Atlin group fights Yukon Energy dam plans

Atlin River weir proposed by Yukon Energy to retain fall runoff from Atlin Lake for winter hydroelectric generation in B.C., sparking community opposition, environmental concerns, and calls for protected status during ongoing field studies.

People in the northwestern British Columbia community of Atlin are opposing Yukon Energy Corp.'s proposal to build a dam that residents say would affect a local lake.

Engineers with the Yukon's public utility are in their first year of field studies on the Atlin River, trying to determine if a weir or dam on the river could hold back the fall runoff from Atlin Lake while avoiding lessons from a troubled dam shutdown elsewhere during planning.

Yukon Energy wants to control the fall drainage so more water is retained for the winter, when the utility would need it for hydroelectric production.

But some residents in the remote community of about 400 say Yukon Energy's field studies are a waste of money, with Site C opposition often cited as precedent, since they would never allow the corporation to build a control structure on their waterways.

"Atlin Lake is the largest natural body of water in B.C. and it is, at this stage, pristine and untouched," Penny Wallis, who lives on the Atlin waterfront, told CBC News.

"If we let anyone begin to do things to this lake, then it could, given known dam stability issues in other regions that worry us, be the end of it. I am totally against this project."

Atlin is located in the far northwestern corner of B.C., about 180 kilometres southeast of Whitehorse.

While Yukon Energy has opened a temporary part-time office in Atlin to keep the community posted about its field work, some residents are forming the Protect Atlin Lake Society to oppose the whole project, noting recent work halts pending treaty rights elsewhere in the province.

"I hope we can cut it off at the knees, frankly," said Wayne Merry, a longtime Atlin resident and a member of the society.

Yukon Energy says it needs at least one more year of field work on the Atlin River. Merry said the millions of dollars the utility has budgeted for the studies could be better spent addressing transmission route hurdles elsewhere in the North.

"I know they're investing," he said. "We've talked to them about that and said, 'Look, why waste this money?' Because this is not going to happen."

The society has written to B.C. Environment Minister Barry Penner, raising numerous environmental concerns they have with the Yukon Energy project. The group wants the Atlin River to be designated as a special protected area, adjacent to Atlin Provincial Park.

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