchorage, were surveyed
and released for sale as home sites. The project was begun by The
Alaska Railroad in order to provide housing for its employees. Its
sale permits owners to obtain Federal Housing Administration financing
for the construction of permanent homes on the lots. Completion
of a 682-unit apartment development in the reserved portion of the
Government Hill section was announced toward the end of the fiscal
year. Composed of efficiency and one- and two-bedroom units, the
development will contribute toward alleviating the Anchorage housing
shortage.
394 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Alaska Public Works Program
The Alaska Public Works program, in its first full year in the Office
of Territories, continued to provide essential facilities for Alaska or
communities, to be purchased by these communities at a price averaging
50 percent of actual cost as required by the authorizing legislation
(Public Law 264, 81st Cong.). Work was commenced on all but 3 of
the 18 projects which had been allotted prior to June 30, 1950. Bids
were opened on the three remaining projects (all schools) but were so
high that plans and specifications had to be revised before readvertising.
Additional allotments were made for 13 projects, all of which were
certified by the Department of Defense as being of value to national
defense. The estimated cost of the projects for which allotments were
made in fiscal 1951 exceeds $3,800,000, the balance of the $4,000,000
appropriated being held in reserve for contingencies. Work has already
started on the Territorial Office Building, the first project allotted.
Plans and specifications are being prepared for the remaining
projects which will be put under construction as soon as contracts can
be awarded.
A tentative list of projects to be constructed from the 1952 appropriation
has been submitted to the Department of Defense for certification.
These projects will be ready for allotment as soon as funds
are appropriated and it is anticipated that this will occur in time to
permit preparation of plans and specifications during the coming fall
and winter. Construction could then be started in the spring of 1952.
The staff of the Alaska District Office is being increased and, insofar
as practicable, the work is being decentralized to permit its handling
in the district office.
Alaska Railroad Operations Exceed War Time Peaks
Fiscal year 1951 was the fourth year of The Alaska Railroad’s $75,-
000,000 rehabilitation program, the completion of which is providing
the Territory with modern and efficient rail service. As the fiscal
year ended, freight traffic was substantially exceeding the peak loads
of World War II, with military requirements accounting for a very
large percentage of the total.
In spite of rehabilitation efficiency and heavy traffic, the pinch of
inflation was being felt. The Railroad has not raised tariffs since
1937 and, in fact, has lowered rates on some important commodities.
Before the fiscal year ended, agreements had been reached with representatives
of Alaska Railroad unions, which, upon approval by the
Secretary and the Wage Stabilization Board, will add over $1,350,000
to its annual pay roll. The Alaska Railroad may well be the only
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 395
enterprise in the United States that has attempted to meet its 1951
costs with income in terms of 1937 dollars.
During the year, final shipments of 115-pound rail to replace old
track were received and relaying was begun on the rest of the line
from Portage to Fairbanks, where high steel is not yet in place. As
a result of the improvements made on theRailroad, running times have
been shortened so that interior points receive faster delivery from
the rail ports of Seward and Whittier, and the ton-mile capacity of
the Railroad has been greatly increased.
On the basis of a $1,500,000 appropriation, work was begun on a
minimum reconstruction program for the Seward-Portage line designed
to include only those items essential to continued operation on
this portion of the Railroad including reconstruction of the Seward
dock, which was also begun, and when completed will be capable of
discharging two ships at once, thus facilitating the handling of cargo
in the port and reducing turn-around time of vessels. Certain old
and dangerous bridges on the line are being replaced by steel structures.
It was also found to be possible to eliminate the famous Loop
structures whereby the Railroad makes a one and three-quarters turn
through constructing a 3-percent grade across a glacial moraine. The
loss of a scenic feature of the Railroad will be compensated by the
elimination of the need for expensive maintenance of the system of
bridges comprising the Loop.
The operations of the Railroad were seriously hampered by a fire
on January 15, 1951, which destroyed the main shop and coach shed
at Anchorage, headquarters of the Railroad. Among the property lost
were four locomotives, seven cars, and a considerable quantity of machinery
and other equipment essential to the operation of the Railroad.
A supplemental appropriation of $4,000,000 was obtained to replace
these essential facilities with modern and well-designed structures.
Reconstruction was begun early in the spring.
The Alaska Railroad has undertaken a project with the Chugach
Electric Association to erect a steam and power plant at Anchorage.
The Diesel phase of the project has been completed and the entire
project is scheduled for completion at the end of 1952.
Modern Highways for Alaska
The Alaska Road Commission geared its fiscal 1951 road program
to the requirements of the military in preparing for the defense program.
The major emphasis was given to further improvement of the
main arteries, hard surfacing, replacement of bridges, and elimination
of hazardous sections of road. As a result of prior efforts of this
organization, the main routes, the Alaska, Richardson, Glenn, Ster396
+ ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
ling, and Steese Highways, are dependable roads capable for the most
part of meeting any defense need.
During the fiscal year, large portions of the Richardson and Glenn
Highways were surfaced, bringing them up to first-class standard.
The construction of permanent shop facilities and housing, and
financial aid from the military establishment in Alaska made it possible
to keep Thompson Pass on the Richardson Highway open for
the second successive winter, thereby providing interior Alaska with
access to the year-round port of Valdez. Realinement and other improvements
completed in the summer of 1951 will facilitate maintenance
of the pass. In direct connection with the defense effort, construction
on several stretches of road, such as the Big Delta firing
range road, was initiated at the specific request of the military.
The highway north of Seward to the Turnagain Arm project is
under reconstruction to eliminate hazardous road conditions and
provide a high-standard through route from Seward to Anchorage.
This road is expected to be open to traffic by the end of the 1951
season. Additional work was done on the road from the Alaska Highway
to Eagle on the Yukon River and to Dawson, Yukon Territory,
Canada. This road, already in passable condition to Dawson, is
planned to be open to traffic throughout its length at the 1951 season’s
end. The road will make readily accessible the Forty-Mile and Eagle
mining districts, thus encouraging the further development of the
resources of this area. As a result of paving work done in the spring
of 1951, the highway from Haines to the Canadian border is complete.
Discussions were initiated with the appropriate agencies of the
United States and Canadian Governments looking forward to the
establishment of joint border station facilities on the Alaska Highway.
As tentatively planned, the station will provide space for
customs, immigration, and vehicle inspection officials and will also
include lodging and other facilities for travelers.
Aviation
The completion of the airports at Seldovia, Ninilchik, Kotzebue,
Dillingham, and Fort Yukon marked the first year of the Federal-aid
airport program in Alaska. These airports provide much-needed
facilities to their respective areas and will improve both passenger
and freight transportation in the Territory.
In addition to the completed fields, preliminary investigations and
plans were made for several sites for future airports. First in priority
has been the investigation of an auxiliary field on College Hill at
Fairbanks. Since the opening of the new International Airport, it
has been discovered that there is definite need for an auxiliary field to
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 397
avoid the fog that occasionally blocks visibility in cold weather in the
Fairbanks area. During summer months, the unsurfaced auxiliary
field would be used for small private planes and by the University of
Alaska.
Indians and Eskimos Add to the Labor Force
Under a joint agreement, the Alaska Native Service and the Territorial
Employment Service initiated a program for recruiting and
placing natives in jobs throughout the Territory. One of the largest
single employers of natives was The Alaska Railroad, which, by April
1951, had hired approximately 200 Eskimos for its summer work program.
It is expected that more effective use of this local labor will
not only greatly improve the economic situation of Indians and
Eskimos, but will add much-needed increment to Alaska’s permanent
labor force.
Cement Costs Down
The recent establishment of cement silos in Anchorage and Fairbanks
has resulted in lowered prices for bulk cement in railbelt cities.
In the hopes of finding ways to lower cement costs still further, a
study of the cement problem in Alaska was initiated in fiscal 1951.
The study includes a market and raw materials analysis, the latter
based for the most part on the results of recent investigations carried
out by the Geological Survey and the Bureau of Mines. In view
of the rapidly increasing number of civilian and military construction
projects, the development of an economically-feasible Alaskan
cement industry using local raw materials appears promising.
Arctic Investigations and Alaskan Science
Under the auspices of the Arctic Institute of North America, jointly
sponsored by the United States and Canadian Government as well
as several private organizations, three centers have been established
for the collection of scientific data on the Arctic regions of North
America. They are located at the University of Alaska; McGill University,
Montreal; and at Washington, D. C. During the year, several
research projects for government agencies were carried out while
work continued on collecting basic data. This information, when
assembled at the three centers, will be available to interested public
and private agencies. In November 1951, the first annual Alaska
Science Conference was held in Washington with Interior Department
officials participating. The second annual conference will be held at
Mount McKinley National Park, Alaska.
398 4- ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
PUERTO RICO
Progress Toward Self-Government
Public Law 600, passed by the Eighty-first Congress, authorized
the convening of a constitutional convention and the drafting of a
Puerto Rican Constitution, but provided that the law itself was subject
to acceptance by the people of Puerto Rico. They voted overwhelmingly
to avail themselves of its benefits. While Puerto Rico’s
political and economic relationship to the United States will remain
the same, the insular government will operate, following the adoption
of the constitution, and its approval by the Congress, under
basic laws which have been established by the people of Puerto Rico
rather than by the Congress. In accordance with procedures promulgated
by the insular legislature, the election of delegates to the constitutional
convention will be held August 27, 1951. A special districting
of the Island has been carried out to assure representation of
the several political parties of Puerto Rico and also to provide for delegates-
at-large. The constitutional convention will assemble on September
13, 1951.
Industrialization and Employment
A new instrumentality, the Economic Development Administration,
was established in July 1950 to give continued leadership to the
insular government’s industrial development program. The EDA
carries on the industrial promotion, research and tourism activities
of the Puerto Rico Industrial Development Company. It has, however,
a somewhat broader scope of authority, since it also exercises the
functions of the Puerto Rico Transportation Authority and certain
other activities which were formerly not within the jurisdiction of the
Development Company.
The insular government sold to private interests the four factories
(glass, cement, paper, and clay) which it had built and operated as a
demonstration that such manufacturing operations could practicably
be carried on in Puerto Rico. It had previously announced its intention
to step out of the manufacturing field as soon as private capital
could be persuaded to take over the plants.
Early this year the one hundredth manufacturing plant to be put
into operation since the inauguration of “Operation Bootstrap” was
started. New enterprises are now being established at the rate of
1 every 9 days. It is hoped that the island will gain new manufacturing
capacity in the amount of about $30,000,000 a year for the
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 399
next 10 years. If this goal is achieved, Puerto Rico’s chronic unemployment
and under employment may be materially reduced.
A substantial number of Puerto Ricans, whose employment opportunities
are inadequate at home, have emigrated each summer in
recent years to the continental United States. Some of these workers
have found industrial jobs, but by far the larger number has gone
into agricultural work, especially in areas of marked seasonal agricultural
employment, such as New Jersey and Michigan. In the early
summer of 1950, for example, 5,000 workers were flown to Saginaw,
Mich., for work in the sugar beet fields. Altogether, during the summer
of 1950 over 8,000 workers came to the mainland. A considerably
larger number of Puerto Ricans have come to the continent for
similar types of agricultural work during the summer of 1951. This
migration has the dual beneficial effect of reducing unemployment in
the island and of supplying urgently-needed agricultural and industrial
workers on the continent. Puerto Rico has recently established
a territorial employment service affiliated with the United States
Employment Service which will materially assist in this process.
