Judge reserves decision in challenge of SaskPower natural gas expansion

Province defends SaskPower’s use of natural gas WATCH: The province was in court on Friday to defend SaskPower’s plans to use natural gas as a power source. Cole Davenport explains.

A group of climate activists is challenging SaskPower's move towards natural gas, arguing it violates their Charter rights.

The applicants in the case include an organization called Climate Justice Saskatoon and seven individuals.

The activists, represented by lawyer Glenn Wright, argue that SaskPower's reliance on natural gas as a "temporary bridge" to net-zero emissions is insufficient and fails to consider a wider range of renewable energy options.

"We're looking for a ruling from the court to say to SaskPower, ‘You've got to do something different," Wright said.

“We're not trying to get the court to legislate from the bench as to what power choices we make,” Wright added. "We're blessed with ample renewable resources."

SaskPower currently has two major natural gas projects in the pipeline: the Aspen Power Station near Lanigan, which broke ground earlier this year, and the Great Plains Power Station near Moose Jaw.

According to the Canada Energy Regulator – natural gas is nearly half as greenhouse gas intensive as coal power, which still powers a large portion of Saskatchewan’s power grid.

“I see it as a waste of resources and, direction to move in when we know that the future is and will need to be cleaner power,” said Amy Snider, one of the applicants.

Before those arguments can be made in front of a judge, an application has to be considered, the subject of a special hearing at Court of King’s Bench Friday.

Lawyers representing the Government of Saskatchewan, SaskPower, and the Crown Investments Corporation argued that the case should be dismissed, claiming it lacks a sufficient legal basis for a Charter challenge.

The applicants want the case to move forward with the opportunity to make changes if required by the judge. They say the move to natural gas violates their rights under sections 7 and 15 of the Charter, which guarantee life, liberty and personal security – and equal protections and benefits.

“They just want an opportunity to get in front of the court and make the case that their rights are being infringed upon,” said Bob Guthrie, whose 16-year-old granddaughter is among the seven individual applicants.

“I know that she has taken a bold step in terms of participating in this. She's doing everything she can on a personal level in terms of her lifestyle choices to reduce her impact in terms of greenhouse gas emissions,” Guthrie said. “But what one human being can do is limited, so she's decided she has to go beyond her personal action and be part of a larger action to try to hold our government accountable.”

“I'm very proud of what she's done already,” Guthrie added.

Representatives for the government were unable to comment following Friday’s hearing given the ongoing provincial election campaign.

The judge has reserved her decision on whether or not the matter can move ahead to a later date.