Peace

Area Facilities

GM Shrum

Peace Canyon

For security reasons, detailed facility information is no longer available.

Overview

Two major power generating stations sit in the Peace River basin. The W.A.C. Bennett Dam impounds the Peace River west of Hudson's Hope, forming the Williston Reservoir. Next to the dam, the underground G.M. Shrum Generating Station (GMS) houses 10 generating units that have a combined maximum output of 2,730 megawatts (MW). (One megawatt = one million watts.)

Located 23 kilometres downstream from GMS, the Peace Canyon Generating Station (PCN) has four units producing 694 MW. This generating station uses the same amount of water as GMS but has lower output because the height of the Peace Canyon Dam is much lower than the Bennett Dam. The Peace Canyon Dam forms the Dinosaur Reservoir, the elevation of which remains relatively constant, varying up to 3 metres per day, with power generation at PCN cycling in step with GMS.

Conditions for the Peace River, which flows downstream from PCN, are controlled by regulating the flow at the power plant in accord with licences and agreements. Minimum flows are specified at PCN and at Taylor, B.C. These flow requirements are necessary to preserve fish stocks and provide for domestic water supply. Monthly data and forecasts for Williston Reservoir elevations and Peace River flow volumes are available in our Peace Williston Report.

The Peace River (below Taylor, B.C.) freezes over in winter. In severe winters the Peace River can freeze upstream of Taylor as well, but never further upstream than about 70 km below PCN. The freeze-up and break-up of the ice cover periodically causes ice jams and downstream flooding. To alleviate this problem, the discharge from PCN is kept at a constant high flow during ice formation to maximize the hydraulic capacity of the river. When the ice cover is formed, wider fluctuations in flow can be tolerated. During spring break-up, ice jams and high inflows from tributaries downstream from the generating stations can cause flooding at the town of Peace River, Alberta. However, ice jam flooding further downstream at the Peace-Athabasca Delta is a natural part of the ecology. While BC Hydro has no control over inflow downstream from PCN, British Columbia and Alberta have established procedures to mitigate flooding at the town of Peace River by regulating PCN discharge.

As well as these major hydroelectric facilities, the northern region also has a thermal generating station at Fort Nelson, 400 km north of Fort St. John. Part of the Thermal Operations, BC Hydro's 47 MW Fort Nelson Generating Station operates on natural gas, provides energy to the Fort Nelson area during transmission outages, and continuously provides energy to the system grid by way of Alberta.

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