West Kootenay Power - Bonnington Falls, BC
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T0SHEA
N 49° 27.776 W 117° 30.211
11U E 463514 N 5479041
This BC Heritage Marker was placed in 1966 by Tourism BC at the observation pullout for the Lower Bonnington Dam along Highway 3/6.
Waymark Code: WMH9BT
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 06/10/2013
Views: 4
West Kootenay Power, owned by Cominco shortly after its beginning was formed first to supply power to the mines at Rossland, BC. Cominco purchased the company to ensure a reliable source of electricity for its smelter operation at Trail, BC, then proceeded to build ever more dams and powerhouses as demand increased.
At the time that the first powerhouse, at Lower Bonnington Falls, came into operation in 1898, the 32 mile long transmission lines running to Rossland, at 22,000 volts, were the longest and highest voltage lines known.
17 km. downstream from Nelson, the first dam at this site, of rock filled wood crib construction, was in use until being replaced with a concrete dam in 1924. The new dam housed three turbines capable of producing 66 MW of power.
From the plaque:
WEST KOOTENAY POWER
When hydro-electric power was first delivered from No.1 Plant to Rossland's mines in 1898, the 32-mile transmission lines were the longest on the continent. Utilizing the 360-foot drop from Kootenay Lake to the Columbia River, additional construction of dams and generating plants made possible the growth of Cominco operations at Trail and Kimberley.