A Letter of Support for a wind turbine project was brought to the Quesnel Council in Tuesday’s City Council Meeting.
City Staff’s recommendation was for council to review and support a permit application with the British Columbia Energy Regulator for the Nilhts’i Ecoener Wind Project [The Wind Project] planned for construction near Hixon.
The Wind Project would construct 21 wind turbines, which could power up to 31,000 homes in B.C. The Lheidli T’enneh First Nation is also partnered with Ecoener, a renewable energy development company out of Spain. The project would also bring 300 to 350 jobs during the peak construction times in the North Cariboo.
The Wind Project would have to use the City of Quesnel’s landfill to dispose of non-hazardous and toxic materials. This was the cause of concern for Councillors Scott Elliot and Martin Runge.
Councillor Elliot said that he believes “none of the waste should come into Quesnel; it should all be taken to Prince George, no matter the revenue the City could make with it being in Quesnel.”
Runge was concerned whether the extra materials going into the landfill would put the City over any capacity safety limits, and if using the City’s landfill for the industrial waste would work in conjunction with or against the City’s potential plans to expand and rezone the Landfill.
Runge said that the Cariboo Regional District would have to be more involved in decisions on the landfill’s use.
Construction of the Wind Project would begin in the Second Quarter of 2029 and the Fourth/Final Quarter of 2030.
The peak construction period, estimated to take place in the Third Quarter of 2029. Accommodations for either half or the full number of 300 employees would potentially be split between Prince George and Quesnel.
Once operations of the turbines begin, estimated in Late 2030, between 10 and 15 full-time employees would potentially have to call Quesnel home. The Nilhts’i Project also already has a 30-year Electricity Purchase Agreement with BC Hydro.
However, the Wind Project has one major drawback for its construction operations in the region. Transportation.
According to Ecoener’s Socio-Economic Impact Assessment draft, there could be an increase in traffic ranging from 300 to 600 vehicles along Highway 97 during the Wind Project’s peak construction periods.
The Wind Project would also require the turbine blades to be transported. The blades measure approximately 90 metres in length, and the truck and trailers would not be able to make the corners off the CN Rail Overhead Bridge, nor make the turns onto Carson Drive and Front Street via following the current highway structure.
The City could also potentially need to issue a permit for industrial transport trucks to use the alternate route through Legion Drive to connect to Front Street.
Although this major drawback could be, according to Mayor Ron Paul, “the fuel of the fire the City needs” to put pressure on getting the North-South Interconnector built.
Councillor Debra McKelvie’s question and concern, along with the Mayor’s, was whether the wind turbines would be visible and “an eyesore” to the Quesnel community. As there is no direct information as of yet, the project is still in the development and permitting phases.
Council voted in favour of deferring their Letter of Support until August, when it could potentially receive relevant numbers and a figure for the amount of waste that would be dumped in the Quesnel Landfill.
Only Councillor Laurey-Anne Roodenburg voted against deferring the Letter of Support.
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