Dear Editor:
There has been much talk lately on whether B.C. should forge ahead with the building of the Site C Dam. The NDP argue against it while other people say we should avail ourselves of green energy from independent power producers. Some say we need neither, and I would disagree with them.
In my opinion, doing nothing would be very shortsighted and would repeat a costly mistake made by the NDP government of the 1990s. Back then, the NDP government froze B.C. Hydro rates for purely political reasons and starved B.C. Hydro of the financial resources needed to expand and maintain the province's aging hydro dams and keep electricity distribution and transmission systems in top working order.
B.C. Hydro has more than $14 billion worth of infrastructure upgrade and renewal projects that have either already been completed, are in progress or under consideration, including the $8 billion Site C dam project. These infrastructure renewal projects, including Site C, along with conservation efforts and acquiring renewably-sourced electricity from independent producers, are key to restoring B.C. to electricity self-sufficiency and allowing our province to regain its status as a net electricity exporter; something which has always been to the financial advantage of the province.
However, we must also prepare for increased energy demands that go beyond Site C. For example, new mines and port expansions, and the likelihood of an emergent LNG industry, that will consume more electricity than our current and planned generating capacity.
Repeating the NDP's mistake of the 1990s and postponing investments in our province's valuable but rapidly aging clean energy assets, including Site C, is shortsighted and not fair to future generations who will end up paying the price. We must move ahead with Site C as well as independent renewable energy projects so we can meet the future needs of a growing province.
Staying the course with the forward-thinking policy of electricity self-sufficiency will allow us to leave a legacy of clean energy for future generations at affordable hydro rates. Let's not allow ourselves to fall into the same short sighted trap the NDP did in the 1990s. The true cost of such a mistake is inestimable and it should not have to be borne by future generations due to negligence on our part.
David Field, B.C. Citizens for Green Energy
