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17 3. The actual cost of steam-electric power from a plant recently put in service in the same serv- ice area. If enterprises such as these used realistic formulae for the value of electric power, they would fail of justification as multi- purpose projects on the basis of the economics being employed ~ the Army Engineers, and the way would then be cleared for projects for the primary purpose of protection of lives and property from floods. This paper shoulc. not be closed without some mention of TVA which is the leading example of the application of the multi-purpose idea. Claims of considerable magnitude as to the benefits obtained and the wonders accomplished have appeared in print from time to time, but evidently these have come from the publicity department, and not from the engineers responsible for the complex operations which seem to be anticipated. From time to time tile engineers have issued general state- ments as to the method of operation and of the design of structures but apparently the TVA engineering staff has not yet issued any quantitative analysis of what will happen on the Tennessee River when a big flood happens. Until such an analysis is available, judgment as to the technical proficieney of the plan should be withheld. But in the mean- time, some of the end results are plainly visible, and it is pertinent to examine them. First, it is well to look at the map of the Tennessee Valley, sho....n on Chart XV. While some of the projects are on the headwaters in suitable locations for flood protection, the major structures are on the main stem of the river, and cannot be of any use in protecting the bottom lands of the valley, where the greatest damage hae been caused ~ past floodS, because moet of these lands are now deep beneath per- ntanent lakes. Following up this land matter, TVA has purchased over a million acres, and now floods permanently and occasionally, in the area