The Leader of British Columbia’s Opposition New Democrats says he won’t take a position on the most expensive public infrastructure project in the province’s history until after next spring’s election, resisting calls from a former NDP premier to campaign on a promise to kill the Site C dam.
NDP Leader John Horgan says while he would be prepared to shut down the hydroelectric dam if a postelection review by the B.C. Utilities Commission supports that decision, he does not yet have enough information to take a formal position. The project has come under fire from environmentalists and First Nations leaders, in part because it would flood more than 5,000 hectares of land.
Plans for the Site C dam on the Peace River in northern British Columbia have been in various stages of planning for decades. Construction began in 2015, with completion expected in 2024 at a cost of $9-billion.
Ian Bailey – Globe and Mail – Dec 15, 2016.