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related land resources. Before the demise of the National Resour,ces Planning Board, the Depart- ment of Agriculture, Interior and War (now Army) cooperated with the Board in their interrelated activities on water resources. During this period, these De- partments entered into a tripartite agreement to facilitate coordination of their interrelated activities. Upon dissolution of the NRPB, the three Departments plus the Federal Power Commission entered i~to a quadripartite agreement in 1943 which resulted in the establishment of the, Federal Inter-Agency River Basin Committee (known as FIARBC or "Firebrick")J This committee consisting of Washington, D. C. departmentally designated representatives, met monthly to discuss the ofrmalized review of each agency's reports by other agencies, a procedure which was incorporated in part into law in the 1944 Flood Control Act. The Gommittee also established continuing sub- committees on Benefits and Costs, Hydrology and Sedimentation as well as Ad Hoc Subcommittees on special problems. In 1945, the first field inter-agency com1nittee was established in the Missouri Basin, with representatives designated by the Federal agencies and by the Governors of the States concerned. The Columbia Basin Inter-Agency Committee was established in 1946, fol- lowed by the Pacific Southwest Federal Inter-.i\gency Technical Committee in 1948. In the years prior to 1950, the inter -agejlcy activities were most us eful in facilitating exchange of information and improying understanding of mutual prob- lems. The work of the technical subcommittees was especially fruitful. The Benefits and Costs Subcommittee had great influence on water policies and prac- tices in this field. The Hydrology and Sedimentation Subcommittees coordinated many important technical problems among the agencies . The Hydrology Subcom- mittee has issued over ten Bulletins including !'Federal Programs for Collection of Data on Water Use" and others. , In the 1940's, the field inter-agency cOmmittees made significant progress in improving inter-agency and Federal-State r~lationships and coordination at the field level. ' From 1950 to 1952, there was intensive inter.agency activity on water re- source policy formulation and coordination. The need and value of coordinated planning of river basin development was becoming better understood through inter- agency activities both in Washington and in the: field. In 1950, field inter-agency committees were established under FIARBC by direction of the President to carry out basin-wide comprehensive surveys authori~ed by the Congress for the Arkansas- White-Red River Basins and the New England-~ew York.area. Both committees were under the chairmanship of the Corps of E;ngineers and included field repre- sentatives of other Federal agencies and of thd States. These committees produced comprehensi ve, inventory-type reports which :serve as a framework for more detailed plans, recommendations and actions by all agencies. in 1952, there was a reappraisal of the i"ter-agency efforts on water re- sources. With the approval of the President iil May 1954, the old FIARBC was reconstituted as the Inter-Agency Committee qn Water Resources, with members of subcabinet rank, including a sixth agency, tp.e Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. One of the original five member'S, the Department of Commerce - 26 - I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I