Sugar Production Increases
Sugar, Puerto Rico’s leading crop, was produced in the amount of
1,286,000 tons in 1950-51. This exceeded the record crop of the previous
year and has led to increasing pressure for an upward revision
in Puerto Rico’s quota of the domestic sugar market. The 1949-50
sugar production average was 1,281,000 tons which suggests that the
high rate of production of recent years represents, in all probability,
a continuing condition.
Puerto Rico’s Contribution to the Defense of Korea
Since the early days of the war in Korea, the Sixty-fifth Infantry
Regiment, composed largely of Puerto Rican volunteers, has been
performing heroically. This important contribution to the Armed
Forces of the United States and the United Nations has served to
emphasize both in Puerto Rico and in the continental United States
that Puerto Rico has given and continues to give valuable assistance
in the defense of the free world.
Nationalist Activities of October 1950
At the end of October 1950, a small group of political extremists
of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party fired on the Governor’s Palace
in San Juan. A series of acts of violence occurred at a number of
400 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
other places in the island. On the following day two Puerto Ricans
of the Nationalist Party attempted to shoot their way into Blair
House, the temporary Washington residence of the President. One
of these individuals was killed on the scene and the other has since
been sentenced to death. The disorders in Puerto Rico were quickly
brought under control by the local authorities. Governor Munoz
Marin in various public utterances at the time expressed the deep
regret of the Puerto Rican people over these disturbances. He emphasized
that the Nationalist Party, in seeking independence from the
United States through acts of violence, represents the views of not
more than 400 or 500 persons out of a population of over 2 million.
Air Travel
During the year the Civil Aeronautics Board, with the President’s
approval, authorized a second carrier to operate scheduled flights on
the direct New York-San Juan route. The new service has been
inaugurated and represents marked progress in the efforts of the
Federal and insular governments to obtain expanded and less costly
transportation services for Puerto Rico.
Social Security Legislation
Amendments made by Public Law 734 of the Eighty-first Congress
extended to Puerto Rico the old age and survivors insurance and the’
public assistance provisions of the Social Security Act. The provisions
of title II of the act, relating to old age-survivors insurance and
requiring the payment of taxes had to be accepted by the people of
Puerto Rico. The insular legislature passed the necessary enabling
legislation in September. It is expected that the public assistance
program will provide about $4,250,000 in Federal aid annually to the
island.
Technical Training Under Point Four
The Office of Territories is administering a training program in
Puerto Rico for foreign nationals under the Point Four program,
which has been in operation since January 1950. Under Public Law
535, Eighty-first Congress, grants are made by the office to foreign nationals
at the request of their governments. In addition, trainees
awarded grants by other Federal agencies are sent to Puerto Rico for
part of their training. The facilities for training in Puerto Rico are
available upon request to persons granted fellowships under the
Technical Assistance programs of the United Nations and to specialANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 401
ized agencies. Training in Puerto Rico consists of on-the-job training
within the agencies of the Puerto Rican Government dealing with
problems in the fields of interest to the trainees.
The Puerto Rico training program actually began under Public
Law 402 in January 1950. At that time the Department of State
authorized sufficient funds for 12 Type A grants for training in Puerto
Rico in the Water Resources Authority, Aqueduct and Sewer Authority,
and the School of Tropical Medicine. Before the end of the
1950 fiscal year, as a result of the large number of applications for
these grants, the Office made a total of 16 Type A grants for training
in Puerto Rico. These grants included seven in the Aqueduct and
Sewer Authority, to engineers from Haiti, Costa Rica, Bolivia, Brazil,
Chile, and Ecuador; 8 in the Water Resources Authority from Bolivia,
Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Peru, and Uruguay; and
one grant in the School of Tropical Medicine to a doctor from Mexico.
The first of these trainees arrived in Puerto Rico in May 1950. Since
all of the grants were for a full year’s training, these 16 trainees were
in Puerto Rico during the major portion of the fiscal year 1950-51.
A total of 11 secondary trainees, that is, trainees awarded grants by
other agencies who spent part of their training period in the States
and a part in Puerto Rico, were in Puerto Rico during the past fiscal
year. These trainees, in the fields of labor statistics, labor standards,
cooperatives, agriculture, wage and hour and rural social welfare,
came from the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Peru, Haiti,
Nicaragua, Malaya, Egypt, and the Philippine Islands.
Puerto Rican facilities for training were also available to United
Nations Fellows. A total of 19 trainees and 9 students, with fellowships
from the United Nations and its specialized agencies, were in
Puerto Rico during the fiscal year.
In addition to the 55 persons who were in Puerto Rico under grants
from Point 4 or the United Nations, there were 19 visitors and trainees
and 9 students at the university, who were there at the expense of
their own government, at their own expense, or as guests of the
Government of Puerto Rico. Among this group of nongrant visitors
and trainees, were the ex-President of Costa Rica, the Director and
Assistant Director of Personnel of El Salvador, the Deputy Director
of Public Housing of Guatemala, the Director of Housing and an outstanding
architect from Peru, and the Executive Vice President of
the Production Development Corporation of Chile. At the University
of Puerto Rico there were six students from Venezuela and three
students from Colombia, whose expenses were being paid by their own
governments.
402 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
The administration of the Puerto Rico training program was
financed completely by the Government of Puerto Rico up until January
1951 under an appropriation of $50,000 by the Puerto Rican legislature.
The Federal government provided the money only for
grants to foreign nationals wishing to do their training in Puerto
Rico.
In February 1951 a memorandum of agreement was signed by the
Technical Cooperation Administration of the Department of State,
and the Office of Territories, with the approval of other Federal
agencies, whereby the Puerto Rico training program was authorized
as a TCA project, and a budget for the administration was approved
with funds allocated to the Office of Territories. The total amount of
this budget was $79,403.98, which included grants in the amount of
$57,143 and administrative funds in the amount of $22,260.98. The
Government of Puerto Rico appropriated $25,000 for this project in
1951-52, so that the Puerto Rico training program became a joint
program under Point Four, administered and financed by the Office of
Territories in cooperation with the Government of Puerto Rico.
In March 1951 a project for the training of applicants from the
area under the jurisdiction of the Caribbean Commission, to receive
vocational training at the Metropolitan Vocational School in Puerto
Rico, was authorized. Under this project $38,250 was allocated to
the Office of Territories, which made a contract with the Metropolitan
Vocational School for the carrying out of the project. Under the
contract the Metropolitan Vocational School gives free tuition and
provides the material required in the training, and Point Four funds
are used for additional subsistence) for the students already enrolled
and provide for subsistence for a minimum of 30 students during the
next fiscal year.
Ten new grants were awarded for trainees to go to Puerto Rico
during the fiscal year 1951-52. These grants were made to applicants
from Mexico, El Salvador, Peru, and Colombia, in the fields of water
resources, public health, school of tropical medicine, and vocational
training.
An official of the University of Costa Rica is now in Puerto Rico
making a study of the facilities of training, looking toward the Government
of Costa Rica requesting grants for some 15 or 20 Costa
Ricans in various fields of economic development. The United
Nations has already requested training for 15 United Nations Fellows
during the next fiscal year, and anticipates sending more than the
total sent during this fiscal year.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 403
PUERTO RICO RECONSTRUCTION ADMINISTRATION
Operations were financed with allotments out of the Puerto Rico
revolving fund for projects approved by the President, as follows:
Operation and maintenance of housing projects__________________ $226, 000. 00
Operation of Castaner farm project____________________________ 71, 000. 00
Servicing of loans to cooperatives______________________________ 9, 600. 00
General administration________________________________________ 1 242, 000. 00
Repairs to buildings, etc_______________________________________ 88, 000. 00
Construction of 250 latrines____________________________________ 13, 000. 00
Construction of 100 rural houses_______________________________ 120, 000. 00
Replacement of unserviceable roofs_____________________________ 40, 000. 00
Surveying and other services___________________________________ 16, 700. 00
Total------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 826, 300. 00
1 Includes $54,000.00 for liquidation activities.
Under the plan for continued liquidation of this Administration in
an orderly fashion the loans and notes receivable are being liquidated
as rapidly as possible and the individual rural and urban housing
units are being sold to the present occupants on a 20-year basis with
the Government’s interest fully protected by the deed-mortgage plan.
Receipts from the housing units and sale of lots at the Eleanor
Roosevelt and Morel Campos Developments amounted to $474,756,
which exceeded maintenance and operation expenses by approximately
$248,756. As of June 30, 214 urban and 4,115 rural month-to-month
rental agreements have been converted into long-term leases with
option to purchase and 1,230 units have been conveyed, with titles
vested in urban and rural tenants. In accordance with the liquidation
program 5,718 urban and rural units were sold under the deedmortgage
plan.
The sugar cooperatives, “Asociacion Azucarera Cooperativa Lafayette”
and “Cooperativa Azucarera Los Canos,” had a successful
grinding year. Lafayette ground 309,272 tons of sugarcane and Los
Canos 329,359 tons. In all probability both cooperatives will grant a
substantial bonus to their members as a result of their successful
activities.
Eighty-five rural houses were constructed, thereby supplying better
homes for that number of underprivileged families in the coffee and
tobacco areas. About 245 acres of land were developed at the same
time for the cultivation of minor crops.
For the purpose of keeping private construction in line with and
equal to Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration construction, and
in accord with general policies pertaining to the Eleanor Roosevelt
404 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Development, inspection and approval was given to plans for the construction
of 282 new houses. The community housing projects sponsored
by the College of Engineers and the Federation of Employees
of the insular government, all of which are situated on parcels of land
adjacent to the Eleanor Roosevelt Development, were sold for private
home construction.
Essential projects for the fiscal year 1952 are being continued with
allotments aggregating $745,200 out of the revolving fund. That fund,
deriving exclusively from PRRA operations, had a net available
balance on June 30,1951, of $2,970,280, of which $749,706 was collected
during the fiscal year.
VIRGIN ISLANDS
Public Works Program
Supervision of the Virgin Islands public works program was transferred
to the Office of Territories just prior to the end of the fiscal
year. The projects that were given priority by the authorizing
legislation (Public Law 510, 78th Cong.), with the exception of
the public markets and the malarial-control projects, have been completed
or are well under way. Other provision was made by the territorial
Government for the public markets and malarial-control
projects.
Work on the sea wall and the telephone system is progressing.
Accordingly, attention turned to the hospital and school aspects of
the program. Health surveys were made and plans and specifications
prepared. Bids have been requested on 4 hospitals, 1 of 116 beds on
St. Thomas, 1 of 4 beds on St. John, 1 for 60 beds at Christiansted,
St. Croix; and 1 of 12 beds at Frederiksted, St. Croix. Bids have been
invited also for construction of two catchment areas to supply potable
water on St. John. Contracts will be awarded to the extent of available
funds.
Although no construction funds were available for schools, preparations
were made for the initiation of a school construction program
as soon as funds are appropriated. These preparations took
the form of curriculum and construction surveys made by a private
consultant and by consultants of the Office of Education of the
Federal Security Agency. The conclusions reached as a result of these
studies will serve as a basis for determining the type and location of
the buildings necessary and architectural contracts will be negotiated
to carry out such determinations.
A survey is also being made for a centerline road on the Island of
St. John since at present the only method of travel from one end of
the island to the other is by boat.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 405
The Virgin Islands Corporation
The Virgin Islands Corporation is a federally-chartered Corporation,
the purpose of which is to promote the general welfare of the
people of the Virgin Islands through economic development.
The growing of sugarcane and the production of raw sugar by the
Corporation continued to be its major activity. The sugar operation
is the largest provider of jobs and producer of income. At its peak
of operation approximately 1,000 people are employed. It also provides
the only market for the sugarcane produced by 650 small
farmers. The sugar crop for the 1951 season proved a disappointment.
