Closure of Site C workers camp fast approaches as future of structures remains uncertain

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The Site C workers camp is due to close imminently. 

With BC Hydro’s hydroelectric dam on the Peace River completed and fully operational last summer, the workers camp adjacent to the project is set to close on March 31st.

That’s according to Bob Gammer, community relations coordinator with BC Hydro, who told Energeticcity.ca the project was in its 11th year and the workers camp was always intended to be temporary.

“Work to build the facility is now winding down – much of the remaining activity on site includes reclamation, diversion tunnel backfilling and road paving,” said Gammer in a statement. 

He explained with the work essentially complete, less than 100 workers currently stay at the camp overnight.

Workers on the project will stay in hotels starting on April 1st, he said. 

The future of the camp remains uncertain, after controversy last year over the possibility the buildings would end up in landfill, which include 21 three-story dorm units, 39 three-story corridors, 131 kitchen, dining and recreation units, 24 modular offices, a fitness building, a gymnasium and a theatre.

At the time, the North Wind Wellness Centre was looking to renovate the site into a mental health and addictions centre.

Gammer added: “Our priority for the Site C camp after closure remains repurposing as many assets as possible at another location and minimizing waste.

“We remain confident that we will be able to achieve this.”

The Site C project had as many as 5,000-plus workers on site during construction, according to a 2023 article by the Coast Reporter.