Site C: Peace River landowners seek judicial review of hydro dam plan

A group of  landowners from B.C.'s Peace River region have filed an application for judicial review in B.C. Supreme Court in an effort to stop a major hydroelectric project from going ahead.

BC Hydro says the Site C dam and power generating station on the Peace River would be a long-term source of clean, renewable energy.

But a number of lando

wners along the river valley say they plan to fight the construction of the dam, which would result in the flooding of their properties.

Ken Boon, president of the Peace Valley Landowner Association, and Renee Ardill, a rancher and landowner in the Peace Valley, flew from Fort St. John to Vancouver Tuesday to be present in court to file the application Wednesday.

The $8-billion project was given both federal and provincial environmental approval earlier this month following an environmental assessment in May, but the B.C. cabinet has yet to announce a final decision on whether the project will go ahead.

But both Ardill and Boon claim the assessment was flawed and they plan to continue to fight the project—this week in B.C.'s Supreme Court, and next week in federal court.

"We are looking to see this project stopped, once and for all," Boon said.

The group says the findings of the joint review panel were ignored and the adverse impacts of the dam are not justified.

They are also concerned about the impact of the $8 billion project on taxpayers, BC Hydro rates and the provincial debt.

Ardill told CBC News her land has been in her family for nearly 100 years, and she's not ready to abandon it for the Site C plan.

"I'm mad as hell," she told CBC News. "If we needed the power, and it was a sensible project, you could live with it."

The $8-billion dam would be the third on the Peace River, flooding 5,550 hectares of land over an 83-kilometre stretch of valley.

BC Hydro says it would generate an estimated 1,100 megawatts of capacity, or enough to power the equivalent of 450,000 homes a year, but Boon said the landowners he represents don't believe the project is the answer to B.C.'s energy needs.

"Site C has been an impediment to looking to true alternatives and that's what we need to do," he said.

Boon said his association has been working in tandem with local Treaty 8 First Nations, who are expected to launch their own court actions in the near future.

Construction could begin in 2015

A report by a joint federal-provincial environmental assessment panel in May made no clear recommendation for or against the project.

The panel did say the power would be needed one day, but not on the timeline laid out by BC Hydro. It also said it could not come to any conclusion on the accuracy of project cost estimates.

Two weeks ago, both the provincial and federal governments announced environmental certificates for the dam, saying any environmental impacts are justified by the benefits.

Last week, the Crown utility notified local municipal and First Nations governments that construction could begin in 90 days. But first, the provincial cabinet must make a final investment decision.

Energy Minister Bill Bennett has said that decision will be announced by the end of the year, but was not available to comment on this application for judicial review.

BC Hydro said it would decline to comment on a court action that does not name the Crown corporation.

If approved, construction on the Site C project could begin early next year.