A 14,000-ton crop had been expected earlier in the season but
a 5-month drought cut this to 8,000 tons. Several hundred acres of
cane that had been planned for cutting did not mature sufficiently to
justify harvesting and was permitted to remain in the field for harvesting
early in the 1952 crop season. In spite of the severe drought,
the 1951 crop was almost double the average production prior to the
development of improved cane culture practices started a couple of
years ago.
Under a newly established credit program, three types of loans
were made. Crop-production loans were available to small farmers
who were unable to obtain credit from any other source. These loans
were generally used for the purchase of seed, fertilizer, weed spray,
insecticides, and machinery hire. Loans were also available for pasture
improvement and water conservation work, the proceeds of which
were used for the rental of heavy agricultural equipment for brush
clearing, contouring, and dam construction; for fencing, and for
pasture grass seed and fertilizer. A number of loans were made for
commercial development in cases where the proposal appeared sound
and credit was not otherwise available. Because of the limited funds
available to the Corporation for commercial loans, a maximum of
$10,000 on any loan and a 5-year repayment limit was established.
The Corporation made its heavy agricultural equipment available
to farmers on a rental basis. Bulldozers, tractors, contour plows,
brush cutters, and other farm machinery, not otherwise available in
the island, contributed materially to increasing crop production, pasture
improvement and development, and water conservation work.
The small dam construction program started by the Corporation
last year was continued and two new dams were built impounding
25,000,000 gallons of water. These were constructed at a cost of $8,800
and proved their value during the last drought. While the water
impounded was insufficient to provide for any extensive irrigation of
sugarcane, the water was used in the operation of the sugar mill and
was also used by many small farmers for domestic purposes and for
watering their subsistence gardens.
406 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Extension of Social Security
The Old Age and Survivors Insurance and Public Welfare benefits
of the Federal Social Security Act were extended to the Virgin Islands
under Public Law 734 of the Eighty-first Congress. The latter benefits
make possible Federal financial participation in the costs of assistance
to needy persons and related administrative costs for four programs,
old-age assistance, aid to the blind, aid to dependent children,
and aid to the permanently and totally disabled. Federal grants
cannot exceed $160,000 to the Virgin Islands in any fiscal year. The
funds thus made available will materially improve public assistance
standards in the Virgin Islands where the average monthly payment
per family has been only about $5. The Social Welfare Department
has had the consulting assistance of a public assistance specialist in
its preparations for complying with the requirements of the Social
Security Act.
Vocational Education
Under the provisions of the Vocational Education Act of 1945,
which has now been extended to the Virgin Islands, a new program is
being developed to fulfill urgent training needs. The Division of
Vocational Education for the Government of Puerto Rico visited the
Virgin Islands for the purpose of making a brief review of vocational
education activities. A group of consultants from the United States
Office of Education made a study of education, including vocational
education, in the Virgin Islands and submitted their report to the
Governor in November 1950. Among other suggestions they recommended
the establishment of a Governor’s commission on education
and an educational study committee, both of which bodies have now
been established. The committee has prepared specific recommendations
which will be considered during the coming year by the Governor’s
commission.
Legislation
H. R. 2644, a bill to revise the Virgin Islands Organic Act, was
introduced in the Eighty-second Congress. It is contemplated that
hearings will be held in the Islands, where the provisions of the bill
have been extensively studied and analyzed by civic and political
groups. The Virgin Islands community in New York City has been
keenly interested in the bill.
Added stimulus was given to industrialization in the Islands by enactment
of Public Law 766, approved September 7, 1950. Existing
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 407
law provided that articles the growth or product of the Virgin Islands
might enter the United States free of customs duty unless they contained
foreign materials representing more than 20 percent of their
value. This had been interpreted as requiring the taking into account
of all foreign materials, including those which might have entered the
United States directly in a duty-free status. Tortoise shell from the
Philippines might enter the United States duty-free, but if brought
into the Virgin Islands and made into buttons there, the buttons would
be dutiable on their entry into the States. This obviously discouraged
establishment of industry in the Islands. Public Law 776 provides
that in determining whether an article contains foreign material to the
value of more than 20 percent no material shall be considered foreign
which could be imported into the United States duty-free.
T ourism
Progress was made in the expansion of facilities for the tourist trade
with the completion of two new hotels in St. Thomas and the opening
of several smaller hotels and guest houses in both St. Thomas and St.
Croix.
The Virgin Islands Corporation provided $15,000, on a matching
basis to sums contributed by private interests and by the municipalities,
for tourist development and promotion. The tourist and vacation
trade has increased remarkably since the end of World War II and
holds great promise for improving the difficult economic situation in
the Islands.
PACIFIC TERRITORIES
The Department strongly urged admission of Hawaii into the Union
as a state, and had the Congress enacted statehood legislation, this
would have been the most significant achievement in the Pacific territories
during the year under review. However, failure of the Congress
to conclude action on statehood legislation casts the emphasis on the
great strides made in Guam, American Samoa, and the Trust Territory
of the Pacific Islands. The enactment of organic legislation for Guam
and the establishment of civilian administration in Guam, American
Samoa, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, which were accomplished
during the past year, are events of historic importance and
represent significant advances toward self-government. These measures,
which form part of the President’s civil-rights program, will have
far-reaching benefits not only to the island peoples concerned, but also
to the international prestige of the United States and the defense effort.
973649—52------ 29
408 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Hawaii
Statehood continued to be the most pressing need of the Territory of
Hawaii and was strongly emphasized in the inaugural address on May
8, 1951, by Oren E. Long, who was appointed by the President to succeed
Ingram Stainback as Governor of Hawaii.
Failure of the Senate in the Eighty-first Congress to vote upon
statehood legislation after the House and Senate Committees on Interior
and Insular Affairs had approved such legislation was a great disappointment
to the people of Hawaii and to supporters of statehood
throughout the country.
Early in the Eighty-second Congress, the Senate Committee on
Interior and Insular Affairs again reported out statehood legislation
(S. 49) after determining that further hearings wTere unnecessary.
The bill is endorsed by a majority of members in both parties, and in
both Houses. Hopes are strong that it will be brought to a vote in
each House during the present Congress.
The Territory itself took the last move within its own power to
achieve statehood. On July 22, 1950, the Constitutional Convention
of Hawaii, after almost 4 months of work, agreed upon a constitution
for submission to Congress. At the November general elections in a
record turn-out, the people of Hawaii gave overwhelming approval to
the document, which has been widely applauded as a forward-looking
and practical state constitution.
The economic situation in Hawaii was markedly improved over the
previous year with unemployment falling from 30 percent of the labor
force to a low of 5.6 percent on May 1. The bulk of the remaining
unemployed persons are unskilled workers, who are difficult to place
w’ithout additional training because of technological developments in
the Territory’s industries. There is now in Hawaii a very tight market
for skilled workers, and shortages have occurred in selected instances.
Likewise, housing, transport, and community facility shortages exist
on Oahu. There has been a rise in the Federal employment of civilian
workers in military and naval activities, as well as increased employment
in the construction and tourist trades. Employment in Hawaii
is, however, far from stable due primarily to variable demands of the
military establishment and to the threat of strikes in the Territory’s
industries and in trans-Pacific shipping operations.
The occurrence of strikes was relatively low in the Territory during
the past year. Only two serious ones occurred. The Honolulu Rapid
Transit strike involving nearly 500 workers lasted for a month in
December and January; the pineapple crop on Lanai was endangered
by a strike of 800 workers which began on February 1 and was still
unsettled as the year under review ended.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 409
The Territorial Goverment and private business made notable progress
in analyzing the Territory’s economic problems and in devising
sound methods to cope with them. The Department contributed to this
economic planning through a Water Resource Investigation conducted
by Assistant Secretary Warne. Five public hearings were held at
various points in the Territory and over 60 witnesses were heard. At
year’s end, the Assistant Secretary was ready to issue his report,
recommending that more intensive investigation of Hawaiian water
resource development, utilization, and conservation be made, with particular
attention directed to irrigation projects.
New Responsibilities in the Pacific
Guam and American Samoa have been possessions of the United
States since 1898 and 1900, respectively. Until their transfer to the
jurisdiction of the Department, they were governed by the Navy Department
under authority granted in separate Executive orders. Naval
officers served as the governors of Guam and as the governors of American
Samoa and were vested with full executive, legislative, and judiciary
powers.
The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands came under United States
jurisdiction as a result of World War II. In 1947, by agreement with
the United Nations, the United States assumed administrative responsibility
for the islands formerly held by Japan under a League of Nations
mandate. This area likewise was governed by the Navy under
terms of an Executive order, and the commander in chief of the
Pacific Fleet served as high commissioner of the Trust Territory.
On October 20, 1945, President Truman established a committee of
the Secretaries of State, Army, Navy, and Interior to make recommendations
to him on the future administration of the Pacific islands.
Twenty-one months later, on June 18, 1947, this committee recommended
that organic legislation for each of these three territories providing
for government under law, be submitted to the Congress and
that steps be taken at the earliest practicable date to effect the transfer
of administrative responsibility for the islands from the Navy Department
to a civilian agency to be designated by the President.
On February 11, 1948, President Truman declared his intention of
transferring jurisdiction over the islands from the Navy Department
to the Department of the Interior. On May 14, 1949, he requested
the Secretary of the Interior to take the initiative in drawing up
plans, for submission to him by September 1, 1949, providing for the
transfer of Guam within 1 year and of American Samoa and the Trust
Territory within 2 or 3 years.
410 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Those plans, submitted in the form of memoranda of understanding
between the Navy and Interior Departments, set July 1, 1950, as the
target date for the transfer of responsibility for Guam, and July 1,
1951, as the date of transfer for American Samoa and the Trust Territory.
These memoranda, which were approved by the President, set
forth the procedure for the replacement of naval personnel by civilians,
the arrangements with respect to transfer of property, and the
necessity for providing regular air and sea transportation services,
other than naval, after the transfer date.
The fiscal year 1951 actually brought to completion all of the
transfer arrangements.
On August 1, 1950, the transfer to the Interior Department of
responsibility for the administration of Guam became effective in
accordance with Executive Order No. 10137, of June 30, 1950. Also
on August 1, 1950, Congress enacted the Organic Act of Guam, which
established the island as an unincorporated territory of the United
States and provided local powers of self-government through an
elected legislature, an independent judiciary, and an executive branch
headed by a governor appointed by the President.
On June 29, 1951, the President signed Executive Orders No. 10264
and No. 10265, which transferred responsibility for American Samoa
and the Trust Territory, respectively, from the Secretary of the Navy
to the Secretary of the Interior, effective July 1, 1951.
These acts were made possible only through the efforts of many
people, including members of Congress who held hearings in Washington
and in each of the territories, representatives of the Departments
of the Interior and Navy who worked tirelessly to negotiate
and carry out transportation and other agreements by which the
islands were to be administered after the transfer date, and public
spirited individuals and organizations.
In a statement issued to the press on June 29, 1951, President
Truman stated:
The establishment of civilian administration in these island areas is an
historic event. It conforms with a long-established American tradition of conducting
the affairs of civil populations under civilian authority. It is one
further step in the extension of additional civil rights to the Island territories
under our jurisdiction. * * * It is a matter of particular satisfaction to me
that this transfer of responsibility has been worked out in a planned, orderly
manner, in which the Department of the Navy and the Department of the Interior
have collaborated through administrative agreements. These agreements,
embodied in memoranda which were approved by me, will assure the people of
the islands concerned of the continuation of their essential services, and will
assure the people of the United States of the greatest possible economy and most
efficient administration.
