Local leaders nix Glacier-Howser project

Aug 21, 2009

Sally Waddington
Columbia Valley Pioneer
August 21, 2009

The Regional District of East Kootenay has made it official: the Glacier-Howser project is not all right by them.

On August 7th, the board voted unanimously to write a letter to the provincial Environmental Assessment Office, saying that the regional district does not support the proposed Glacier-Howser project.

A last-minute plea was made by the proponent, Purcell Green Power, to delay the decision. On August 4th, project manager Simon Gordeau emailed the directors, saying that the motion was premature.

While the board did formally accept Mr. Gordeau’s letter, it upheld the recommendation of the five Columbia Valley directors.

Area F Director Wendy Booth said that the decision was made on one aspect of the project. “We limited our comments to considerations of the transmission line, which is within our area,” she said.

Invermere Mayor Gerry Taft said it is a philosophical discussion, not a technical one.

“The agency is only looking for a referral or a comment, so we do not have the resources to get technical in nature. The proponent would much rather have technical complaints so they can address them.”

The Environmental Assessment Office is currently reviewing Purcell Green Power’s proposal for a river diversion energy plant in the West Kootenay near Meadow Creek. It involves a 92-kilometre transmission line across the Purcell mountains to Invermere.