FortSask

The UN Biodiversity Conference "COP-15" continues in Montreal this week. 

The 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) focus centers around protecting nature and halting biodiversity loss around the world.

Tom Lynch-Staunton, Alberta VP of Nature Conservancy of Canada says conserving grassland ecosystems in Alberta has global impact.

2021 is a year many in the ag sector would like to forget, the widespread drought resulted in a loss in production that left many farmers having to pay significant penalties on unfulfilled grain contracts.

Marlene Boersch of Mercantile Consulting Venture has released a report looking at the issue around grain contracts.

Boersch was one of the presenters last week during the APAS AGM.

She says the current contracts are heavily tilted in favor of the buyer.

A Private Members Bill C-294 - An Act to amend the Copyright Act - focusing on interoperability has passed second reading in the House of Commons.

The Bill put forward by the Conservative MP for Cypress Hills-Grasslands, Jeremy Patzer was supported by all parties.

Patzer says some of the major agricultural manufacturers (like John Deere) are using technological protection measures (TPM) to lock out shortline equipment manufacturers like Honey Bee, Macdon, and Degelman.

Local Member of Parliament (MP) Garnett Genuis has gone viral in the most unexpected of places... TikTok.

At the House of Commons on Dec. 6, Genuis delivered a politics-laden rendition of A Visit from St. Nicholas, a poem by Clement Clarke Moore.

Genuis' version shares the poem's opening line, 'T'was the night before Christmas', before referencing Klaus Schwab of the World Economic Forum, the ArriveCAN app, and journalist Dale Smith.

Communities in the region are not happy with how Alberta Health Services (AHS) is handling the lack of X-ray services in Morinville. 

The Morinville Clinic has been without a functional X-ray machine since February 2020 and is still awaiting a replacement from AHS. 

Last January, it was announced that the services would be closed permanently due to low patient numbers, difficulty in recruiting staff, and no functioning equipment. 

Yet, that hasn't stopped local leaders from pushing back. 

Police have provided an update on a collision that killed two people on Highway 21. 

The Strathcona County RCMP say they were called to the incident at 10:28 a.m. on Friday (Dec. 9) near the Belvedere Golf Course.

"Upon arrival, emergency personnel discovered that two individuals, a 21-year-old female resident of Strathcona County and a 40-year-old female resident of Fort McMurray were deceased," the RCMP reported in a release. 

Two other people in their 40s were taken to the hospital with injuries. 

Two people died Friday (Dec. 9) in a collision on Highway 21. 

Emergency services were called to a four-vehicle crash involving a semi near the Belevedere Golf Course. 

Two other people in their 40s were taken to hospital. Two children were also assessed in the incident but not taken for emergency care. 

Police had Highway 21 blocked off near Township Road 514, it has since reopened. 

Read the most recent update from the RCMP, here. 

Two people died Friday (Dec. 9) in a collision on Highway 21. 

Emergency services were called to a four-vehicle crash involving a semi near the Belevedere Golf Course. 

Reportedly, two other people in their 40s were taken to hospital. Two children were also assessed in the incident but not taken for emergency care. 

Police had Highway 21 blocked off near Township Road 514, it has since reopened. 

One of the vehicles, a semi, was flipped over. 

The fire chief of Gibbons, Eric Lowe, has dedicated the last 25 years of his life to serving his community.

On Saturday (Dec. 3), The Town of Gibbons and its fire department put together a Christmas party where they congratulated the chief for his commitment to the community.

In honour of his service, they made a surprise announcement that the Gibbons Fire Hall was to be renamed the Eric D. Lowe Fire Hall.

Lowe came to Gibbons back in 1996 when he was working as a combat engineer for the Canadian Military.

The Fort Saskatchewan U17 AAA South Fort Chev Rangers are having quite a successful season to date.

After 17 games this season, the Rangers sit atop the U17 AAA AEHL league with 13 wins and just three losses so far. 

Head coach, Mason Hawkes, says they have a good mix of players this season. 

"We had a lot of returning players from our U16 AAA team from last year and then we mixed them with the U15 AAA players from last year as well," said Hawkes. "We've had quite a bit of continuity, a lot of the kids have played together before."