The Powell River Peak
Author Paul Galinski

July 16, 2008

Member of Parliament Gary Lunn, federal minister of natural resources, was charged up after touring Plutonic Power Corporation's run-of-river site in the Toba River region.

Flying to the Toba River site on Thursday, July 10, Lunn inspected the camp that is under construction, as well as taking a helicopter tour over sites on the Toba River that are slated for power generation installations. Following the tour, Lunn outlined his observations at the Powell River Chamber of Commerce luncheon.

He said the Plutonic project will generate clean, emission-free energy and he is impressed with the care the company is putting into the project.

"I have to tell you I was impressed," Lunn said. "I see what they're going through in every stream they cross and the remediation work that's being done. There are some really cool things that I've never seen before."

Lunn said he had previously met with Donald McInnes, Plutonic Power Corporation founder, vice-president and chief executive officer, and has spoken about the project. He said having travelled to the region, he believes the project fits into the federal government's clean power philosophy.

"When you look at everything up in the valley, they are going to bring in close to 1,000 megawatts of clean energy onto the grid," Lunn said. "To put that into perspective, that's just about 10 per cent of the province's total electricity production today by BC Hydro."

Lunn said the project Plutonic is undertaking now is valued at $660 million, which will create 250 full-time jobs over the next four to five years.

He added that for the next part of this project, when the company goes into Bute Inlet region, Plutonic will invest $3.5 billion, which is going to do enormous things for the local economy.

"There will be 750 full-time jobs for five or six years," he said. "You look at what they're doing up there. It's a remarkably small footprint on the landscape because it's run-of-river hydro without a dam, delivering clean energy that's emission free---that's without any carbon dioxide."

Over and above the technical innovation required for run-of-river projects, Lunn said he was enlightened by a School District 47 project, which has established a culinary arts training program at the camp.

"They are using students and teaching them up there," he said. "Now they are looking at expanding it into welding or mechanics, trades or maintenance. It's just fantastic because these people get hands-on experience and learn more than they would ever learn in a school in a classroom. I give them full marks for thinking outside the box and being creative."

Plutonic Power Corporation has also developed a rapport with first nations in the region, Lunn said. "I met a local chief up on site and he had very positive things to say about the relationship," he said.

The Plutonic project is the type that Lunn has been tasked to examine in his natural resources portfolio.

In order to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, Canada needs three facets, including renewable energy, cleaning up existing energy with technology and then energy efficiency, Lunn said.

"On the renewable side, run-of-river hydro is very impressive. What they are looking at in the Toba valley is 10 per cent of British Columbia's production today. That is huge. That's 1,000 megawatts." Lunn said current BC hydro production is 10,000 to 11,000 megawatts.

Globally, about 80 per cent of the world's energy production now is from coal. That's why it's important that Canada is a world leader in developing technologies, Lunn said. He added that China, today, is adding the kind of capacity expected from the Plutonic run-of-river projects every 10 to 14 days, all of it coal-fired. He said the situation is similar in India.

"We need to develop clean technologies in Canada and export them to places like this in the world," Lunn said. "The impact will be immeasurable. Canada is emerging as a clean-energy superpower."

In terms of energy capacity, Canada is the largest producer of uranium in the world. The nation is also the fifth largest producer of natural gas, and has the second largest reserves of oil in the world.

"We are the largest producer of hydro electricity in the world," Lunn said. "We're going to do some amazing things in renewable energy as well."

Canada has committed to reducing GHG emissions by 20 per cent by 2020, Lunn said. "We will do it in a balanced way that will allow economies to grow. We're doing our bit. We're not waiting. We're engaged; we're acting and delivering. But we also need to bring in the developing countries. It's all part of the solution."