In the fall of 2002, the British Columbia government released
the BC Energy Plan. As part of this plan, BC Hydro, our publicly
owned electric utility, is restricted from developing new
generation facilities other than those in which it has already
made significant investments. Furthermore, the BC Energy Plan
instructs BC Hydro to acquire new supplies from the private
sector. According to the Plan, 50% of new electricity needs are
to come from conservation; however, much of the focus to date
has been on developing new privately owned generating
facilities. Much has been written about the potential effects of
the energy plan on electrical rates and the future of our
publicly owned electrical utility; however, most British
Columbians are still unaware of the extent of private hydro
power development, the potential environmental consequences of
this development, and the loss of sovereign control of our
rivers. In 2007, while researching these issues, I developed a
Google Earth map of current and proposed private