Site C Clean Energy Project - Joint Agreement Issued

OTTAWA, Feb. 13, 2012 /CNW/ - The Honourable Peter Kent, federal Minister of the Environment and the Honourable Terry Lake, British Columbia Minister of the Environment, announced today that a Joint Agreement has been signed for the cooperative environmental assessment, including a review by a joint panel, of the Site C Clean Energy Project in British Columbia (B.C.).

The final agreement specifies the process for conducting the review, outlines the joint review panel terms of reference and identifies the timelines associated with key steps of the cooperative process.

Following a 30-day public consultation period held in October 2011, comments received by the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency and the B.C. Environmental Assessment Office were considered and the agreement was finalized.

To view the final agreement or to obtain more information on this project, consult the Canadian Environmental Assessment Registry at www.ceaa-acee.gc.ca , reference number 11-05-63919 or the B.C. Environmental Assessment Office web site at www.eao.gov.bc.ca .

Next Steps
The next steps in the review process include public consultation on the draft guidelines for the environmental impact statement (EIS) to be held in the spring of 2012. The guidelines provide direction to the proponent and identify the information that will be required in the EIS.

Background
BC Hydro and Power Authority proposes to construct and operate a dam and 1,100-megawatt hydroelectric generating station on the Peace River in northeastern B.C. The proposed project would be the third in a series of dams on the B.C. portion of the Peace River. The project components are an earthfill dam 1,050 metres long and 60 metres high, an 1,100-megawatt generating station and associated structures, an 83-km long reservoir, realignment of four sections of Highway 29 and two 77-km transmission lines along an existing transmission line right-of-way connecting Site C to the existing provincial power grid.

The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency administers the federal environmental assessment process, which identifies the environmental effects of proposed projects and measures to address those effects in support of sustainable development.

The British Columbia Environmental Assessment Office manages the provincial environmental assessment process, which examines major projects for potential environmental, economic, social, heritage and health effects that may occur during the lifecycle of a project and identifies strategies to prevent or reduce potential adverse effects.

Lucille Jamault
Communications Manager
Canadian Environmental
Assessment Agency
Tel.: [phone]

Suntanu Dalal
Communications Officer
British Columbia Environmental
Assessment Office
Tel.: [phone]