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<br />j <br /> <br />in North Dakota was a part of both the Corps of Engineers and the <br />Bureau of Reclamation's plans for the development of the Missouri River <br />Basin, which later became the Pick-Sloan Plan as authorized in the <br />Flood Control Act of 1944. Many years of careful investigation by the <br />Bureau of Reclamation preceded the present stage of development of this <br />project. Briefly under this plan it is proposed to divert water from <br />the Garrison Reservoir, which as you know is substantially completed, <br />through a large canal to a regulating reservoir, known as Lonetree <br />Reservoir, and then through a series of canals and existing rivers to <br />areas that would be benefitted by irrigation, improved municipal and in- <br />dustrial water supplies, recreation, fish and wildlife enhancement and <br />other beneficial uses. None of the proposed irrigated lands would be new <br />land since all of it is now in use. It would stsbilize our economy and <br />.divert some land from grain. This project would bring multiple benefits <br />to areas and municipalities scattered throughout the 25 counties of the <br />state .directly affected, and indirectly the entire state and nation <br />would benefit. The undesirability of our relying largely upon a grain <br />economy has been obvious for many years through the growing size of our <br />farms, lessened opportunities for employment on the farm and in towns,. <br />and a restricted population and economic growth. <br /> <br />The plans for the development of the resources of the Missouri River <br />Basin contemplated a multiple purpose project. With the construction <br />of the Garrison Dam, a large supply of water has been made available <br />and two of its originally intended purposes have been accomplished, <br />namely flood control and power generation. North Dakota was quite <br />willing to cooperate in making flood control possible for the lower <br />basin.states even at the expense ot permanently 1nunnat1ng a large <br />acreage of our farm land. We recognize the benefit that comes through <br />the generation of power at Garrison Dam although a considerable part <br />of this power is transmitted and used outside of this state. Important <br />as both flood control and power generation are, the realization of the <br />other multiple benefits from thls project are necessary to its justifica- <br />tion. I am referring to irrigation, municipal and industrial water <br />supplies, recreation and fish and wildlife enhancement. Impartial <br />studies, with which you are familiar, have established that there is <br />sufficient water to meet all reasonable demands in the Basin for <br />multiple purpose development. We feel that ~his project provides a basic <br />condition to the success of any such undertaking, namely good local <br />support. The project proponents have long recognized their responsi- <br />bilities for reimbursement to the government for construction costs and <br />for operation and maintenance charges in an irrigation project. With <br />the help of several progressive governors and state legislatures, the <br />machinery has been set up in this stste whereby these responsibilities <br />can be met. <br /> <br />Due to the widespread location of the benefited areas, the need for an <br />over-all district that could represent all these areas and beneficiaries <br />became evident. In 1955, the State Legislature recognized this need and <br />enacted the enabling legislation for the Garrison Diversion Conservancy <br />District. As it now exists, the District includes almost one-half of the <br /> <br />F-2 <br /> <br />1 <br />