The sections which follow treat more specifically with the progress
made in each area during the year under review.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 411
Guam
The government of Guam has been completely reorganized during
the year by the establishment, under the Organic Act, of independent
executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The Honorable Carlton
Skinner, who had been appointed by President Truman in September
1949, continued to serve as the first civilian Governor of Guam, after
reappointment by the President and confirmation by the Senate.
Nine executive departments were established. Pursuant to section
9 of the Organic Act, all heads of executive agencies and instrumentalities
were appointed by the Governor “with the advice and consent of
the legislature,” and in making appointments and promotions, preference
was given to qualified persons of Guamanian ancestry. Three
important territorial departments, the Department of Agriculture,
the Department of Commerce, and the Department of Education, were
headed by Guamanians.
In order to establish an adequate territorial civil-service system,
the Department of the Interior, in consultation with the Government
of Guam, contracted with the Public Administration Service of Chicago
to study and recommend a personnel classification and pay plan
and to draw up a retirement plan for Guam Government employees.
These studies, along with a study of the structure and administration
of the revenues of the Government of Guam, were made possible
through an allocation from the President’s Management Improvement
Fund.
Guamanians responded quickly and enthusiastically to their new
responsibilities of self-government. A 21-member Legislature was
elected in November, and a special session was convened the next
month. One of their first acts was to adopt, with certain amendments,
the recommended uniform classification and pay plan, thereby abolishing
the dual system of payment that had obtained for more than
50 years. A second act of major importance repealed customs duties
on goods entering Guam, thereby establishing a free port.
Throughout the year, emphasis was placed on increasing Guam’s
importance as a center for world trade. Since the military continued
to hold 34 percent of the land for defense purposes, Guam could not
go back to a strictly agricultural economy. Furthermore, Guamanians
in restaurant, retail store, and other businesses had found it profitable
to service the some 30,000 non-Guamanians attached to the military
forces on the island. Toward the end of the year Guamanian merchants
began to stock retail goods with a view toward relieving ships’
stores and other military activities of the need to carry supplies for
civilian employees of the defense forces. Guam’s role as economic
center for the Trust Territory and as a port for trans-Pacific airlines
412 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
and shipping companies expanded. A commercial port was established
and plans were laid for the construction of Guam’s first privately
operated hotel.
Two important institutions formerly operated as a part of the government
completed their first year of successful management under
private ownership. They are the Guam branch of the Bank of America
and the Guam Daily News. The latter had been purchased by a
Guamanian in June 1950. Through it, for the first time in the history
of American administration of Guam, the Territory had a completely
free and independent press—a vital adjunct of self-government.
Agricultural improvements were strongly encouraged through the
Territorial Department of Agriculture. An Office of Land Management
was established by the Governor to facilitate resettlement of
Guamanians who were dislocated by the war and by subsequent acquisition
of land by the military for purposes of defense. On October 30,
1950, certain public lands previously administered by the Navy Department
were transferred to the Department of the Interior by
Executive Order No. 10178. In addition to serving public needs, these
lands will be made available for settlement by dislocated Guamanians.
Early in the year the Bureau of Land Management of the Department
made a study and issued a report on Land-Use Conditions and Land
Problems on Guam, which serves as a guide both to the Department
and to the Territorial Government in planning land administration.
Plans were completed for a new permanent hospital to replace the
temporary buildings constructed during and after World War II.
Sketches likewise were drawn for concrete buildings to replace the
elephant quonsets being used for the high school. Although some new
homes and businesses were constructed during the year, the housing
shortage was critical. Toward the end of the year the Housing and
Home Finance Agency agreed to make a survey on Guam to determine
what Federal assistance might usefully be given the local housing
program.
During fiscal 1951 the Congress appropriated $1,250,000 as a grant
to the Guam Government. This amounted to a reduction of over
$2,000,000 in the cost to the Federal Government for civil government
on Guam in previous years. Income-tax laws became effective on
January 1, 1951. Continued collection of such taxes for deposit to
the account of the Guam treasury will remove the necessity for Federal
appropriations with which to operate the Government of Guam
in future years.
Paul D. Shriver, of Colorado, was appointed the first judge of the
District Court of Guam. In accordance with the Organic Act, which
provides that the structure and operation of the courts of Guam, other
than the District Court, shall be prescribed by the laws of Guam, a
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 413
study was initiated to guide the local judiciary and the legislature on
methods of improving the court system.
Federal agencies, including the Office of Price Stabilization, the
Department of Justice, and Selective Service opened Territorial offices
in Guam. The establishment of compulsory military service was
welcomed by the Guamanians as a necessary corollary to the privileges
of American citizenship. At the request of the Governor of
Guam and the Department, the Army and Air Force established recruiting
facilities on Guam. Work was initiated by the Department
to encourage other Federal agencies to extend their services to Guam.
In some cases, the Governor carried out functions for other Federal
agencies. These included, for example, passport functions for the
State Department and export-licensing controls for the Commerce
Department.
As authorized and directed by section 25 (c) of the Organic Act of
Guam, the President last year appointed a seven-man commission
under the chairmanship of former Congressman J. Hardin Peterson
of Florida, to review the field of Federal laws and to recommend to
the Congress not later than August 1, 1951, which laws applicable to
Guam on August 1, 1950, should be declared inapplicable and which
laws not applicable on that date should be made applicable. Three
of the Commission members were residents of Guam. At the end of
the fiscal year, the Commission’s report was being completed for transmittal
to the United States Congress.
In summary, many major developments of far-reaching significance
took place last year with respect to the status of Guam and its people.
Most important, in the tradition which prevails for other American
Territories, Guam achieved the right of self-government under
organic law and the affairs of the civil populace, formerly conducted
by military personnel, were placed in the hands of civilians.
American Samoa
During the fiscal year, arrangements were completed for the transfer
of administrative responsibility for American Samoa from the
Navy to the Interior Department on July 1, 1951. Close cooperation
between the two departments brought to a satisfactory solution the
problems associated with the transfer. These problems arose primarily
from the close interrelationship of the naval base and the civil
government, in terms of personnel, property, and services. The closing
of the naval bases plus the disestablishment of the Fita Fita Guard
added economic difficulties to the transfer problems.
American Samoa, which was acquired under the Treaty of Berlin
of 1899, consists of seven islands having a total land area of 73 square
-414 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
miles. Its population, consisting of 18,000—-almost all Samoans—
are dependent for their livelihood on subsistence agriculture and commercial
sale of copra and handicrafts. Opportunities for expansion
of production are limited and the loss of income from employment at
the naval bases will be a serious blow to the economy.
In preparing for the transfer, a study was made of the organization
of the existing naval administration through a grant from the President’s
Management Improvement Fund, and recommendations for the
future civilian administration of American Samoa were included in
a report of the study issued by the Department in January 1951.
This report served as the basis for preparing the fiscal 1952 budget request
and for evaluating organizational and other changes required
under the new civilian administration.
Replacement of naval personnel by qualified civilians was one of
the first steps in the transfer. The President appointed Mr. Phelps
Phelps, of New York, as Samoa’s first civilian Governor. On February
23, 1951, he was inaugurated in ceremonies at Pago Pago. The
policy of the Department, with respect to American Samoa, was set
forth in a letter from Secretary Chapman to Governor Phelps which
was read at the inaugural ceremonies. The Secretary stated in part:
On your Inaugural Day, I hope you will make it clear to the Samoan people
that civilian administration and organic legislation are designed to protect their
interests and promote their welfare. The submission of organic legislation will
be withheld by the Department of the Interior until you have had an opportunity
to consult with the Samoan people, and are familiar with their wishes and their
needs. In particular, I want the people of Samoa to have my personal assurance
that their traditional rights and lands will be protected while, with their help,
the civilian administration finds ways to promote their political, economic, and
educational advancement.
In accordance with Departmental policy, the Governor has given
preference to Samoans in government employment. Stateside or
Hawaiian civilians were recruited to fill only those positions for which
Samoans were not qualified either by training or experience. At
present, 92 percent of the government employees are Samoans.
The new Samoan Government was charged with providing an effective
civilian administration and with the promotion of the economic
and social welfare of the Samoan peoples at substantially lower costs
than the naval government. At the same time, it faced rising prices
and prospective wage increases.
High on the Department’s list of measures required in American
Samoa is the enactment of organic legislation which would provide
effective separation of the executive, legislative, and judiciary powers;
a bill of rights; and special protection of Samoan land and other
rights, essential to the welfare of the people. Means must be found
immediately to provide new sources of income for Samoans. Unless
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 415
they are found or additional Federal aid is granted, it will be difficult
for the civilian administration to insure that previous standards of
living and of public services will be maintained.
Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands
The transfer of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (former
mandated Marshalls, Carolines, and Northern Marianas) to civilian
administration involved problems of much greater magnitude and
complexity than the transfer of American Samoa. The Trust Territory
consists of 96 islands and atolls scattered across 3,000,000 square
miles of ocean with a combined land area of 687 square miles. The
population of the area in 1950 totaled approximately 55,000. Eight
distinct languages are spoken, and island groups vary from the people
of the Yap area, almost untouched by modern ways of life, to the
highly westernized people of the Northern Marianas. These factors
of remoteness, isolation, and cultural differences, together with the
war’s destruction of governmental facilities, created problems of recruitment,
sea and air transportation, and radio communications
unique to this area. Furthermore, in view of the far-reaching obligations
toward the local inhabitants assumed by the United States
under the Charter of the United Nations and under the trusteeship
agreement with the Security Council, every step in the transfer had
to be conceived with particular care to insure that public services
were not impaired in the transfer process.
It was apparent from the earliest stages of the transfer that replacement
of the Navy’s 16 ships and 7 airplanes providing transportation
services for the civil government and the local inhabitants would be
our most difficult task. Based on a survey made by the Department
with the cooperation of the Navy Department, the CAA, and several
private shipping firms and airlines, a plan was recommended to the
President for operating seven naval vessels (one AK and six AKL’s)
and four Navy amphibious planes (PBY-5A’s) under contract with
private firms. The plan was approved by the President, and on the
basis of competitive bids contracts were awarded to the Pacific Micronesian
Line, a subsidiary of the Pacific Far East Line, and to Transocean
Air Lines to operate these services. As the total estimated cost
of these contracts is $1,600,000 annually, the savings to the Federal
Government resulting from replacement of naval with commercial
transportation services will exceed $2,000,000 each year.
In order to determine personnel and budgetary requirements under
civilian administration, a management improvement survey of the
Trust Territory government was made by a team of departmental and
private experts. The report of this survey, published in January 1951,
served as the basis for budget requests, personnel recruitment, and
416 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
administrative and policy planning. The survey pointed the way
toward savings of over $1,000,000 in the annual operating costs of civil
government and of over $15,000,000 in the cost of public works com
struction. Under the recommended organization, only 284 statesiders
were deemed to be necessary to replace the 467 naval officers and men
serving in the Territorial Government.
On January 3, 1951, the President appointed the Honorable Elbert
D. Thomas,, former United States Senator from Utah, as the first
Civilian High Commissioner of the Trust Territory. The recruitment
of civilians to serve in professional and technical posts for which the
local inhabitants were not yet qualified, posed challenging problems.
Persons had to be found who were technically qualified and who, with
their dependents, were able and willing to live in small, isolated island
communities and to work with people of a different racial origin and
culture. Furthermore, recruitment had to take place when available
professional and skilled workers were scarce. Over 2,000 applications
which the Department had accumulated mostly through selected solicitation,
were screened and appointments made. About 50 naval reserve
personnel with training and experience in the Trust Territory
were transferred to civilian status in the Territorial Government.
