"The Uranium Development Partnership will receive up to $3 million in funding from the Crown Investments Corporation," Cheveldayoff said. "Saskatchewan needs to develop an energy plan for the future, and we will be looking at primarily four sources of energy - nuclear, wind, hydro and clean coal." – Government of Saskatchewan News Release, October 20, 2008
NDP Energy and Resources critic Len Taylor said today the Sask Party government remains overly focused on the prospect of nuclear power at the expense of other future renewable energy options. The $3 million report from the Uranium Development Partnership (UDP) is scheduled to be handed over to the government today but Taylor questioned how much emphasis has been placed on the three other sources of energy the partnership was mandated to explore.
“It’s been pretty clear from the start that the Sask Party’s agenda has been to promote nuclear power and to stack the deck of the UDP with pro-nuclear members,” Taylor said. “This singular focus seems to be coming at the expense of other options such as wind, hydro, solar or geothermal energy just to name a few.”
Taylor said the NDP is pressuring the government to consider a variety of alternative energy sources which have so far taken a back seat while the Sask Party forges ahead with its pro-nuclear agenda.
“New Democrats believe that all sources of alternative energy should be examined in the context of environmental sustainability and fiscal responsibility,” Taylor said. “The Sask Party has chosen to focus only on one controversial piece of the future solution and have so far done so with extremely little consultation with the people of Saskatchewan.”
Taylor said he hopes to see alternative options presented to the public as the government begins its long-awaited consultations on future energy production. He said so far the Sask Party has given no indication that the consultations will be anything but a nuclear sales pitch.
“We’re hoping to see a genuine dialogue with the people of our province about the future of energy production,” Taylor said. “Along with nuclear power, the Sask Party has an obligation to provide Saskatchewan people with as much information about other alternative energy sources as it can.”
