Category: Alberta

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Alberta Canada Economic

Fort McKay First Nation Leader, Chief Jim Boucher, Well Compensated

Chief Jim Boucher, Fort McKay First Nation
Chief Jim Boucher, Fort McKay First Nation

The Fort MacKay First Nation leader Chief Jim Boucher receives the second highest salary out of all the chiefs in Canada, and is the highest paid chief in the Alberta region. The only individual who made more as a chief was Kwikwetlem First Nation Chief Ron Giesbrecht of British Columbia. Chief Jim Boucher received a salary of $644,442 according to statements which were provided to Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development. According to the audited statements that were filed Boucher also had a little over $60,000 in expenses for the annual period that ended on March 31, 2014. To put the salary in perspective several of the highest paid councilors in the region earned less than half of what Chief Jim Boucher earned, and some only earned a little over $200,000. Mayor Melissa Blake of Wood Buffalo earns an annual salary of just $127,671.

There are some who believe that Fort McKay First Nation Chief Jim Boucher is overpaid, while others defend the high annual salary and point too a budget in the millions of dollars for the group. The band gets around $2.5 million from the federal government, but this amounts to under 4% of the 2014 budget for the First Nation which is $70 million. The band ended the year with a surplus in the amount of $3 million, and some point out that this shows that Chief Jim Boucher manages the financial situation of the band wisely. Dayle Hyde commented that “The assumption is that First Nations are relying entirely on taxpayer dollars to operate. That’s not always the case, especially for Fort McKay. Our governance structure is a little more complicated than other First Nations.”

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Alberta Ft Mac

Murder Charges Filed Against Suspect for Death Involving Man From Gregoire Lake Reserve

murder, Gregoire Lake Reserve
murder, Gregoire Lake Reserve

The death of a man from Gregoire Lake Reserve has resulted in murder charges for the suspect in the case. On November 30, 2014 the Wood Buffalo RCMP were called to the Gregoire Lake Reserve area for a report of a death, and it soon became clear that it was a murder case rather than a death by natural causes. The call came in around 1:30 pm in the afternoon, and the name of the victim has not been officially released yet. The murder suspect who was charged is 32 year old Cody Woodward, and he was arrested on Thursday after police identified him as the suspect in the case. The investigation is continuing but law enforcement felt that the evidence so far warranted a murder charge.

Cody Woodward, the man charged with murder in the death of the man from Gregoire Lake Reserve, is set to have another court hearing today. So far Woodward has not been released and has been kept in custody. When the Wood Buffalo RCMP arrived on the scene on November 30 the deceased male was located inside of a residence on the reservation, and the initial investigators were quickly suspicious about the circumstances and the evidence that was found. If convicted Cody Woodward could face many years of incarceration. No motive has been discussed or released by law enforcement, and there are still many questions that remain to be answered in the case. It is not yet known by journalists whether drugs or alcohol played a role in the murder, or even whether the victim and the accused suspect even knew each other.

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Alberta Economic Ft Mac

Court Rules Against Wrongful Termination Suit by Syncrude Employee Accused of Sexual Harassment

sexual harassment, Syncrude employee, wrongful termination
sexual harassment, Syncrude employee, wrongful termination

John A. Clark, a former Syncrude employee who was fired for sexual harassment and who sued for wrongful termination, has lost his case in front of the Alberta Court of Appeal. There is no doubt as to what Clark did during a 2004 formal Syncrude dinner event in Toronto, or to the fact that he was highly intoxicated that day. Clark smacked one woman on the buttocks, groped another, and then pulled a third down onto his lap while the dinner was in progress. Another victim was a female representative of Sun Life Financial, who was groped in the taxi after the dinner. Shortly after the trip Clark was terminated as a Syncrude employee for sexual harassment, and he then filed for wrongful termination.

John Clark engaged in sexual harassment while at an event in his capacity as a Syncrude employee, and the Alberta Court of Appeal dismissed his wrongful termination suit. According to Justice J.D. Bruce McDonald “Given the egregious nature of the behavior, the leadership position held by Clarke, Syncrude’s clear and unequivocal policies prohibiting harassment of any sort which were well known to Clarke, and the adverse impact it had on a key business relationship, as well as the adverse impact it had on key business advisors working for its pension fund administrator.” The court also found that “Contrary to Clarke’s submissions, there were adverse consequences for Syncrude and the pension fund administrator. Syncrude’s reputation with one of its key business partners was adversely affected and the pension fund administrator’s staff suffered humiliation and stress as a result of the harassment.”