A critical shortage in applicants for medical positions in Guam and
American Samoa as well as the Trust Territory was anticipated during
the earliest stages of the transfer process. This shortage was overcome
by having a naval officer on loan to the Department visit displaced
persons camps in Europe and make selections from among
the top physicians for employment in the Pacific area.
Another difficult problem was the continuation of subprofessional
medical and dental training for about 65 Trust Territory students.
To continue the Navy operated schools at Guam required employment
of professional civilian instructors. The salaries of these instructors,
along with other school expenses on Guam, would have cost
the government over $3,000 per student annually. The Department
learned that the tuition and living cost per pupil at the Fiji medical
and dental schools was only about $440 per year, and after satisfying
itself that the quality of instruction compared very favorably with
that of the Navy schools at Guam, arranged with British authorities
for the enrollment of the students at the Fiji schools.
Naval radio stations at the six district centers had to be manned
by civilians, call signs and frequencies assigned, schedules worked out,
and relationship with the Navy radio station at Guam for onward
forwarding of official and private messages defined. Because of its
military interest in weather and other reports from this area, the
Navy released some of its communicators, who desired to remain in
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 417
the area in civilian status, and also agreed to supply radio parts on a
reimbursable basis.
Arrangements also were made for the Weather Bureau to maintain
weather reporting stations in four district centers, for the United
States Post Office to establish post offices in all six centers, for the
Coast Guard to maintain aids to navigation where necessary, and for
the General Services Administration to purchase supplies and other
materials in the United States for the government of the Trust
Territory.
The Trust Territory headquarters which the Navy maintained at
Pearl Harbor had to be moved from the naval reservation. While
the headquarters must be located within the Trust Territory at the
earliest practicable date, the establishment of facilities in the area
had to be postponed due to lack of funds and other complications.
Instead, two former Army buildings at Fort Huger in Hawaii were
reconditioned and the headquarters was moved there. Maintenance
of the headquarters staff in Honolulu is both costly and inefficient,
and as soon as funds are available the headquarters will be moved to
a site within the Trust Territory, in accordance with recommendations
of the trusteeship council.
As a basis for concluding transfer arrangements and defining the
relations between Navy and Interior Department activities in the
Trust Territory, a detailed agreement was negotiated by the two Departments
and placed in effect on July 1, 1951. This agreement
covered the transfer of property, personnel, communications, security
controls, and related matters.
These are examples of the major tasks which had to be accomplished
in order to replace naval with civilian administration in an orderly
manner. But this is only the beginning and there remains the very
difficult job of establishing a government in the area with facilities
and programs which will lend fullest credit to the United States in
the United Nations and among people throughout the world. Dilapidated
quonset houses for employees, makeshift hospitals and schools
in some centers, worn-out power and refrigeration plants, and other
temporary structures must be replaced by permanent facilities. Until
adequate facilities are established, a disproportionate amount of
money and personnel must be devoted to keeping the worn-out structures
in repair.
The United States has increased measurably its national security
by assuming jurisdiction over this area. It would be foolhardy indeed
if through false economy we fail to measure up to our obligations
toward the people of the area. The investment required of the Federal
Government in order to maintain enlightened programs in the
418 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Trust Territory is negligible compared with the good will to be gained
among the islanders concerned and among the peoples of the United
Nations.
In a letter to the High Commissioner on the occasion of the transfer,
Secretary Chapman set forth general policy guides for the administration
of the Trust Territory. He wrote:
This Department will dedicate itself to the principle that the interests of the
indigenous inhabitants are paramount, subject only to the requirements of international
peace and security. It will foster the maximum practicable participation
by the indigenous inhabitants in their own governmental, social, and economic
affairs. It will encourage scientific research and particularly the use of
applied science in the development of policies and programs in consultation with
the islanders. The Department will apply in the Trust Territory the knowledge
it has gained from its long experience in promoting the welfare of our Territorial
populations and the conservation and development of natural resources
toward the fulfillment by the United States of its international trusteeship
obligations.
Other Islands
Further progress was made toward conclusion of an agreement on
the details of the joint United States-United Kingdom administration
of Canton and Enderbury Islands. The outstanding development in
these islands was the increased production of fish for markets in
Hawaii. The fish are frozen and flown to Hawaii. A survey is under
way to determine the need for regulations to insure conservation of
fishing resources in the lagoon.
Under arrangements with the Coast Guard, Howland, Jarvis, and
Baker Islands were visited. The Department also consulted with
the Department of State on administrative matters relating to Pacific
island possessions of the United States which are claimed by other
governments.
Division of
Geography
Meredith F.^Burrill, Director
THE DIVISION OF GEOGRAPHY was established
to discharge the duties of the Secretary of the Interior with
respect to the act of July 25, 1947, which established the Board on
Geographic Names. The Division performs research and other staff
functions relating to the standardization of geographic names.
Virtually all the 1951 work concerned foreign areas, Alaska, and
Antarctica. Geographic and linguistic research preceded standardization
of about 125,000 foreign names, including more than 2,500
individual decisions; tabulating machine cards were punched for
about 150,000 standardized names; more than 230,000 names were
edited on maps and in text for correctness of spelling and accuracy of
application; and 15,000 place-name inquiries were answered. Except
for name editing, these data represent substantial increases over 1950.
Extensive research in Antarctic names was brought near completion.
Technical experts of the Division investigated geographic name problems
in southern Asia and the Pacific.
Cooperation with State name organizations, which holds great
promise for the economical standardization of domestic names, was
curtailed due to a lack of funds for the Division’s part of such
work.
419
United States Board
on Geographic Names
THE BOARD ON GEOGRAPHIC NAMES is
an interdepartmental organization established for the purpose of
standardizing geographic nomenclature for use by the Federal Government.
Representatives of 11 Federal departments and agencies
make up its membership. S. W. Boggs, Department of State, was
chairman during the fiscal year 1951.
The Board and its committees held frequent meetings during the
year to act on policies, names, and related matters. The volume of
the Board’s activity is reflected in the statistical data included in the
report of the Division of Geography.
The Board issued cumulative decision lists for Yugoslavia, Bulgaria,
and the U. S. S. R., intensive coverage lists for St. Lawrence
Island, Alaska, and Isla de Culebra, Puerto Rico, and Supplement
No. 2 to Special Publication No. 86, The Geographical Names of Antarctica,
containing names passed by the Advisory Committee on
Antarctic Names. Standardization and promulgation of domestic
names halted after August because no funds were appropriated for
this work in 1951.
The Advisory Committee on Names in Alaska continued to review
and furnish recommendations on Alaskan name problems.
Basic foreign name policies were considerably extended to cover
new areas and additional matters in areas previously covered.
420
Office of the Administrative
Assistant Secretary
Vernon D. Northrop,
Administrative Assistant Secretary
REORGANIZATION PLAN NO. 3 of 1950, effective
May 24, 1950, established the position of Administrative Assistant
Secretary in the Department of the Interior. Vernon D. Northrop was
appointed Administrative Assistant Secretary on May 25, 1950. The
Office of the Administrative Assistant Secretary was established by
secretarial order on August 15, 1950, under the provisions of the Reorganization
Plan. By virtue of the delegation of the authority of
the Secretary of the Interior in the field of administrative management
to the Administrative Assistant Secretary, this office provides
integrated direction of the functions of the Department in that field.
The office is comprised of the immediate office of the Administrative
Assistant Secretary and five divisions, viz, Budget and Finance, Property
Management, Personnel Management, Management Research,
and Administrative Services.
A report for each division follows:
DIVISION OF BUDGET AND FINANCE
D. Otis Beasley, Director
The Division of Budget and Finance is responsible for the general
direction and supervision of financial and budget functions of the Department.
Its responsibility also extends to the investigation of alleged
irregularities. It has also taken on the added responsibility for
budget and finance functions as related to the defense agencies for
which the Secretary has been designated the responsibility under the
Defense Production Act of 1950. The organization of the Division
consists of the office of the Director and three branches covering budget,
finance, and investigations.
The Interior Appropriation Act for 1951 contained appropriations
amounting to $630,396,325, which amount was reduced $64,275,000 by
421
422 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
the Bureau of the Budget pursuant to section 1214 of the appropriation
act. During the year, however, an additional $26,058,500 was
obtained through supplemental appropriation acts, making a total
of appropriated funds available to the Department of $592,179,825, as
compared with $604,742,057 appropriated in 1950 or a decrease of
$12,562,232. Of the appropriated funds available to the Department,
$910,000 was transferred under the provisions of the Third Supplemental
Appropriation Act 1951 to meet part of the cost of operating
the emergency defense activities under the contro] of the Secretary.
The Budget Branch develops the general budgetary policies, devises
methods and standards to guide the preparation of budget proposals
by the bureaus and analyzes the proposals in relationship to the Department’s
over-all budget programs. The branch also assists in the
presentation of the budget estimates to the Bureau of the Budget and
the Congress.
The budget staff has been giving continual attention to the employment
of procedures to accomplish unification and simplification of the
Department’s budgets. Much has been achieved in the uniformity
in preparation of budget presentations. Additional budget improvement
processes are now under consideration and will be established
from time to time as the procedures are formulated.
The Branch of Finance continued to participate actively in the joint
program of the Bureau of the Budget, Treasury Department, and
the General Accounting Office for improving accounting in the Federal
Government. Special consideration has been given to the provisions
of section 113 (a) of the Budget and Accounting Procedures
Act of 1950, particularly respecting the establishment of effective control
and accountability for all funds within the Department. Exploratory
work is under way with the view of establishing an internal audit
program in the bureaus and offices. A survey of the bureaus and offices
has been started for the purpose of determining the adequacy of
the present financial control over property and other assets. Departmental
regulations have been prepared pursuant to section 1211 of
the General Appropriation Act, 1951, to establish a system of administrative
control which is designed to (a) restrict obligations or expenditures
against each appropriation to the amount of apportionments
or reapportionments made for each such appropriation, and (Z>)
enable the Secretary to fix responsibility for the creation of any obligation
or the making of any expenditure in excess of an apportionment
or reapportionment.
The Branch of Finance continued to assist and cooperate with the
bureaus and offices to improve their accounting systems, particularly
with respect to the accounting systems of the Bureau of Reclamation,
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 423
Bureau of Land Management. Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of
Mines, and the Southwestern Power Administration. These activities
have been carried on with the cooperation of the Accounting Sys-
(ems Division of the General Accounting Office.
The Branch of Investigations conducts investigations of complaints
of irregularities in the performance of official duties by employees of
the Department; investigates the records of guardians of incompetent
Indians in cases where information received indicates improper administration
in accounting for the estates of their wards; and conducts
investigations of other miscellaneous matters for the purpose
of obtaining information on which to base administrative decisions.
Wherein possible criminal offenses are indicated in the reports, such
matters are referred to the Department of Justice for determination
of possible institution of criminal proceedings.
DIVISION OF PROPERTY MANAGEMENT
/V. O. Wood, Jr., Director
The Division of Property Management was established on December
7, 1949, by Department Order No. 2546, to develop policies, standards,
and objectives for tlie procurement of materials, the management of
property and records of the Department.
The procurement and supply phase of the Division’s property management
activities assumed the additional workload brought about
by the Korean War. Materiel shortages, the inevitable result of participation
in war, were anticipated by the Department and the Property
Management Division has assisted the operating bureaus in obtaining
an adequate supply of the materiel to continue necessary
programs. Working in conjunction with the defense production and
program staffs in the Department, and with DPA, NPA, and OPS,
agencies organized as a result of the enactment of the Defense Production
Act of 1950, the Division has participated in drawing up the
plans for procurement of critical materials and, as the year progressed,
represented the Department in the handling of priorities, requirements,
and other phases of the materiel problem. In the first phase
of the defense program, the Division aided the bureaus and offices in
obtaining materials by use of the DO (defense order) rating; advised
bureaus of new orders of importance to departmental operations;
represented the regular bureaus at meetings where proposed regulations
were discussed and in general acted as the liaison between the
bureaus and offices and the various defense activities.
