2001 Triple Bottom Line Report - BC Hydro

W A T E R U S E P L A N S
Water Use Plans (WUPs) to involve stakeholders in clarifying how
rights to provincial water resources should be balanced between
energy production and competing social and environmental
values associated with the resources. In practical terms, WUPs
will define operating conditions and constraints at our facilities
throughout B.C.
WUPs are crafted using a consultative model developed with
government, First Nations and the public to provide a forum
for new ideas for water management, and for consideration
by local community representatives, First Nations, governments,
environmental groups, industry and BC Hydro.
Designed to recognize and consider many water-use interests
and objectives, WUPs for all our facilities are expected to be
S T E P S T O D E V E L O P W A T E R U S E P L A N S
> 1. Initiating WUP
> 2. Scoping
> 3. Planning Consultations
> 4. Measuring Objectives & Performance
> 5. Gathering Data
> 6. Creating Alternatives
> 7. Assessing Tradeoffs
G E O R G I A S T R A I T C R O S S I N G
An extensive communications and consultation program has
been conducted in connection with our proposed Georgia Strait
Crossing project to build a natural gas pipeline from Washington
State to Vancouver Island. This process followed protests that
dialogue was excluded from the preliminary stages of the project.
The pipeline would allow us to deliver reliable, inexpensive, and
socially and environmentally responsible power to our customers,
and is part of our strategy to use incremental additions of natural
gas-fired capacity as an interim step until more sustainable
power sources are available to help us meet demand.
Public involvement in the discussions of the crossing route was
invited at key stages of the pre-application, beginning with the
S O C I A L B O T T O M L I N E | 3 0
completed and submitted to the provincial Comptroller of Water
Rights for approval by the end of 2003. Consultations began in
1999 and are completed for our Alouette and Stave installations.
By the end of 2001 processes are expected to be completed for
seven other facilities, including Ash, Bridge River, Campbell River,
Cheakamus, Coquitlam/Buntzen, Jordan River and Shuswap.
Discussions seek to balance water uses for power production,
fish habitat, wildlife, recreation, community needs and other
interests. There is a wide spectrum of values placed on these
uses, as reflected by the variety of views and the number of
people coming forward to be involved in WUPs processes.
Bringing these people and interests together is a challenge,
and each group works hard to build consensus on the best
balance of priorities in a WUP.
> 8. Recommending Documentation
> 9. Drafting and Submitting WUP
> 10. Reveiwing WUP by Provincial Government
> 11. Reveiwing WUP by Federal Government
> 12. Monitoring WUP
> 13. Reviewing WUP Regularly
project’s introduction in late 1999, and continuing through
processes for corridor selection, route identification and
refinement, and ongoing consultation and documentation,
continuing to late 2000.
Comprehensive efforts were made to inform and involve people
in the discussions. In total, we held 21 community events – 16 open
houses and five drop-in information sessions – and responded to
numerous public and media requests for information. However, as
with many large energy projects, some stakeholders remain
dissatisfied with the consultation process.