High school students will fill classrooms again at Chaplin School this fall.The board of education for Prairie South School Division voted last week to reopen Grades 9 to 12 in the southwestern Saskatchewan school.A previous board had voted in 2007 to completely close the school.The community lobbied to have it declared a School of Opportunity […] Read more
Karen Briere
Stories by Karen Briere
Gov’ts won’t ask producers to return $13 million
Ottawa has decided not to seek repayment from thousands of Saskatchewan farmers who received nearly $13.5 million more from financial programs than they should have. The provincial government, which shares the costs of the programs, has agreed to do the same. The decision means Ottawa won’t recoup about $8.1 million and Regina won’t recover about […] Read more
Gov’t calms fears over land change
Conservation groups are more optimistic their concerns about the Saskatchewan government’s plan to sell protected lands won’t be ignored, after meeting with officials and ranchers last week. Lorne Scott, chair of Nature Saskatchewan, said they feel they are part of the process now. “We’ve got guarded optimism, I guess,” he said after the May 6 […] Read more
Sask. new Weed Control Act will impose heavy fines
Saskatchewan has new weed control legislation but it won’t take effect until after this growing season. The Weed Control Act was passed recently to replace the 100-year-old Noxious Weed Act. However, it won’t be proclaimed until the fall. Provincial weed specialist Clark Brenzil said over the summer officials will determine which weeds fall into three […] Read more
Ag critic presses for spot-loss hail
Saskatchewan farmers want spot-loss hail coverage back under the provincial crop insurance program, says opposition leader Dwain Lingenfelter.In fact, it’s the biggest issue farmers raise, the former NDP agriculture minister said. He asked current agriculture minister Bob Bjornerud in the Saskatchewan legislature last week if farmers could expect that to happen.Bjornerud said it would be […] Read more
Sask. irrigation to get facelift
Rehabilitation work on Saskatchewan’s M1 main irrigation canal is about a year away, but the province has now hired a consulting engineer to get the project moving. The provincial cabinet recently passed an order-in-council authorizing a $1.58-million expenditure over three years to AECOM Canada Ltd. of Lethbridge, Alta., for engineering services. The M1 canal began […] Read more
Proper attention can ward off skin cancer
Skin cancer can be a consequence of tanning, yet it’s preventable with appropriate precautions, said the Canadian Dermatology Association. The association recently held screening and awareness events at provincial legislatures. Last week in Regina, local dermatologists saw 57 people who work in the building, including MLAs. Seventeen people were referred to their doctor or dermatologist […] Read more
Long-time Sask. NDP MLA announces retirement
Long-time Saskatchewan NDP MLA Ron Harper has announced he won’t seek re-election in 2011.Harper was first elected to the legislature in the Pelly constituency of east-central Saskatchewan in 1991. Before that, he served as a councilor in the Rural Municipality of Clayton for 10 years.He was defeated in 1995 but, after moving to Regina, was […] Read more
Sask. wildlife habitat changes spark controversy
Saskatchewan’s environment minister says legislation that could see crown land taken out of wildlife habitat protection and sold to the producers who lease it should pass this session despite recent controversy. Nancy Heppner last week apologized to conservationists who said they hadn’t been fully consulted about changes to the Wildlife Habitat Protection Act. But after […] Read more
Farmers eager to buy protected land, but few have money
Reg Schellenberg and other Saskatchewan ranchers would like to buy some of the crown land they now lease. Many of them tried after the province announced an agricultural crown lease land sale in late 2008, only to find the land is protected under the Wildlife Habitat Protection Act and not eligible. “When you go to […] Read more
