Chapter 5
UNRELIABLE
POWER SOURCE
One of the major complaints heard during conversations with Rural Upper Skeena residents and while gathering information for case studies was that the region’s power supply is generally unreliable. This results in community members suffering from frequent power outages and brownouts throughout the course of the year. As a result, a common community priority has been the establishment of a reliable electricity supply.
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The challenges of having a power supply that community members cannot depend on are not difficult to imagine. Power outages translate into considerable disruption for community members. This can include disruption of work, recreation, as well as critically important infrastructure and community functions. Apart from the nuisance value of such interruptions, this also imposes an additional financial and logistical cost on the community when in order to deal with power outages, they have to invest in alternate power supplies or emergency power measures.
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For example, fridges and freezers shut down, resulting in spoiled food. This is frustrating not only in homes throughout the region, but also challenging in grocery stores and gas stations which sell perishable food.
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Furthermore, this has direct implications for emergency management procedures for the community. If there is no reliable power source/supply, this can impact emergency management and potentially result in damage, injury and even loss of life.
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Finally, in a community which faces cold winters, fluctuations in power supply means that community members have suffered from a loss of heating in the months where access to it is critical for their health and well-being. This is especially true for community members from the rural Upper Skeena where other sources of heating are not available. While other community members have access to additional sources of heating, none are as environmentally friendly and sustainable as electrical options. Therefore, the disadvantages of having an unreliable power supply also spill over into the realm of environmental sustainability and contribute to increased GHG emissions. Hence, it is of critical importance that the rural Upper Skeena gains access to a consistent, decentralized and dependable source of electricity – even if only as back up to the BC Hydro power grid.