This month's Weaver is packed with wonderful information and messages from your Leader and SGP Executive. Stay up to date. Be informed. Watch our website for updates as we post information on our election readiness for the 2024 Provincial Election, candidate announcements, Platform information, and volunteer opportunities.
Fellow Greens,
This election has heightened even further the urgent need for Green legislation and Green legislators for Saskatchewan. The Chernobyl nuclear disaster on April 26, 1986, terrible as it was, could have been much, much worse. Remarkably, despite this event as well as the Fukushima and Three Mile Island accidents, the pro-nuclear SaskParty is following the lead of those who would say that it’s possible to guarantee that these types of accidents (and worse) will never happen again. The truth of the matter is that it’s pretty much guaranteed that worse will come to pass, especially when dealing with waste products that remain toxic for tens of thousands of years, products whose long-term storage problems are far from sorting out.
In this episode of The EcoMindset Podcast, host Alex Tyrrell dives into the Green Party of Ontario's surprising policy shift on nuclear energy. At their recent convention, the party reversed its longstanding opposition to nuclear power. What led to this decision, and what does it mean for the broader environmental movement? Joining the conversation:
- Dr. David Robinson, the economist and Green Party member who introduced the motion for change, shares insights on the debate within the party and explains why he believes nuclear energy is a necessary solution to combat climate change.
- Naomi Hunter, leader of the Saskatchewan Green Party, offers a counter-perspective, discussing the environmental and social risks associated with nuclear power, from uranium mining's devastating effects on Indigenous communities to the challenges of waste management and long-term ecological impacts.
🚨 This episode unpacks the passionate debate about nuclear energy’s role in combating climate change and how it aligns with Green Party values. Whether you’re for or against, this is an essential conversation for anyone interested in environmental politics.
Thank You!
The Saskatchewan Green Party would like to thank all those individuals who courageously stepped up to be candidates in this election. Your dedication and commitment to the core values of the Global Green movement were integral in giving Saskatchewan voters an ethical option in this provincial election. You are needed and wanted in this party, and we look forward to seeing each and every one of you take on new roles in between elections and hopefully run again in the same ridings in the next provincial election. Thank you so very much!
Thank you to the local Sask. newspapers
Once again this election, the local, rural newspapers in our province are notable for their commitment to inclusion of all points of view. In many cases, our SGP rural candidates actually received more media recognition and coverage than urban candidates did. We are grateful to local media in our province that is dedicated to ensuring fairness and inclusion of all points of view on the political spectrum in Saskatchewan.
Be Part of Doing Politics Differently
Ever wondered why we beg for donations like a thirsty cactus? Like leaky buckets in a drought, we struggle with sporadic funds. The Saskatchewan Green Party does not accept donations from corporations or unions, We rely on support from individuals like you. Monthly donations provide a steady stream, allowing us to plan and expand effectively. Become a monthly donor and be a rainmaker. Your future self, your children and your grandchildren —and many others—will thank you!
The big bonus is that donations of $25 or more are eligible for a tax credit of up to 75% of your donation.
To donate by credit card, visit Donate - Saskatchewan Green Party or email [email protected] for your other options.
Petitions - Take Action and Please Sign
You can make a difference.
Together we can create real change in this province. As people across the province mobilize and add their voices to petitions for change, we build strength and resilience together. Add your voice today.
SK must act now to remove asbestos in our drinking water
https://www.saskgreen.ca/asbestos_in_our_drinking_water
SK needs a Wetlands Policy
https://www.saskgreen.ca/sk_needs_a_wetlands_policy
SK needs renewable energy - not nuclear waste.
https://www.saskgreen.ca/sk_needs_renewable_energy_not_nuclear_waste
SK demands a new approach to healthcare
https://www.saskgreen.ca/sk_demands_a_new_approach_to_healthcare
End Homelessness in Saskatchewan
https://www.saskgreen.ca/end_homelessness_in_saskatchewan
Ending Poverty in Saskatchewan
https://www.saskgreen.ca/ending_poverty_in_saskatchewan
The Saskatchewan Greens oppose the inadequate response by both the SaskParty and NDP Official Opposition to scurvy in northern Saskatchewan
We have 27 cases of scurvy in northern Saskatchewan. Calling for the cancellation of the Gas Tax was the NDP’s misguided response to this. This is horrifying. We are talking about something we all read about in history class that explorers died of in the old days, and that sailors got at sea from lack of fruits and vegetables on their ships. Everyone knows about the high cost of groceries in the North and people there need real solutions. “Axe the Tax” is a mere slogan and a slap in the face.
