in local participation. In addition to the sums expended by the port of Portland, which Mr. Williams mentioned, the city of Portland has docks and grain elevators and other maritime facilities. Just within the last month they have signed contracts to enlarge their grain elevator to take care of the tidewater shipments from the inland country. Their present capacity for the elevator is 2 million bushels. It will be enlarged by 5,400,000 bushels, making it about 72 million bushels capacity. It will be the largest tidewater grain elevator on the west coast. In addition to that, the city council of the city of Portland put on the ballot in the coming May election the issuance of $6,500,000 in general obligation bonds to improve, reorganize, and construct additional port facilities for the port of Portland. I have a letter here addressed to General Pick dated April 24, 1952, concerning this project, when the matter was under consideration there. I will not refer to the letter other than to state that it points out the number of casualties suffered by the largest owners of ships in this country, which is the Maritime report. Mr. ANGELL. That may be received and placed in the record. (The letter referred to is as follows:) Subject: Columbia River project. Lt. Gen. LEWIS A. PICK, USA, Chief of Engineers, Room 1230, Building T–7, Gravelly Point, Va. APRIL 24, 1952. MY DEAR GENERAL PICK: I am writing in furtherance of the request made on various occasions by the ship operators in the Columbia River area for a more adequate ship channel across the Columbia River bar. As you know, this river enters the Pacific in latitude 46°15′ N., longitude 124°05′ W., and it is navigable to deep-draft ocean steamers for about 164 miles above its mouth. The entrance to it has been improved by the construction of north and south jetties, and by dredging. The project depth is 40 feet between the jetties. In June 1940 the controlling depths were: The channel westward of the jetties, 40 feet; on the outer bar at the center, 45 feet; between the ends of the jetties, 46 feet at the center. In the course of the years, between 1940 and the present date, the conditions of the bar at the mouth of the Columbia River have deteriorated noticeably and the channels have shoaled in some places more than 10 feet. United States Coast and Geodetic chart No. 6151, 32d edition of 1949, shows depths of 38 and 35 feet at the center of the river bar instead of the normal 45-46 feet expected; recent soundings sketched in the Oregon Journal of March 4, 1952, show similar results. Meanwhile, the maritime traffic utilizing this waterway has increased materially; during 1951 the number of ships which entered and cleared at Portland, Oreg., were no less than 1,500, and many more handled cargo at the other 11 ports on the Columbia River and its tributaries. The vast fleet of cargo ships and tankers which utilizes the waterway now includes many of greater tonnage and draft than those of 25 years ago or those for which it was originally planned. The combination of greater ship draft and bottom shoaling, plus the action of the sea swells, which at the mouth of the river range from 10 to 15 feet from crest to trough, create very dangerous conditions for large ships crossing the bar when fully laden. During recent months the following Government owned ships have grounded at the Columbia River entrance: Peter J. McGuire, August 27, 1951; Winslow Homer, January 21, 1952; and H. H. Raymond, December 7, 1951. In addition, the following privately owned ships have also suffered damages: T2 tankers: Oleum, Union Oil Company of Los Angeles, cracked almost completely in half while fully loaded; Catawba Ford, Keystone Tanker Co.; and Minnesota, Texas Co., hull damages. The Columbia River bar is, in the words of Clarence E. Ash, president of the Columbia River Pilots Association, "one of the longest and wildest in the world. Especially is this so, during the dreary winter months when gales and heavy seas roar in from the Pacific." The Port of Portland Commission adopted on March 10, 1952, a resolution endorsing substantially the shipping industry request that the Army Corps of Engineers undertake the work of widening and deepening this channel and petitioning Congress to provide the necessary funds for such work. The current emergency in Korea has effectively proved that this waterway, in addition to its great commercial value, is also of the utmost importance to the national defense, and, therefore it is of great concern to this administration. The tabulation hereunder shows in part the cost in recent months to this agency of damages incurred by its ships grounding at the Columbia River bar: As previously stated, other ships, privately owned, have also suffered damages under similar circumstances, and because of their close relationship to the national interest, must be considered in the overall picture of the situation, which, moreover, cannot show the hidden costs and damages resulting from delays to ships waiting for favorable conditions to cross the bar. In view of all the foregoing, I personally and on behalf of the Maritime Administration of the Department of Commerce concur and endorse the numerous recommendations that the bar depth at the Columbia River entrance be increased to at least 48 feet, and the inside channel between buoys Nos. 21 and 19 be widened and deepened to a full 35-foot depth. Sincerely yours, E. L. COCHRANE, Maritime Administrator. Mr. WHITE. I would like to make this one further statement to the members. This letter was written by the Maritime Administrator, E. L. Cochrane, and it concludes with this sentence: In view of all the foregoing, I personally and on behalf of the Maritime Administration of the Department of Commerce, concur and endorse the numerous recommendations that the bar depth at the Columbia River entrance be increased to at least 48 feet *** I have two exhibits here that I think would be of interest to the committee. One is an estimated future annual traffic density of the Columbia, Willamette, and Snake Rivers. That, in other words, is the future traffic. I have one further exhibit showing the importance of the tonnage that goes in and out of the Columbia River in comparison with other Pacific coast ports. Mr. ANGELL. That may also be received. (The documents referred to are as follows:) Estimated Future Annual Traffic Density All sections of the Pacific Northwest drained by the Columbia River and tributaries contribute to and benefit by the commerce traversing the mouth of the Columbia, ----- Central Ferry, Washington RIVER TONNAGE 20 8 Ringold, 8 Wash. COLUMBIA Miles from mouth 260 200 300 320 340 360 of Columbia River WILLAMETTE Miles from mouth of Willamette River Source: U.S. Corps of Engineers "Review Report on Columbia River and Tributaries," October, 1948. |