Dam’s footprint will be smaller than people might think

Brent StaffordtheQ Leave a Comment

theQuestion: Do the benefits of BC Hydro’s Site C dam outweigh the impacts?*

No major industrial project can be undertaken without an environmental impact. BC Hydro’s proposed $7.9-billion Site C dam on the Peace River will indeed impact the land, people and wildlife in the region.

However, Site C will also have a positive effect on jobs, the economy and the environment, while providing cost-effective, clean and renewable power to customers across the province.

Site C is essential. Simply, the province needs more power to serve an ever-growing population and industrial need. Since the last major hydroelectric facility was built in the 1980s, B.C.’s population has increased by an estimated 1.5 million and is estimated to grow by another 1 million over the next 20 years.

BC Hydro forecasts a 40% increase in residential and industrial power demand, which Site C will help service by providing enough dependable energy to power 450,000 homes per year.

New jobs and economic growth are also on the table. BC Hydro told me during a phone interview the clean energy project will create 10,000 person-years of direct employment during construction and another 33,000 direct and indirect jobs. The economy also receives a big boost, as Site C is forecasted to increase the provincial gross domestic product by $3.2 billion, including a $130-million increase in regional GDP.

While the Peace River region benefits economically from the project, some agricultural land will be lost and people displaced. However, the impact is minimized because Site C leverages the flood reserve from the two existing dams on the river — the W.A.C. Bennett Dam and the Peace Canyon Dam.

By far, the biggest impact of a dam on the surrounding area happens when the reservoir is created. Site C, however, is downstream of the existing dams, therefore it reuses the same water allowing for a small reservoir footprint. The Site C reservoir will be 1/20th the size of the Williston Reservoir created upstream to power the W.A.C. Bennett dam. The smaller reservoir footprint dramatically reduces the impact on the Peace River region.

In perspective, the land lost to the project is smaller then you might think. Out of the entire Peace River Agricultural District only 0.3% of Class 1-5 land in the ALR will be affected. For the prime Class 1-2 agricultural land in the river valley, a full 88% is downstream and will not be affected at all.

The benefits outweigh the impacts and Site C should get the green light, preferably sooner than later.

*First published in 24hrs Vancouver ‘theDuel’

Leave a Reply