24 PEACE POWER SOUVENIR EDITION

Wednesday, September 25, 1968

W. A. C.

Bennett

Dam Built
In Jig Time

Total expenditures on the
Peace River Project to31 March
1968 were $433,129,187, of
which $166,155,067 was spent
during the year under review.
All phases of the work progres-
sed satisfactorily, and first pro-
duction of power is planned for
this autumn,

Of prime significance during
the year was the completion of
the dam at Portage Mountain, On
12 September 1967, at a cere-
mony held to mark the offical
completion of the massive 600-
foot-high structure on the Peace
River, the Honourable George
Randolph Pearkes, Lieutenant-
Governor of British Columbia,
dedicated and named the dam the
W, A, C, Bennett Dam in honour
of the Prime Minister of British
Columbia,

Construction of W, A.C. Ben-
nett Dam, which was completed
ahead of schedule, required the
preparation and placement ofap-
proximately 57,200,000 cubic
yards of fill, an average of 100
tons a minute during a construc-
tion period of 20 working
months—an outstanding achleve-
ment of engineering and utiliza-
tion of modern methods and

Mackenzie

Canfinued From Page 1

visited the damsite since con-
struction began in 1961,

British Columbia is blessed
with enormous natural = re-
sources including great re-
serves of water that are essen-
tial for the development of
hydro-electric power, The
Peace River is the first major
river to be harnessed in British
Columbia and will provide abun-
dant power to meet the growing
demands of new homes and in-
dustries until about 1975, ;

As the water continues to rise
behind W. A. C. Bennett Dam, it
will form British Columbia’s
largest lake, creating an impor-
tant new water transportation
route,

By providing improved access
to a large section of north-cen=
tral B.C,, it is expected to en-
courage forest operations and
mineral exploration in this for-
merly inaccessible area. The
reservoir also will offer recrea-
tional opportunities along its
more than 1,000 miles of shore-
line,

1 would like to pay tribule to
the thousands of tradesmen, en-
gineers, technicians, accountants
and other workers who have par=
ticipated in this project,

It is noteworthy that this enor-
mous construction program, one
of the world's greatest, has been
completed in record time without
a Major work stoppage during the
seven years of construction ac-
tivity, We are proud of their ac-
complishment and we hope all of
the people of cur province share
that pride.

I also want to recognize once
again the vision and courage of
the manwho, more than any other,
was responsible for the decision
in the face of widespread criti-
cism to proceed with the project.
] refer, of course, to the Ilon.
W, A, C, Bennett,

In 1961, when construction be-
gan, there were many who said
the enormous generating capac-
ity of the Peace River project
would not be needed in British
Columbia, that the project was
too distant fram markets to be
economically feasible,

Today we find that initial units
in the huge underground power-
house are belng placed on tine
barely in time and the full gen-
erating capacity at the Portage
Mountain site will be quickly utiL~
ized at lower costs than those
prevalling in the Hydro system
today,

Harfessing of the Peace River
has been one of the world’s great
construction jobs and the initlal
flow of. Peace River power to
customers in British Columbia
will be an important event in the
history of our province,

equipment, Reservolr storage
behind the completed dam began
with the 1968 spring breakup on
the Finlay, Parsnip and Peace
rivers,

SPILLWAYS IN

Excavation of the 2,800-foot-
long spillway channel in the
right abutment of the dam and
installation of the nine spillway
slide gates were completed dur-
ing the year; placement of con-
crete in the spillway headworks
and discharge tunnel isprogres«
sing favourably,

Work continued on the mam-
moth underground power plant
during the year, Excavation of
the underground features and
placament of concrete for the
ten Intake structures, ten pen-
stocks and the first five draft
tubes were completed, Other
phases of the underground con-
struction work are continuing,
and installation of the first three
turbine and generator units is
scheduled’ so that first power
from this project can be produc-
ed in the autumn of 1968,

Delivery and installation of
mechanical and electrical equip-
ment reached peak activity dur-
ing the year, with Pacific Great
Eastern Railway handling ship-
ments to Chetwynd totalling some
15,000 tons,

Conversion of the three diy-
ersion tunnels to permanent low-
level outlet works was undertak-
eh during the year andisnearing
completion, One tunnel has been
used since 10 December 1967 for
release of water past the dam, in
accordance with the conditional
water licence issued by the Pro-
vineial Government, ~

Construction of the central
eontrol bullding is welladvanced
with both Interior finishing and
installation of equipment under
way, All phases of the work in
the 500 kv and 138 ky switch -
yards are proceeding satisfac-
torily,

