FortSask

Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau chaired the biennial Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations Conference last week in Italy.

This year's theme was water resource management. 

Bibeau was the first woman to ever chair the FAO conference and the first Canadian to do it since 1997.

During her visit, she also met with Italian agri-food stakeholders, Canadian industry associations, and Canadians working at Rome-based international organizations and agencies. 

Syngenta Canada has launched a new fungicide for sclerotinia control in Canola that will be commercially available in Western Canada for the 2024 growing season.

 Jon Cressman, Product Lead, Fungicides, and Insecticides, Syngenta Canada says Miravis® Star has been shown to perform consistently even under high Sclerotinia disease pressure conditions.

In a series of small plot trials, Miravis® Star demonstrated a 23.7% yield advantage over untreated at the standard rate of 0.4 L/ac.1

The Fort Saskatchewan and Lamont Regional Chamber of Commerce has a new executive director.

Marcie Mazurenko has been hired for the role and comes with experience in similar roles at non-profit organizations in the area.

"My last position was with the St. Albert/Sturgeon Hospice Association. I was the executive director there. So I've done a lot of non-profit work in a number of different areas," said Mazurenko.

She added that her love for the community is what drove her to become executive director.

Strathcona County RCMP made a grim discovery on an abandoned property on Sunday (July 9).

Police received reports of a vehicle fire at Range Road 233 and Township Road 514. Officers arrived to find a Chrysler Pacifica engulfed in flames.

After Strathcona County Fire Services put out the fire, a body was discovered in the vehicle.

The RCMP Major Crimes Unit have taken over the investigation, sending in the remains to the Chief Medical Examiner in Edmonton for an autopsy.

Fort Saskatchewan firefighters helped raise thousands to help pay the medical bills of Avery Beatch, the 4-month-old daughter of local firefighter Aaron Beatch.

The firefighters held a fundraising event on Saturday (July 8) at the Fort Saskatchewan Walmart, which helped to raise $3,501 towards the families GoFundMe page.

The Edmonton Police Service (EPS) is investigating a suspicious death at a northeast LRT station. 

On Sunday night, at about 9:15 p.m., police responded to a weapons complaint at the Belvedere LRT Station near 129 Avenue and Fort Road. 

Upon arriving at the scene officers reported finding the body of dead man with suspicious injuries. The EPS Homicide Section has taken over the investigation and the body will undergo an autopsy on Wednesday (July 12). 

The Fort Saskatchewan Lions' Pool is open for the season.

The official opening day was on July 3, just after the Canada Day long weekend.

The pool is free to attend for children under 8 and their caregivers and will be open Monday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., depending on the weather.

With the construction blocking off the front of the pool, residents can access the pool by entering through the gate in the back alley.

The pool is located at 9908 - 104 Street.

Gun violence is seeing a continuous rise in Edmonton. 

The Edmonton Police Service (EPS) says that they responded to 21 shootings during June. This is more than double the 9 shootings that EPS responded to in June 2022, an increase of 133 per cent. 

"Brazen gun violence continues to be a concern in our city,” said acting Inspector Eric Stewart of the EPS Organized Crime Branch.

Yet another special air quality statement has been issued for the region. 

More smoke from wildfires has been funneling into the area, causing both poor air quality and reduced visibility. 

The following areas are affected: 

• Fort Saskatchewan
• Strathcona County
• Elk Island National Park
• Lamont County
• Sturgeon County 

The Fort Air Partnership is reporting decent air quality at the moment but expects that quality to dip into high-risk territory on Monday (July 10) night. 

It's going to be an interesting week, weather-wise in the area. 

As residents in the Fort Saskatchewan area enjoy roaring thunder complete with some rain, there is some expectation that this weather could be norm for at least a few days. 

"It's looking like a situation where the circulation pattern doesn't change a heck of a lot over the whole week," said Stephen Berg, a meteorologist with Environment Canada. "The conditions will be pretty unsettled and ripe for continued showers and thunderstorm over the week." 

"A very unstable situation."