AlbertaOct 30, 2023
Ban on outdoor water lifted in Calgary, people should use water wisely: City
Officials say the restrictions, which have been in effect for two months, will be removed Tuesday.They were implemented in mid-August due to record low flows in the Bow and Elbow rivers that supply the city and other downstream communities across the Prairies.City officials say they expect decreasing temperatures and seasonal shifts in water use to stabilize demand.They say the restrictions helped to save 1.5 billion litres of water, which is the equivalent of 606 Olympic-size swimming pools.It was the first time that the city had asked its residents to reduce their outdoor water use due to dr
AlbertaOct 30, 2023
Alberta legislative session begins, referendum bill may be presented on separation from CPP
Alberta's legislature resumes today, beginning with the speech from the throne.Government house leader Joseph Schow has said there will be between seven and nine bills in the sitting, which is to run until early December.Premier Danielle Smith's United Conservative government is to spell out in legislation that a referendum must be held before Alberta could leave the Canada Pension Plan and set up a provincial one.The government has also promised legislation on Albertans having a direct say on any future tax hikes.The throne speech is to give a broad outline of the government's goals and prior
AlbertaOct 27, 2023
Local emergency in Calgary's town of Cochrane lifted due to dirty water
The Town of Cochrane made the declaration earlier this week after an accident on Saturday affected its water and wastewater pipelines, causing sewage to flow into the Bow River.There haven't been any issues with water quality in the town or in downstream communities such as Calgary, and the sewage leak was contained earlier this week.Damage to the water pipeline, however, led to significant water loss in Cochrane.The town had asked its 32,000 residents, as well as its businesses, to follow mandatory water restrictions to make sure there was enough available for fire suppression and other emerg
AlbertaOct 27, 2023
Alberta government dismisses Banff Center board, manager too replaced
The Alberta government has dismissed the entire board of the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity and replaced it with a temporary administrator.The centre in the mountain town of Banff, west of Calgary, develops and promotes creative work in the arts, sciences, business and the environment.The government says in a statement late Thursday that it's supporting the centre as it focuses on its mandate while 'strengthening its future competitiveness and sustainability.'It says the temporary administrator, Paul Baay, will review the internal processes and policies at the Banff Centre over the next
AlbertaOct 23, 2023
Edmonton sees first snowfall of the year
Edmonton continues to experience light snow overnight and into this morning.The first snowfall of the season across much of central and southern Alberta Monday morning left some roads and highways in poor condition.Early morning traffic in Edmonton was slow and slippery.Special Weather Snow Warnings were issued by Environment Canada yesterday for central and southern Alberta.A total of two to five centimeters of snow is expected by Monday evening.Innisfail RCMP reported very poor conditions on the QEII highway and drivers were asked to avoid the area entirely.
AlbertaOct 23, 2023
School bus overturns on highway in north of Calgary
According to the RCMP, a school bus overturned on Highway 2A in North of Calgary, with several students on board, including six children with injuries.Six people, including five children and one adult, were admitted to the hospital.Three children are in medical care in Didsbury while two other children and an adult were taken to a hospital in Calgary.Didsbury RCMP say the crash happened just after 10:20 a.m., when the school bus was traveling on Township Road 320 on Highway 2A.Investigators have closed the section of Highway 2A between Township Roads 320 and 314.Drivers have been asked to take
AlbertaOct 13, 2023
Alberta will not adopt Quebec’s pension model
Finance Minister Nate Horner says if Alberta abandons the Canada Pension Plan to run its own stand-alone fund, it will not adopt Quebec's model, which mandates optimizing returns while also investing in the province.Horner's comments come three weeks after Premier Danielle Smith said her government wants to hear from Albertans first before it makes decisions such as whether to follow the Quebec model.Horner says legislation will be introduced this fall to effectively cancel out using the Quebec model and spell out that any pension assets would only be used for a pension plan.He says when it co
AlbertaOct 11, 2023
Alberta MP George Chahal accuses premier of 'baseless,' 'ludicrous' statements on electricity
The fuse is lit for fireworks in Ottawa next week with a Liberal member of Parliament accusing Alberta's premier of making false claims.Calgary MP George Chahal says Danielle Smith is making "false," "baseless" and "ludicrous" statements about the federal Liberal government's plans to bring Canada's electricity grid to net-zero.He says Smith is playing on people's fears for purely partisan reasons and calls on her to release her United Conservative Party government's report on electricity.Chahal says that since the UCP took power in Alberta, electricity rates have increased fivefold.Smith has
AlbertaOct 03, 2023
2 people died in bear attack in Banff National Park
A bear expert who's a family friend of one of two people killed by a grizzly bear in Banff National Park says the couple was experienced in the outdoors and could have been in the wrong place at the wrong time.Kim Titchener, who has a company called Bear Safety and More, says both the couple and their dog died in the backcountry on the weekend.Parks Canada has said in a statement that its dispatchers received an alert around 8 p.m. Friday from an inReach GPS device about a bear attack west of Ya Ha Tinda Ranch, which is about 200 kilometres northwest of Calgary.The federal agency immediately s