The leader of the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party is calling for support for Estevan as it enters a time of transition away from conventional coal power.
Ryan Meili made the call during question period on May 15. His comments came shortly after the City of Estevan requested $5 million from the provincial government, and the Estevan Chamber of Commerce began a letter-writing campaign that calls for support from the provincial government.
During question period, Meili said the government has no plan for the next step for both Estevan and Coronach, which is also affected by the phase-out.
“This government’s been nowhere to be seen in Estevan, in Coronach, when it comes to the discussion of transition. Yet 1,300 people working in mines, working in power plants … whose jobs are on the line.
“When the coal phase-out comes … are they just hoping that’s not going to happen? Are they just hoping it’s going to go away?”
Meili said that when they asked various ministries, they have been sent to other ministries.
Dustin Duncan, the minister of the Environment and the minister responsible for SaskPower, listed the projects that the government has undertaken in the Estevan area, starting with the carbon capture and storage facility at the Boundary Dam Power Station, as well as the geothermal project that went forward earlier this year.
“That’s a way that we can help those employees and those communities,” said Duncan.
In an interview with the Mercury, Meili said he would like to see the provincial government meet with people working in the coal industry to find out what they’re facing.
“I think they should be honest with the people of Estevan. This federal decision does mean that we’re moving away from the production of electricity by coal, but it doesn’t mean that we’re not an energy province any more, nor does it need to mean that Estevan shouldn’t still be an energy community,” said Meili.
Estevan can still have good jobs and good opportunities for the people of the community, even without coal, Meili said.
The NDP leader believes there should be training opportunities for those who are looking to remain in the work force, while those looking at retirement might need financial assistance.
He also believes there are huge opportunities for renewable energy with wind, solar and geothermal power.
“There’s a lot that can be done to produce energy as we talk about moving SaskPower towards the production of more of our electricity from renewables. Let’s make Estevan and Coronach … priorities,” said Meili.
As for smaller modular reactors, Meili said they would largely be a distraction at this point, as the technology and financial feasibilities aren’t there yet.
“We should work on what’s already available. We know that we can produce power from wind and solar and geothermal.”
Converting the existing plants to biomass is another option to look at, he said.
Meili believes it’s appropriate for the city to ask for money to support the transition, but he hasn’t seen the proposal for $5 million. If the province does grant the request, then they need to be involved, along with the feds, in how the money is spent.
Meili said he remains in favour of moving away from producing electricity from coal, not only when it comes to the production of greenhouse gases, but from a local health point of view.
“When you look at what producing coal and burning coal does to the air in the local community, it does put people at higher risk of asthma, of what we call emphysema or COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), and other health problems,” said Meili.
Estevan Mayor Roy Ludwig, though, was not happy to hear Meili’s comments, because of the NDP’s desire to see the coal mines shut down.
“We want to keep the good-paying jobs working. We believe clean coal technology works, and we want to see that continued at Unit 6 (at Boundary Dam) and Shand,” said Ludwig.
The mayor believes coal is still the best baseload power option. Meanwhile, wind and solar have not proven themselves to be reliable.
Clean coal technology can allow coal to be a big part of the power production grid in the future.
Ludwig appreciates that Meili wants to see the province step forward with more money for the transition.
“We’re still an important part of this province,” said Ludwig. “We’ve contributed to this province over the years with oil production and all of the taxes that we pay provincially in this area, and we feel it’s only fair to come to the table now when we’re suffering an economic downturn, with more to come potentially.”