As the tempo of defense activity increased, the Division participated
in obtaining a statement of requirements for the basic con-
973G49—52——30
424 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
trolled materials (iron, steel, copper, and aluminum) of the bureaus
and offices for the balance of the 1951 calendar year. These, and the
requests of other Government departments, manufacturers, and other
type consumers, constitute the basic demand for controlled materials
which must be measured against available supply. Thus the Property
Management Division has participated in the orderly transition
within the Department of the Interior from a normal to a semi-war
economy.
Despite the additional defense workload created by the international
situation, considerable improvement occurred in the field of
procurement during the fiscal year. The study of the cost of processing
purchase orders has resulted in improved and more economical
procedures. A continuing effort is being made to reduce the number
of purchase orders issued, particularly those purchase orders totaling
less than $20 each.
The Division has developed and prescribed a property accounting
manual for use by the bureaus and offices of the Department. This
manual establishes adequate and uniform procedures for accounting
and accountability for all equipment, supplies, and materials under
the jurisdiction of the Department. Adequate controls are included
in the manual to insure that proper records of such property are kept
and that the property is protected, preserved, and utilized for official
purposes. The functions of the Boards of Survey and reviewing authorities
relating to utilization and disposal of property are particularly
emphasized. In addition, the Division collaborated with the
Bureau of Indian Affairs in establishing a detailed property management
manual for their agency which includes the provisions of the
departmental manual.
Department Order No. 2615 established a departmental records
management program whose scope and content were immeasurably
larger than the somewhat limited program previously in effect. Concrete
evidence of the added emphasis on records management was
the retirement of more than 2,700 file cabinets of inactive records to
Federal records centers, with the subsequent release for other use of
more than 14,000 square feet of office space in the Washington headquarters
and making available at least 1,000 of the file cabinets for
further use. Similar significant gains were effected through increased
emphasis on systematic destruction of those inactive records authorized
for elimination under general disposal schedules. With the assistance
of Records Management Analysts from the National Archives
and Records Service, GSA, improved mail procedures have been devised
in some of the bureaus and new file manuals have been developed
and installed in the Bureau of Land Management and the
office of Territories. Similar file manuals are in process of being
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 425
prepared for the Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Mines, and the
Geological Survey. Many of the bureaus, through the efforts of newly
designated records management officers, are preparing written instructions
for scheduling of records for disposal, both at headquarters and
in the field offices.
Other important phases of the work of the Division include liaison
with the General Services Administration (GSA) ; promulgation of
directives issued by the Administrator of GSA; delegation and redelegation
of the authority of the Secretary on property and records
management matters to the heads of bureaus and offices to permit them
to operate more effectively; and the review and appraisal of proposed
legislation related to the property and records management functions
of the Department.
DIVISION OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT
Guy W. Numbers, Director 1
With the Korean War in progress at the beginning of the 1951
fiscal year, an accelerated defense program was initiated and the
matter of recruiting personnel properly qualified for the Department’s
needs became a major problem. With the passage of the Defense
Production Act in September 1950, five defense administrations were
established under the Department. These defense administrations
have grown to approximately 700 employees including nearly 80 top
level employees from industry, many of whom are serving under appointments
without compensation.
The reorganization of many of the bureaus and offices and the
creation of the defense administrations caused unusual activity in the
Branch of Classification during the year. In the defense administrations
alone 39 positions were allocated to the new grades GS-16,
17, and 18 set up under the Classification Act of 1949. In this connection
the Civil Service Commission and the Bureau of the Budget
called for a survey of all of the top positions throughout the Government
service to determine whether the numerical limitations on these
grades should be lifted or extended.
The culmination of the Division’s efforts over the past 8 years in
organizing, developing, and guiding a wage administration program
for the Department was reached in June 1951, when wage fixing authority
was delegated to bureau and field levels. This delegation
applies to the determination of appropriate wage rates for ungraded
employees, primarily those in the recognized trades and crafts positions,
within continental United States. Simultaneous with the dele-
1 Mr. Guy W. Numbers succeeded to the position of director, division of personnel management,
upon the retirement of Mrs. J. Atwood Maulding on June 30, 1951.
426 > ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
gation, general standards and regulations were promulgated for the
guidance of the bureaus and offices pursuant to broad policies heretofore
established by the Secretary. A noteworthy feature of the delegation
order is the inclusion of authority to approve finally wages and
ordinary working rules under formal labor management agreements
negotiated between administrative units of the Department and employees’
representatives.
Parallel with the advances made in wage administration during the
fiscal year, additional emphasis has been placed on the development of
a broad labor relations program. Considerable progress was made in
defining problem areas in this phase of the Department’s operations; in
reaching conclusions as to the best approach in solving such problems;
and, finally, in drafting a tentative program for developing policies
and implementing such policies by prescribing standards, controls, and
operating procedures. Major considerations in the over-all program
are (1) the administration of labor-management collective agreements
based on existing policy, and (2) contract matters affecting labor and
involving close cooperation with other Federal agencies responsible for
the establishment and enforcement of the provisions of labor statutes.
Nearly 8,000 applicants for employment were interviewed by the
employment branch during the fiscal year. Probably the publicity
attending the buildup for national defense accounts in large measure
for this high number. Another factor is the availability of veterans
who are finishing their education under the GI Bill of Rights.
What seemed likely at the beginning of the fiscal year to be a surplus
of engineers turned into an acute shortage for which little relief is in
sight except in renewed efforts to make the most of present staff. The
chronic shortage of personnel in the medical and cartographic services
continues. Some relief in the latter is being provided by on-the-job
training of appointees having less than full qualifications.
Section 1302 of the Supplemental Appropriation Act, 1951, placed
restrictions on appointments, reinstatements, transfers and promotions,
and required changing Federal employment practices. These
restrictions have lessened attraction among applicants for the Government
service and retarded full utilization of present personnel by
internal changes.
The Interbureau Placement Committee created during the year has
been very successful. Designed primarily to facilitate promotion from
within the Department by informal negotiation, it has served the
further desirable purpose of a forum for the discussion of policies and
procedural problems to the advantage of all concerned.
The new performance rating plan was given its first try-out this year.
Designed in and for the Department, with a view to improving the
supervisor-employee relationships rather than merely to measure perANNUAL
REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 427
formance, it has been simplified in a number of respects. It has only
three summary ratings instead of five—Outstanding, Satisfactory, and
Unsatisfactory, with Outstanding intended to mean considerably more
than the former Excellent. The number of ratable elements was reduced
from 31 to 5. Another departure is the provision that performance
requirements must be made known to ratees in advance of the
rating period.
In October 1950 a separate Branch of Training was established in
the Division, combining the functions of the former training section
and the departmental management training program. The new
branch was assigned responsibility for developing and coordinating
training policies and programs with particular emphasis upon management
training. A few months later the departmental executive
development committee was appointed. This committee has begun
to survey various bureau efforts at leadership training as a step towards
developing more systematic and effective techniques for identifying,
training, and utilizing executive ability throughout the
Department.
The departmental management training program has completed its
second year of successful operation. The trainee group was made up
of ten promising young career employees of the Department and eight
new appointees chosen from recent college graduates who gave evidence
of management aptitude. The training included 3 weeks of
group orientation, weekly conferences, academic work at Washington
universities, individual counseling, and a carefully designed series
of productive work assignments under competent supervision. Growing
interest in the program and the generous cooperation forthcoming
throughout the Department indicate that this pattern of training
has gained general acceptance.
A review of the first trainee group showed that nearly all trainees
had received promotions and were in appropriate positions for
gradual assumption of more important staff and operating responsibilities.
The Department is thus developing and strengthening its
younger management personnel and building towards a reserve of
carefully trained and well qualified people for future executive
leadership.
Inspection of the personnel operations in the Washington and field
offices of several of the bureaus was made to analyze the degree of
compliance with the personnel policies and programs of the Secretary,
to evaluate their functioning, and to counsel with executives and suggest
improvements.
The Department Supplement to the Federal Personnel Manual was
improved by the issuance of eight important changes and additions.
These included a personnel management program for executives and
428 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
supervisors, a streamlined grievance procedure, an employee-management
guide which outlines what each employee may expect and assurances
to each employee, a chapter on conduct that states the principles
of good employee conduct and the responsibilities each employee has
to the Department and the Federal Government.
A policy statement and streamlined procedure for the separation
of employees for the good of the service was issued. The basic policy
is to assure absolute fairness, justice, and protection of the employee
from arbitrary or capricious removal.
Thirty-six Civil Service Commission inspection reports relating to
personnel administration in various Washington and field offices of the
Department were reviewed. These indicated that the organizations
have benefited through the Commission’s inspection service and have
attained an acceptable degree of regulatory compliance.
Instructions were issued for the implementation and installation
of the basic records and files system for personnel offices, prescribed
by the Bureau of the Budget and the Civil Service Commission. As
an aid to operating officials throughout the Department the division
developed a personnel-records-and-file system for operating officials.
At the close of the fiscal year there were 63,841 compensated employees
in the Department, of which 5,717 were in Washington, D. C.,
metropolitan area, and 58,124 located in the field. Of the total number,
41,973 are clasified by grade under the Classification Act, 19,133
under wage-board procedure, and 2,735 employees of various classes
and ungraded. Veterans in the Department now number 26,024.
The number of women is 12,847.
There were 322 retirements in the Department during the year, of
which 56 were for age, 196 were optional, and 70 were for disability.
DIVISION OF MANAGEMENT RESEARCH
L. Wade Lathram, Director
The Hoover Commission reports, the interest of the public and the
Congress in the conduct of executive activities, and the need for administrative
adjustments in the light of defense production emphasis
have resulted in major efforts to improve the management of the
Department. To this end the Secretary reorganized departmental
administration to provide a better basis for integrated natural resource
development.
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1950 made possible the reorganization
of the Secretary’s office along major purpose lines so as to permit more
effective integration of the management of the Department, and to
relieve the Secretary of an overwhelming supervisory load. Among
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 429
other things, the plan raised from two to three the number of assistant
secretaries and authorized an administrative assistant secretary.
Under this authority the Secretary, in July 1950, designated three program
assistant secretaries. The natural resource management task
of the Department was considered to be divisible into three major
purposes. Therefore, the Secretary designated an assistant secretary
for public land management, an assistant secretary for water and
power, and an assistant secretary for mineral resources. The bureaus
and offices primarily engaged in these activities were assigned to
these assistant secretaries for supervision and management. The program
assistant secretaries were given authority by the Secretary to
supervise and direct the activities in their respective areas.
In keeping with this concept, proper staff facilities were provided
in each of these program areas to make it possible for the assistant
secretaries to fulfill their responsibilities. These staff facilities consist
of a Water and Power Division, a Mineral Resources Division, and a
Land Utilization Division, each responsible to the appropriate assistant
secretary and encompassing all of the staff facilities required by
that assistant secretary to permit him to insure adequate program development,
establishment of policies, and supervision of program
execution for his area. The previously existing staff facilities were
incorporated into these new divisions.
Under Reorganization Plan No. 3, an administrative assistant secretary
was appointed. The purpose of this move was to permit integrated
direction of the administrative management activities of the
Department and to strengthen and balance the staff facilities in this
area. The result has been the establishment of five divisions within
the administrative management area at the secretarial level under the
administrative assistant secretary. These five divisions are Budget
and Finance, Property Management, Personnel Management, Management
Research, and Administrative Services. This last division
incorporates operating administrative functions for the Secretary’s
office, permitting the remaining four divisions to operate as staff units
in their respective fields.
