Costs, Alternatives, and Benefits of the Tellico Water Resources Project

A Federal Court of Appeals halted the completion of the Tellico Dam because it would destroy the critical habitat of the snail darter--a 3-inch fish protected by the Endangered Species Act. As of January 1977, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) had obligated about $103 million on the project and estimated that about $13 to $19 million was required for completion. The actual dam portion of the project has been completed. A workable compromise between completing the Tellico project and the continued existence of the snail darter in the Little Tennessee River is not possible. TVA has twice petitioned the Secretary of the Interior to delist the Little Tennessee River as the snail darter's critical habitat. Because the dam in its present form threatens the snail darter's survival, any evaluation of alternative plans must include the costs of removing at least part of the dam. TVA estimates that removing the concrete and earthen dams and restoring the area could cost as much as $16 million. The Chairman of the Board of TVA should gather and provide to the Congress detailed remaining cost and benefit information on the project and its alternatives. Until this information is received, Congress should prohibit by law the expenditure of existing appropriations and not authorize additional appropriations for work on the project that would further endanger the snail darter's survival or not be necessary if the project is not completed or is modified.