It is time to be heard!
I am collecting your statements of concern about the proposed Muskrat Falls Hydroelectric Project. Too many people in Newfoundland and Labrador cannot speak out because of their professional situation or relations; therefore many of the rest of us feel alone in their concerns.
Government is getting a “get on with it” message from those with no worries about retaliation for their opinions. So we need to be all the louder! Let’s tell the government and the people of our province that we are many and we cannot support development at Muskrat Falls.
Share Your Concerns: I encourage you to share your concerns in just a few lines in the comments here, and write a letter to your MHA and your Premier!
Please include: your name, community, occupation and your statement of concern in the comments below. (If you cannot leave all of this information, please share why.)
Rethink Muskrat Falls 
I have been gone recently, but came back on [date. Now I recall why I used to love this site.
Thanks for keeping it going, I’m gonna start checking back more regularly. How often do you update your blog nowadays?
Not often enough. Alas some changes in my life have left me less able to keep this flowing as much as I would like. However I am trying to get back at it again. I the ideal world I will take a little time once or twice a week to add content to the pages and once every other week add a new blog. Please follow me and share the site and the concern about the Muskrat Falls project!
Destroying rivers is no answer to our greed for energy.
I have a lot of experience, since 1971, as a electrical enginer, with power systems and heating systems, here in Nfld. Because in nfld we use electricity directly to heat our houses, we use technology that is 100 years old. New electric heating systems use two thirds less energy. We are wasting much of our existing hydro energy. We are now using about 2 percent wind. Hawaii, with a isolated system like us, are planning to use 20 percent wind. We can readily use 10-15 percent or more. And we have some additional island hydro. Such an intergation of these approaches can solve our energy problem here and at much lower cost, and would allow the elimination of burning oil at Holyrood. I have calculated we are wasting 600 MW on the island at present. That is more than the average power that can be delived to St. John’s from muskrat Falls.
It is amazing isn’t it? That we keep pressing forward like this? The excuse: we have tried offering subsdies to retrofit, but they have not been widely taken up. YET, here we are putting in new homes and subdivisions and still using base board heating on there NEW developments! Thanks for sharing.
When other world countries are turning to energy sources such as wind and solar power, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador wants to develop hydro power in Labrador, flooding thousands of kilometers of land along the Churchill River with many environmental impacts. Who will this benefit? Certainly not the people of Labrador. A few businesses will profit from it, but not the majority of Labradorians. We will pay for this forever. Just look around and see who attends announcements about Muskrat Falls in St. John’s – politicians, past politicians and big business. They are the people pushing this project forward. They are the ones who will reap the benefits, not giving a damn about the people of Labrador. If the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador wants to develop hydro power in the province, why don’t they flood and harness the Humber River? Or would this cause too much controversy on the island? Instead they say to hell with Labrador, we want to make money for our island investors or investor. The Government talks about the pristine wilderness of Labrador and sells it to tourists and sports fishermen from abroad. If this sort of development continues there won’t be much pristine wilderness left in Labrador to sell.
Let the people know that silence is consent. It is time for Canada to reclaim Her once Glorious title of leading technology innovator of the world. Now, I’m no ‘expert’ but I know NFLD (island) has many rivers of its own. Also I believe that the Island is surrounded by ocean. That said, please tell me how it is cheaper to dam a river, hundreds of kilometers away, and then transport the power to the Island? Why not just place a dam on the Island, or better yet, TIDAL ENERGY! Come on Government show us how you can lead and make some sense for once!
Logan Anderson
Thank you daughter, for starting this site. Everytime I hear about the length of the agreement all I can think about is the last power deal we had with Quebec for thirty years. This time, Premier Dunderdale has taken a move from the Quebec government’s playbook. She and with the approval of Harper, is single-handedly going to be the signature on whatever agreement ‘the government’ is going to make. She is the one who needs to be removed. Her cronies need to be removed. Justice needs to be restored to the people. I don’t believe the Island itself needs all the power the PCs say we do. I find it hard to believe the dollar amount they are willing to spend to service the needs of 500,000+ people. Beyond that, the destruction of the environment is breaking our hearts. Already the trees and land have been raped by companies paid by the government to start building the damn thing even prior to any signed agreement. The PCs are dismissive of any notions of common good; thus, action must also focus on the individual leaders of the government who oversee the minister in charge. Names must be used to connect individual politicians to the agreement in order to remove them from office as soon as possible.
I totally agree with you. Dunderdale and her two merrymen should resign for pushing forward with such a project. The impact it is going to have on the environment in Labrador is going to be disasterous and these people could care less. They have ignored requests from Aboriginal groups to have a thorough environmenta impact study done before the project was sanctioned. This is discracful and disrespectful of the Aboriginal people of Labrador who rely on the land as a part of their livlihood. Totally wrong in all respects.
I am concerned that due democratic process is being sidelined with no debate in the House of Assembly. I fear that the taxpayers of Newfoundland & Labrador are going to be forced to foot the bill for the energy needs of privately owned/operated mining interests in Labrador.
