First Nation lawsuit against SaskPower, province over Whitesand Dam returning to court

SaskPower's head office in Regina is seen in this file photo.

SASKATOON — A Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation (PBCN) lawsuit against SaskPower is headed back to Court of Queen’s Bench.

In 2004, PBCN filed a lawsuit against Saskatchewan, SaskPower and Canada over the Whitesand Dam on Reindeer Lake flooding a portion of the nearby community of Southend.

The case was dismissed in 2019, but the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal ruled last week that it be remitted to Queen’s Bench.

“The lawsuit has followed a torturous path,” wrote Court of Appeal Justice Robert Leurer.

In the lawsuit, then Chief Ron Michel stated that SaskPower, the crown corporation that operates the dam, is responsible for the “unlawful flooding and trespass” of reserve land.

SaskPower, however, argued that the flooded land in Southend wasn’t designated a reserve. In 2019, the Chambers judge concluded that Southend was owned by the province.

“The Chambers judge erred in granting judgement in favour of Saskatchewan and SaskPower. I have concluded that Saskatchewan and SaskPower cannot call into question Southend’s status as a reserve,” wrote Leurer.

In a Facebook post, Chief Karen Bird said she hopes PBCN receives compensation from the longtime court dispute.

“I want our people to benefit from the use of our land in generating power for Saskatchewan. They make millions of dollars while our people live in third world conditions,” Bird said.

The Whitesand Dam was built in 1942.

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