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AUDUBON SOCIETY 
Gield Museum of Natural History 
ESTABLISHED 1897 ROOSEVELT ROAD AND LAKE SHORE DRIVE - CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 60605 

ORGANIZED FOR THE PROTECTION OF WILD BIRDS AND 
THE PRESERVATION OF OUR NATURAL ENVIRONMENT 
AUDUBON NEWSLETTER 
AND 
PPIPALyY 
- Vol. 10 No. 1 Judith Joy — Editor February, 1971 

AT ul 
ALLERTON PARK COMMITTEE CHARGES CORPS WITH WASTE OF TAXPAYER’S MONEY 
Allerton Park is still not saved. We must continue to fight for it. Let’s look at some of the facts as reported in the 
Congressional Record, the Army Corps of Engineers’ own press releases, and public information from the University of 
Illinois and State Water Survey. 
Authorization: The Oakley project was sent to Congress for authorization in 1961, since then it has undergone several 
changes. It is now two dams, instead of one; costs $65.6 million instead of $29.6 million; has low flow augmentation as an 
additional purpose which was not in the original project; and now costs the taxpayers of Illinois $14.4 million. 
You would be led to believe by the Corps, Rep. Springer and the city of Decatur that for this large expenditure of 
taxpayer’s money you are getting a decided benefit. Let’s look again at what the Corps has to say about the project which has 
a benefit cost ratio of 1.15. However, in calculating this figure the Corps used an interest rate of 3-1/4 percent on the 
borrowed money. Now you and | know, but apparently the Corps doesn’t, that nobody, not even the government, can 
| borrow money at that rate today. Economists tell us that if the current, conservative rate of interest used by the Water 
_ Resource Council on new projects, which is 5-1/8 percent, were used on this project, it would actually return less than a 
dollar for every dollar that is invested. So even using the Corps’ own figures, it is clearly a bad investment of your tax dollars. 
However, the Corps has also exaggerated their benefits to the breaking point in order to justify this large expenditure of 
_ money. Recreation is now the largest single purpose of the reservoir, jumping from $223,000 per year in benefits to over $1.1 
million! Consider what unequalled opportunities the lake will provide for recreation when the average depth is just five feet; 
and although the Corps told everyone that 45 percent of the recreational benefits came from swimming, they now admit that 
the water may be too polluted for swimming. 
] Flood control is also considered another of the major benefits: but the Corps will be taking 38,987 acres for this project 
in order to protect just 13,300 acres from flooding in the average year. They are therefore flooding more bottomland than 
_ they are protecting; and even the protection seems doubtful judging by the flood control fiasco at Carlyle Lake in southern 
Illinois. 
The Corps claims that the farmers will be saved $40 to $50 per acre in flood control benefits; however, economists 
point out that the farmer only makes $20 to $30 each year on the best farmland. Moreover, the farmers below the Carlyle 
Dam actually suffered more damage after the project was finished than before. 
To top it off, is the fact that Allerton Park, an irreplaceable resource for the people of Illinois which has been 
recognized as a National Natural Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior, will be damaged by the proposed Oakley 
project. This fact has even been admitted by the University trustees who signed the modified memorandum of agreement. 
We urge you to join us today in stopping this waste of your hard-earned tax money and preventing damage to your park 
by circulating a petition to save Allerton Park. Petitions and information sheets may be obtained from the Committee on 
/ Allerton Park, 1208 W. Union, Champaign, II. 61820. 
Jack Paxton 
Committee on Allerton Park 
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