The provincial government wants B.C. to be a clean energy powerhouse for North America, and Premier Gordon Campbell has encouraged independent power producers to harness the potential of B.C.'s rivers.

But while so-called run-of-river projects have been touted as being 'green,' some critics say the hydroelectric projects don't come without some environmental costs.

Nowhere has this debate been more prominent than in the Bute Inlet -- a remote fjord at the north end of the Strait of Georgia that is home to grizzlies and salmon. Some locals like to call it "Canada's Himalaya."

Plutonic Power Corp. and GE Energy Financial Services have made a joint bid to BC Hydro to harness energy from 17 rivers in Bute Inlet -- a $4 billion project.

If approved, it would become the biggest private hydroelectric project in Canada, producing enough electricity for all the homes in Surrey.

"This is the Saudi Arabia of run-of-river hydro opportunities," Donald McInnes, Plutonic's CEO, told CTV News, referring to the area as a "green corridor."

"We can establish these facilities and position ourselves to be B.C.'s clean energy capital."

The companies are also partnering on a similar hydroelectric project in the Toba Inlet to the south.

Not everyone is so enthusiastic.

Ralph Keller, owner of Coast Mountain Expeditions, said he worries what impact the project will have on the fish and bear populations, as well as the aesthetics of the area.

"I just can't stand back and watch these rivers and watersheds being trashed, transmission lines running everywhere," he said.

"You can't alter that many rivers on that scale ... and expect not to have any environmental consequence.

"Is this the legacy British Columbians want?"

How the project would work

Here's how the proposed project would work.

Water would be diverted from the rivers into pipes or penstocks buried underground and transferred downstream.

The water would then power a turbine and transmission lines would connect it to the BC Hydro grid.

The water would be returned to the rivers.

Run-of-river project supporters say this type of power generation will help the province realize its goal of becoming electricity self-sufficient by 2016.

"The footprint on our land base is very minimal for the benefit that we receive," said Blair Lekstrom, B.C.'s energy minister. "Everything we do in our day-to-day lives leaves some form of footprint on the earth."

In a speech to independent power producers earlier this month, Campbell said he envisions B.C. being an electricity source for the whole continent.

"We can help Alberta with their challenges, help Saskatchewan, help Washington, Oregon, California," he said. "We can help Wyoming and Wichita, Kansas if we want. But we have to set those goals for ourselves and we have to execute those goals in a way that makes sense."

If the Bute Inlet project gets the green light, it would also provide thousands of jobs for eight years.

And Plutonic is working out deals with local First Nations to give them a percentage of the revenue.

"Great opportunities, not only job wise but financially for our people to grow stronger as a nation," said Norman Flander, a Homalco First Nation.

Environmental concerns

As for environmental concerns, Plutonic has hired biologists to collect data on the wildlife and the company says there's nothing to fear.

But with some 600 applications for run-of-river projects in B.C., the Wilderness Committee worries things might be getting out of control and and could threaten some of B.C.'s most precious -- and pristine -- areas.

"We have a gold rush," said Gwen Barlee, Wilderness Committee's policy director. "We don't have any planning, and we have very low environmental standards. At the very least we need to address that.

"By all means let's embrace green energy, but let's do it right."

With a report from CTV British Columbia's Mi-Jung Lee