It is expected that the Stephen Harper and Christy Clark governments will decide on October 22 if the proposed Site C dam in British Columbia will be granted environmental approval. Following that, the Clark government has promised it would decide on the financing of the $7.9 billion mega-project in November. If approved, preparatory work could begin in early 2015 and the dam could begin generating electricity in 2021.

Site C is a proposed 60-metre high, 1,050-metre-long earth-filled dam and hydroelectric generation station that would be located on the Peace River between the communities of Hudson’s Hope and Taylor in northeastern British Columbia. It would create an 83-kilometre-long reservoir and flood about 5,550 hectares of agricultural land southwest of Fort St. John. It would submerge 78 First Nations heritage sites, including burial grounds and places of cultural and spiritual significance.

A spokesperson for BC Hydro has said the power from the dam is necessary given expectations for major growth in the liquefied natural gas, mining and forestry sectors in the province as well as population growth. This past May a joint federal-provincial review panel that studied the dam proposal concluded, “B.C. will need new energy and new capacity at some point [but] the proponent has not fully demonstrated the need for the project on the timetable set forth.”

The dam is opposed by twenty-three First Nations across B.C., Alberta, and the Northwest Territories. Three years ago five First Nations asked the United Nations to defend their rights under the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples against this project. Treaty 8 First Nations, including the West Moberly First Nation, have Title to the Peace River Valley (it is the traditional territory of the Dane-zaa) and the recent Supreme Court of Canada decision on the Tsilhqot’in Title case means their consent for this project is needed.

The Council of Canadians opposes the dam and stands in solidarity with the First Nations and frontline communities opposed to this destructive project.

Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow has written about the damage caused by the thousands of large dams (higher than 15 meters) that have been built around the world. She highlights that they harm Indigenous peoples and displace communities; they disrupt rivers and aquatic life; they can lead to the evaporation of huge amounts of water; they contribute to the bioaccumulation of mercury in fish; and that they are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions.

It has been estimated that Site C would emit 150,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions a year, the equivalent of adding 27,000 cars on the road.

Vancouver-based Council of Canadians organizer Leila Darwish has commented, “When it comes to the Site C hydroelectric dam, the high costs outweigh any potential benefits. The project must be rejected if we are to protect freshwater resources, fertile farmlands, food security, and respect Indigenous rights and local communities. The Site C hydroelectric dam is not clean, not green, not economical and definitely not in the best interests of British Columbia.”

Please join us in saying no to this dam through our Stop the Site C dam action alert.

Further reading
Dam Truths: A compilation of case studies about popular struggles against dams (a March 2012 Blue Planet Project report)

 

The Council of Canadians opposes the Site C dam in northeast British Columbia and stands in solidarity with the many First Nations and frontline communities opposed to this destructive project. A report today by the Joint Review Panel neither clearly recommended nor rejected the dam, paving the way for political interference in the application process.

“When it comes to the Site C hydroelectric dam, the high costs outweigh any potential benefits. The project must be rejected if we are to protect freshwater resources, fertile farmlands, food security, and respect Indigenous rights and local communities. The Site C hydroelectric dam is not clean, not green, not economical and definitely not in the best interests of B.C.,” said Leila Darwish, Pacific Regional Organizer with the Council of Canadians. “Communities have said ‘no’ to the Site C dam for over 30 years; the government needs to respect that.” 

Site C would flood 78 First Nations heritage sites, including burial grounds and places of cultural and spiritual significance. It would create the single largest loss of land in the 40-year history of the province’s Agricultural Land Reserve – drowning or severely impacting over 30,000 acres of farming land. The dam will flood 107 square kilometres of valley bottoms and destroy wetlands that support migratory bird flocks. When combined with the rapidly growing industrial footprint in the Peace region, Site C will contribute to the loss of more than half the habitat for sensitive species such as grizzly bears, wolverines and caribou. Site C would add 150,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions to B.C.’s carbon footprint, the equivalent of putting 27,000 additional cars on the road each year. BC Hydro and Christy Clark's constantly shifting rationale for the $8-billion project has included everything from fuelling liquefied natural gas terminals to exporting the power to California.

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