The Secretary needs, however, to assure himself of the development
and integration of a total natural resource program. This responsibility
was assigned to the Program Staff with the assistance of the field
committees.
As the result of all of these actions, the program development and
management load of the Department falls largely on the three program
assistant secretaries and the administrative assistant secretary. The
Secretary is thus left free for major policies and over-all guidance.
Additionally, through the facilities of the field committees and the
430 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
Program Staff working with the assistant secretaries, he is able to
assure interarea coordination on program development and the establishment
of departmental objectives and goals. Thus there exists a
relatively small key staff to advise the Secretary on major policy
problems. At the same time, it is this same staff which is responsible
for execution and management of the decisions made by the
Secretary.
Another major organizational action taken by the Secretary was the
provision of facilities to carry out his defense production responsibilities.
The Secretary of the Interior was delegated responsibilities in
petroleum, solid fuels, minerals, electric power, and fishery products
areas under the provision of the Defense Production Act of 1950 and
Executive Orders 10161 and 10200. Within these areas, the defense
production responsibilities of the Secretary consist of operations relating
to voluntary agreements; priorities, requirements, and allocations;
and the expansion of productive capacity and supply, which includes
reviewing and making recommendations on applications for
necessity certificates for accelerated tax amortization, loans, loan
guarantees, commitments to purchase, purchases, and the encouragement
of the exploration, development, and mining of critical and strategic
minerals and metals. To carry out these responsibilities, five defense
administrations were established: Petroleum Administration for
Defense, Defense Minerals Administration, Defense Solid Fuels Administration,
Defense Fisheries Administration, and Defense Electric
Power Administration. Through the establishment of a defense production
staff in his own office, the Secretary provided himself with facilities
to coordinate defense activities and to advise him on policy
matters. The organization and staffing of these activities and the development
of operating relationships with the existing agencies of the
Department presented major management problems, since it was desirable
to utilize to the maximum the existing facilities to fulfill defense
production responsibilities. Closely related to this were the
significant adjustments required in the operating procedures of the
regular bureaus and agencies with the shift in emphasis from normal
peacetime programs to defense programs, yet with continued concern
for the natural resource development base of the Department’s functions.
Estimating and expediting of materials requirements, establishing
operating relationships with defense administrations within
the Department and defense agencies outside the Department, relating
long-range programs to the immediate defense requirements,
and similar organizational and procedural problems were involved.
Along with these major tasks there was continuing emphasis on the
improvement of the total management of the Department. To this
end, and with the aid of the President’s management improvement
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 431
fund, a number of specific projects were completed. These included a
study of a management review and appraisal system for the Department,
a complete evaluation of the organization and management of
the Bureau of Indian Affairs, a study of the field service of the entire
Department, and a series of studies required to provide adequate
management of the Pacific areas transferred from the Navy to Interior.
DIVISION OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES
Floyd E. Dotson, Director
During the fiscal year this Division continued to furnish housekeeping
and other services for which it was established and which
are essential in carrying out the work of the Department- These
include the operating functions relating to fiscal matters, mail, files
and personnel for the Office of the Secretary. Other services provided
by the Division and available to all bureaus and offices of the Department
include library, museum, health, space, telephone, duplicating,
photographic, warehousing and shipping, and printing and binding.
Commencing with the fiscal year a working capital fund, provided
for in the 1951 appropriation act, was established for operation of duplicating,
telephone, library, supply, and health services. Previously,
these services had been provided from funds appropriated to the
Office of the Secretary. Under the working capital fund the bureaus
and offices pay for services received.
Space for the Department in Washington took on new prominence
during the year due to the necessity for providing quarters for defense
agencies. Little additional space could be obtained but by means of
consolidations, reassignments, and change of usage it was possible to
provide for approximately 1,000 additional personnel who were added
to the working force in the Interior Building.
Interior Department
Museum
Harry L. Raul, Museum Administrator
THE INTERIOR DEPARTMENT MUSEUM was
established in 1938 “to visualize to the public the history, aims, and
current activities of the Department of the Interior.” The more-thana-
century-old history of the Department coincides with a large part
of the history and development of the United States. It strikingly il-
] ustrates many phases of American history and what is known as the
American way of life. In this field, at this time of national emergency,
it is noteworthy that the Museum performs a patriotic service
along with its nominally technical one as an important Departmental
activity in public understanding of the Department’s objectives. The
effectiveness of the Museum is emphasized by the direct personal
contact, on the part of each visitor, with the vast and varied activities
of the Department as portrayed through modern visual education
techniques.
THE ALASKA SCIENCE CONFERENCE, NATIONAL RESEARCH
COUNCIL
Under the auspices of the Secretary, a comprehensive symposium
on Alaska was held in the Interior Building during the afternoon and
evening of November 10, attended by about 300 persons. Special
Alaskan exhibits were displayed in the Museum and in one of the
lobbies and in the main corridor. Thirty special panel exhibits were
shown in the Museum galleries.
This exhibit was continued for 5 days to accommodate many additional
visitors.
ATTENDANCE AND FOREIGN VISITORS
Museum visitors during the past year numbered approximately
32,000 persons. Visitors were recorded in the visitors’ register from
every State in the Union, and from Alaska, Canal Zone, Guam, Hawaii,
Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
The visitors’ register shows registrations during the year from
43 foreign countries: Afghanistan, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bel-
432
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 433
gium, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Ceylon, Colombia, Costa
Rica, Cuba, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, England, Finland, France,
Germany, Greece, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan,
Korea, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Palestine, Peru, Republic
of the Philippines, Russia, Scotland, Sweden, Switzerland,
Turkey, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
SPECIAL EXHIBITS
Loan Exhibit From the Secretary
Facsimile of the Constitution of Hawaii, displayed in the office of
Territories gallery. This document was presented to the Secretary
of the Interior by the President of the Constitutional Convention of
Hawaii of 1950, and has inscribed thereon the autographs of all of
the signers of this historic document.
Office of the Secretary
Two large hand-tooled leather bound books: Roll-Distinguished
Service Awards, and Roll-Meritorious Service Awards, conforming
to and supplementing the previously installed Roll-Commendable
Service Awards.
Bureau of Land Management
Illustrated color map of Land-use’and Activity by the Bureau of
Land Management in California, together with paintings, etchings,
drawings, and wood-carvings by T. H. Drummond, Cadastral Engineering
Division, Bureau of Land Management, depicting scenes from
western range country where the Bureau of Land Management
operates.
Bureau of Reclamation
Title, More Water and Power for a Stronger America, seven wing,
folding panel special exhibit, length 30 feet;
Bureau of Reclamation
Large scale-model of Grand Coulee Dam, first stage of construction,
length 9 feet.
ACCESSIONS
A collection of 23 Indian baskets, purchased by the Indian Arts
and Crafts Board from Mrs. W. S. Walcott, Jr., Litchfield, Conn., was
deposited in the Museum and cataloged as the Walcott section of
the Museum general collection.
434 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
A collection of 12 Indian artifacts, assembled by the late William
McNab Ramsay, and presented to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, was
deposited in the Museum and cataloged as the Ramsey section of the
Museum general collection.
One set of four historical photographs relating to the Department
was deposited in the Museum by the Director of the Division of Personnel
Management and cataloged in the Museum general collection.
COLLABORATION WITH BUREAUS
Numerous case installations and revisions were completed during
the year including:
National Park Service
Twenty case-wall panel exhibits, in 10 display cases, exhibiting 128
publications illustrating and describing the national parks, national
monuments, national military parks, national historical parks, national
parkways, national historic sites, national memorial park, national
recreational areas, together with a framed panel showing
selected national capital parks publications.
Geological Survey
The popular and manually operated exhibit of Microfossils From
Texas revised and reconditioned.
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Case exhibit, Indian paintings (from general collection), Hopi
Katchina figurines, Sacred Meael plaque, and Navajo Saddle Blanket,
example of old-style hard weave (from Gibson collection).
Fish and Wildlife Service
Embryological Series of Coho Salmon exhibit revised and reconditioned,
and revised Duck Stamp exhibit.
Office of Territories
Installed large hand-painted flag from Guam.
Bureau of Mines
First-aid instructors’ classes were held in the Museum, by the Bureau
of Mines, for selected representatives from all of the bureaus.
The bureau representatives now have organized bureau classes to continue
the courses in the Museum.
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 435
COOPERATION WITH OTHER AGENCIES
Consultation and assistance in display programs were rendered,
upon request, to number of agencies including, the American University,
Federal Security Administration, and the National Museum.
SCHOOL CLASSES AND ORGANIZATION GROUPS
Many school and college classes and organization groups visited
the Museum during the year in connection with scientific and conservation
studies. These groups were given guided Museum tours. Notable
among the groups were the participants in the Division of Personnel
Departmental Management Training Program, and, under the
same auspices, a group of 21 French industrial management trainees;
a delegation from the President’s National Youth Conference; a
group of 10 foreign students directed to the Museum by the State
Department, followed by a group of 5 Japanese foreign office officials.
Among the student groups were the Cherokee Indian School, Cherokee,
N. C.; the George Preparatory Schoo], George, Pa.; a group of
150 teachers and students from Oxon Hill, Md., Junior High Schoo];
a troop of Girl Scouts from Westside Jewish Temple, Chicago; 100
Cub Scouts, Pack No. 240, of Maryland, accompanied by 50 parents
and den leaders. For the convenience of this group, the Museum was
held open during evening hours.
Many delegates to the Sixtieth Continental Congress of the Daughters
of the American Revolution visited the Museum. During the
year several visiting groups were received in compliance with courtesy
letters from Members of Congress.
MOTION PICTURES
Sound-motion pictures were shown in the Museum, 12 to 1: 30 daily.
These departmental films were supplied by the bureaus and included
such titles as follows: Bureau of Reclamation, Corraling the Colorado;
Bonneville Power Administration; Hydro; Fish and Wildlife
Service; Conservation in Action; Halibut Fishing on the Pacific
Coast; Filleting and Packaging Fish; Hunting the Puma, etc.
INFORMATION SERVICE
Publications furnished by all of the bureaus and kept in stock at
the information counter were supplied to visitors, upon request, and
to teachers and school conservation classes. Inquiries were answered
daily and special assistance rendered when requested or opportunities
presented.
Petroleum Administration
for Defense
Bruce K. Brown, Deputy Administrator
ON OCTOBER 3, 1950, by Order No. 2591, the Secretary
of the Interior established the Petroleum Administration for
Defense to administer the defense responsibilities with respect to
petroleum and gas delegated to the Secretary of the Interior by Executive
Order 10161, pursuant to the provisions of the Defense Production
Act of 1950 (Public Law 774, 81st Cong.). The Secretary is the
Petroleum Administrator and the activities are directed by a deputy
administrator. The organization is patterned after that of the Petroleum
Administration for War, modified to fit the added responsibilities
of PAD and in recognition of the differences between a world
war and a defense mobilization program.
The Petroleum Administration for Defense had the foundations of
the Department’s Oil and Gas Division upon which to build the agency
necessary to carry out the defense responsibilities. The Secretary of
the Interior, by Order No. 2602, transferred on December 1, 1950,
certain advisory and service functions of the Oil and Gas Division
to the Petroleum Administration for Defense.
