Dominion Water Power Regulations (C.R.C., c. 1603)

Revision of Rentals After 20 Years

• 31 (1) Upon the expiry of the first 20-year period and every 10 years thereafter, the annual rental shall be subject to revision.

• (2) Six months prior to the termination of any 10-year period mentioned in subsection (1), where either the Minister or a licensee deems a revision of the rate of the annual rental per horsepower-year advisable, he may notify the other party to that effect, whereupon both parties shall endeavour to reach an agreement upon the rate for the succeeding 10-year period.

• (3) When agreement is not reached within 90 days after the receipt of the notification mentioned in subsection (2), the Minister may refer the matter to such board, commission or authority as may be created or designated by the Governor in Council for the purpose of considering such matter and reviewing the rentals.

• (4) The board, commission or authority referred to in subsection (3), when recommending the rentals to be charged, shall take into consideration the earning capacity of the plant, the supply of power available therefrom and from any other sources in the district, the average selling price of the power and any special conditions or circumstances affecting the plant.

• (5) The rental for each year of a 10-year period mentioned in subsection (1) shall be based on the actual station output for the year in horsepower-years at the turbine shaft as estimated by the Director and in the case of electrical plants the Director may use switchboard records or any other available data.

• (6) Where a licensee is engaged in the sale of power, an upward revision of the rate of the rental per horsepower-year may be made only if the upward revision does not make it impossible for the licensee to earn a fair rate of return on the actual cost of the physical properties used and useful in connection with the undertaking, and provides for the amortization of such costs, including interest, as may be necessary and legitimate for promoting and organizing the enterprise and providing capital otherwise than as included in the actual cost.

• (7) The costs that are to be amortized shall be fixed in the same manner and at the same time as the actual cost as set out in section 19.

• (8) The fair rate of return referred to in subsection (6) shall be considered as being cumulative from the date upon which the licensee first began the sale of power from the initial development.

Regulation of Public Utilities

• 32 (1) Where a board or commission is designated, under the authority of the Dominion Water Power Act, to regulate in a particular area the rates charged for electrical energy by licensees engaged in the sale, barter or exchange of hydro-electric energy, every such licensee shall immediately submit the schedule of rates under which he is then operating to the board or commission for adjustment and approval, and before putting into effect any new schedule of rates and prices to be charged to consumers for power, shall submit that schedule of rates for adjustment and approval, and no rates or prices for power shall be legal or enforceable until so submitted.

• (2) The board or commission referred to in subsection (1) may, on the complaint of any affected party or on its own initiative, require the submission or the resubmission at any time of existing schedules of rates and prices for adjustment and approval, but the rates and prices, when once adjusted or approved in accordance with this section, shall thereafter not be again revised within a period of five years, except by mutual consent of the revising authority and a licensee, and the rates charged by any licensee shall not be reduced under this section so as to make it impossible for the licensee to earn a cumulative fair rate of return in accordance with the provisions of subsections 31(6), (7) and (8).

• (3) Every licensee shall abide by and comply with such reasonable regulation and control of the service rendered and to be rendered by him to consumers of power furnished or transmitted in virtue of his licence as may be prescribed from time to time by the board or commission referred to in subsection (1), and shall also abide by and comply with any orders of the board or commission in respect of stock and bond issues.

• (4) The board or commission referred to in subsection (1) may

  • (a) ascertain and determine from time to time and by order fix the proper and adequate rates of depreciation on the several classes of property used or useful in connection with the undertaking of any licensee, and the licensee shall set aside out of earnings and place in separately invested depreciation reserves such amounts as will conform to the rates so ascertained, determined and fixed; and

  • (b) specify the purpose for which and the manner in which depreciation reserves and the income arising from the investment thereof are to be expended.

• (5) Until the commission or board referred to in subsection (1) is designated to act in any particular area, the powers of regulation and control set out in this section may be exercised by the Minister.

Limited Rights in Lands

• 33 (1) Every licence shall be valid or effective to authorize the entry upon or use or occupation of any public lands only in such manner and to such extent and for such length of time as may be necessary for the purpose of constructing, maintaining and operating the works authorized to be constructed, maintained and operated under such licence.

• (2) Where, in the opinion of the Minister, continued or further entry upon or the use or occupation of public lands in whole or in part for the purposes referred to in subsection (1) becomes unnecessary, because of their non-use or abandonment or for any other reason, the Minister shall give the licensee written notice of the contemplated withdrawal of those lands and his reasons therefor, and the lands may thereupon be withdrawn in whole or in part from the operation of the licence.

• 34 (1) Public lands required only for the purpose of flooding those lands, whether in connection with a storage reservoir or for regulating the flow of a stream or otherwise, shall be set out in the interim or final licence separately from the lands required for other purposes, and no licence shall be valid to convey any further use of the lands than the right of flooding in such manner and to such extent and at such times as may be required for the purposes of the undertaking.

