Heath Shuler: “In 1941, the United States was building up for World War II in dire need of new sources of energy. The Tennessee Valley…”

“In 1941, the United States was building up for World War II in dire need of new sources of energy. The Tennessee Valley Authority obtained Federal authority for construction of a hydroelectric dam in Swain County, North Carolina. This construction required that an important road be flooded. In a 1943 agreement, the Federal Government promised to rebuild the road. In the 64 years since the agreement was signed, no road has been completed and no settlement was offered to the people of Swain County. The 2001 Transportation bill provided $16 million to study the environmental costs of building this new road. The National Park Service will complete this study in September. The financial and economical costs are too high to build this road. The National Park Service has said that the final environmental impact study will recommend a cash settlement with the people of Swain County. Senators Alexander and Dole have amended the Senate version of this bill with language to allow the Park Service to use remaining funds from this study for this solution. This commonsense solution enjoys strong bipartisan support in the North Carolina and Tennessee House delegations.”