Proponents of hydroelectric dams love to talk about these as low-impact, clean energy. But many of the proponents expect to gain financially from construction of these megaprojects. To them, self-interest is always more important than public-interest. In British Columbia, the financial cost of electricity from Site C will be 4x
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IN-SIGHTS: Less costly Site C alternatives were ignored
Many self-interested people told us that non-destructive alternatives to hydropower would not work in British Columbia. These, they said, were unreliable and could not always send power to the grid on demand. Dispatchability was key, according to pseudo experts. This despite BC Hydro having reservoirs that act like giant batteries.
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: For Site C promoters and enthusiasts
Climate change is one of the most pressing global issue in contemporary times, and dams play a substantial role in aggravating it by becoming feeding grounds for methane-producing microbes. In addition, dams fragment rivers and disrupt their natural flow, threatening the survival of aquatic fauna, especially migratory species. Dams are
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Dam lies
Mark Jaccard, recently appointed Chair and CEO of the BC Utilities Commission, argued in 20017 for Site C, when BC could have stopped the project and saved about $15 billion. Jaccard said that supporters of other renewables did not account for dispatchability, which he claimed was a key obstacle to
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: A foundation of political and corporate lies
In 2017, construction of Site C could have been halted without wasting more than $10 billion. But influential promoters of the megaproject — including Marc Jaccard, the newly appointed head of the “independent” regulator of BC Hydro — were misinforming citizens about the viability of alternatives…
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Strategic misrepresentation, aka as lying
Bent Flyvbjerg of Oxford University is the most cited scholar in the world in megaproject management. One of his studies included this: “Underestimation cannot be explained by error and is best explained by strategic misrepresentation, that is, lying. The policy implications are clear: legislators, administrators, investors, media representatives, and members
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: BC Hydro’s credibility gap
When BC Hydro said that growing demand required asset additions worth billions of dollars and contractual commitments of $50+ billion owed to independent power producers, should we have believed what they said? The record clearly states the answer was NO.
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Efficiency of BC Hydro dams slowly dropping – Site C may produce 1/4 less than promised
Site C was conceived when output per MW of capacity was higher than it has been in recent years. BC Hydro has regularly claimed that 1,100 MW capacity at Site C will annually produce 5,100 gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity. That would be 4.64 GWh per MW of capacity, almost
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Low-impact renewables and energy efficiency = JOBS
Before British Columbia’s 2017 general election, a person who would be appointed to a senior position in John Horgan’s cabinet indicated that Site C would not be cancelled. He asked, “Would you eliminate 3,000 jobs?” Months of political theatre followed, directed by Horgan et all, until December 2017 when BC
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Power alternatives
Public utility BC Hydro is now admitting that significant rate increases are coming because of Site C. Whatever happened to the “40 percent growth over 20 years” that BC Hydro had promised throughout a decade and a half of flat demand?
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: The downside of wind power
Unlike Site C in British Columbia, wind projects have relatively low budgets and short construction timelines. Those factors limit lucrative employment opportunities and impede privatization of public wealth. While good for consumers of electricity, low-cost generating facilities do not offer only short-term benefits to people building them.
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Sweden has a public utility not stuck in the 1960s
I invite readers to look beyond a comparison of the noted energy projects to consider the long term objectives of two publicly owned energy companies. BC Hydro is focused on doing what it has done since the 1960s. Sweden’s Vattenfall is an innovator, creating permanent jobs and pursuing solutions to
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Self-interest transcends public interest
In 2016, a future NDP Cabinet Minister told me that cancelling Site C was unlikely. The person said, “Would you be prepared to eliminate 3,000 jobs?” In retrospect, I conclude the concern was less about lost employment than about who would lose the jobs.
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Unclean clean energy
In addition to the known mercury contamination of fisheries caused by hydroelectric developments, reservoirs increase emissions of methane and carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. In some cases this increase, per unit of energy produced, may be significant compared to greenhouse gas emitted by fossil- fuelled electricity generation.
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Site C: stupidity or corruption?
In psychiatry, the word “delusion” means a firm belief in what others know to be false. Despite evidence of massive physical and financial risks, Liberals decided to green light Site C. Not wanting to be labeled anti-development, and having its own friends to reward, BC NDP chose to carry on…
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: BC Hydro and the illusory truth effect
Misinformation is common in our world. Sometimes it involves benign self-protection or ego boosting. Other times, humans use deception to gain advantages. Businesses and governments do it every day, by simple shading of the truth, egregious deceit, or something in between. With cooperation and assistance from government, BC Hydro relies
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Foundation of lies and misinformation supports the Horgan-Clark boondoggle
BC Hydro sought environmental approval for construction of Site C in 2011. In that year, global wind power capacity was 238 gigawatts. While construction of BC’s controversial hydropower project dragged on, worldwide capacity for wind power reached 837 GW in 2021. If Site C suffers no further delays in its
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Sunk costs sinking
BC government is reluctant to reveal information about BC Hydro’s Site C project but news that does emerge is useful to knowledgeable analysts…
Continue readingIN-SIGHTS: Planning fallacy
John Horgan’s crew had a truckload of hard hats ready to go when they formed government in 2017 and the last thing they intended to do was alter the controversial Site C project, secret deals BC Hydro had with private power producers, LNG promotion, and science-free facilitation of fracked gas
Continue readingIn-Sights: A spendthrift public utility
There is much written here about BC Hydro and 17 years of flat demand for electricity by the utility’s residential, commercial and industrial customers. Despite that, in the first quarter of fiscal year 2021-22, the volume of BC Hydro’s purchases of private power from IPPs increased 21% over the same
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