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Opponents of Quebec river diversion ramp up effort, add US allies |
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Tuesday, 18 September 2007 |
Boston (Platts)
Opponents of a Hydro-Quebec plan to divert the Rupert River to raise the output of several of the utility's hydro plants on Wednesday enlisted a large number of US environmental groups as allies in an effort to repeat their success 15 years ago in killing Hydro-Quebec's Great Whale hydro project.
The US-based groups joining the opposition to the Rupert project include the Natural Resources Defense Council, Friends of the Earth US, Sierra Club Northeast Regional Conservation Committee, the New York Public Interest Research Group, New York City Friends of Clearwater, Institute for Social
Ecology, and Action PA.
Quebec opponents of the Rupert project, including indigenous Cree groups, said that "[m] any of these groups were involved in the successful cancellation of Hydro-Quebec's Great Whale hydroelectric megaproject in 1992 when they convinced then-Governor Mario Cuomo of New York to back out of the state's $17-billion contract with Hydro-Quebec."
Chief Josie Jimiken of Nemaska, one of the three Cree communities that would be most impacted by the Rupert project, said: "Hydro-Quebec has surplus electrical generating capacity already, and there are acceptable alternatives to this plan, including many wind energy proposals in the James Bay/Cree
territory."
The Rupert project, which still needs final federal and provincial Canadian environmental approvals, calls for diverting most of the river into the Eastmain River watershed. The diversion project would enable existing and planned hydro stations in that watershed to generate 8.5 million MWh of
additional power per year.
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