Saskatchewan’s NDP Official Opposition even went so far with their plan as to put forward an emergency motion to suspend the provincial 15-cent-a-litre gas tax. This failed (of course) in the Saskatchewan legislature Tuesday, with Premier Scott Moe saying there are other ways to save people money.
The NDP’s response to scurvy in northern Saskatchewan is truly inappropriate, a missed opportunity, and a poor policy. Axing the gas tax will have no significant impact on food prices. There are far superior alternatives.
“As a farmer myself and a rural person, I assert that addressing fertilizer and food prices at the root would deliver better results”, states Naomi Hunter, Saskatchewan Green Party Leader. “Economists from the left and right have all described Saskatchewan’s potash royalties as constituting the world’s worst and least competitive royalty regime for any natural resource, especially considering that potash has 69% margins. Significantly decreasing costs for farmers by lowering fertilizer prices would reduce the cost of regionally grown food.”
The SaskParty vigorously opposed BHP’s planned buyout of PCS, mostly because BHP wanted to invest extensively to increase potash production, lowering potash prices. But the SaskParty’s own royalty regime discourages investment and potash production.
The agri-processing giants Bunge and Viterra have applied for a merger that the University of Saskatchewan suggests would cost the 30,000 Saskatchewan grain producers $770 million a year, 48% – or $249 million – more than the provincial gas tax, with all of this revenue flowing abroad! The Saskatchewan Green Party vigorously opposes this merger. Disallowing it would truly help combat food price inflation and support rural and northern Saskatchewan. Rural Saskatchewan (along with most of rural Canada) despises large meat packers and agri-processors. It is an often foreign-owned industry, racking up massive margins of profit, situated right in the middle of the food supply chain.
Enhancing royalties from potash production and lowering fertilizer prices, while financing further tax cuts through royalty reform (which could also support a revived STC), would help rural and northern Saskatchewan.
The provincial government has also been ineffective at properly taxing and exacting royalties from our oil and gas industry. Even Alberta does a better job of that. This is another area where we could bring in revenue to help northerners and other at-risk constituents.
The Saskatchewan Greens urge the government and official opposition to look at these real solutions for northern and rural Saskatchewan. The diagnosis of 27 scurvy cases in the North should be a real wake-up call that Affordability is neglected and the Cost of Living is out of control. The stability of our province is being undermined. The solutions are obvious, and the fact that they haven’t been implemented already shows a willful disregard for rural people.
Scurvy article. https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/dozens-of-people-in-canada-have-scurvy-and-it-s-because-of-food-1.7120194
Sincerely,
Naomi Hunter
Saskatchewan Green Party Leader
*Note. This is also being sent out as a press release to all media.
A judge bans federal election deposits, and it makes sense.
If you want to run in a federal election, you have to meet certain requirements before Elections Canada will accept your nomination. They include gathering 100 signatures from voters in the riding you want to run in, a witness who will swear that those signatures were honestly provided, and – until overruled – a $1,000 deposit. The nomination fee issue has been fought and won several times in Saskatchewan, so there is precedence to have it taken to court here. The danger, of course, is Elections SK putting a new, non-financial impediment in place, making getting on the ballot more difficult again.
Saskatchewan’s urban/rural divide is a lot older than this election
By Simon Enoch and Charles Smith
The results are in, and despite the provincial NDP making significant gains, Saskatchewan will continue to be governed by the right-wing Saskatchewan Party for the next four years. At the time of this writing, Premier Scott Moe’s party is projected to win 32 seats—one more than the 31 required for a majority—and is leading in three ridings that are still too close to call. The NDP is projected to win 22 seats and is leading in four close-call ridings. The Sask. Party dominated rural areas, while the NDP cleaned up in urban ones.
Private, For-Profit Health Care and Wait-Times in Saskatchewan
This article examines the effect that government policies have had on wait times for various surgeries and diagnostic services in Saskatchewan over the past 14 years. Specifically, we explore the available wait-time data for Knee Replacement, Hip Replacement, Cataract and Hip Fracture Repair surgeries from 2010 to 2023.
