The Council of Canadians Victoria chapter co-sponsored a public forum on the Site C dam on February 9.
The outreach for the public forum noted, “Join us for what promises to be a fascinating and motivating evening on February 9, 7:30- 9:00 pm at UVic’s David Turpin Building, Room A120. It’s time to deeply examine the costs and consequences of the Site C Dam. Our brilliant panel of speakers Dr. Harry Swain, Dr. Judith Sayers and John Gailus will outline in detail why the Site C Dam is a profoundly costly mistake and an environmental and economic white elephant. A moderated Q and A will follow the speakers’ presentations. Admission by suggested $10 donation. All proceeds to the groups actively fighting to Save the Peace, Protect the Future.”
Site C is a proposed 60-metre high, 1,050-metre-long earth-filled dam and hydroelectric generation station on the Peace River between the communities of Hudson’s Hope and Taylor on Treaty 8 territory 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 also submerge 78 First Nations heritage sites, including burial grounds and places of cultural and spiritual significance.
Given the environmental implications (it 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), the violation of Indigenous rights (it is being built on Treaty 8 territory without free, prior and informed consent), and the $8.8 billion price tag (with concerns the cost could be billions higher), Site C could become a provincial election issue as voters begin to consider how to cast their ballots on May 9.
To watch a 90-minute video of the public forum, please click here.
The forum was sponsored by the chapter as well as Amnesty in Victoria, KAIROS, the Rolling Justice Bus, MJAC, and Sierra Club BC.
The Council of Canadians first formally expressed its opposition to the Site C dam in October 2014.
