Site C opposition growing: Hereditary chief

A large crowd gathered outside BC Hydro’s offices in Vancouver to protests the Site C dam Thursday, and Gordon August says awareness of the project is growing.A large crowd gathered outside BC Hydro’s offices in Vancouver to protests the Site C dam Thursday, and Gordon August says awareness of the project is growing.

The Site C dam has become top of mind to British Columbians after a historic election that has left the project’s – and government’s – future in flux.

As Liberal, NDP and Green leaders continue to send back-and-forth letters to each other about the controversial megaproject, a large crowd of protesters braved the rain outside BC Hydro’s offices in downtown Vancouver Thursday to voice their opposition to the dam seemingly bolstered by the newfound attention being paid to it.

“A lot of people didn’t know nothing about Site C dam 15 months ago,” said Gordon August, hereditary chief of the Sechelt First Nation, and co-founder of the Fight C group. “In Vancouver, I think now after the election, a lot of people know about the Site C dam. Now we have a government that’s in and it’s up to us to make them do what we want them to do… make them work for the people of B.C. and not for the corporations.”

Premier Christy Clark has warned NDP leader John Horgan – who looks primed to defeat the Liberal government soon in a vote of confidence after striking a deal with Green leader Andrew Weaver – about the ramifications of delaying the $8.8-billion project.

In her public letter exchange, Clark said a one-year delay would add another $630 million to the $8.8 billion project and cost jobs.

Horgan, who wants the project to go up for review at the B.C. Utilities Commission, dismissed her advice.

“The B.C. Liberals went forward with a $9 billion capital project without any third party oversight,” Horgan said June 7. “So here we are today, 2017, with a couple of years behind us, many dollars spent, we want to make sure that before we go any further we're ensuring this is the best possible project for the people who have to pay for it."

Of course, nothing can be done until there’s a stable government functioning in Victoria and protesters Thursday added their voice to the groups accusing the B.C. Liberals of stalling and clinging to power.

Foy said the project is unnecessary as the province already produces more electricity than it uses, while First Nations territorial rights and farmland is threatened by its construction.

The economic viability of the northeastern B.C. project still remains in question, despite Clark’s warning.

A University of British Columbia study released before the May 9 election suggested pausing the project pending further review could instead save taxpayers up to $1.65 billion.

It wasn’t just local residents attending Thursday’s rally.

Taiwanese tourist Frank Han was drawn to the protest while visiting the Vancouver Public Library across the street.

The environmental concerns over the project mirror those of projects back home, he said.

“This also happened in my country, that’s why I joined,” he told Metro. “My opinion is that human beings are from nature and if we’re destroying nature, we’re actually destroying ourselves. I saw the signs, see that this is also what I fight for, so I came over and joined.”

-with files from David P. Ball and The Canadian Press

[Top photo: JENNIFER GAUTHIER/FOR METRO Environmental and community groups gathered in front of the BC Hydro offices on Dunsmuir Street for a lunchtime rally opposing Site C on June 15, 2017.]