What is the Real Cost of Coal in Saskatchewan? $26 billion, youth well-being, and the stewardship we owe one another

A recent CBC News story raises a pressing question for Saskatchewan and for all of Canada: what is the real cost of keeping coal power alive? Saskatchewan’s coal plan was initially presented as a roughly $900-million refurbishment project. Since then, public reporting and SaskPower filings have placed the refurbishment estimate at about $2.6 billion, nearly three times the original figure. More recent reporting now suggests that keeping coal plants operating until the province transitions to nuclear power could cost approximately $26 billion over 25 years.

That astronomical increase risks directing billions of dollars toward aging infrastructure when public investment could instead support cleaner power, energy efficiency, grid upgrades, Indigenous-led renewables, and a just transition for workers and communities.

The human cost is just as urgent. On CBC Radio’s What on Earth, Kiké Dueck, a Saskatchewan youth climate activist and a youth co-applicant in the coal case, describes how climate change is shaping young people’s sense of safety and future. Drought, wildfire smoke, and global warming are not distant policy debates for youth; they are lived realities that affect health, hope, and wellbeing. Yet Kiké’s story is not only about fear. It is also about action. Through petitions, climate advocacy, community projects, and tree planting, Kiké shows that hope can grow when people refuse to treat inaction as inevitable.

We are often told that climate action comes with a high cost. But Saskatchewan’s coal plan invites a more honest question: what is the cost of refusing to act?

In this time of climate crisis, stewardship, which is the responsibility we have for the environment and our neighbors, is a key concept. We have to act on it when we make economic decisions and when we make decisions that affect the well-being of youth, communities, and future generations.

Climate advocates across Canada are helping us build a better and more stewardship-focused Canada. To join them, donate to the No More Coal in Canada Legal Fund today.