The Peace Agricultural Compensation Fund Board is comprised of 10 members — six members that are appointees of regional agricultural organizations or the Peace River Regional District (PRRD), three members-at-large, and one member who is a Peace River Valley agricultural producer.
In February 2018, BC Hydro invited the PRRD and Peace River agricultural organizations to identify their appointees to the board. The six appointees identified by their organizations are:
- BC Grain Producers Association – Rick Kantz
- Peace River Forage Association of BC – Heather Fossum
- Peace River Regional Cattlemen’s Association – Howard Goertz
- BC Breeder and Feeder Association – Connie Patterson
- Peace Region Forage Seed Association – Blair Hill
- PRRD Board – Angela Watson
In February 2018, BC Hydro also issued a call for members-at-large who are agricultural producers in the B.C. Peace Region, and for a Peace River Valley agricultural producer with operations located between the Site C dam site and Hudson’s Hope.
At the first board meeting on May 9, 2018, the six members who are appointees from regional agricultural organizations or the PRRD selected the three members-at-large, and the Peace River Valley agricultural producer, from among the individuals who put their names forward, appointing:
- Gene Gladysz, member-at-large (one-year term)
- Travis Winnicky, member-at-large (two-year term)
- Malcolm Odermatt, member-at-large (three-year term)
- Colin Meek, Peace River Valley agricultural producer (two-year term)
The three members-at-large are all agricultural producers in the B.C. Peace Region and were appointed for different length terms, to ensure that one member-at-large position is open each year.
The $20-million Peace Agricultural Compensation Fund is a key component of the Site C project Agriculture Mitigation and Compensation Plan (ACMP). The ACMP was developed as part of the environmental approvals for the Site C project, and is required under the project’s Environmental Assessment Certificate.
The ACMP was developed in collaboration with BC Hydro, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, agricultural producer groups, landowners and tenure holders.
To learn more about the Peace Agricultural Compensation Fund visit: https://www.sitecproject.com/agfund
Office of the Premier
