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OPPOSES TAKING 



LAND IN 



FLOOD PLAN 



OPPOSITION to provisions of the 

 federal flood control plan for the 

 Illinois River basin, calling for the ac- 

 quisition of farm lands for. reservoirs, 

 has been voiced by Illinois Agricultural 

 Association board of directors. 



The lAA board expressed opposition 

 pending the adoption of an official' 

 position by the membership at the an- 

 nual meeting in November. 



Objections and recommendations of 

 the lAA to the project were filed with 

 the Board of Engineers for Rivers and 

 Harbors during a public hearing April 

 30 in Washington. A recommendation 

 urged further study of the flood con- 

 trol plan. 



A second hearing in late May was 

 scheduled to be held in Springfield for 

 those unable to attend the Washing- 

 ton hearing. 



lAA States Position 



Pending action of the membership at 

 the annual meeting, the Board of En- 

 gineers for Rivers and Harbors was in- 

 formed that the lAA board of directors 

 opposes the project, insofar as the ac- 

 quisition of land for reservoirs is con- 

 cerned, and 



(1) Until information is available 

 as to the estimated costs and benefits 

 on the basis of present-day costs and 

 values. (The division engineer's re- 

 port is based on 1940 costs and values) ; 



(2) Until the possibilities of flood 

 control through an adequate soil con- 

 servation program and the cost of such 

 a soil conservation program have been 

 studied and determined; 



(3) Until the comparative value of 

 the upstream land to be acquired for 

 the reservoirs as compared with the 

 value of the river-bottom and over-flow 

 lands which would be protected by the 

 project has been determined; and 



(4) Until it appears that the finances 

 of the U. S. government are such as to 

 warrant the undertaking of such a proj- 

 e«t. 



A meeting was called April 15 in 

 Springfield by the lAA Public Rela- 

 tions Committee for the purpose of de- 

 termining sentiment in the areas to be 

 affected by the flood control plan. Rep- 



resentatives of 16 county Farm Bu- 

 reaus attended the meeting. 



Public Relations committee report 

 of this meeting said: Sentiment was di- 

 vided. A majority, and particularly rep- 

 resentatives from those counties where 

 reservoirs are proposed and where a 

 substantial acreage of farm land will be 

 acquired, were opposed to the project. 



Representatives from those counties 

 that will receive substantial benefits 

 from the plan were inclined to favor it. 



It appeared to be the general feel- 

 ing at the Springfield meeting that 

 adequate consideration had not been 

 given to the possibilities of flood con- 

 trol through sound soil conservation 

 practices which would increase water 

 retention and control or prevent soil 

 erosion. 



The project involves the contem- 

 plated purchase of 142,700 acres of 

 land by the federal government at an 

 estimated cost of $11,921,000. The es- 

 timated total cost of land, the 15 reser- 

 voirs and improvement of channels and 

 levees is $90,924,250. 



But 1946 prices for labor, materials 

 and land are generally understood to 

 have risen 50 to 65 per cent over 1940, 

 the lAA statement pointed out. 



The expenditure of such sums would, 

 therefore, seem questionable in view of 

 the fact that estimated annual reduc- 

 tion in flood los.ses would total less than 

 $3,000,000 and in view of the fact that 

 the federal government is now carrying 

 a debt of approximately $275,000,000,- 

 000. 



Suggest Alternatives 



The statement said further: "if much 

 of this work is ever to be done, it 

 should be postponed and done at a time 

 when land values and construction 

 costs are more nearly normal and the 

 expenditures should be within the lim- 

 itations of a balanced budget." 



The lAA statement mentioned pos- 

 sible alternative methods of flood 

 amelioration in the Illinois River basin, 

 i.e., control of Lake Michigan waters 

 being diverted into the Illinois River 

 during flood stages, soil conservation 

 practices to retain water and the open- 



ing of levees into natural flood plains 

 during periods of flood. 



The lAA asked that a study be made 

 of the possibilities and cost of a flood 

 control plan aimed at widening the 

 river channel and floodway widths and 

 moving back the levees. 



"It might be more advisable," says 

 the lAA statement, "to acquire this 

 overflow area or substantial portions of 

 it and to restore the natural flood plain 

 and the valley storage which formerly 

 existed rather than to attempt to hold 

 the water in upland reservoirs." 



RICHARDSON REPORTS 

 INSURANCE COST RISE 



THE rising trend in costs of insuring 

 automobiles against collision and 

 property damage was pointed out by 

 A. E. Richardson, manager of Country 

 Mutual Casualty Company, before a re- 

 cent meeting of the board of directors 

 of the Illinois Agricultural Association. 



Collision damage refers to loss sus- 

 tained by the insured and property 

 damage refers to loss sustained by the 

 other person involved in the accident. 



Accidents Increase 



These two lines of coverage, Richard- 

 son said, are costing a great deal more 

 than they have in the past. The main 

 reason for this trend, he said, is that 

 labor and material costs have almost 

 doubled since 1941. In addition, acci- 

 dents are becoming more frequent since 

 tires and gasoline have become more 

 plentiful. 



The board of directors authorized 

 Richardson, acting with the lAA man- 

 agement board, to make a careful study 

 of the cost trend and report back to a 

 later meeting of the board with recom- 

 mendations as to how long the com- 

 pany should continue to operate with- 

 out increasing the rates on these two 

 lines of coverage and what rates would 

 be required to meet present losses. 



It was pointed out in the discussion 

 that the rates on other lines of insur- 

 ance such as personal injury, fire and 

 theft were holding their own very 

 well. Those present were of the opin- 

 ion that an increase in rates for col- 

 lision and property damage was in- 

 evitable. 



Foresters estimate that the U.S. will need 

 21'/2 billion cubic feet of forest products 

 annually, or about five billion more thaa 

 during the war. 



Hay forms the basis of the bam ration fed 



to more than one million Illinois dairy cows 

 during six or seven months of the year. 



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L A. A. RECORD 



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