‘No One Is Listening’: Children Hold Climate Rally Outside Legislature
The rally was organized by 11-year-old Kiké Dueck to demand action on climate change. They said if climate change wasn’t stopped, people might not get a chance to later.
“I was here not too long ago by myself, and I wasn’t supposed to, but I’d just been driven to the point where I just need to do anything because no one, no one at all, is listening to this giant problem,” they said.
‘Hopeless, Broken’ Climate Scientists Deliver a Call to Action for Everyone
This mid-May post was one of our most widely read ever. It connects powerfully to the United Nations Emissions Gap Report published October 24—for the grief and rage it captured from climate scientists, and for the call to action in the post. As former UN climate secretary Christiana Figueres said at the time, giving up in despair is exactly the wrong conclusion to draw from what the scientists are seeing, hearing, and saying.
SMR’s and other nuclear power reactors are not needed to make medical isotopes!
The take-over by the CANDU industry in Canada of medical isotope production has been done deliberately so they can keep making the false claim that nuclear power is required for medical isotopes.
It's interesting how often the need for medical isotopes is being raised by the pro-nuclear advocates in government. It's one of their main talking points. It's important to keep making clear that nuclear power reactors are not needed to make medical isotopes! These can be made by nuclear research reactors that are much smaller, easier to manage and do not generate electricity for commercial use. Additionally, many medical isotopes do not need nuclear reactors at all for production; they can be made by medical cyclotrons (which are particle accelerators). Gordon Edwards of CCNR has produced an excellent fact sheet, Medicine and Nuclear Power:
Uranium Mine Waste in Saskatchewan
By Steve Lawrence, an SGP member and former candidate.
Explore the complexities and risks of uranium mine waste management in Saskatchewan, from environmental oversight to new extraction methods. This deep dive unearths crucial questions about safety, sustainability, and responsibility—issues we must confront for a cleaner, informed future.
“Oil and Gas Is a Gift from God”
After a week of mostly horrific news from COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, where yet another petrostate is hosting yet another climate summit, it looked like the United Nations process for getting climate change under control was at risk of imploding. Much of the high-level rhetoric seemed to be careening toward irrelevance at just the moment when we most need delegates to step up and get serious.
As crude prices fade, Big Oil must borrow to pay investors
Weaker crude prices and refining margins are likely forcing four of the five supermajor oil companies to borrow money to fund US$15 billion in share buybacks for the most recent quarter, raising doubts over the payouts’ long-term sustainability.
The present and future of Saskatchewan’s emissions and energy
By mid-July 2021, Saskatchewan’s wildfire count had already exceeded the five-year average by more than 200 fires. For long stretches of time much of the province was under heat and air quality warnings as smoke from the fires, almost all of which were north of Prince Albert, drifted into the south, blanketing the province in smog. The intense heat and accompanying drought, along with the smoke from the fires, was a potent reminder that the climate crisis has already arrived in Saskatchewan.
Canada should care more about climate than Trump's cabinet
Petro-states hosting COP conferences use the platform to appear environmentally conscious while promoting their national image and pursuing oil deals, as seen with Azerbaijan during COP29. Before the event began, reports revealed a senior Azerbaijani official negotiating a fossil fuel deal with an investment group, highlighting the contradiction of a petro-state leading a climate summit. This raises concerns about conflicts of interest, as these nations profit from the fossil fuels driving the climate crisis that COP is intended to combat.
Trump will press on several sensitive fronts
Canada, prepare for the big squeeze. A new Trump administration is likely to press this country on sensitive fronts: trade, migration and military spending.
The reverberations of Donald Trump's election win will ripple internationally with his plan for sweeping tariffs, mass deportation of migrants and intense pressure on countries to spend more on their own defence.
The animating principle of Trump's political career is that the U.S. must get tough with allies who have grown too reliant on it, economically and militarily.
We hope you feel inspired to share your thoughts and knowledge with our readers. We are ready to dig deep with you and share your contributions with our Green members and supporters. We will work with you as much as you’d like through discussion or with editing help on any submission. We treasure the efforts of any and all who share our respect for the Green Values and offer us their thoughts on relevant topics. We will let you know when your submission has been accepted.
The Weaver Team
The Weaver articles express the viewpoints of the authors. They may not always align with the policies of the Saskatchewan Green Party.
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