The chief benefits from flood control projects in most areas of the 

 Northeast are like!) to accrue from prevention of damage to downstream 

 industrial, residential, and recreational properties. These may be greater 

 than the prevention of downstream damages to farm buildings, land, live- 

 stock, fences, and equipment. However, within dam-site and reservoir areas, 

 a principal adverse effect on local economies may be the loss of farms. 

 While the site choice will influence this effect, with most large projects the 

 short-run displacement of invested capital in farms producing for sale and 

 Lome use may be the largest single type of loss. Residential and business 

 properties may represent a greater total current investment than farms, but 

 their removal from the site might not have as great a permanent effect 

 on the local economy as the loss of farms. Other locations in the area may 

 be available for the establishment of new domiciles and places of busines-s. 

 but the productive farm resources in the area are likely to be more limited. 



Franklin Fallis riain and area leading to spillway as seen from Route 3A, 



West Franklin, N. H. 



These considerations give rise to some basic questions with which future 

 legislative and action programs must cope. For example, shall we build 

 a few large projects at the lowest cost per acre foot of storage, or shall 

 we spend more in total on construction for a larger number of smaller 

 projects, but lessen the immediate impact on farming, businesses, resi- 

 dences, fish and game, recreation, etc., within reservoir sites? Is the public 

 interest best served by "large dams" or "small dams," or do we need both 

 in an integrated program? This question cannot be answered fully by a 

 study of the effects of dam construction on agriculture in the reservoir 

 areas. Interests other than agriculture must be considered as well as effects 

 in the downstream areas. 



This study, which confines itself to effects of dam construction on agri- 

 culture in reservoir areas, has two basic objectives. The first, in the area 

 of methodology, involves measuring the effects. The second, in the area of 

 policy, explores measures to minimize adverse effects from present and 

 future projects. Neither objective is intended to answer, per se, the issue 

 of choice of dam and reservoir sites, nor whether projects should be large 

 or small. 



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