If you've haven't heard about NAWAPA - The North American Water and Power Alliance - here's an excellent overview of the project from it's beginnings over 50 years. There's a number of reasons why so few folks know about the dastardly scheme to move up to 2/3rds of the flow of the Peace River, Yukon and Laird River systems into the drought ridden deserts of the southwestern USA and northern Mexico. Among the most glaring reasons: a compliant corporate media in fear of a backlash from their corporate owners and advertisers, a conspiratorial silence among politicians who fear that until the moment is right, until all the pieces are in place [especially a populace fearful enough to acquiesce to it] that their scheme would be politically suicidal.
Environmentalists [called terrorists by Canada's government] have long warned that the scheme would devastate not only the Yukon and MacKenzie ecosystems, but also the Northern Pacific oceanic areas into which these waters drain as well as the desert ecosystems of the southwestern US and northern Mexico that the corporate criminals claim this water is supposed to help. Of course the only ones the criminals, the compliant MSM or the bribery addicted politicians want to help is themselves.
Kelowna Now asked recently why this is ill-advised and incredibly stupid decision to go ahead with the Site-C project was made by Queen Christy's BC government? Especially considering that:
1. BC Hydro has failed to prove to the BC Utilities Commission in prior applications for approval that BC needs the electricty and refuses to re-submit it to them this time around because they won'tapprove it this time either.
2. BC Hydro can no longer speculate on selling the power stateside either because the price of electricity is very low now. so low in fact that even the building of this massive boondoggle can't be justified evonomically.
3. BC Hydro can't sell the power to the LNG industry either because, though now cheap, it's still far more expensive overall than just using the gas itself.
4. They can't sell it to the frackers either as the cost of natural gas is so low because of the oversupply from the global fracking idiocy they are shutting down not gearing up.
5. And, most importantly, that the flooding of some of the best agricultural land in the north, the destruction of habitat and migration routes of already endangered species and the trampling of the treaty rights of First Nations are inevitable.
Site C would produce 1100 mwh when completed [and before the silt strangles it]. Not enough to pay for itself even when prices are higher. The plans have been rejected in the past for these reasons, but it does make a lake from which to draw large quantities of water year around and once impounded the water in that lake becomes a NAFTA trafdeable commodity. The oft renamed and already engineered plan calls for 3 large pipelines running from the C site lake to the U S. and Mexico. There are 8 lift stations built into the project, each taking the power of a large city. So Site C does have a customer for both the electricity and the water.
Exporting water is a money-losing game Andrew Nikiforuk says, "for the simple reason that it would subtract from existing economic and ecological services that are provided by freshwater. “Canada’s freshwater resources are less available than we think,” according to Gilles Rheaume, vice-president of policy for the Conference Board of Canada in part because western Canada's mountain snowpacks are declining at the same rate California's are for the same reasons.
The video below made by the NAPAWA is drooled over by Harper, Prentice, Quenn Christy and their fellow corporate criminals but chilling for those of us who believe there is another way to be in the world without destroying the biosphere simply to further enrich an already wealthy few.
