An independent power project (IPP) should pay for bike trail maintenance if the proposed power line routing doesn't change, says the president of the Squamish Dirt Bike Association.
For the past three years, the Sea to Sky Power Corp. has been working on a hydro project slated for Skookum Creek, 12 kilometres east of Squamish near the creek's confluence with the Mamquam River.
The company building the 25-megawatt, $92 million project would run a seven-kilometre power line parallel to Mamquam River before it turns onto the existing B.C. Hydro right-of-way that runs behind Quest University and Alice and Cat lakes. The lines would connect into the electrical grid at the Cheekye Substation, north of Brackendale.
Local mountain bike and dirt bike groups were quick to point out the lines slice through some of the community's best-known trails, including the Ring Creek Rip. The loss of forest canopy changes a trail's makeup, said Ed Alders, Squamish Dirt Bike Association (SDBA) president. Routes get quite dusty and are unsustainable when exposed to the sun, he said, noting the IPP threatens to leave segments of Squamish's bike routes in clear cuts.
"They become maintenance nightmares," Alder said. "It is rather important."
If Squamish ends up stuck with that situation, Alder said he sees no reason not to demand that Sea to Sky Corp. help pay for trail upkeep.
Alder said he would like to see the proponent use an existing forestry road on the other side of the Mamquam, instead of clearing The Rip.
It's too early to say whether the power lines' planned route can be redirected to avoid some of Squamish's key mountain and dirt-biking trails, said Willi Harwick, the project's chairman.
Since last spring, Sea to Sky Power Corp. has been meeting with leaders of the Squamish Off-Road Cycling Association (SORCA) and the SDBA. Two weekends ago, the associations, Harwick and Sea to Sky Power's engineer went on a bike ride of the popular routes.
"My first impression was how good the trails are that [Squamish] has," Hardwick said.
However, he noted more detailed work is needed before changes can be made. Sea to Sky Power plans to continue working with SORCA and SDBA to iron out routes, Harwick said.
Options are limited in some areas where the lines are proposed to run beside the B.C. Hydro right-of-way, he noted. The lines have to be a certain distance apart, Harwick said. It's also not a good idea to leave a stretch of trees between the right-of-way and the new lines because that line of forest becomes more susceptible to blow-overs during windstorms, he noted.
"Our success is where we are all successful," Hardwick said.
Those who wished to comment on the run-of-river project's land tenure had until Monday (Nov. 7) to file them with the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations. One of SORCA's main concerns is The Rip, said Mike Nelson, the association's government liaison. Three-quarters of the trail would not be affected by the line, but there are still major problems with the top kilometre and a half, he said.
Another hot topic is the timing, Nelson noted. Between June and August, three of Squamish's largest mountain biking races - Test of Metal, GearJammer and Just Another Bike Race - take place in zones slated for construction, which is slated to begin next summer.
