Kemano is a settlement situated 75 km (47 mi) southeast of Kitimat in the province of British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

 in Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. It was built to service a hydroelectric power station, built to provide energy for Alcan

Alcan

Rio Tinto Alcan Inc. is a Canadian company based in Montreal. It was created on November 15, 2007 as the result of the merger between Rio Tinto PLC's Canadian subsidiary, Rio Tinto Canada Holding Inc., and Canadian company Alcan Inc. On the same date, Alcan Inc. was renamed Rio Tinto Alcan Inc..Rio...

 to smelt aluminium

Aluminium

Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....

 (aluminum) from its ore. The powerhouse is built 427 m (1,400 ft) inside the base of Mt Dubose in a blasted cavern. It produces 896 MW of power from its eight generators, each of which has a capacity of 112MW.

History

The plant comprises a 1/4 mi long tunnel, the width of a two-lane highway, drilled and blasted through the coastal mountains to carry water to the penstocks of the Kemano powerhouse. The water plunges 800 m (2,600 ft) to drive the generators. The power transmission lines travel 82 km (51 mi) from Kemano to Kitimat across some of the most rugged mountain territory in British Columbia, along the Kildala Pass, about 1,500 m (5,000 ft) above sea-level.

The first Kemano Project, known as Kemano I

Kenney Dam

The Kenney Dam is a rock-filled hydroelectric dam on the Nechako River, 96 km south of Vanderhoof, British Columbia, forming the Nechako Reservoir, the first section of which immediately behind the dam is Knewstubb Lake...

, resulted in the flooding of 120000 acres (485.6 km²) of the Nechako Reservoir

Nechako Reservoir

The Nechako Reservoir, sometimes called the Ootsa Lake Reservoir, is a hydroelectric reservoir in British Columbia, Canada that was formed by a diversion of the Nechako River through the Kitimat Ranges of the Coast Mountains to sea level at Kemano to provide power for the aluminum smelter at Kitimat...

, within Cheslatta territory. This reputedly removed approximately 75% of the flow of the Nechako

Nechako River

The Nechako River arises on the Nechako Plateau east of the Kitimat Ranges of the Coast Mountains of British Columbia and flows north toward Fort Fraser, then east to Prince George where it enters the Fraser River...

, which is or was an important salmon river. Expansion on the project, known as Kemano II, has been contested in the Canadian courts by members of the Cheslatta Carrier Nation with a group of Elders who have filed a Statement of Claim with the Supreme Court of British Columbia.

Kemano itself is a name for a tribal subdivision of the Hanaksiala, part of the Haisla group, and was a community in its own right after many of the coastal tribes withdrew during the influx of colonists post-1780, to remove themselves from the threat of diseases and the alien culture. Kemano Indian Reserve No. 17 is located at the site of the Henaksiala village, though most Haisla

Haisla

The Haisla are an indigenous people living at Kitamaat in the North Coast region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. Their indigenous Haisla language is named after them...

 in the region today live at Kitamaat Village, near Kitimat.

The company town

Company town

A company town is a town or city in which much or all real estate, buildings , utilities, hospitals, small businesses such as grocery stores and gas stations, and other necessities or luxuries of life within its borders are owned by a single company...

 of Kemano was originally built in the 1950s and is home to a thriving small community, featuring a guesthouse, a shop which sold everything from candy to guns to socks to hats, a golf course and a church. It eventually closed its doors as a community in 2000, the residents were moved out, and the majority of houses (including the school) were burnt down as a training exercise for selected fire departments from all of BC. The plant still exists and is operational on a shift system.

Climate

External links

• PDF - Article about the burning of the town
• http://www.riotintoalcaninbc.com/pages/our-products/power-operations-watershed-management.php - Rio Tinto Alcan BC