Farmers and other landowners on the North Saskatchewan River near Lloydminster, North Battleford, Sask., and Prince Albert, Sask., could have a suitor for their land in the next few years.
Officials with Bruce Power, an Ontario nuclear power company, have been approaching landowners in areas that have been proposed as possible sites for a nuclear power plant in Saskatchewan.
Steve Cannon, manager of media relations for Bruce Power, confirmed the company has been talking to landowners.
“We haven’t purchased any land or made any options to purchase land,” he said.
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Cannon said the company has talked to landowners about two things:
- What are their views on nuclear energy and having a plant in their area?
- If their area was selected as the site for such a plant, would they be willing to talk about selling?
Cannon said Bruce wants to be as open as possible about its plans with local communities.
Some residents in the Lloydminster area have formed Save Our Saskatchewan (SOS) and were planning a public meeting in Paradise Hill, Sask., March 9.
Spokesperson Meggan Hougham described SOS as a non-partisan, grassroots, community group that has questions and concerns about a proposed nuclear plant.
“There is a real lack of information about what’s going on,” she said.
“That’s what we’re really concerned about at this point.”
She said it’s premature to discuss whether the group is against nuclear development.
“We don’t have any mandate from anyone, we’re just a group of very concerned people,” Hougham said, adding the situation may become clearer after the March 9 meeting.
“This meeting is open to everyone, no matter what their views.”
She said the group had invited a nuclear expert from the University of Saskatchewan to speak, along with an official from Bruce Power.
However, Cannon said he doesn’t expect anyone from the company will attend. He said Bruce is organizing its own information meetings: Prince Albert March 18, Lloydminster March 19 and North Battleford March 20.
He said the meetings will be informal and are designed to allow interested people to get the information they want about the project.
“Some people are intimidated by open forum type meetings and having to get up to a microphone in front of a room full of people,” he said.
