Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Forestry Consultations

Public consultation on the forest industry will be held today in Dryden.

The Provincial Government will release details on its discussion paper, 'Ontario's Forests, Ontario's Future.

The paper looks at how wood supplies are licensed, allocated and priced.

Officials say the review of the tenure and pricing system is an important step in building a strong industry.

The consultation is set for the Regional Training Centre at 6:30.

Flu Shot Clinic Dates

The former Medical Officer of Health for Ontario is paying a visit to Kenora on Wednesday.

Dr. David Williams will be talking about the upcoming H1N1 flu vaccine with members of the Northwestern Health Unit.

Health Unit Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Jim Arthurs says they look forward to discussing the upcoming flu season.

Seniors over the age of 65 are not as likely to catch the H1N1 flu and can still get their regular flu shots in October.

Meanwhile, the rest of the population will be immunized for the swine flu in November and then receive their regular flu shot in December and January.

New Fire Hall

The City of Kenora will soon have a new state of the art fire hall.

A sod turning ceremony was held this morning at the facility's new location on Barsky's Hill.

Jarnel Contracting Owner Doug Lafreniere says the building is expected to be ready by September of next year.

The new facility will cost the City around 6 million dollars.

Women Councillors NWO

Northwestern Ontario is celebrating women in municipal politics.

In this region, the average female participation in council is 30 percent.

Thunder Bay Councillor Linda Rydholm is organizing the "Celebration of Women in Politics" at the Northwestern Ontario Regional Conference and says females bring a different perspective to the table.

Northwestern Ontario has more female representation on area councils than the Provincial Average of 23 percent.

Solar Power NWO

Communities across northwestern Ontario are hoping to benefit from a Provincial move to implement 10-new transmission lines creating green energy in Northern Ontario.

President of the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association Anne Krassilowsky says it a great step forward but notes its just the beginning.

Krassilowsky says the 2.3-million dollar investment will help create new jobs in this region.

The Provincial opposition parties claim that it will drive up industrial hydro rates.

HST Wilkinson

Ontario's Revenue Minister says blending the provincial sales tax with G-S-T is only a part of a more comprehensive tax reform package, others aren't talking about.

John Wilkinson was at the Nortestern Ontario Associated Chambers of Commerce meeting in Fort Frances to sell that package to area business leaders.

He says the reforms come with measures to help people cope with the taxing of goods now exempt from the PST.

Wilkinson adds there will be new tax grants for families, especially those who have a lot of children.