Municipal Election Day Today

It's voting day in municipal elections across Ontario

Polling stations in communities using ballot boxes open from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m.

Voters in Fort Frances and Lake of the Woods township have until 8 p.m. to get their vote-by-mail ballots back to their respective municipal offices.

To vote, residents must be 18 and older and will need identification that shows name, a signature and qualifying address.

At some polls, voters who come without acceptable ID but are on the voters list can sign a declaration.

B-93 will have a list of all of the winning candidates in the Rainy River district on our newscast tomorrow morning.

Watershed Task Force Meets

A task force set up to help governments address water quality and related issues in the Lake of the Woods and Rainy River watersheds will hold a series of public meetings this week.

The International Lake of the Woods and Rainy River Watershed Task Force is in Ely tonight and International Falls tomorrow to gather public comment.

The Task Force is to submit its recommendations to the International Joint Commission by July 15.

Forest Fire Season Not Over Yet

(Prescribed Burn conducted by Ministry of Natural Resources last week - MNR photo)

The forest fire season isn't done just quite yet.

The Ministry of Natural Resources says there were two new fires reported last week in the Rainy River district, both small and lightning-caused near Flanders.

The fires were spotted while the MNR was doing a prescribed burn at Pekagoning Lake.

One at Big Joe Lake, north of Flanders, is still listed as being active, as does another another within Quetico Provincial Park which has been burning since October 6.

MNR crews from both Kenora and Fort Frances also responded to a lightning-caused fire on the Aulneau Peninsula on Lake of the Woods which burned 4.5 hectares.

New Director for Riverside

(Riverside Health Care Facilities photo)

Riverside Health Care Facilities has a new Communication Director and director for its Foundation.

Nicke Baird takes over the position from Teresa Hazel who stepped down after eleven years.

Baird is from Fort Frances and recently returned from Nanaimo, British Columbia, where she operated a business for the past five years.

Caribou Caravan Reaches Northwest

(Greenpeace Canada photo)

Greenpeace brings its "caribou caravan" to northwestern Ontario today.

The environmental group is pressuring Minister of Northern Development Michael Gravelle and the Ontario Government to save woodland caribou.

Spokesperson Richard Brooks says the government can balance both the environment and forest industry.

Greenpeace plans to set up its caravan in front of Gravelle's constituency office in Thunder Bay.

Highway Work Ending

(Ontario Ministry of Transportation photo)

Thirty two highway projects in the region are nearing completion.

Nearly 500 kilometers of highway are being repaved and nine bridges are also being worked on.

They include 21 kilometres of Highway 11 east of Fort Frances and the fabricating of pre-cast concrete deck components for the Noden Causeway.

Northern Development Minister Michael Gravelle says the improvements will lead to safer roads and encourage economic growth.