Oilweek, April 13, 2007

COURT IN BRITISH COLUMBIA REFUSES TO REQUIRE PRECAUTION

B.C. Appeal Court rejects bid to block new power lines through Tsawwassen (Power-Lines-Appeal)

[Rachel's introduction: In British Columbia, a court has ruled that it cannot require B.C. power authorities to take a precautionary approach to siting high-voltage power lines.]

VANCOUVER -- A group of residents from the Vancouver suburb of Tsawwassen has lost another attempt to stop installation of new power lines on an existing right-of-way.

The B.C. Court of Appeal has rejected the residents' bid for the court to review the B.C. Utilities Commission's decision to approve the higher-voltage lines by B.C. Transmission Corp. and B.C. Hydro.

The group is concerned the new power lines will increase the electro- magnetic fields along the right-of-way, which it believes pose a health risk to neighbouring residents.

But in a unanimous decision issued Friday, the three-judge Appeal Court panel declined to revisit the commission's decision.

The power line opponents initially submitted 21 issues for the court to consider.

But in granting leave to appeal, the court ultimately limited its review to the legal question of whether B.C. Transmission had the right to put new lines the existing right-of-way.

But in its ruling, the court said the residents' case was an attempt to rehash the utilities' commission ruling.

The residents had argued utilities regulators should have used the "precautionary principle" in rejecting the power line upgrade.

But the Appeal Court noted the commission studied the health issue and found no conclusive scientific evidence electro-magnetic fields were dangerous.

The court is not in a position to substitute its judgment on how those factors should be weighed, the ruling said.

Copyright 2007 JuneWarren Publishing Ltd.