Some of the Kinder Morgan opponents from the Battle on Burnaby Mountain have their sights on a new target – the Site C dam.
Vancouver resident Amy Widmer, 27, who was arrested at the NEB hearings in Burnaby, helped set up the protest camp outside of the B.C. Hydro building on Dunsmuir Street in Vancouver. One of the campers, Kristin Henry, has been on a hunger strike for weeks and is now in the hospital, as her heart rate has slowed.
“The main message is this dam should not be built. It’s a gross misuse of taxpayers’ dollars. B.C. Hydro said we don’t need the power. It’s also going to infringe on Treaty Eight territory rights and taking away the most arable, fertile soil in Northern B.C.,” Widmer said.
After Henry was hospitalized the night of March 31, Widmer is worried.
“It’s kind of like a reality check. The hunger strike aspect can happen forever,” she said.
B.C. Hydro is building an $8 billion dam on the Peace River in Northern B.C. to generate electricity, and the expected completion date is 2024. The project has drawn numerous court challenges and opposition from people raising concerns about First Nations rights, climate change and environmental degradation.
There are also people like Burnaby resident Mia Nissen, Destiny Sharp, Dan Wallace and Audrey Siegl, prominent pipeline opponents, who’ve made an appearance at the B.C. Hydro camp.
“There are quite a few people who were involved in the Burnaby Mountain stuff that are also getting involved in the Site C camp,” Widmer told the NOW.
B.C.Hydro’s Dave Conway, a spokesperson for the Site C project, said the dam is required to meet future electricity needs, as the province’s population is expected to grow by 1 million over 20 years.
As for the hospitalized hunger striker, Conway said he doesn’t want to see any harm come to her.
However, he also noted the camp has grown in size and is becoming a health and safety concern and the fire department is investigating.