The first technical problem the new agency dealt with was a shortage
in the supply of high octane number aviation gasoline for the
military. To assist in the solution of this problem, a small staff of
aviation fuels specialists was selected from among individuals who
were active in the aviation fuels work of the Military Petroleum
Advisory Board. Through the cooperation of the Defense Department
and the petroleum industry, this effort resulted in the petroleum
industry meeting all requirements of the military services during the
fiscal year. Intimately associated with the problem of supplying adequate
high octane aviation gasoline was the supply of components
for manufacture of synthetic rubber. The two programs were carried
on coincidentally because each requires some of the same components.
To evaluate effectively the petroleum situation, it was necessary for
PAD to establish promptly a Program Division to formulate integrated
short-term and long-term programs for meeting total essential
437
438 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
world-wide petroleum requirements of the United States and friendly
foreign nations. By December the Program Division, with assistance
from the Department of Defense and data available from the Military
Petroleum Advisory Board, was determining the probable demand
for petroleum and its products under defense mobilization and
possible war conditions. From these forecasts, the PAD prepared
operating programs to meet the petroleum demand. Operating divisions,
such as Production, Refining, and Supply and Transportation,
review the present capacity of the various segments of the industry
and determine what and where expansion is required to meet the goals
set by the Program Division. The operating divisions determine the
type of expansion and requirements for critical materials, and likewise
allot to the individual operations the controlled materials made
available for each particular segment.
By early December 1950, PAD had established a Materials Division
to assure that materials and equipment needed for essential construction
and operations of the petroleum and gas industries are made
available to meet the programs determined to be necessary.
PAD has developed an effective system for the distribution of materials
required by the various segments of the petroleum and gas
industries. At the request of PAD, the National Production Authority
issued Orders M-46 and M—46B, which deal with the use of materials
by the petroleum and gas industries and provide the mechanisms
whereby the desired quantities of materials needed by the operators
in these industries may be obtained. These orders are administered
independently by the Petroleum Administration for Defense. Near
the end of the fiscal year, the Defense Production Administration,
together with the National Production Authority, instituted the Controlled
Materials Plan. The Petroleum Administration for Defense,
by modifying its orders, geared its priorities activities into the plan.
’ Under the plan, the Materials Division, working closely with PAD’s
operating divisions, coordinates requirements for materials needed
by the petroleum and gas industries, presents these requirements with
justification to the National Production Authority and Defense Production
Administration. When the allocations have been made to
PAD, the Materials Division assists the operating divisions in the
proper distribution of these materials to the individual operators in
the industries and assures that authorizations to purchase are within
the limitations of the materials available. It also assures operators
that materials for which purchases are authorized will be made
available.
Positive steps were taken by PAD to coordinate its activities in
connection with the production of petroleum and natural gas with
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 439
those of the appropriate State regulatory authorities by arranging a
conference in Washington on January 19, 1951, with representatives
from the State regulatory authority bodies of all the oil- and gas-producing
States. The conference concerned itself with discussion of
procedures to assure the future close coordination of the State regulatory
authorities with PAD and with certain problems with respect
to the production of petroleum and natural gas.
During midwinter of the fiscal year, a combination of extremely
severe cold weather, a rail strike, and the freezing of the Illinois
waterways created a serious spot shortage of fuel oils and liquefied
petroleum gas in the Chicago and Midwest area. PAD organized a
Special Midwestern Emergency Petroleum Fuels Committee, headed
by the Director of the Supply and Transportation Division, for the
purpose of dealing with this emergency situation on the spot.
Through these efforts under the direction of PAD officials action was
taken to distribute available supplies so as to avoid the imposition of
extreme hardship on defense industries and essential civilian users.
In January, the Supply and Transportation Division undertook a
comprehensive study of petroleum transportation facilities to determine
present capacities and expansions required under a continuing
mobilization economy. This study was nearing completion at the end
of the fiscal year.
To assure a continued supply of tetraethyl lead fluid in the event
of damage to any of the existing TEL manufacturing facilities, the
Petroleum Administration for Defense issued its PAD Order No. 1.
It was designed to conserve automotive tetraethyl lead fluid in order
to build a reserve supply adequate for the needs of national defense
and to enable the output of military grades of aviation gasoline to be
expanded. The order which was placed in effect on March 1, 1951,
limits petroleum refiners’ usage of TEL to a stipulated percentage of a
refiner’s 1950 usage. The order makes special and separate provision
for small refiners so as to minimize, if not wholly remove, any burden
that might be placed upon them by the issuance of the order.
Unlike the Petroleum Administration for War, the Petroleum
Administration for Defense is charged under the Defense Production
Act of 1950 with defense mobilization responsibilities with respect
to gas, both natural and manufactured, and particularly the
transmission and distribution thereof. To properly handle the responsibility,
PAD set up a gas organization, under an assistant deputy
administrator. It is composed of three divisions: Gas Planning, Gas
OperatiQns, and Gas Facilities, which handle problems involved in
transmission and distribution of gas.
In addition to providing the internal administrative machinery
to assure successful mobilization of this industry, the Secretary, on
973649—52-------31
440 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
March. 9, 1951, established the Gas Industry Advisory Council, to
advise PAD on matters of importance affecting supply and distribution
of gas under the defense program. This council is representative
of all segments of the gas industry and all sections of the country.
This is the first time the gas industry has had a national council working
with and under Federal Government auspices.
Toward the end of the fiscal year provision was made whereby the
PAD would receive directly the advice and counsel of the National
Petroleum Council, an industry council established in 1946 by the
Secretary of the Interior to furnish advice and information to the
Secretary of the Interior and the Oil and Gas Division on petroleum
matters of national significance.
The Anglo-Iranian oil crisis, culminating in the shut-down of the
world’s largest refinery at Abadan and the cessation of tanker movements
from Iran, caused serious dislocations in the supply of petroleum
normally flowing from that country to friendly foreign
nations of the free world. In order to cope with this situation, the
Petroleum Administration for Defense sponsored and procured the
approval of a voluntary agreement pursuant to the provisions of
section 708 of the Defense Production Act of 1950. The voluntary
agreement, dated June 25, 1951, provides the mechanism whereby
American oil companies operating abroad can, with immunity from
prosecution under the Federal Antitrust laws and the Federal Trade
Commission Act, take cooperative action designed to compensate for
the loss of the Iranian petroleum to the friendly foreign nations.
Nineteen American oil companies accepted requests to participate in
the voluntary agreement. The same companies were appointed on
June 28,1951, by the Secretary of the Interior and Petroleum Administrator
for Defense to membership on the Foreign Petroleum Supply
Committee authorized by the voluntary agreement.
The Defense Production Act makes provisions for financial incentives
to encourage industry in expanding production. Among these
incentives are accelerated amortization, loans, and contracts.
The PAD established an office of finance counselor to advise and
assist in determining policies, practices, and procedures with regard
to extending the incentives to the petroleum and gas industries.
The policies of the PAD on accelerated amortization have been
established to provide the degree of incentive needed to insure construction
of the facilities required to fill the petroleum and gas programs.
In some branches of the industry, such as production and
marketing, accelerated amortization has not been found necessary
and has been denied. In other branches of the industry accelerated
amortization has been an effective tool and is accomplishing the
greater part of the expansion required. In a few activities additional
ANNUAL REPORTS OF BUREAUS AND OFFICES + 441
incentives in the form of defense loans and facilities contracts have
been found necessary.
At the close of the fiscal year the Office of Finance Counselor had
formulated policies and criteria for accelerated amortization on (
Cooperation of Many Kinds.._______________________________________ 334
Design and Construction___________________________________________ 319
Communications______________________________________________ 320
Mississippi River Parkway Survey--------------------------------------------- 322
Parkways____ ______________________________________________ 320
Physical Improvements______________________________________ 321
Roads and Trails Under Defense Conditions____________________ 320
Storm Damage Was Heavy__________________________________ 322
For Greater Safety_______________________________________________ 334
History “Written on the Land”______________________________________ 323
Donations of Historical Material_____________________________ 324
Historical Research--------------------------------------------------------------- 324
Preservation of Historic Sites and Structures____________________ 323
Salvage Archeology in the River Basins__________________________ 325
75th Anniversary of Little Big Horn Battle___________________ 326
Special Ceremonies__________________________________________ 325
In the Museum Field_____________________________________________ 330
In the Scenic-Scientific Areas_____________________________________ 327
Do Not Feed the Bears______________________________________ 328
Endangered Species of Plants and Animals____________________ 328
Fishing Regulations for Everglades Issued____________________ 329
Scientific Projects___________________________________________ 330
Wildlife Control Activities___________________________________ 327
Independence Square Group_______________________________________ 314
Inviting the Neighbors. _________________________________________ 343
Necrology_______________________________________________________ 334
Notes from Around the field_______________________________________ 345
Personnel Management_______________ 338
Publications_____________________________________________________ 333
The Land Program_______________________________________________ 338
Additions and Subtractions_______________________ 340
Exchanges or Donations of Land_____________________________ 341
The Forest of the National Park System____________________________ 331
Civil Defense_______________________________________________ 332
Disease and Insect Enemies of the Forest_____________________ 332
Tree Preservation____________ ______________________________ 333
The Park System of the National Capital____________________________ 342
Roads and Parkways________________________________________ 342
Water Control Projects and the Parks______________________________ 318
OFFICE OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT SECRETARY.__ 421
Division of—■
Administrative Services _ _____________________________________ 431
Budget and Finance_________________________________________ 421
Management Research______________________________________ 428
Personnel Management__ _______________________________ 425
Property Management_______________________________________ 423
OFFICE OF SOLICITOR__________________________________________ 383
Appeals________________________________________________________ 384
Defense Activities________________________________________________ 388
Departmental Orders____________________________ 388
Legislation___ _______________________________________ :__________ 389
Litigation_______________________________________________________ 386
Patent Matters___________________________________________________ 388
466 + INDEX
OFFICE OF SOLICITOR—Continued Page
Submerged Coastal Lands_________________________________________ 387
Tort and Irrigation Claims________________________________________ 388
OFFICE OF TERRITORIES_______________________________________ 391
Alaska__________________________________________________________ 392
Pacific Territories______________________________________________ 407
American Samoa____________________________________________ 413
Guam________________________ 1____________________________ 411
Hawaii_____________________________________________________ 408
Trust Territory of Pacific Islands_____________________________ 415
Other Islands_______________________________________________ 418
Puerto Rico_____________________________________________________ 398
Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration--------------------------------------- 403
Virgin Islands______________ 404
OIL AND GAS DIVISION_________________________________________ 236
PETROLEUM ADMINISTRATION FOR DEFENSE_______________ 437
RESOURCES FOR DEFENSE_____________________________________ iii
Electric Power___________________________________________________ xvii
Fisk and Wildlife________________________________________________ xxxiii
Fuels_____________________________ xxiii
Land and Water------------------------------ xiii
Minerals______________________________________________ viii
Scenic, Historical and Recreational Resources_______________________ xxviii
Territories_______________________________________________________ xxx
The American Indian____________________________________________ xxxvi
SOUTHEASTERN POWER ADMINISTRATION___________________ 153
SOUTHWESTERN POWER ADMINISTRATION__________________ 148
Energy Deliveries-----------------,-------------------------------------------- ----------- 150
Energy Production__ ____________________________________________ 149
Litigation_______________________________________________________ 149
Personnel_______________________________________________________ 148
Power Contracts__________________________________________________ 150
Arkansas Power & Light Co--------------------------------------------------- 150
Contracts with Preferred Customers---------------------------------------- 151
Public Service Co. of Oklahoma-Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co__ 150
Southwestern Gas and Electric Co------------------------------------------ 150
SPA System_____________________________________________________ 152
Supply and Procurement__________________________________________ 148
a i t e GE