A better fish and wi/d/ife population is a major concern to the Corps.
Having briefly explored the major challenges you have
allow most, if not all, of these to be deauthorized by
faced as Director of Civil Works if now seems appropriate
not overruling the recommendations. Next year there
to ask for your impression of the Corps' future Civil Works
will be another list and the year after that and so forth.
mission.
So that's working well.
The 2-stage authorization procedure has many good
We should start with what we have as our current mis-
features to it. So far as we know, it's also working well,
sions. Traditionally, that includes navigation, flood
and I phrase it that way simply because we have not
control and hydroelectric power. Navigation, I feel
yet had a project move all the way through the system
certain, will remain an integral part of the Nation's
and back to the Congress under the 2-stage procedure.
economic transportation system, but its place in the
We see no great problem once we get all the pieces
system will depend upon the national transportation
sorted out.
policy and the relationship of water to other trans-
The third item is streambank and shoreline erosion,
portation modes. I think there's a definite continuing
and this one, I must say, has been fairly disappointing
requirement here, so the Corps' mission in the naviga-
to me because we've not had the funds to undertake
tion field probably will stay pretty active.
these research programs as we should have. In the
Flood control, though, is to me the one area where
shoreline erosion area we have no money appropriated
the changes in philosophy and approach have to be
to date, We do have an advisory panel appointed as
most significant and perhaps the most immediate. I
the law requires and we have taken 0,000 from
feel that national attitudes no longer accept retention
other sources just to keep that panel working. As far
structures as the singularly correct solution to flood
as anything specific is concerned-such as picking a
problems. Only after we have thoroughly exhausted
demonstration site-no decision has been made. The
all other alternatives, in particular those labeled non-
same thing is true, generally, with streambank erosion.
structural solutions, will the public accept structural
There just haven't been any funds appropriated to
solutions. This is quite a change in the national atti-
allow us to proceed with these new initiatives.
tude which existed just 10 or 15 years ago. As a result,
I see the Corps role in flood control changing sig-
nificantly.
Allied with flood control is hydroelectric power. That
seems to remain a priority issue because of the energy
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