• (2) Where, in the opinion of the Minister, the rights of the licensee are not thereby prejudicially interfered with, every grant of a right to flood public lands in connection with any undertaking is subject to the right of Her Majesty to grant additional liberty or privilege to any person for any purpose or in any manner to enter upon, use or occupy those lands.

• (3) Every licensee shall, to the satisfaction of the Minister, clear and keep clear from timber, brush and other material, all lands which are to be flooded.

• (4) No licensee shall fence or otherwise enclose any flooded public lands except with the consent of the Minister in writing.

• 35 (1) Lands forming part of the bed of any stream, the use or occupation of which is required for the site of authorized works, or for the construction or the operation thereof, shall be set out in a licence separately from lands required for other purposes, and no licence conveys any exclusive right in or to the use or occupancy of such land, or any further right than may be required from time to time for the actual construction and operation of the works.

• (2) Every grant of a right to use or occupy any public lands forming part of the bed of any stream is subject to the right of Her Majesty to grant additional liberty or privilege to any person for any purpose or in any manner to enter upon, use or occupy those lands, but

  • (a) the rights of the licensee shall not be prejudicially interfered with by any such grant; and

  • (b) the Minister shall give the licensee notice of his intention to grant such additional liberty or privilege, and an opportunity of being heard.

• 36 (1) When a narrow strip only of public lands is required solely for the rights-of-way for transmission lines, for water conduits or for similar purposes, and the lands are located within the agreed upon severance line, they shall be set out in the licence separately from lands required for other purposes, and the licensee shall not acquire under any licence any rights to the use or occupation of any such lands further than, in the opinion of the Minister, are required from time to time for the purpose of constructing, maintaining and operating such transmission lines or water conduits or for otherwise carrying out the purposes specified in the licence, and every such right is subject to the right of Her Majesty to grant additional liberty or privilege to any person for any purpose or in any manner to enter upon, use or occupy the lands; but the rights of the licensee shall not be prejudicially interfered with by any such subsequent grant, and the Minister shall give the licensee notice of his intention to make such grant and an opportunity of being heard.

• (2) When the narrow strip of land referred to in subsection (1) is located outside the severance line agreed upon, the lands may be granted to the licensee by licence of occupation or in such fee as the Minister may determine but, where the undertaking or works of the licensee are taken over in pursuance of these Regulations or of the Dominion Water Power Act, the licensee is not entitled to receive an amount of compensation for the rights-of-way greater than the amount that would be established in accordance with paragraph 29(b).

Care of Lands

• 37 (1) A licensee shall at all times maintain the lands, works and property held or used by him in respect of his licence in a manner satisfactory to the Director, including the maintaining of all flooded or other areas in a sanitary condition and including the improvement of the lands occupied from the point of view of landscape architecture, and shall do all in his power to protect the lands and the interests of the Crown therein against injury by any one engaged on or about his works, or by any person whomsoever.

• (2) Every interim or final licensee shall do everything reasonable within his power, both independently and on request by the Director, to prevent and suppress fires on or near the lands to be occupied under his licence.

• (3) For the purpose of limiting the spread of fires or for other reasonable purposes, every licensee shall clear and keep clear the public lands along his transmission lines for such width and in such manner as the Director may require.

• (4) Every licensee shall, to the satisfaction of the Director, dispose of all brush, refuse or unused timber on public lands resulting from the construction and maintenance of the works, and shall keep the lands covered by his licence at all times clear of unnecessary combustible material.

38 The Minister, the Director, or any person authorized by either may, at all reasonable times during the continuance of any licence, enter upon the public lands covered by such licence to examine the condition thereof.

39 Every licensee shall protect all telephone, telegraph and power transmission lines in existence prior to the construction of his own lines, where crossed by or in close proximity thereto, to the satisfaction of the Director or competent provincial authority, if any, and shall operate, maintain and render safe to the public his own transmission, telephone, and other lines to the satisfaction of the Director or the provincial authority, if any.

Approval of Buildings

• 40 (1) Subject to subsection (2), an interim or final licensee shall not erect any buildings or structures upon any public lands without first submitting plans thereof to the Director and securing his approval for such building or structure and the site thereof.

• (2) Any temporary buildings or structures required in cases of emergency to facilitate the work of construction and erected without permission shall be entirely removed to the satisfaction of the Director as soon as the necessity ceases or within one month of receiving written notice from the Director.

41 No roads, trails, telephone lines, buildings or other improvements, the property of the Crown in right of Canada, shall be removed, altered or in any way affected by a licensee in the construction or operation of his works without the Minister’s consent in writing having been first obtained, and upon such conditions as the Minister by such writing may impose, and the Minister, if he deems it necessary, may require the licensee to furnish a bond for the satisfactory carrying out of the provisions of this section.

42 Any lands desired by a licensee for subdivision for townsite or other purposes shall be set out in the application and licence separately from lands required for other purposes connected with the undertaking, and the promotion of any such townsite is subject to the approval of the Minister and to such conditions in respect of town-planning, landscape architecture and sanitation as the Minister may impose.

