News Release
Joint Review Panel for Proposed Site C Project -
Notice of Hearing

OTTAWA – November 7, 2013 – The Joint Review Panel reviewing the proposed Site C Clean Energy Project in British Columbia announced today that the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) along with the additional information submitted by the proponent BC Hydro contain sufficient information to proceed to the public hearing. The public hearing will begin with an opening session in Fort St. John, B.C. on December 9, 2013 and will be completed in January 2014.

The Public Hearing

All hearing sessions are open to members of the public wishing to observe the proceedings. The primary purpose of the hearing is for the Panel to receive the information it requires to complete its environmental assessment of the project. The hearing will also give the proponent, the public, Aboriginal groups, and governments, an opportunity to present their views in person to the Panel on the project and its potential environmental, economic, social, heritage and health effects.

The Panel will hold public hearing sessions in Fort St. John, Hudson's Hope, Prince George, Chetwynd, Dawson Creek and Peace River as indicated in the preliminary schedule and as follows:

• General hearing sessions will provide an opportunity for registered participants to present their overall views on the project and its potential effects. The first general session will be held in December 2013.
• Topic-Specific hearing sessions will allow interested parties and experts who possess specialized knowledge to present technical information relevant to the environmental assessment of the project. The first topic-specific session will be held in December 2013 and subsequent sessions in January 2014.
• Community hearing sessions will be held in selected Aboriginal communities to allow community members to express their views and present their information and issues to the Panel in an informal setting. The first community session will be held in December 2013.

How to Participate

The Panel will conduct the hearing in accordance with its Public Hearing Procedures. For all hearing sessions, the Panel invites persons who wish to participate in the hearing, to register as soon as possible using the registration form.

For the General and Community sessions, participants may make an oral presentation or file a written submission or both. At the Topic-Specific sessions, oral presentations by Interested Parties must be accompanied by a written submission.

For all hearing sessions, any written submissions must be submitted to the Panel by November 25, 2013.  The Panel will soon provide a more detailed hearing schedule, including specific locations for the hearing sessions.

To register, file a submission for the hearing sessions and schedule a presentation, contact either Panel Co-Manager:

Courtney Trevis, Panel Co-Manager
Site C Review Panel Secretariat
160 Elgin Street, 22nd Floor
Ottawa ON K1A 0H3
Tel.: 613-960-0286
Toll free: 1-866-582-1884
Fax: 613-957-0935
Email: SiteCReview@ceaa-acee.gc.ca

Brian Murphy, Panel Co-Manager
Site C Review Panel Secretariat
2nd Floor, 836 Yates St.
PO Box 9426
Stn Prov Govt
Victoria BC V8W 9V1
Tel.: 250- 387-2402
Email: brian.murphy@gov.bc.ca

Following the close of the public hearing, the Panel will submit its report to the federal Minister of the Environment and the Executive Director of the British Columbia Environmental Assessment Office.

To view the preliminary Public Hearing Schedule, the registration form, the Hearing Procedures or the sufficiency determination letter, consult the Canadian Environmental Assessment Registry, reference number 63919, or the Electronic Project Information Centre at www.eao.gov.bc.ca . All submissions received will be considered public and posted on the online public registries.

To be added to the distribution list and be kept informed of activities relating to the panel review process, provide contact information to: SiteCReview@ceaa-acee.gc.ca .

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Media may contact:

Lucille Jamault
Site C Joint Review Panel
Tel.: 613-957-0434
Lucille.Jamault@ceaa.gc.ca