The traditional territory of the Klahoose First Nation lies partly on the mainland coast opposite the centre of Vancouver Island, and Ken Brown, 35, is the elected chief who is engaged with a major work-in-progress, a power project with Plutonic Power, a company that specializes in run-of-river power development.
The chief told reporters about Klahoose history in the region, "There's not much left, just some artefacts," but at one time Klahoose inhabitants were everywhere in the vicinity of Campbell River. Today they live in a small band on Cortes Island, 60 members, and another 150 members are spread around the country.
For Klahoose, the Plutonic Power project is a large scale, and the power development contains about $660-million of capital investment. That is a lot of valuable energy, enough for about 50,000 homes to power up year round. With this kind of project providing positive long term economic prospects, the chief is able to look beyond the present to participation in the wider B.C. economy.
Brown said, "We are exploring forestry," aquaculture in geoduck, "water bottling," and of course, eco-tourism, "and we are hoping to buy a tug and barge," to join the freighter business that sails the Inside Passage, says the 35-year-old leader.
A community of Klahoose stands to benefit immediately, said Brown, "And the right-of-way agreement is providing the funding to build a 15,000-square-foot multi-purpose facility for our people."
Kiewit is the project contractor working for Plutonic and Klahoose, and they have experience developing power projects with First Nations, bringing new labour into the skilled labour pool, and developing power out of remote territories that First Nations recognize as their entitlement.
Indeed, for granting access to the Toba River Valley, the Klahoose gained financial leverage, and with it they are going into business, providing people (their own and other people) with training and jobs.
Brown and Klahoose members agree that treaty making is failing, but economic development is growing, and he said, "We can't wait forever – the B.C. treaty process is fundamentally flawed – and I don't like taking government handouts," and he decried the fact that treaty talks have been ongoing since 1994.
"We were going nowhere, but we've created a real partnership with a company that has honoured all of its commitments." Plutonic is like Kiewit, staying in touch with First Nations reality, and in so doing they have agreements with Sliammon and Sechelt First Nations, equally blessed nations.
Homalco First Nation, some of whose traditional territory also resides on the mainland side opposite Campbell River, at a place called Bute Inlet, is also talking to Plutonic, and Brown noted, "That project has the potential to be even bigger than this one. It's a tremendous opportunity for the Homalco."
The Toba River project, meanwhile, is going to operate by 2010, using the East Toba and Montrose Creek. These two projects combined will deliver 745 gigawatt hours of electricity to the BC Hydro grid – enough energy to run 77,000 homes.
Kiewet is able to build an access road over an overgrown logging road, one left over from 30 years past, and the construction site in the valley already contains some facilities left-over from the logging enterprise. By the time summer rolls around they will have 250 workers on the ground working on the project.
Infrastructure in energy creation is expensive to build, as David Carter explained, including the business ethic of Regional Power relating to big ticket items like the Wawatay power projects at Pic River, Ontario. He clarified how infrastructure requires corporate investment and other financial heavyweights, however, "We felt it was important to be there with the (Pic River) Band, so when our company needed funds in 2001 to meet financial commitments we sold under the condition that we retain the day to day operations of Wawatay."
Carter noted insightfully how the Wawatay project has gone through six different owners (Begetekong Power, Conwest Exploration Company, Alberta Energy, Regional Power, Clean Power Income Fund, Macquarie Power and Infrastructure Income Fund), "and we the original developers and builders are still managing the projects 20 years later, not bad in today's changing corporate world."
He disclosed to Native Journal, "The process that led up to the Wawatay project started in 1987, 20 years ago. Roy Michano has been kind in your (previous) article in his sharing. My story is similar I did approach the People of the Pic River First Nation by way of advisement from an Elder Camille Nabigon.
"Camille is someone that I had hired to boat me up the Pic and into the Black River (Wawatay). Camille a really wonderful person would wait out my work day in the bush on the shore of the Black River. Generally start a campfire and watch nature.
"During one of the trips on the shore he asked me what I was going to do I explained with a stick in the sandy shoreline. I used an old trapper's cabin as a bearing point which as it turned out was due north of the present powerhouse location. The picture in the sand explained my development clear enough to him.
"Camille encouraged me to visit the Band and make a pitch for the development. Roy Michano was the Chief and as it became apparent that many of the issues that had been raised in opposition to any proposed development couldn't be answered immediately. I said why don't we partner and along the way if I can`t find solutions to the issues raised in the community we would not proceed with the project.
"The undeveloped site was released by MNR in a RFP in the summer of 1988 which 14 bids were submitted Begetekong Power Corp. A corporation jointly owned by myself and the band were chosen the successful bid. We then had to find the best 20 million to build the project. The next two years were spent finalizing the environmental and other permitting issues and finding the money.
"In the end Conwest Exploration put up 100% of the money for 80% of the development and we successfully built the project on time and on budget. I made a commitment to stay with Conwest for a minimum of 5 years as part of the agreement for the money and to continue to build other projects.
"During that time Conwest was bought by Alberta Energy and we bought ourselves back partnering with Manulife in 1997. Some years later I took Camille and Ruby his wife out to the finished development, where Camille noted that it was just as I had drawn in the sand. Ruby said to me God must have held your hand, probably the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.
"The project has gone on to become a model for other First Nation communities in Canada to follow. Wawatay is presently owned Macquarie Power Fund and Regional Power have a 20 year operating agreement. The plant is presently operated by John Cress, a member of the Pic River First Nation someone we have trained.
"This project was funded privately at a time when cost of money was over 10% and buy back rates were under .05 per kw., quite a challenge. Wawatay was the first to involve a First nation community in a privately financed hydroelectric project; I think one of the first to train a First Nation operator who is now managing the development.
"Roy as Chief of his community took the gamble to try, he led his community on a new path one of economic self sufficiency. This was at a time when INAC`s policy was job creation we changed course and created a wealth creation project and inadvertently created jobs. The project is one of great pride for the people of the Pic River First nation so God held all our hands."