Retired Business Person, current Writer and Artist, Happy Valley-Goose Bay, NL
Our environmental concerns are every bit as valid as the economic arguments. Long term our river is far more valuable in its natural state than destroying it for short term gain. The technology is out there to develop alternative energy sources to fulfill the markets demands. All it takes is political will.
Student, Cape Broyle, NL
I think the Upper Churchill project has done enough damage already to the watershed of the Churchill River. Developing the Lower Churchill is going beyond decency. We need to think about more than how to grow the economy and make more money. Greed is destroying this world. The Muskrat Falls project will make a few people rich and leave the world less beautiful. Is that the legacy we want to leave behind?
Small Business, Hickman’s Harbour, NL
Apart from the financial commitment that leaves the province essentially “house poor”. Despite the national and international markets that make such a sale of such power financially devastating. Without considering whether it is moral or not to burden your own people inter-generationally with a debt like this to subsidize mining operations in Labrador. Proceeding with Muskrat Falls without the people’s consent in a referendum is fundamentally wrong. Thank-you for putting this site out there.
Actor, St. John’s, NL
There is no reason why this province can’t learn from the mistakes it has made in the past when it comes to decimating species and their natural habitat. We have one of the most untouched, clean and sought after environments in Canada and the world. The forest on this island is one huge organism and we have tons and tons of fresh water. With the population increasing as exponentially as it is, we have a duty to protect and shepherd our resources so that they can sustain the people and animals that inhabit the island and the globe. The fresh water that will be poisoned by a dam the size of Muskrat Falls will inevitably leech into the ocean. There is no reason why we can’t be leaders and innovators in the field of environmental protection and symbiosis.
We have an opportunity to find new pathways, to chart a course whose main concern should be to conserve that which has not been altered; to take pause and look for solutions that will be beneficial for our future and not just cheaper at present. People have already learned what it means to destroy nature for their own means. Can we not, now, look for new solutions. I think we can and we should. We need a strong voice and a passionate individual to make our province a leader globally and nationally with it’s environmental partnership and innovative policies.
Actor, St. John’s, NL
The real risks associated with the development of the Lower Churchill, both economic and ecological, greatly outweigh the potential gains. I hope partisan shortsightedness does not affect our political thinking at such a critical juncture. If Progressive Conservatives are to live up to their name, they must first conserve energy, money and natural resources, rather than run headlong into the serious gamble that is embodied in the current development of Muskrat Falls.
Weather Station Manager and Respite Care Worker, Cartwright, NL
This is my home, my heritage, my culture. I don’t see the need to destroy the environment for money. My main reason for opposing this project: I have grandchildren. All people have the right to clean air, fresh water, and a sustainable environment. This is 2012. While the rest of the world is stopping the damming of rivers, our gov’t is going full speed ahead with no thought of what’s going to happen next.
Fish Plant Worker, Charolettown (Lab), NL
We need to stop this project just because it is so unnecessary…. much of upper churchill is still unused.
NL
This project is unnecessary: alternatives on the Island are cheaper, ie, gas, wind, and in the long run tidal. The power will be far too expensive: 17 – 24 cents pkh while Quebec Hydro comes in at 3 – 5.2 cents pkh. The transmission lines to the South and East will be susceptible to ice storms and heavy winds. The conversion from Ad to DC will make the energy even more expensive for Labrador communities and mining industries. And not least of all, the Government can’t seem to find a suitable justification for it, this keeps changing.
Brian Williams, Retired (Seasonal Construction Worker) and Fran Williams, Retired (Executive director of Okalakatiget Society), Nain, Nunatsiavut
We are against the project for the following reasons: Government and Nalcor have not proven the power is needed, nor the cost of project, nor who the customers will be other than consumers on the Island nor if it is indeed the least cost option. The days of large scale dams removed from major markets is past, why destroy such a beautiful legacy for future generations when there are other alternatives. Alternatives that have not been fully researched.
Singer/Songwriter, Goose Bay NL
I protest the development of Muskrat Falls for the same reason I write songs about Labrador. It’s the same reason I am a the Friend of the Eagle River and have performed in schools with them as they presented to Labrador Youth about the importance of keeping our rivers clean and protected! I love Labrador… EVERY PART of it, and I will protest anything that wants to destroy this wonderful and pristine place. It is my home.
Community Development Worker, Happy Valley-Goose Bay, NL
I oppose this this project on many levels. I am passionate about the environment and healthy development that sustains communities, respect for Aboriginals and locals most directly affected by this project – Labradorians. I believe our provincial governments have never worked to balance the inequalities between the mainland/island of the province. Killing a river and a complete ecosystem in this day and age is wrong! Our country should be advanced enough to come up with solutions that grow not destroy a region.
Artist and Educator, St. John’s, NL
We have to use the land wisely. IF we ruin it, it will not be able to help us or generations to come.
Actor/Historical Interpreter, St. Anthony, NL
The waters and habitats of the Grand River must be protected from destructive endeavors. Grand River is the 7th largest river in Canada and nourishes thousands of species, including humans.