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Alberta Canada Politics

Will GSA Bill Pass in Alberta?

GSA bill, sexual orientation, Alberta
GSA bill, sexual orientation, Alberta

In Alberta parents will lose the ability to pull their children out of class when sexual orientation is being discussed if a new GSA bill passes. The new GSA bill is designed to protect the rights of sexual minorities in Alberta. The legislation is called Bill 10: The Act to Amend the Bill of Rights to Protect our Children, and it was introduced in an effort to prohibit discrimination that is based on sexual orientation while also protecting parental rights, and it provides recourse which allows a student to challenge a decision by a school board which rejects any gay straight alliance club by asking for judicial review of the decision.

According to Sandra Jansen, the Calgary-North West MLA “There shouldn’t be any roadblocks to students who want to set up gay-straight alliances in their schools and indeed the progress that we have made in this past year has been remarkable, in my opinion, with more and more GSAs being established all the time. This bill is aimed to ensure that in situations where those students aren’t supported, that the students, the parents and their advocates have a clear mechanism to challenge that position.”

The new GSA bill that protects sexual orientation in Alberta would affect the rights of parents, because the school will no longer notify parents ahead of time when sexual orientation will be discussed. According to Gordon Dirks, the Education Minister, the new GSA bill may cause some tension even in the court system. “No parent should be able to just pull their child out of class willy-nilly for no reason. Underneath this legislation, (parents) have an opportunity to express their opinion and to be heard and if they don’t agree, to appeal.” The issue of sexual orientation and GSA clubs has been very controversial, with people on both sides of the argument. Liberal MLA Laurie Blakeman stated “The incremental argument is insulting. I’m sure that the black people, the Jews and the disabled people appreciated incremental progress just so that they didn’t get too many rights all at once.

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Alberta Economic

Vandalism at Natural Gas Pipeline Causes Damage and Gas Leak

Vandalism at Natural Gas Pipeline Causes Damage and Gas Leak
natural gas pipeline, vandalism

Vandalism at a natural gas pipeline in western Alberta has caused damage to the pipeline components and was responsible for natural gas leaking into the atmosphere around the damaged part. According to the police someone used a high power rifle to shoot the high pressure pipeline that carries natural gas, and the incident occurred last weekend but the exact day and time is still unknown. On Monday morning the Mounties were alerted that the Talisman Energy natural gas pipeline had sustained damage. Before the vandalism was detected by the company large quantities of natural gas had been released into the air, and when the damage was discovered company employees shut down that section of the pipeline using safety devices. These safety devices stopped the natural gas leak until repairs can be made and the damaged section can be used again.

The latest act of vandalism against a natural gas pipeline is just one of many, although these incidents have decreased in recent years. The natural gas industry is often the target of vandalism by environmentalists and eco terror groups, and one of the biggest was Wiebo Ludwig who often targeted energy company AEC West because the company had wells in operation which were close to Ludwig’s land. Anyone who has any information about the individual responsible for the natural gas pipeline vandalism that happened last weekend is urged to contact local law enforcement. The damaged pipeline will be repaired as soon as possible so that it can be put back into operation.

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Alberta Ft Mac

Bird Deaths on Tailings Ponds North of Fort MacMurray Up

tailings ponds, bird deaths
tailings ponds, bird deaths

According to the Alberta Energy Regulator the number of bird deaths on tailings pond north of Fort MacMurray is up to 122, with 3 major companies reporting bird deaths in their tailngs ponds. This is in spite of the fact that scarecrows guard many of these ponds in order to keep the birds away. Suncor, Syncrude, and CNRL all operated tailings pond where the bird deaths occurred. On the Horizon Site operated by CNRL60 birds died. The ponds operated by Syncrude had 30 bird deaths, and Suncor reported just 6 birds dead. The oil companies involved try to prevent the death of any wildlife caused by their operations, and there are a number of methods that are used. In addition to scarecrows companies may employ radar units, propane cannons, and long range acoustic devices.

A representative for CNRL blamed the tailings ponds bird deaths on the weather in the area. There was heavy fog and the visibility was poor according to the source. The spokesperson for CNRL Julie Woo confirmed that the waterfowl deterrence system was in place and working properly when the birds died, and both Suncor and Syncrude also confirmed that their deterrence systems were also up and working fine when the bird deaths occurred. Investigators from the Alberta Energy Regulator have been sent to the area to ensure that the wildlife deterrents are actually working properly and that the companies are in compliance, although the agency also believes that weather played a role in the tailings ponds bird deaths as well.