- Province won't block Kemano Stories by Jeff Nagel "TERRACE — The Kemano Completion -- -'Projéct will go ahead. - Premier Mike Harcourt and his govern- ment accepted that as inevitable last -weck by recognizing the province’s 1987 ~ Nechako Settlement Agreement with Al- “can and the federal government as legal- — ‘ly binding, That agreement — giving Alcan the ~~ Fight ta‘all but 12 per cent of. the pre- . 1950 flows of the Nechako River — may . - “threaten salmon stocks. But < ; environment minister John ... Cashore admits the government's hands are tied. Alcan’s | billion-dollar hydroelectric © project lies half-built, with construction “halted. . Breaking the deal now would leave the o province liable for hundreds of millions «of dollars in compensation to Alcan, “The financial consequences are just “enormous,” ‘said Murray Rankin, the Victoria lawyer who drafted the terms of ‘reference for the Kemano review. ‘Rankin’s report, released last week, sets up a three-member panel to hold a series . of . public hearings into the Kemano Completion Project. ‘The panel ‘fulfills Mike Harcourt’s 1991 election. promise to hold a public teview of the project. '. But -in announcing the review, the . govemiment may have satisfied nobody. ' Natives and environmentalists have at- tacked the review as just window dress- ing designed to. placate them, because . Victoria has indicated it wan’t alter the 987 deal. “Tt has.no.teeth,’”? complained Carrier Sekani Tribal Chict Justa Monk. “Alean, meanwhile, fears its water ; rights’ may be threatened because the ., scope of the panel’s review is unlimited, ~The terms of reference of the public review are not altogether clear,’’ said Al- » ; ¢an vice-president Bill Rich, _- Rankin said the review will be free to delve into the issue of water flows, “No credible process that people would contribute to could take place if the very issue of ows is not on the table,’ he said, / Whether. or not cabinet will act on a recommendations calling for more water .*- to protect salmon is another matter, ° “Any departure from: flow levels set - out in thal settlement agreement must i in- volve consiltation with Alcan,’ Rankin added, ‘‘And if changes were to be made, -obviously there would be Mea! "consequences in doing so.”? _ “We don’t see any definitive statement ‘to. rule ont any changes in the water Hows,” says Alcan vice-president Bill Rich, . The ‘company is entitled to take Up to alfof the ‘present water flow in 1 the Nechako. River. “Tf. changes in water flow are ruled out, what's the point of all this effort??? ‘Rich: demanded. “‘I€.changes are to be contemplated, that goes right to the heart’ of: ‘the agreements and assurances that Alcan has received. ” ‘More than $600 million bas been spent 80 far, on the half-finished project. can halted ‘construction in the spring } gaat, UI ‘ Gg The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, January 27, 1993 - Page AS HARCOURT: A DEAL S A DEAL Skeena River ~s A ' Kitwangas \ TRANSMISSION MEINE TO SM ELTER mY. Douglas REW HAZELTON. eae Ei) TUNNEL TO POWERHO Francois Lake Wistaria » ; Spillway K 4S A “a Nechako ¢ Reservoir ky > Major Components of Alcan’s vd Kemano Completion Project GF Multi-Purpose Water Release Facility EI Second Tunnel 202 EF] Cheslatta Fan 7 | El. Skins Lake Spillway | EY Dredging of Tahtsa Narrows: 9 | 5 | Second Intake : 10) NORTH CENTRAL B.C. . Qq. 2 8 40 60) 80 100 Kilometers Moricetown- | = _ Bulkley River - o 10 20. 30 40 50 60 70 Milas ; ; , dabina:- e Lake ae Ry 73},- OE Saget Star atl Fort St. James ‘ HOUSTON BURNS LAKE Nautley _ Stuart River ; Fraser, Filvar eC ake Skins Lake Fi take™® so eh 4 - VANDERHOOF f re . ” . ‘ware’ Fraser FORT a Lake FRASER Chasiatta ‘Nechako River — Falls a “PRINCE| GEORGE Kannoy Dam Penstock . Second Powerhouse : New Switchyards in Kitimat and Kemano Twinning Transmission Line Cashore indicated changes in flows are unlikely, “We don’t sec that as an option,’’ he said. ‘‘But I suppose in tae process of the commission all kinds of information can be brought forward, And sometimes when information comes forward it’s earth-shaking.”’ Cashore defended the review, arguing that it does serve a purpose. “While this is happening to a great ex- tent after the fact, there is still very valu- able information that comes out of such a process,” It’s hoped the information that emerges will help the panel recommend changes that would reduce the amount of en- vironmental damage and increase the benefits of the project. One of the suggestions in Rankin’s report is the possibility of creating a lo- cal benefits fund to help communities and residents directly affected by the project. The three: commissioners appointed ta the Keniano ‘review'are’ fisheries expert! Peter Larkin, Prince George resident anit! college geography instructor Alistair. McVey, and Loma Barr, deputy chair of the B.C, Utilities Commission. of 1991, following a federal court ruling. that quashed the '87 agreement on water flows and ordered the project to undergo ‘a federal environmental review. That court ruling was appealed and overtumed by Alcan last summer but the case is now being appealed by natives - and environmentalists to the Supreme Court of Canada. | Alcan has said it will not resume con- struction until all legal challenges have ended. Rich now says the province’s review could set construction back even further. *'We thought we had one issue to deal with. Now it appears we have two with the review the government secms bent on proceeding with.” “This provincial process creates new uncertainties and raises questions about our being able to finish construction and operate as planned,’’ he said. ‘There is tiothing ‘in this that reduces our un- certainty. It tends to increase it’? Rich said the company needs more in- formation on the arrangement of the review before deciding whether or not to participate in it. They aré to make ‘their recommenda- tions to cabinet by Sept, 30, The review will also provide inter- venor funding to qualified applicants. Rivers Defence Coalition spokesman Pal Moss said she’s ‘‘cautiously op- timistic’’ about the review. “There are a lot of unanswered ques- tions before we can determine if this will be a proper public review,” she said. Moss said Rankin’s report focusses too heavily on financial considerations, and docsn’t give enough value to the other resources at stake, “When you're talking about reducing waler flows to 12 per cent of original levels, you’re talking about jeopardizing the life blood of a region.”’ She predicted the review will turn up issues that haven’t yet been considered, If so, Moss said, changes to the mini- mum water levels shouldn’t be ruled out, “There may be an onus on the govern- ment to renegotiate part of this contract, Alcan shareholders have benefitted / énorthously © from ‘thé resources of: this ‘vared: cand T think: they have a responsibili- ty too.”” Moss and Monk also criticized the pro- ‘vince for naming the three com- Murray Rankin Miisionérs withGut first consultthe Witty? the interest groups involved. * “We have three commissioners we have no confidence i in, because we. don’t know anything about them,” Moss said. REMANO TOWNSITE and accompanying construction camps were a hive _ New uncertainty created, Alcan says Review spells more delay ff “TERRACE — The day the 800-plus : ‘Kemano construction workers go back to 3 cthe job site has been pushed back even ~ + further by the province 7s newly an- nounced public review. oS -Although the province has accepted as “legally binding the deal giving Alcan its - Water rights, the review leaves the door »openfor discussion of reducing the: amount of water the. company could ~ divert to its generators at Kemano. of activity three years ago, Today the Kemano residents are still there, but the 800-plus construction workers are gone. If Alcan waits for the end of the provincial review, construction could be set back more than a year. The pancl is 10 have its recommenda- tions completed by the end of Septem- ber, But that deadline has already been calied optimistic by government offi- ciais, A few more months of delay while cabinct wrestles with the recommenda- tions would put the project on ice well inlo 1994, ‘market. | (water, plus a dry weather, results in -_ [very low water levels in the Nechako. THE LONG ROAD TO KEMANO ——— 1950 “| Alcan is given approval to build Kemano J, The Nechako River is dammed and reversed, creating a 52,000-hectnre reservoir out of a ‘series of rivers and lakes. Cheslatta / natives are flooded out. The pravince signs..a water licence granting the {company legal rights to additional water to drive whatever generating capacity Alean has in place by 1999, 1978 —— rN Alcan hegins selling surplus elec- ‘| tricity to B.C. Hydro and increases power ‘generation to ‘supply the The. diversion of more 7980 | & The’ federal government gets a ‘Leourt injenction requiring Alcan to ‘| release extra water to protect fish. 1985 & Alcan challenges the federal ‘in- Junction in a bid to protect its rights to the additional water it’s entitled to under the 1950 agreement. 1987 & An out-of-court backroom deal is reached between Alcan, Ottawa and Victoria. The Nechako Settlement Agreement gives Alcan rights to half the remaining water in the Nechako systein, reducing flows to as little as 12 per cent of pre-1950 levels. In ex- change, Alcan gives up rights to divert the | Nanika-Kidprice watershed on the upper Bulkley. 