Bald Eagles break injunction,build nest in the path of Site C clearing.

Posted on by Laila

I was in the courtroom the day that BC Hydro was granted their injunction to force the land stewards camp at historic Rocky Mountain Fort. As I listened to the justice give his preamble and reasons for granting it,one knew what the result was going to be. He listed what he could and could not consider within the confines of the law for the purposes of the application, and even acknowledged there were many compelling and persuasive arguments the construction of the dam should not proceed at this time.

That statement surprised me as it did others and was akin to rubbing salt on a raw wound, because like the land stewards of Rocky Mountain Fort, I too believe construction of the dam must be halted.

The campers honoured the law and removed their camp. And within days BC Hydro was clearing. This is the before image of the stunning Peace River valley that held Rocky Mountain Fort, a site that was selected by explorer Alexander McKenzie in 1793 for the abundance of the area and traditional lands of Treaty 8 First Nations. *click to see a larger version

Rockymtnfortbefore

Incredible,isn’t it? Rich in wildlife, of traditional medicine and sacred land enjoyed and used by First Nations,explorers and settlers for hundreds of years.

Until now. This is the view of Rocky Mountain Fort, after the injunction.

rkymtnfortafterBEST

And here is a closer look at the devastating clearing that when viewed for the first time, brought tears. A local ongoing art project in Surrey called ‘I Grieve’ came instantly to mind : I grieve over the loss of these trees and this land and what that loss will be for generations to come if one of the court cases doesn’t stop it.

RockyMtn fort after devastationafter rockymtnfortdevastation

So much for treaty rights.

So much for history.

So much for peoples lives.

But ironically,when the injunction was served, no one told the eagles that no one was allowed to get in the way of clearing…

eaglesclearing2 eaglesclearing

It is thought that this is the same bald eagle pair whose nest was destroyed last fall  in clearing that was decried by locals at that time,because an eagle was photographed at the nest right before it was taken down.

Arlene Boon, a third generation resident of the Peace Valley who along with her husband Ken stand to lose everything they have worked their entire lives for, was among those camping at Rocky Mountain Fort site.In a moment of levity, she posted this after hearing of the eagles nest:

eagles break the injunction.

That Arlene can speak with grace and humour in a situation that is anything but funny, speaks to the strength and quality of her character.

That the bald eagles have chosen to build in the path of clearing for site C, some might say is divine intervention. Across cultures and faiths, eagles hold significant spiritual significance, particularly for First Nations and Native Americans.

BC Hydro has committed to a 300 meter buffer for all active nests during Site C construction so this nest is safe according to their link. And, this site is now documented and actively being watched so it doesn’t “fall down due to the backwatering caused by the channelization and diversion of the river” as per the BC Hydro link embedded above.

As for the pair of eagles? They may very well be considered the John and Jane Doe named in the BC Hydro civil suit and the injunction application, so if you can spare some cash for the legal fees associated with fighting this damn dam, it would be appreciated 🙂

https://www.gofundme.com/s6c4s4vs

Ongoing photos of the clearing at Site C are being posted publicly at the Peace Valley Environmental Associations Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/PeaceValleyEnvironmentAssociation/?fref=photo

** Part two of the WAC Bennett dam story will be posted next week,after Spring Break when many are gone for holidays in BC. To refresh your memory,check out part one here: https://lailayuile.com/2016/03/10/bc-hydro-responses-to-bc-utilities-commission-raises-new-questions-over-wac-bennett-dam-repairs/

Or many of the other items I’ve written on Site C here: https://lailayuile.com/the-case-to-stop-site-c-construction-links-news/

 

 

 

 

 

17 thoughts on “Bald Eagles break injunction,build nest in the path of Site C clearing.”

  1. Ha ha. ” the Eagles released a statement by Twitter”…..

    Nicely done as usual Laila! Grieving along with you …

    vb

    >

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  3. Who cares about a couple of bloody eagles? Where does it end?

    Next you’ll be worried about fish, and deer and other useless animals.

    Then farmland when our supermarkets have thousands of cans all full of food.

    And Indians – just because they’ve lived on the land for 1000s of years you get all teary eyed when BC Hydro wants to put a nice lake where they live.

    The kind hearted premier we’re blessed with thankfully doesn’t care about all that sloppy sentimentality and when BC Hydro predicted that by 3050 we would need some more power, why our photogenic premier called out her personal photographer – which I’m happy to help pay for – smiled her wise and beautiful smirk and said “if BC Hydro says we may need electricity one day, we’ll make it all now and not worry ourselves that we have no customers”.

    Finally, fie on these cretins who say Hydro always vastly exaggerates needs.

    That they’re like the carpenter who only has a hammer, so everything looks likes a nail and they only see dams, even though technology makes alternative cheap and harmless power available.

    Dams, and spillways and lakes where only dirt and trees used to be is the way we’ve always done things and if Christy and the Gumshoe weren’t a hell of a lot smarter than those climate change freaks, would we be about to have 22 LNG plants any day now with a trillion $ or so in the Prosperity Fund they gave us that already has $100 billion, or something like that, already in it?

    I say, count your blessing peasants, and let these smart people look after us. Why, the province is in the very best of hands and, after all, who the hell needs baby eagles?

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  4. Laila, please help me out here as I have not been there and I am serious.
    I’m embarrassed to ask if the “after injunction” pictures are real photographs.
    What is the span of time between the before and after, because it seems to me the injunction was a mere 3 weeks ago? Is that devastation possible in that time and if so how is/was it accomplished? It looks like it has been hit with napalm.

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    1. Yes,these are real and yes the time span is accurate. I do not post anything that is anything less than verified.

      And this…. this is why the people of the Peace River and I.. and others..grieve.

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  5. The destruction continues and causes spontaneous eye leakage whenever I see a picture or take the dreaded “drive” to view it first hand. Thank you, Laila, for all you do to keep our “war” in the forefront of the minds of British Columbians. I will do the drive later today and share some pictures for you to use as you see fit.

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    1. No thanks needed Shelley – whether people in the rest of BC realize it or not, this matters greatly to the future of our province.When government can so easily change the rules or legislation when it doesn’t work in their favour, but errs on the side of protecting the interests of British Columbians,there is something terribly wrong with government.

      Be safe on your drive and I look forward to your photos!

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    1. Aww, that makes me smile! 🙂 I’m happy you checked back. It just wasn’t secure to have the blog live while techs worked.

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