GOOD PROGRESS

Good progress was made dure
ing the year on the two 500 ky
transmission Ines from Portage
Mountain to the Lower Mainland,
The first line has been complet-
ed except for the section from
Boston Bar to the Vancouver
area,’ which is scheduled for
completion In August 1968, The
right-of-way jor the second line
has been cleared for a distance
of 400 miles; installation of
foundations and erection of tow-
ers have been completed over a
distance of 150 miles between
Portage Mountain and Prince
George, and stringing of conduc-
tors along this section of line is
on schedule. Construction of
three 500 ky substations at
Princa George, Kelly Lake and
in the Vancouver area is well
advanced,

The work force for the entire
Peace River Project in 1967
reached a high of 4,850, an in-
crease of 553 over the previcus
peak year of 1966, In 1968, the
maximum Jabour force ts ex-
pected to be 2,950,

Total Cost:
$725 Million

Total cost of Portage Mountain
development, ineluding trans-
mission lines and related substa-
Hons; $725 million (estimated),

Annual expenditures (including
interest and overhead) (years
ending March 31); 1962 — $8,3
million; 1963 — $16.2 million;
1964 — $24,1 million; 1965 —
$29,1 million: 1966 — $69,8 mil-
Hon; 1967 — $124,5 million; 1968
— $166.0 milllon (estimated)

Total to March 31, 1968; $439
million,

Estimated cost of power dell-
vered to Vancouver area when
project in full production: ap-

‘proximately 4a mills per kilo-

watt hour,

This cut-away sketch of W. A. C, Bennett Dam shows location and relationship of project's underground components.

JC, Browning, viee-jr'es ident
refining and ‘marketing, said,
“The opening of our new Hudson
Hope station was planned to coin-
cide with the initial power pro-
duction from, the Peace River
project as the Bennett Dam,”

Lozated close to the banks of
the Peace River, the station fea-
tures two modern service bays
as well as large camping facili-
tles for the growing number of
tourists who are visiting the re=
gion,

The owners, Mr, and Mrs, Vie
Leonard, report, “Business has
been going very well since
we've been opened, Most-of our
business has comefrom the Hud-
son Hope area and those people

er project,’*
Apart from the Hudson Hope

build other stations inthe north-
ern part of British Columbia,

They will be located In the fol~
lowing centres: Fort Nelson,
Fraser Lake, Vanderhoot, smi-
thers and Prince Rupert,

These Union 76 service sta-
tions will be part of a network of
40 new stations that are being
built this year in British Colum-
bia and Alberta,

Stations that are now in opera-

tion are in such centres as Vic-

No. 22 for. Union — |
Union Oil. Company of: Crinada ‘Limited has épened

its 22nd new Union:76 service station near Hudson Hope,
10 miles east of the W, As. Beniictt. Dam

concerned with the Peace pow}

station, Union Oil Is planning tol

¥

toria, Vancouver, Vernon, Kam-

loops, Cache’ Creak, Clinton;
Williams ‘Lake, Quesnel, Prince.
George, Fort St, John, ‘and Fox

‘Creek, Alberta, _ ;.
Like other companies, Union

Oil has been participating in the
development of Northern B,C,
Last year. the company opened Its
new $8-1/4 million refinery at.
Prince George, And for ‘some
time the company has been
greatest producer of of] in
Peace River area, |

It is now actively involved:
developing a network of mark :
‘ing plants ad service stationt .
in this region. “

Wood Enhances

Wood’s useful acoustical prope
erties please the ear, and are
enhanced ‘by fits natural] beauty,
50 pleasing to the eye, Other
related advantages of wood are
ita ayailability. in a great var-
‘lety of shape and sizes, in-
cluding . sheet material, and
its ease. of fabrication for a
number of acoustical construc-
tions. It. is not surprising that

many..of the world’s finest con-
cert: halls, opera hauses, and
atditorla use wood,

Mayor Dick
Stays Aloof

HUDSON’S HOPE — Jack Dick
is cautious when people come ta
his automotive shop here to tell
him that he will win the forth-
coming byelection for mayor
‘this time for sure.’

Says Jack: ‘You can’t be sure
of anything until the last vote is
counted,’

He should know for it was the
last vote that was counted that
was his undoing as mayor last
May. Because of an irregularity
at the May 25 election involving
a single vote, Mayor Dick resign-
ed, Another election will be held

voters out of a possible 547 will
cast ballots,

Dick's opponent is Tom Jamle-
son, the man who contested his
Yival’s election the first. time.

