Flood Control Act of 1944
Encyclopedia
The Pick-Sloan Flood Control Act of 1944 (P.L. 78–534), enacted in the 2nd session of the 78th Congress
, is U.S. legislation that authorized the construction of numerous dams and modifications to previously existing dams, as well as levees across the United States. Among its various provisions, it established the Southeastern Power Administration
, and led to the establishment of the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program
.
The Pick-Sloan legislation managed the Missouri River with six intents: hydropower
, recreation, water supply
, navigation, flood control and fish and wildlife. Over 50 dams and lakes have been built due to this legislation, not just on the mainly affected river but also on tributaries and other connected rivers. Nebraska
, as an example, has seen more than eight new lakes created due to the damming of the Missouri and tributaries.
The Act was signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt
on December 22, 1944. It was named for General Lewis A. Pick
, head of the Army Corps of Engineers
, and W. Glenn Sloan of the Interior Department's Bureau of Reclamation
.
, more than 20% of which was owned by Native Americans
, to the Corps of Engineers. The Lakota, Dakota
and Nakota
tribes lost 202000 acres (817.5 km²). The Three Affiliated Tribes, specifically, lost 155000 acres (627.3 km²) in their Fort Berthold Reservation
due to the building of the Garrison Dam
. This project caused more than 1,500 American Indians to relocate from the river bottoms of the Missouri river due to the flooding.
The project has successfully controlled flooding throughout the Missouri river basin, provided water for irrigation and municipalities, generated baseload power throughout the central US, and is a truly great place for fishing, hunting, and watersports.
A possible down side. The Missouri River (The Big Muddy), dumped millions of cubic feet of soil into the Mississippi River every year, which, in turn deposited this silt into the gulf and formed a string of barrier islands. When the silt was eliminated this island building stopped. Biologists sounded the alarm in the 1970s. By the 90's the barrier islands were pretty much gone. Without those islands Louisana was left unprotected from storm surges and oil spills
78th United States Congress
The Seventy-eighth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1943 to January 3, 1945, during the last two years...
, is U.S. legislation that authorized the construction of numerous dams and modifications to previously existing dams, as well as levees across the United States. Among its various provisions, it established the Southeastern Power Administration
Southeastern Power Administration
The Southeastern Power Administration is a United States Power Marketing Administration with responsibility for marketing hydroelectric power from 23 water projects operated by the U.S...
, and led to the establishment of the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program
Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program
The Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program, formerly called the Missouri River Basin Project, was initially authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1944, which approved the general comprehensive plan for the conservation, control, and use of water resources in the entire Missouri River Basin.The intended...
.
The Pick-Sloan legislation managed the Missouri River with six intents: hydropower
Hydropower
Hydropower, hydraulic power, hydrokinetic power or water power is power that is derived from the force or energy of falling water, which may be harnessed for useful purposes. Since ancient times, hydropower has been used for irrigation and the operation of various mechanical devices, such as...
, recreation, water supply
Water supply
Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavours or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes...
, navigation, flood control and fish and wildlife. Over 50 dams and lakes have been built due to this legislation, not just on the mainly affected river but also on tributaries and other connected rivers. Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
, as an example, has seen more than eight new lakes created due to the damming of the Missouri and tributaries.
The Act was signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
on December 22, 1944. It was named for General Lewis A. Pick
Lewis A. Pick
Lewis Andrew Pick was born in Brookneal, Virginia, and graduated from Virginia Polytechnic Institute in 1914. He received his Regular Army commission in the United States Army Corps of Engineers on July 1, 1920....
, head of the Army Corps of Engineers
United States Army Corps of Engineers
The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...
, and W. Glenn Sloan of the Interior Department's Bureau of Reclamation
United States Bureau of Reclamation
The United States Bureau of Reclamation , and formerly the United States Reclamation Service , is an agency under the U.S...
.
Effect on American Indians
The act transferred ownership of large parcels of land from around the Missouri RiverMissouri River
The Missouri River flows through the central United States, and is a tributary of the Mississippi River. It is the longest river in North America and drains the third largest area, though only the thirteenth largest by discharge. The Missouri's watershed encompasses most of the American Great...
, more than 20% of which was owned by Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
, to the Corps of Engineers. The Lakota, Dakota
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
and Nakota
Nakota
The term Nakota is the endonym used by the native peoples of North America who usually go by the name of Assiniboine , in the United States, and of Stoney, in Canada....
tribes lost 202000 acres (817.5 km²). The Three Affiliated Tribes, specifically, lost 155000 acres (627.3 km²) in their Fort Berthold Reservation
Fort Berthold Reservation
The Fort Berthold Indian Reservation is a U.S. Indian reservation in western North Dakota that is home for the federally recognized Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation, also known as the Three Affiliated Tribes...
due to the building of the Garrison Dam
Garrison Dam
Garrison Dam is an earth-fill embankment dam on the Missouri River in central North Dakota. At over two miles in length, it is the fifth-largest earthen dam in the world, constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from 1947-53...
. This project caused more than 1,500 American Indians to relocate from the river bottoms of the Missouri river due to the flooding.
The project has successfully controlled flooding throughout the Missouri river basin, provided water for irrigation and municipalities, generated baseload power throughout the central US, and is a truly great place for fishing, hunting, and watersports.
A possible down side. The Missouri River (The Big Muddy), dumped millions of cubic feet of soil into the Mississippi River every year, which, in turn deposited this silt into the gulf and formed a string of barrier islands. When the silt was eliminated this island building stopped. Biologists sounded the alarm in the 1970s. By the 90's the barrier islands were pretty much gone. Without those islands Louisana was left unprotected from storm surges and oil spills
See also
- Flood Control ActFlood Control ActThere are multiple laws known as the Flood Control Act. Typically, they are administered by the United States Army Corps of Engineers:-List of Flood Control Acts:*Flood Control Act of 1917...
- Flood Control Act of 1937Flood Control Act of 1937The Flood Control Act of 1937 was an Act of the United States Congress signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on August 28, 1937 as Public Law 406, in response to major flooding throughout the United States in the 1930s, culminating with the "Super Flood" of January 1937, the greatest...
- Missouri River ValleyMissouri River ValleyThe Missouri River Valley outlines the journey of the Missouri River from its headwaters where the Madison, Jefferson and Gallatin Rivers flow together in Montana to its confluence with the Mississippi River in the State of Missouri. At long the valley drains one-sixth of the United States, and is...
- Water Resources Development ActWater Resources Development ActWater Resources Development Act , is a reference to public laws enacted by Congress to deal with various aspects of water resources: environmental, structural, navigational, flood protection, hydrology, etc....
- Rivers and Harbors ActRivers and Harbors ActRivers and Harbors Act may refer to one of many pieces of legislation and appropriations passed by the United States Congress since the first such legislation in 1824. At that time congress appropriated $75,000 to improve navigation on the Ohio and Mississippi rivers by removing sandbars, snags,...
External links
- U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: Printable copies of legislation including this Act.