43 Every interim or final licensee shall pay such sums by way of stumpage and royalty for any merchantable timber cut or removed from any public lands as may be fixed by the regulations governing the granting of yearly licences and permits to cut timber on those lands.

Works, Plant and Equipment

• 44 (1) A licensee shall

  • (a) install and use first-class, modern, standard works, plant and equipment, giving consideration to requisite suitability of design, safety, strength, durability, efficiency and all other relevant factors;

  • (b) maintain the works, plant and equipment in good repair and condition; and

  • (c) exercise all due skill and diligence to secure the satisfactory operation of the works, plant and equipment.

• (2) The Minister may give the licensee written instruction concerning the carrying out of subsection (1).

• 45 (1) The Minister, the Director, or any person appointed by either for the purpose, shall have free access to all parts of the works, lands and properties of the licensee and to all books, plans, records or accounts used in connection with or affecting any licence or undertaking, and may from time to time make measurements and observations and take such other steps for carrying out any inquiry that may be considered necessary or expedient in the administration of these Regulations.

• (2) The decision of the Director in respect of the quantity of water diverted, used or stored, or capable of being diverted, used or stored, or the amount of power developed or capable of being developed under the authority of any licence, is conclusive and binding upon the licensee.

46 A licensee, before making any material change in any existing works or in their location, shall submit a complete and satisfactory statement and plans of such proposed change to the Director, and shall not proceed to make the proposed change until it has been authorized.

47 The Director may require any licensee to install and maintain in good operating condition at such places and in such manner as the Director approves, accurate meters, measuring weirs, gauges or other approved devices which shall be adequate for determining the amount of water used or power developed in the operation of the works, for determining the flow of the stream or streams from which water is or will be diverted, and for determining the amount of water held in or drawn from storage, and the licensee shall keep accurate and satisfactory records of the foregoing determinations and shall from time to time make such returns, supported if necessary by statutory declaration, as the Director may require.

48 Where, in the opinion of the Minister, a licensee has not developed the amount of power for which there is a public demand and which could be reasonably developed from the flow of water granted under his licence or controlled by him, the Minister may order the licensee to develop and render available for public use the additional amount of power for which there is, in his opinion, a public demand, up to the full extent possible from the amount of water granted under the licence or controlled by the licensee and within a period to be fixed by the Minister, which period shall be not less than two years after the licensee or the person in charge of the existing works is notified of the order.

Securing Enlarged Development

• 49 (1) Where, in the opinion of the Minister, it appears feasible to establish an enlarged or more comprehensive development of the water-power in any stream at or near the side occupied by a licensee that will supersede the existing development of the licensee, the Minister may hold a hearing thereon.

• (2) The licensee and all other interested parties shall be given not less than 60 days notice of the hearing referred to in subsection (1), and an opportunity of being heard.

• (3) Where the Minister considers an enlarged or more comprehensive development of water-power referred to in subsection (1) to be in the public interest, he may offer the licensee a new interim licence for the carrying out of the enlarged or more comprehensive development.

• (4) The interim licence offered under subsection (3) shall in every case be subject to the regulations then in force, but in granting the interim licence due consideration shall be given to the existing net earnings of the licensee and to the net earnings likely to be derived from the enlarged or more comprehensive development.

• (5) Where, within 12 months after the offer of a licence is made under subsection (3), the licensee fails to accept the offer and in good faith to begin and carry on to completion the enlarged or more comprehensive development, the Minister may, subject to approval by the Governor in Council, order the existing licence terminated.

• (6) Where, pursuant to subsection (5), the Minister orders an existing licence terminated, the respective rights of Her Majesty and the licensee in the lands, works and properties connected with the undertaking are the same as those set out in section 28; except that the Minister, in determining the compensation to be paid to the licensee may add such bonus or additional bonus to the amount payable according to section 28, as will in the opinion of the Minister, be proper under the particular circumstances of the case, not to exceed, however, three-quarters of one per cent of the amount payable under section 28 for each full year of the unexpired term of the licence, and not to be less than five per cent of that amount.

• (7) Where more than one existing plant or site is affected by the enlarged or more comprehensive development, the Minister may receive proposals from all the licensees or occupants of those sites for carrying out the proposed new development and to offer to each in turn, selecting first that one whose proposal appears to be most in the public interest, or to all conjointly, an interim licence, subject to the regulations then in force, for the carrying out of the proposed new development.

• (8) Where a licence is granted pursuant to subsection (7), the existing licences shall be terminated in the same manner and having the same effect, and providing for compensation to the same extent as in the case where the rights of only one existing licensee are affected as set out in subsection (6).

• (9) Where, within the time specified, each of the licensees mentioned in subsection (7) in turn fails to accept the offer of a new licence and to begin and to carry on to completion the proposed new works, the Minister, subject to approval by the Governor in Council, may order all the licences terminated in the same manner and having the same effect, and providing for compensation to the same extent as set out in subsection (6).