Saskatchewan urban governments want the province to make ethanol a
mandatory ingredient in motor fuel.
They say plant-based ethanol should make up at least five percent of
the volume of gasoline and diesel sold in the province. As production
increases, that should increase to 10 percent in gas and 15 percent in
diesel.
Saskatchewan energy minister Andrew Thomson told the Saskatchewan Urban
Municipalities Association convention that forcing the use of ethanol,
which is called a mandate, would have to be more widespread to make the
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industry strong.
“We are right now working through what the implications of doing a
mandate might be,” he said.
“Today, there is no market for ethanol here in the province.”
Saskatchewan would need only two 80 million-litre plants to service its
market. Plants of that size have proven to be the most economical.
The province would like the federal government to implement a national
mandate, which might provide export opportunities.
“Ottawa does not at this point believe they have a role to play,”
Thomson said.
More than 30 Saskatchewan communities have expressed interest in or are
actively working on proposals for plants.
SUMA delegates told Thomson the province should help the ethanol
industry, but not be directly involved.
“We’ve all heard of SaskPower and SaskTel,” he said. “We would not like
a SaskEthanol.”
Thomson replied that he strongly believes the industry should be driven
by the private sector.
Other resolutions passed by urban municipal councillors included one to
lobby federal transport minister David Collenette to change federal
legislation to allow joint use of railways.
They also want land use controlled to prevent cattle from contaminating
municipal water supplies. The resolution said the practice of feeding
livestock directly on dry or frozen waterways must be stopped.
Delegates defeated a resolution that would have forced RCMP officers to
live in the communities where their detachments are located.
The town of Shellbrook reasoned that host communities pay an additional
$15 per capita for policing, but don’t have the benefits of revenue
such as property taxes to help pay that cost when officers choose not
to live there.
