COMMENTARY · 20th September 2010
MtnMike
In support of Site C:
I keep seeing hundreds of people opposing the Site C dam project, and I think they’re wrong to oppose this initiative.
I’ve paddled many parts of the Columbia River, in both Canada and the USA, and it truly is a marvel. Yes, it is harnessed all along the way….dam after dam after dam. And yet it truly is wonderous, and ultimately the ideal green energy source. The water is moving to the sea anyway, and all along the way electricity is generated, essentially for free (once the dam project is paid for of course). The lakes the dams create are huge, and support all kinds of life, tourism and industry. Check out the lower Columbia, in the USA between Wahington and Oregon, with it’s series of 8 dams and locks (moving goods up and down river continuously while still generating huge amounts of power).
I do understand the psychological trauma attached to flooding these huge areas. It’s land the people in the area are familiar with, know and love, and then it is flooded. Too bad, so sad. Do you prefer coal burning, or nuclear plants?
We do all consume power, and damming a river is actually ecologically very sound if done correctly. I’m guessing this project could not gain approval unless environmental factors have been considered. For example: spawning fish must have ladders to gain access to the higher reaches. Migrating animals in the area must also have paths to complete their natural seasonal transitions.
I’m also assuming the resident land owners are fairly compensated for their loss. I think they should be paid generously for their loss, since we all will benefit greatly for years from their sacrifice.
I suggest that years after Site C is completed, and the original stakeholders have passed on, the new generation will say “What a lovely lake, and so cool that the dam is generating all this power without pollution.
Food for thought.
Mike, in Kelowna BC
In Support of Turning Northern BC into a Wasteland
Comment by Rick Schlosser on 18th October 2010
This letter is in reply to Mike from Kelowna.
If you think damming a river is a good thing, maybe you should come up here and see for yourself because you made many 'assumptions' that you know nothing about!
Let me tell you some FACTS about the first dam built on the Peace, WAC Bennett. First of all there are NO fish ladders on this dam or the second dam and I very much doubt that one is planned for Site C. When Williston Lake was originally flooded, it was never fully logged so to this day boaters have to be very wary of logs floating half submerged in the water. I have also been told that full grown trees that come loose from the bottom of the lake can shoot up like rockets (even 40 years after it was flooded). Migrating animals have to swim a couple miles across the lake in the summer if they can find a narrow spot because in places it is 20 miles wide. The river downstream is a sight to behold when it is -40C as it is essentially in full flood stage because all the turbines are running full bore to power the rest of the province. Now the moose, elk, deer, bear etc. have to swim this in the cold when the river would historically have been frozen over. There have never been an 'paths' constructed for migrating animals to complete their natural seasonal transitions and I doubt any are planned.
When Williston Lake was originally flooded in the late 60's and early 70's huge tracts of wetlands in Northern Alberta (Athabasca Delta) were negatively affected and there are still ongoing lawsuits between BC Hydro and the local First Nations over this issue.
I will continue with FACTS about the Peace River Valley downstream of the two existing dams. We are on the east side of the Rocky Mountains and as such the ge0logical formations that make up the valley walls are not what they would be in the west side of the mountains. They are made up of soft soils and shales that are subject to frequent slides. In 1973 there was a huge landslide across from the confluence of the Halfway and Peace Rivers. I was there within 48 hours of the slide and saw the result with my own eyes. The Peace River was blocked to the extent that BC Hydro was preparing to evacuate the powerhouse at WAC Bennett dam because of rising waters. (Peace Canyon Dam had not been built yet) The Peace River carved through the slide before the powerhouse was flooded. My point is that the valley slides on a constant basis and anyone that travels the valley can see this. The Bear Flats cliffs are a prime example of a slide, and if you want I can send you pictures of this. BC Hydro claims they can mitigate this risk, but I cannot believe they can stabilize 100+ kilometers of 800 foot high hillsides, when after 70 years they haven't been able to stabilize the Alaska Highway hill on the south side of the river. If we were to get a slide the size of the Halfway Slide I predict it would cause tsunami waves travelling east and west in the valley. One would flood the town of Hudson's Hope and the other would breech the top of Site C dam and cause who knows how much damage!
As for the new generation saying "What a lovely lake" I suggest you talk to the residents that bought land on the shore of Williston Lake and built houses and cabins over 100 feet from the shore whose dwellings are now in danger of sliding into the lake (reservoir) because of sluffing shorelines. Just remember a dam creates a reservoir not a lake.
All those protesters that you refer to are tired of seeing their back yards turned into a wasteland. Not only does the rest of BC want to flood our valleys but you are also sucking billions out in oil and gas revenue. (50% of BC's resource revenue comes from the oil and gas sector) We do more than our part and get little in return for it.
Rick
