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<br />18 <br /> <br />of t~e valley occupied by its work~, 50 per cent more land than could <br />ever be flooded by a natural flood. It seems evident that this in itself <br />is not flood control for the Tennessee Valley as most people understand <br />it. It does not meet the test of protecting the most valuable agricul- <br />tural lands in the valley, for instead of saving them from harm, it des- <br />troys them. <br /> <br />TVA proposes to anticipate floods, pull the reservoirs down <br />ahead of their occurrence, catch the floods, discharge them, and then <br />catch enough water for power. This is indeed a good trick if you can do <br />it. If a reservoir is full, and must be pulled down in a hurry to catch <br />a sudden flood, it is easy to cause a higher artificial flood below the <br />dam, than the natural flood to be caught. It is one thing to figure on <br />hindsight, and quite anotner to make quick and accurate decisions in a <br />desperate hurry with a great flood rolling down the valley and without <br />definite knowledge of just what the flood will be like. These are just <br />a few of the problems that confront the water dispatchers in such a Sys- <br /> <br />te:n. <br /> <br />It is evident that the kind of "flood protection" afforded by <br />TVA is not automatic and foolproof'. Instead, it is very complicated and <br />whol~ dependent on foresight and judgment. <br /> <br />TVA does not meet the test of' a good flood control plan in <br />respect to natural valley storage. It is obvious by looking at the map <br />that TVA, by the construction of' its permanent lakes, has destroyed a <br />large amount of natural channel storage. Inspection of the data avail- <br />able indicates the amount of natural valley storage within the boundaries <br />of the reservoirs is more than 16,000,000 acre feet for a great flood. <br />The importance of' this iteJII of valley storage is well stated in the ArIr/3 <br />Ibgineers' Report on the Tennessee River (1930) (H D 328, 71st Congress, <br />2nd Session) as follows: <br /> <br />"Should a dam be built ... creating a reservoir that fills <br />up the Channel and recesses, then this volume of water dis- <br />places the volume formerly occupied by the 1'1ood. Being de- <br />