Province eyes nuclear energy
Saskatchewan’s environment minister says nuclear energy could help the province erase all greenhouse gas emissions from its electricity generation by mid-century.
Environment Minister Dustin Duncan mused on that possibility Monday, a day after Premier Scott Moe signed a memorandum of understanding on small modular nuclear reactor (SMR) technology with his New Brunswick and Ontario counterparts.
In the midst of a Council of the Federation meeting near Toronto, the three premiers agreed to collaborate on developing the technology while pressuring the federal government to support it. They set out a road map for ministerial meetings that will result in a strategic plan by fall 2020.
Duncan told reporters on Monday that the idea is still in its early stages, with just a few people working on it within Saskpower. It remains a “high-level scenario” that wouldn’t be in operation until after 2030, the target date for Saskpower to generate half of its electricity from renewables and reduce its emissions by 40 per cent below 2005 levels.
But Duncan said a combination of renewables and SMR technology could enable a far more ambitious long-term goal.
“By incorporating SMRS in place of natural gas or coal generation with CCS, that 40-per-cent emissions-reduction target could actually move the elimination of Saskatchewan’s electrical generation emissions by 2050,” he said.
He said a lot could change between now and then, making his crystal ball “fuzzy.” He couldn’t provide an estimate for how much the proposal would cost long-term. But he said Saskatchewan will need to “get pretty serious” about making a decision early next decade if it wants to adopt SMR technology by 2030.
According to Duncan, Saskpower already recognizes that it needs to put more emphasis — or “horsepower,” in his words — on nuclear.
But there are skeptics questioning whether SMRS are a realistic solution to fighting climate change, especially given the long time frames before they could become commercially feasible on a large scale.
Jim Harding, a former professor of environmental studies at the University of Waterloo who now heads the Qu’appelle Valley Environmental Association, called the SMR announcement a “joke.”
“They can project anything they want onto 2050, but we’re right now on a climate emergency,” he said.
“It can’t reduce carbon in the time period that we are dealing with.”
In Harding ’s view, Moe and Duncan are “procrastinating” when they should be investing more in emissions free technology that’s already proven to work, like solar.
He rejected the argument that small modular nuclear reactors are safer than traditional nuclear facilities.
“There’s no fail-safe nuclear fission technology,” said Harding.
But Duncan argued that SMRS use different technology than conventional nuclear, and that people shouldn’t picture large facilities with cooling towers in the distance. They use less fuel, he pointed out, and have passive safety features. He said used fuel is stored “for the long term.”
In Duncan’s view, the same people who worry about nuclear waste are often the loudest voices calling for emissions reduction. He said Saskatchewan needs baseload power, a steady source of electricity that doesn’t depend on the weather.