A qathet-based organization has concerns about water management on Powell and Lois lakes, which both have hydroelectric dams operated by Evolugen by Brookfield Renewable.
Al Drummond, a director with Energy Democracy for British Columbia (ED4BC), said the organization has three issues it is concerned about. One is management of water levels in Powell Lake and Lois Lake, the second issue is the water licences that Evolugen has on these bodies of water, and the third is the export of power from the local dams.
Regarding water levels, Drummond said in the fall, water levels in the lakes drop considerably. People with fee simple land with homes on them at Powell Lake have trouble accessing their cabins, and there are also a number of float cabins impacted by this, according to Drummond.
“There are two people who have complained to Transport Canada about navigational issues,” said Drummond. “The legislation is specific. No entity can de-water a water source to prevent people from navigating, and that’s for all sizes of vessels.
“What happens on Powell Lake in particular is the water levels drop so drastically that people cannot access their land cabins. Now for float cabins, they are still kind of floating, but they do get issues with snags in the low water. People can’t dock their boats and get to their domiciles.”
Drummond said ED4BC has followed up with a letter to Transport Canada asking what it is going to do, and will the legislation be enforced?
“Transport Canada was on the lake last summer and they worked with the float cabin association to ensure people made applications to do with their breakwaters, the siting of their float homes, and whether they would be a navigational issue,” said Drummond. “So, this falls into the fact that there is a navigational issue, and how are they going to deal with that? Are they going to enforce it?”
Drummond said he believes Transport Canada is going to have a tough time saying it can’t do anything about the navigational issues when it was made very clear last summer that the government department wants to do something about all the float cabin owners, making sure they don’t cause navigational issues on Powell Lake.
As for the correspondence ED4BC has sent to Transport Canada, Drummond does not believe there has been a reply.
“We’d like to see them come back to Evolugen and say, ‘look, we have the documentation, we have the photographs, and we are now saying that you cannot drop the water levels like this,’” said Drummond, who indicated the water levels on Powell Lake can drop 15 and maybe 20 feet.
He added that the biggest problems usually happen in September, after a hot summer.
“We’ve had a lot of hot summers and it’s getting hotter. They [Evolugen] continue to drop the lake. Unfortunately, that’s the time when the kokanee fish in Powell Lake in particular are spawning. A lot of spawning areas, they’ve dried up.
“I’ve actually watched kokanee spawning right in front of my porch on my land cabin. A week later, it had gone dry, and all those eggs would have been destroyed. I’ve been in touch with Fisheries and Oceans Canada about that a number of times, but unfortunately, they only have so many people to enforce this stuff.”
Drummond said he has gone up the line and has received nice letters back, but no action. He said he recently read a story that BC Hydro is looking at how to conserve water, having had issues with salmon habitat.
“A lot of salmon died on Vancouver Island because of low water,” said Drummond. “So, BC Hydro is being cognizant now. If BC Hydro is doing it, why aren’t companies like Evolugen?”
Drummond said while he is not a water management specialist, he believes there needs to be a level on Powell Lake that protects spawning, the ecosystem, the environment, and also protects the rights of property owners to allow them to get to their cabins.
“There’s no legislation saying what the levels should be,” said Drummond. “I’ve been on Powell Lake for more than 50 years. We’re not specialists but we can see what is happening. The fish are not there like they used to be.”
Drummond said he has met with Evolugen regarding ED4BC’s concerns, but the meeting was not productive from his standpoint.
“ED4BC isn’t out to cause trouble, but we want to ensure there is legislation and management of these watersheds – that they are protected,” said Drummond. “The ecosystem, the fish stocks and the animals that live off this system need to be protected.”
The Peak reached out to Evolugen for comment. The company indicated that it releases water to maintain excess water in the reservoir and maintain safe operation of the dam.
This generally occurs during mid-winter heavy rainfall and spring snow melt, according to the company. Lake and stream levels across the region, including Powell Lake, drop in the late summer and early fall because this is the time that the south coast experiences long periods of low rainfall, according to the response.
Evolugen stated that its water licences have a limit to the volume of water it may divert for power generation, and that the company is required under regulation to provide reporting to the province on the water licence performance.
Regarding fish stocks in the lake, Evolugen stated that it has worked with Fisheries and Oceans Canada to implement measures for the protection of fish when water is released, and when maintenance and repairs at the dam are undertaken.
Evolugen further stated that the lake has been operating between 268 and 285 feet for more than 80 years.
“We engage regularly with the public and stakeholders to promote dam safety and safe uses of the reservoir,” stated Evolugen. “Our public website, powellriverenergy.com, provides twice-daily lake level updates and important information on dam and transmission line safety so the public can plan accordingly. We also post notifications for release of water and other changes that may impact levels on this site. We encourage lake users to reach out to us if they have any specific concerns about dam safety.”
Evolugen stated that long-term average lake levels are tracked and the company has found they have not changed over the years.
“We welcome opportunities to meet with the public and discuss our goals and objectives as they relate to public safety, the environment and community work,” stated Evolugen.
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