1988. —— & Construction begins on ‘the Kemano Completion Project. A see- ond iunnel is to be drilled through Mt. Dubose and more generators are to be added increasing power output by as much as 540 megawatts. 7990 & The Conservative government passes a special cabinet order ex- ehhpting the’ project: froin the federal Environmental Assessment and _| Review Process (EARP)., Environ- mentalists are outraged and vow to challenge the order. ——— 1991 & The Rivers Defence Coalition and Carrier Sekani Tribal Council win a surprise judgment from the Federal Court. It overturns the 1990 exemp- tion, nullifies the 1987 settlement agreement and orders’ a federal en- vironmental review, & Two months later Alcan halts con- struction and lays off 800 workers. The project is: half-built, with more than $500 million In the ground. 1992 & The Federal Court of Appeal overturns the lower court ruling. No review is necessary, the court Finds, and awards costs to Alcan. Construc- tion can resume, but Alcan elects to wait out any further legal challenges. & Environmentalists and natives de- cide to appeal the case to the Supreme Court of Canada, A Murray Rankin is hired by Vic- toria to decide what the province can do to fulfill Mike Harcourt's 1991 election promise of a public review. 1993 & Victoria unveils its review panel and accepts the 87 settlement agree- -mentas binding. A The Supreme Court of Canada fs expected to announce whether it will hear the appeal. .~. Dear Sir: “5 All too many times do I hear ,, that Indians benefit too much from the government. * How about the last privilege. Indians’ can sell fish. Tell me now, how is it that when the little Indian did sell fish he was- slandered ~ with prosecution arges. n-my- opinion I see some uncil leaders as fronts, The governments allows them fights and grants to them imoney.as a way of holding them’ back while the govern- ment logs the crowil land as ~ fast as it cat, to 1 productive, it is given back to ~ She’ s still proud _of her heritage the Indians. ; I scen an end to the Indian... charade, The government will leave the land alone and let go of the Indian people. — My great leaders won’t have anyone to depend = on for money, but they may be dead by then. | ' Then what about the chil- dren, These old relics in office seem to be all out for them- selves. They may deny the al- legations, they’d be stupid not -Afier all is said and done I. am. still proud to be Indian. I am. proud because of my “Then, as soot as the land is heritage.. deemed worthless and) un-, - Mary-Ann Williams Jr. Terrace, B.C. _ LETTERS TO THE TERRACE STANDARD I was tal. caption which accompanied ~ the photo of this year’s New Year’s baby and her parents. It mentioned both that fact that the baby’s mother is a teenager and that she is umn-- married, These facts are not important to the story and I be- liewe make it appear judgmen- If. I were the mother of the New Year's baby I would not Want my age printed, nor any other personal information. A better caption would have Caption disliked | Dear Sir: unimpressed by the Story. read; ‘‘Terrace’s New year’s baby, Whose name will proba- bly be Jessica, weighed in at seven pounds, 14 ounces fol- lowing her arrival at 2:04 p.m, - at Mills’ Memorial Hospital on New Years Day. Proud parents are Rosabclle Derrick and Charles Frederick Guno.". There is enough judgment of - others in our world. The news- - paper does not need to supply people wiih fuel for the’ fires when it has no relevance to the ae Yours sincerely, “ oh Linda K. Mack. - 2 *'Dear Sir: ” the time, -<' - side IL. ae ‘Somcone. Walked ~ ‘into’ "The older I get the less 1 un- “derstand” why people do the things they do, I -know and_un- * derstand that there are a lot of, people living’ in hard condi-. - tons that, are gelling worse all _- Some people, by way of trage edy, lose everything that made. up their lives, I am ° talking “about Mrs, Burkett’s: dortation: - ‘jar that was set up in Copper- © << store-on Kaluin. and stole the: colt ontaining the donailons. T ie Burkett money theft draws plea for its return feel so bad that ‘people “5 put - money into this jar trusting that we would:sce thal Mrs. Burkett. received their donations,”"- I am-very sarry that this hap- pened and would like to. know “what kind of low life could do » this. ] would bape this ‘person has'a conscience and send this moncy. to. the person it was In-. tended for... Just... remember. : that the inoney you stole was not from - Copperside store but from Mrs. the - Burkett who has lost so much. / > Phtytlis Maynen, ae ‘Terrace, B.C.