Working Hard to Safeguard Paddling Assets for All Canadians

All about Whitewater

All about Whitewater
A Blog about River Preservation and the need to protect our free flowing whitewater resources

Monday, June 25, 2012

President's Notes from the 26th annual Kipawa River Rally

68 registered registered guests/paddlers and an indeterminent number of rafters gathered at the Kipawa River over the past weekend.

Many people had arrived on Thursday, making arrangements with Scott Sorensen for accommodation. Friday night was the official kickoff. The evening was kicked of by the arrival of a water bomber and helicopter due to the sighting of a lightning strike fire just south of  Island Rapid.


Felix Martel from the Montreal Kayak Club was in the chopper doing supply and spotting work for the blaze.

Watching the DeHaviland Bombers scoop up water from Lake Temiskaming was pretty spectacular.


The AGM was held: The quorum was present with sufficient notice of the meeting.

Present: Brian Hart, Larry Wong, Sandra Kiviaho, Wendy Sladen, Erwin Allen, Rich Weiler, Jim Coffey, Ty Smith, Todd Weiler, Peter Karwacki, Jacek Luc, Shaunna Neil -Martin, Graham Kent, Jeremy Poulin, Bruce Samhaber, Pat and Scott Sorensen  Regrets: Francois Diebolt, Rick Issacson.

Peter Karwacki called for Les Amis to develop more baseline data about the health of the River.

The presidents report was accepted as presented: Moved by Karwacki, Seconded by W. Sladen

The treasurer's report was included in the President's report.

Elections were held for the coming year: Results
Peter Karwacki - President - acclaimed
Rick Issacson -Vice President - acclaimed
Francois Diebolt - Treasurer - acclaimed
Membership Chair/Secretary - Shauna Neil-Martin - acclaimed

Rally Coordinator position and River Preservation positions are currently vacant.

Discussion:

Sales of merchandise on website probably not worth it.
New T-shirts are planned for the 27th annual rally.
Scott Sorensen advised that the native bands currently are in opposition to Opemican Park. The local population in Temiskaming Sud seem more interested in maintaining their traditional ability to Quad, Fish, Hunt and Snowmobile unfettered. The Innergex Project itself is on shaky ground due to the plans by Tembec to burn its wood refuse and create biomass power.

Upon completion of the AGM, Fireworks in celebration of the shelving of the Tabaret Project were held.
Antoine Stab attended the Rally for Espace Magazine/Adventrua Magazine
Ty Smith, MSc in River Management offered his support.

Jim Coffey said that the region had experienced some victories lately, the Kipawa over Tabaret, the Dumoine over its power projects, Calumet Island over uranium mining and the Petawawa over Xeneca. River advocacy is alive and well within the region. The fact that Tabaret has been shelved by Hydro Quebec may be parallel rather than a result of Les Amis's actions but he added: "a win... is still a win".

CEHQ is now the central contact point for water release requests. There was some discussion about the impact on fish when releases occur.  Fish don't respond well to fluctuating levels.

 
"its not my dog"

The Top Ten Things to Remember when attending the Kipawa River Rally!

1. Your gear and equipment - you are in the backwoods - come prepared
2. Park as far off the access road as possible to eliminate congestion
3. Leave your dog at home
4. Bring cans - not bottles, pack out what you can, and definitely pick up trash and refuse anywhere you see it.
5. You pay $20 per night per person whether tent or cabin, You pay for the fish dinner at the door $20
6. Keep your clothes on or be heckled.
7. Registration is important sign the waivers- you become a member of LARK for $10, and support its river preservation efforts - bring some $10 dollar bills
8. Don't drive down the hill if the road is wet
9. Bring your musical instruments, and prepare your act for a noisy crowd ( no "dust in the wind!" crowd)
10. Buy beer, and snacks at the laniel Depaneur, Have fun, paddle safe


Raucus Crown in the new expanded boathouse. By Saturday night the tunes were in French and in English, and we went well into the night in great conviviality.

Financial Results:
Kipawa River Rally 2012
Net proceeds  $  1,463.11

Will be applied to river preservation efforts:
Future projects may include:
New Shirts/Tshirts
New Banner
Acquisition of Hydro Quebec baseline data
Student plant and animal baseline studies

Rally Water Levels 2012
as per the guage we had peak flows of 120 cms for 8 to 12 hours a day.


