The true cost of hydroelectric power

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 19/07/2025 (251 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The July 15 Free Press article about the proposed Manitoba Hydro rate hikes of 3.5 per cent per year for the next 15 years (Hydro embarks on $7-billion overhaul of two main transmission lines) describes the need to increase rates in order to reliably serve customers and businesses. This news story focused on the equipment and infrastructure upgrades needed in the next couple decades, but there are factors besides the rates customers pay monthly that we also need to consider when we talk about Manitoba Hydro.

Hydroelectric power is touted as a “green” renewable energy resource. This assertion fails to take into account the huge environmental impact of harnessing the energy of water. The infrastructure required to generate electricity in this way involves destruction and irreversible damage to our environment. It’s time to evolve and expand our conversations about energy because, like so many things in our climate-changed world, there are no simple or easy solutions.

Our treaties promised Indigenous communities the ability to maintain their way of life. The destruction and devastation colonialism has inflicted upon Indigenous people is too great to list here in the level of detail that might do justice to the topic. But, here are a few well-documented examples related to Manitoba Hydro development specifically:

South Indian Lake experienced the destruction of their successful commercial fishery due to flooding and the erosion of the land. Land erosion is still happening here and elsewhere in the province due to the altered waterways. This erosion carries a steady stream of mercury into Manitoba’s waters.

The Churchill River Diversion had a significant impact affecting hunting, fishing, trapping and sacred sites for the Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation.

At Cross Lake, water levels change unpredictably, resulting in dangerous ice conditions for community members including fatalities at Pimicikamak Cree Nation. The water freezes but then drops lower due to Manitoba Hydro operations, creating thin ice with a hollow drop below that an ATV or snowmobile might fall through.

Flooding at Grand Rapids in the 1960s resulted in the permanent displacement of entire communities, such as the relocation of the Chemawawin Cree Nation to Easterville. There are, in fact, no longer rapids at Grand Rapids due to this flood which was caused by the construction of the dam.

These are just a few of the consequences that have affected communities and individuals in hydro-affected regions. It has also been documented that social problems including sexual assaults go up when hydro construction projects enter a region.

Manitoba Hydro’s footprint has left deep, lasting scars across northern and Indigenous communities. Ongoing effects include land erosion that contributes to surprisingly high carbon emissions. Additionally, the mercury entering the water from erosion may return to lower levels after three or four decades, but bio-accumulation in fish can remain at dangerously high levels for much longer than that.

If we plan to continue on this path for our energy needs we must mitigate these risks and compensate those who can no longer live safely and peacefully in their communities because of Manitoba Hydro. The relationships between Manitoba Hydro, affected communities, and the beneficiaries (consumers) of the utility’s assets needs to continually improve. Manitoba Hydro now has policies, procedures, and agreements in place to try to mitigate environmental risks and consult with communities affected by hydro development. We need more of this, and we need relations beyond legal obligations. Still, many effects can never be reversed.

If we don’t appreciate the real cost of the resources we are using now, we are only pushing bigger problems down to future generations.

Rate hikes have varied over the years and a 3.5 per cent increase is not unprecedented, but should this level of increase continue for 15 straight years, that will be a steep climb that will impact household budgets at a time when many of us are already feeling the squeeze of inflation across household expenses. Even with the proposed increases we will likely maintain lower rates than our neighbours in other provinces.

Manitoba Hydro also exports electricity outside of Manitoba. Premier Wab Kinew recently redirected 500 megawatts of electricity from the U.S. to Canadian markets by letting two U.S. contracts expire. Still, Manitoba Hydro will sell around 20-30 per cent of their output to the United States. Prices fluctuate with the market but, when possible, Manitoba Hydro should sell this resource at top dollar. I don’t think any of us want to be subsidizing the energy use of our neighbours south of the border.

We benefit from Manitoba Hydro. As with so many facets of having settled here, we need to reflect on these benefits so we can find ways to live ethically and responsibly. This includes holding ourselves and our institutions accountable to promises made in treaty.

Manitoba Hydro is already known throughout the energy world for its innovation in transporting electricity long distances. With the right decisions we could also become known for innovation in sustainable development and Indigenous relations.

I would pay more to support good work we can be proud of.

Emilie St-Hilaire is a settler in Winnipeg.