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Flood Control Act 

 (33 U.S.C.A. 701-701(U)) 



Soil erosion and flooding are closely related and contribute significantly 

 to water quality degradation. The Flood Control Act deals with the 

 improvement of watershed areas, retardation of runoff, water flow, and 

 soil erosion. "Works of improvement" include critical area tree planting 

 and acceleration of technical forestry assistance. These programs can 

 be instituted on non-federal lands on a cost-share basis (federal share 

 according to watershed and authorization). The act is administered by 

 the Soil Conservation Service in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service, 

 state foresters, and other public agencies. 



Although this act applies to forestry measures and water quality main- 

 tenance, there have been no projects in this regard in Montana. Most 

 projects that have occurred or been planned are construction type projects 

 (impoundments, diversions, etc.) (Hatterly, pers. comm.). These may be 

 necessary for mitigating existing problems, but greater emphasis should 

 be placed on prevention of flooding and soil erosion problems through 

 land use measures. The following aspects should be considered in this 

 regard: 1) In forested watersheds, the conservation districts administering 

 the act should pursue aggressive public awareness campaigns to encourage 

 landowners to use the services available to them. This should include 

 an emphasis on forestry land management techniques; 2) The DNR&C should 

 encourage more land treatment measures, as opposed to construction 

 measures, when prioritizing project applications from the local districts. 



