* First Nations lose bid to nullify government OK for Site C dam

19/09/15
Author: 
Mark Hume
Link: 
The Globe and Mail
The First Nations argued that Site C, together with oil and gas developments in the same area, would take away so much land that trapping, hunting and fishing could no longer be pursued in traditional ways. (Deborah Baic/The Globe and Mail)

Opponents of BC Hydro’s Site C dam have suffered another legal setback in the Supreme Court of British Columbia.

In a ruling released Friday, the court rejected an attempt by the Prophet River and West Moberly First Nations to quash an environmental certificate issued by the government for the $8.8-billion project on the Peace River.

“I am satisfied that the petitioners were provided a meaningful opportunity to participate in the environmental assessment process,” Justice Robert Sewell wrote. “I am also satisfied that the environmental assessment process as a whole did provide the petitioners with a reasoned explanation as to why their position, that the Project should not proceed at all, was not accepted.”

Category: 
British Columbia
Energy
Indigenous Peoples