Kipawa gauge: http://www.cehq.gouv.qc.ca/suivihydro/graphique.asp?NoStation=042610

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Canadian Rivers

Canadian Rivers
I speak for river users too!

The Queen is not amused!

The Queen is not amused!
http://www.ispeakforcanadianrivers.ca/

The Damned Dam - 2005 -

The Damned Dam - 2005 -
22nd Annual Kipaw Rally has modest turnout. - 23rd does better

The Ashlu river: it could happen to you

The Ashlu river: it could happen to you

Whitewater Ontario

Whitewater Ontario
Working Hard to Protect Canada's Paddling Resources

Whitewater Ontario - Mission Statement

It is Whitewater Ontario’s mission to support the whitewater paddling community through the promotion, development and growth of the sport in its various disciplines. We accomplish this through the development of events, resources, clubs, and programs for personal and athletic development, regardless of skill level or focus, to ensure a high standard of safety and competency; We advocate safe and environmentally responsible access and use of Ontario’s rivers. Whitewater Ontario is the sport governing body in the province, and represents provincial interests within the national body Whitewater Canada and the Canadian Canoe Association http://www.whitewaterontario.ca/page/mission.asp

Kipawa, Tabaret, and Opemican

Kipawa, Tabaret, and Opemican
If Hydro Quebec is not actively pursuing Tabaret what is that bite out of Opemican for?

Kipawa Dam: After

Kipawa Dam: After
Laniel Dam at 2006 Rally

Where is the Kipawa

Where is the Kipawa
Kipawa flows into lake Temiskamingue, running from Kipawa Lake, under hwy 101 in Quebec

Kipawa Dam

Kipawa Dam
laniel dam at 2004 River Rally

Tabaret is a Bad Idea

About the Kipawa



The best thing paddlers can do to help the cause of the Kipawa:

1. attend the rally and bring others including non paddlers to attend and buy beer and have fun

2. write your MP /MNA and raise the issue and post your objections -1 letter = 200 who didn't write

3. Write Thierry Vandal the CEO of Hydro Quebec strongly opposing the 132 MW standard decrying the use of "diversion" as the most environmentally inappropriate method of power production

4. Write Jean Charest, Premier of Quebec protesting that either the algonquin or the tabaret project will eliminate all other values on the Kipawa River by turning it into a dry gulch.

5. See if you can get other allied groups interested by showing your own interest, ie the Sierra Defense Fund, Earthwild, MEC, and so on.

6. Demand further consultation

7. Currently we are at the point where we need to sway public opinion and raise awareness.

However, if all else fails, don't get mad, simply disrupt, foment, and protest . The Monkey Wrench Gang.

Have you read Edward Abbey?

Important Addresses
CEO,Hydro Québec, 75 boul René Levesque, Montreal, P.Q., H2Z 1A4Caille.andre@hydro.qc.ca



Tabaret is a Bad Idea (Part Two)

Les Amis de la Riviere Kipawa is poised to use an application to the Federal Court to issue a Writ of Mandamus to ensure the Minster does what he is supposed to do, protect the public's right to navigate the water control structure at Laniel, Quebec using the Navigable Waters Protection Act. (see http://www.kipawariver.ca/)

In the now gutted Navigable Waters Protection Act lay the means by which the Minister of Transport could keep the public right of passage down our great Canadian Heritage, our rivers and streams which are threatened especially by resource corporations and power brokers such as Hydro Quebec.

These powerful entities continue to petition that 'this' river or 'that' stream is not navigable and therefore not protectable.
I don't say that dams and bridges should not be built, only that if they are, historical navigation rights should be considered and preserved by making reasonable accommodations for recreational boaters.

It is the Minister of Transport, in exercising the right to allow or disallow work on or over a navigable waterway is what keeps boats and recreational boaters plying our waterways.

To many recent cases launched in the Federal Court concerning the Navigable Waters Protection Act, most recently the case of the Humber Environment Group of Cornerbrook Newfoundland versus the Cornerbrook Pulp and Paper Company indicates that the important oversight is not being faithfully performed. Have we really come to the point now where we must say "such and such a stream is one foot deep, possessing so many cubic feet per second flow and so on?" The answer to this is... YES!