In his late Seventies, Tom
claims . an impressive record
for public service, For 40 years
he has been involved in commun-
ity work and has held so many of-
Tices, he’s lost count, They ine
clude membership on the Peace
River Advisory Board; the
Pouce Coupe hospital board, the
B.C. Hospital Association,
chairman of the village of Pouce
Coupe, a member of the Hudson’s
Hope Improvement District and
a Member of the yillage council,

It will be a tight race and no-
body is putting any money on the
outcome,

Experienced
Continued Fram Page 1

England; Tore Milsson of Stock-
holm, Sweden; and J. Barry Cooke
of San Rafael, California,

Dr, Shrum explained that the
panel had been selected with the
assistance of the International
Commission on High Dams,

In addition to reviewing plans
for the dam, the panel visited the
project periodically during con=
struction to ensure the huge dam
completed in September 1967,
was bullt according to the re-
quirements they had specified,
Dr. Shrum stressed that the
commissioning of the three au-
thorities was no reflection onthe
work done by the engineers who
designed the dam,

‘Rather’, he sald, ‘it was an
extra safeguard to ensure that
standards of maximum safety
were built into the dam,
“Such precautions," he: said,
‘fare standard procedure when
structures of this Magnitude a are,
being built,

Frontier Areas pepend
On Basic Industries

by AUDREY SMEDLEY
_Editor-Publisher, The
‘Nechako Chronicle
. Vandertioof — A frontier such

as the Vanderhoof, Fort St,

James, Fort Fraser and
Fraser Lake area depends al-
most - entirely on primary in-
dustry and primary industry can
only” ‘develop with power,

Forestry, ifning: and agticul-| .
tire occur: generally in in-

accessible. regions, Urban ‘cen-
tres depend’ ‘on these primary
industries to support their sec-
ondary . and. tertiary employ-
ment, °
With. the’ promise of “Peace
Power’ and thé now established
‘line’ of «power towers’’. strung
in gleaming. ‘splendor | gerase
our rolling countryside, thisarea
has witnessed the promise of un-
forseen’ Progress and the future

lies open to development,

The 60,000 volts: at which
this. line’ ‘has been activated
has’ prompted “major. mining
developments | now in progress] -
that employ nearly 500 men,

‘The. 500,000 volts that it can
carry, when available, from the
Peace power project have been
looked to. in: present ‘develop-
ments, °°
Lumber mitts ‘in the immediate
Area ‘consume “vast quantities
of eleciricily, Pulp. activities
are laid out for supplying Prince
George | mills with forest pro-
ducts, —

“Modern: diary ‘barns in the
area depend on constant power
supplias for. ‘thelr. completely
electrical. operations, and light-
ing “up the © farni yards ‘Is.es=
sential...for modern operations, |
© Power. demands in Vanderhoof
‘ave . known ever to the housa-

wife ‘a5 many have had damag~
ed..motors on sewing machlies
and. deep-freezas when industrlal
demands” have. stoleri the juice,

It has’. ‘said: that the Endako

as Prince George city, This
mine is Canada's.“ largest pro-
dueer of molybdenum, The prin-
ciple of its. operation, of course,

Celis ‘and roasting, . It Went into
operation .-in June ‘of 1965.
Cominco’s - Pinchi Lake Mer-
cury. Mine, 80 miles north of
Fort: St. James is presently
going into ' praductlon, witha sim-
ilar mill process,
. We have Jearned | the value of
power. and the handieap of lim{t-
ad power, ee

unshackle. progress. and allow

Sept, 25 when an estimated 300|-—

‘o.be precise,

n your Airection...

oles find out what service real really means:

Mine: requires as’ much power}.

‘is. rock . crushing, floatation) ”

The advent of Pencopower will -

full development of the country, |.

our brigh ge. the: blu - CJ It stands, for our tutly integrated petroleum company.
called.Union Oi Gomnpany of Canada:Limited.’ ‘ also stands for'allour exploration and production work: Our-new: °.
refinery.in Princé George. And: for over thitty new service: stations that will be in operation by the end of 1968 in -
ritis Alber t ting else. Our. Union’76 ball stands for a rather unique product. Union 76...
Service. It's the typeof personal service everyone:-appreciates, whether you own a’car ora business requiring the |
finest in: petroleum products. If this’ is ‘what you! "ve. ? heen, looking tor, keep your eye on the ball. We’ ve got it rolling
i

~ UNION OIL GOMPANY OF CANADA LIMITED