judgment

Dykstra et al. v. Saskatchewan Power Corporation et al. - judgment

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Dykstra et al. v. Saskatchewan Power Corporation et al. - application

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Dykstra et al. v. Saskatchewan Power Corporation et al. - appeal

Dykstra et al. v. Saskatchewan Power Corporation et al. - Other

Filing Year For Action

On March 31, 2023, Climate Justice Saskatoon and seven Saskatchewan residents, aged between 15 and 80, filed an originating application in the Saskatchewan Court of King’s Bench against the Saskatchewan Power Corporation (SaskPower), the Crown Investments Corporation of Saskatchewan, and the Government of Saskatchewan. The applicants, represented collectively as Dykstra et al. v. Saskatchewan Power Corporation et al., challenged the provincial government’s decision to expand natural gas–fired electricity generation, alleging that it violates their rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

On October 10, 2025, the Saskatchewan Court of King’s Bench granted the Government of Saskatchewan and SaskPower’s motions to strike the lawsuit. In her judgment, H. A. Kuski Bassett found that through the remedies sought, the applicants asked the Court to “direct the enactment of new laws and engage in ongoing policy oversight, which is in essence court-directed legislative reform.” To do so would “require the Court to disregard the time-honoured separation of powers in our constitutional democracy in a manner that exceeds its institutional capacity and legitimacy” (para. 118). Drawing on Tanudjaja, Environnement Jeunesse, LaRose, and Mathur, the Court stressed the limits of judicial “capacities and legitimacy” in supervising climate policy. After analyzing these principles, the Court applied the “plain and obvious” test and ultimately struck the applicants’ claim, finding it non-justiciable and failing to disclose a reasonable cause of action. She added that even though “the Claim [was] not justiciable, the material importance of protecting the environment remains. This decision is not to be interpreted as suggesting the Respondents are immune from constitutional scrutiny in appropriate circumstances regarding their climate change response. However, the concept of justiciability is a foundational component in Canada’s constitutional democracy that cannot be overlooked even when the subject matter raises crucial issues from a local, national, or international scale” (para. 120). The claim against the directors was also struck as improperly pleaded, since the directors were not named as respondents in the action, and in any event because it had no reasonable chance of success (para. 126). As of November 2025, claimants have indicated reviewing their options in view of an appeal or further legal action.
The claim focuses on the construction of a new natural gas plant near Moose Jaw and plans for another near Lanigan. The applicants contend that these projects, along with the provincial Management and Reduction of Greenhouse Gas Regulations permitting SaskPower to increase its emissions, will exacerbate dangerous climate change. Saskatchewan has the highest greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per capita in Canada. The applicants argue that the resulting impacts infringe Section 7 rights to life and security of the person, and Section 15 equality rights, particularly for youth, who face disproportionate climate impacts. They seek declarations that these actions are unconstitutional and an order requiring SaskPower to adopt a reasonable target to decarbonize and achieve net-zero emissions as soon as possible.

The application is supported by expert evidence from climate scientists and policy specialists, including Dr. James E. Hansen, who has also testified before the International Court of Justice in its climate change advisory proceedings. The applicants draw on both domestic and international developments, noting parallels with other constitutional climate cases in Canada (such as Mathur and La Rose) and abroad (such as Held v. Montana).

Procedurally, the case has faced preliminary challenges. The Saskatchewan Environmental Society sought leave to intervene but was denied in August 2024, with the possibility to reapply if the main claim survives preliminary motions. Both the Government of Saskatchewan and SaskPower filed applications in September 2023 to strike the pleadings. The applicants amended their originating application on May 31, 2024, to further articulate their Section 7 claims and alleged infringements of the principles of fundamental justice. A special hearing on the strike applications took place on October 4, 2024, and Justice Kuski Basset reserved her decision. On October 10, 2025, Justice Basset decided that the Charter claims were not justiciable and were struck without leave to amend. The appeal of this decision is currently pending, with the appellants filing their factum on 15 January 2026.

Dykstra et al. v. Saskatchewan Power Corporation et al.

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

A long-lived, colourless gas, chiefly emitted from fossil fuel combustion, deforestation and cement production.

This sector involves the wholesale and retail selling of goods.

Any compulsory, unrequited payment to the government levied on corporations or individuals. This can be for environmental reasons, such as introducing a Carbon tax to set a price that emitters must pay for the greenhouse gases they emit.

Social and cultural groups that share collective ancestral ties to the lands and natural resources where they live, occupy or from which they have been displaced

People with different national or cultural traditions from the dominant population

Tradable permits are market-based tools that grant permission for specific activities, frequently used to regulate emissions. These permits can be issued within a trading system to manage environmental impacts.

Activities of businesses and institutions that provide financial services and products to individuals and organisations.

The activities of industries involved in the production, distribution, and sale of energy, including electricity, gas, and renewables.

This sector creates and distributes information and entertainment through television, radio, print, and digital platforms.

A commitment to balance GHG emissions with removal by a certain point in time, effectively reducing the net emissions to zero

Financial support to help individuals manage the effects of unexpected events, securing their livelihoods and increasing the resilience of people and businesses to the changing climate. It’s especially vital in developing regions where everyday risks, climate-related weather extremes, or crop failures can push people into poverty. Without insurance, people may have to resort to selling assets or cutting consumption to cope with losses.

The release of heat-trapping gases, primarily from human activities such as burning fossil fuels, agriculture and industry.

A financial institution that manages a country's currency and can promote climate-related initiatives through green monetary policy and other means.

People who are less able to respond to the effects of climate change due to having limited financial or physical assets

Slow onset events evolve gradually from incremental changes over many years or from increased frequency or intensity of recurring events. As defined in the Cancun Adaptation Framework (2010), slow onset events include risks and impacts from rising temperatures, desertification, biodiversity loss, land and forest degradation, glacial retreat, ocean acidification, sea level rise, and salinization.

A target to reduce the prevalence of a greenhouse gas over a specific time frame

Either money or something of monetary value is transferred between two or more organisations, people or countries.

Activities that involve planning, designing and building infrastructure, residential, and commercial structures.

Zoning and spatial planning are both methods for guiding the distribution of people and activities in a space, and are regulatory restriction.

woman and genders outside of the gender binary

People whose health, both mental and physical, makes them more vulnerable to the effects of climate change

Activities of government agencies and institutions that provide public services, enforce laws and manage public resources.

This sector involves activities to move goods and people, alongside the storage of products.

Fossil gas, commonly known as natural gas, is a fossil fuel consisting chiefly of methane with smaller amounts of other hydrocarbons and trace gases, found in underground deposits.

Dykstra et al. v. Saskatchewan Power Corporation et al. - judgment

Target

Policy instrument

Risk

Impacted group

Renewable energy

Fossil fuel

Greenhouse gas

Economic sector

Finance