HISTORY

The Whatshan development has undergone three major transformations since 1951 when it was first built by the British Columbia Power Commission to provide electricity to the Okanagan and the Upper Arrow Lakes in 1951. In 1953 the powerhouse was destroyed after a rock and mud slide roared down the mountainside. The powerhouse was rebuilt soon after only to have to be rebuilt again a few metres higher to avoid being flooded after the completion of the Hugh Keenleyside Dam in 1968.

The powerhouse is located on the western bank of the Lower Arrow Lake Reservoir in the Monashee Mountain Range and generates power from Whatshan Lake and its tributaries. It contains one generator and receives the water from the reservoir through a 3.4 kilometre long tunnel. On Whatshan Lake the 12 metre (39 foot) dam, power intake and saddle dam are located at the southern end of the 17 kilometre long reservoir.