The honourable Mr. Justice John A. O'Keefe, ruled that it had not been shown that the river was navigable. How convenient was that to the Minister? But either the Minister of Transport acts to protect our rivers and streams as a public right or he does not and that means rivers and streams currently enjoyed by kayakers and canoists.

Enough of the cheating, and double-talk. Canadians! our rivers and streams are our own, lets urge the Minister of Transport and the our government to protect them.

Peter Karwacki

Tabaret is a Bad Idea (Part Three)

10 Reasons WhyTabaret is a Bad Idea1) Tabaret is too big. The station is designed to useevery drop of water available in the Kipawawatershed, but will run at only 44 percent capacity.We believe the Tabaret station is designed to usewater diverted from the Dumoine River into theKipawa watershed in the future. 2) The Tabaret project will eliminate the aquaticecosystem of the Kipawa River.The Tabaret project plan involves the diversion of a16-km section of the Kipawa River from its naturalstreambed into a new man-made outflow from LakeKipawa. 3) Tabaret will leave a large industrial footprint on thelandscape that will impact existing tourismoperations and eliminate future tourism potential. 4) The Tabaret project is an aggressive single-purposedevelopment, designed to maximize powergeneration at the expense of all other uses. 5) River-diversion, such as the Tabaret project, takinglarge amounts of water out of a river’s naturalstreambed and moving it to another place, is verydestructive to the natural environment. 6) The Kipawa River has been designated a protectedgreenspace in the region with severe limitations ondevelopment. This designation recognizes theecological, historical and natural heritage value ofthe river and the importance of protecting it.Tabaret will eliminate that value. 7) If necessary, there are other, smarter and morereasonable options for producing hydro power onthe Kipawa watershed. It is possible to build a lowimpactgenerating station on the Kipawa river, andmanage it as a “run-of-the-river” station, makinguse of natural flows while maintaining other values,with minimal impact on the environment. 8) The Kipawa watershed is a rich natural resource forthe Temiscaming Region, resonably close to largeurban areas, with huge untapped potential fortourism and recreation development in the future.Tabaret will severely reduce this potential. 9) Tabaret provides zero long-term economic benefitfor the region through employment. The plan is forthe station to be completely automated andremotely operated. 10) The Kipawa River is 12,000 years old. The riverwas here thousands of years before any peoplecame to the region. The Tabaret project will change all that.

Problems on a local River?

  • There is more to do as well but you have to do your research and above all, don't give up.
  • IN the meantime prepared a document itemizing the history of navigation of this spot and its recreational value. Use the Kipawa river history of navigation as a guide: see www.kipawariver.ca
  • Under the Ministry of Environment guidelines you have a set period of time to petition the change under the environmental bill of rights, you may have limited time to take this action. But it involves going to court for a judicial review of the decision.
  • 4. contact the ministry of natural resources officials and do the same thing.
  • 3. contact the ministry of the environment and determine if they approved the project
  • 2. determine if the dam was a legal dam, approved under the navigable waters protection act.
  • 1. research the decision and timing of it to determine if an environmental assessment was done.

Minden Ontario

Minden Ontario
Gull River Water control at Horseshoe lake

A History of Navigation on the Kipawa River

http://www3.sympatico.ca/kayaky/comrechist.pdf

Prior to the environmental assessment there was no signage at the Laniel Dam

http://www3.sympatico.ca/kayaky/barrage.pdf

T-Shirts Area: These are available now!

T-Shirts Area: These are available now!
Send $25 and a stamped self addressed envelop for the Tshirt, and for the bumper sticker, a stamped and self addressed envelope with $5.00 for the bumper sticker to Les Amis de la rivière Kipawa, 80 Ontario St., Ottawa, Ontario, K1K 1K9 or click the link To purchase a Les Amis "T" contact Doug with the following information: Number of shirts:Sizes: Ship to Address: Method of Payment: cash, cheque and paypal, Shipto address:

Bumper Stickers Now Available

Bumper Stickers Now Available
Get your bumper sticker and show your support for the Kipawa Legal Fund ! - send $5.00 in a Stamped, self addressed envelope to: Peter Karwacki Box 39111, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1H 7X0