In 1964, Canada and the US signed the Columbia River Treaty (CRT). Under the CRT, Canada agreed to build three storage dams, Keenleyside, Duncan and Mica, to assist the US with their efforts in flood control and power generation. In return for the storage of water, Canada is entitled to one half of the additional power generated at the US power plants on the Columbia River. These entitlements currently amount to about $300 million annually which are paid into general revenue for the Province of British Columbia.
As all Columbia Basin residents know, the flooding of our valley bottoms had huge impacts on our economy and our environment. Other impacts include the loss of agricultural and forest lands, the displacement of 2300 residents, and the loss of numerous First Nations cultural sites.
In the Legislature last week, my fellow Kootenay MLA Katrine Conroy stated: ‘People still in our community talk about the devastation of what those dams did to our communities. They talk about how it benefitted the entire province, but it didn’t really benefit the Kootenays. We just want to make sure that what happened in 1964 does not happen again to the people of the Kootenays in 2011 and onwards through to 2024.’
The first opportunity to renegotiate or terminate the CRT will occur in 2024, but Canada must give 10 years notice of their intent. That means, in 2014, Canada has a big decision to make.
This is a once-in -a-generation opportunity to correct the social, environmental and economic impacts of damming in the Basin. This is a chance for longstanding grievances surrounding the lack of adequate compensation to be addressed.
But how do Basin residents ensure that we are ready to make a decision in 2014? How do we guarantee that the best interests of Basin residents are a priority?
The only way we can be sure that the Kootenays are not forgotten in this process is to get educated and get organized. We need to participate in every consultative opportunity that is provided by the Province, by BC Hydro and by the Columbia Basin Trust. But Basin residents must also organize themselves.
We have learned many lessons from the early days of the Columbia River Treaty, but the greatest lesson is that we cannot leave the negotiation to the powers that be. Each of us needs to be an active participant speaking out for our families, our communities, our environment and our future opportunities.
To learn more about the Columbia River Treaty, go to www.NormMacdonald.ca/documents/CRTlinks.pdf.
On June 24, you will be asked to decide what should be done with the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST). The HST is a $1.9 billion tax shift away from big business onto individual taxpayers, and it was a tax change that was implemented against your express wishes.
When the HST was first announced, the BC Liberals said it was the single greatest thing that could be done to improve our economy.
British Columbians strongly disagreed. More than 700,000 British Columbians signed a petition against the HST; an unprecedented statement of clear opposition.
British Columbians said that the HST was a tax cut for corporations that had already received numerous tax breaks, and that it was unfair that regular people would have to pay more.
British Columbians also said that items that were formerly exempted from tax such as bicycles and Energy Smart appliances would now be taxable, and that we would no longer be able to establish our own tax policy within British Columbia’s borders.
The BC Liberals would not listen. They pushed ahead with the implementation of the HST. That decision ultimately resulted in the resignation of Premier Campbell, a startling reminder of what happens when a government completely loses touch with the people that it is supposed to serve.
But what of the new Premier? Has Christy Clark been any more responsive or respectful in her handling of this file?
The list of Christy Clark’s flip-flops and dodges on the HST issue is too long to articulate here but it is clear that everything is being done to muddle the issue. There is an attempt to buy off British Columbians with their own money by promising that the rate on the HST will be dropped at some future date.
Premier Clark has also embarked on a $7 million taxpayer-funded campaign to convince you that we can’t afford to cancel the HST. But British Columbians are not going to be fooled.
You are going to get one more chance to tell the BC Liberals that they can’t get away with forcing this tax on British Columbians.
Next month, you will receive a mail-in ballot asking you to make choice. I think you will agree, the answer to the referendum question ‘Are you in favour of extinguishing the HST and reinstating the PST in conjunction with the GST?’ can only be YES.