Parkland Online – Melville, Yorkton, Goodeve, Ituna, Broadview, Canora, Langenburg, Moosomin, Esterhazy,SK, East Central Saskatchewan, Canada

Duane Antoine, who recently pleaded guilty to theft charges relating to band money, has been re-elected chief of the Poundmaker Cree First Nation. Band council elections were held Friday. According to an election official, Antoine received 220 votes out of 448 votes cast. There were three other candidates for chief and Antoine out-polled the nearest one by 74 votes. In April, Antoine pleaded guilty to a charge of theft under $5,000. He is to be sentenced on the conviction in September, when more information about the nature of the fraud is expected to be presented to court. Antoine was among…

RCMP say a man’s death in northern Saskatchewan, at a mine site, was a suicide. Police said Saturday that officers from the Wollaston Lake detachment of the RCMP were called to investigate a death at a mine site run by the uranium company Cameco. Police said the man’s death was not related to the operation of the mine and, in a later update, added their investigation found his death was a suicide. They did not release the man’s name, nor any other details, including when the man died. The Rabbit Lake mine is about 650 kilometres northeast of Saskatoon. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/story/2012/05/19/sk-rabbit-lake-death-120519.html?cmp=rss

Citizenship and Immigration Canada is closing its Regina office, leaving the province with only one centre in Saskatoon. Federal Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said, after a speech in Regina, that the department needs to reduce its footprint, overhead and administration costs. Kenney said services will be available online or through a call centre. He also said a third-party could be used to administer things such as language tests. © The Canadian Press, 2012 http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/story/2012/05/19/sk-immigration-office-120519.html?cmp=rss

Saskatoon is OK with longboarders on some streets, but Regina still limits them to skate parks, Kent Morrison reports. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/story/2012/05/18/sk-video-longboarding-regina-120518.html?cmp=rss

Scientists at the University of Guelph are cloning elm trees they believe are resistant to Dutch elm disease, a fungus that has devastated the North American elm tree population. Their work features a method that is the first of its kind for replicating elms that have survived the onslaught of the European tree sickness. Dr. Praveen Saxena developed a nutrient-enriched gel to help cloned disease-resistant elms grow. (uoguelph.ca) “I was surprised myself that American elms are very, very difficult to clone,” said Dr. Praveen Saxena, the head of the university’s research project. Saxena explained there was a lack of research…

Spring seeding in Saskatchewan is well underway and making better than average progress. The province reports 22 per cent of the crop is in the ground. That compares to the five-year average for this time of year of 18 per cent. Provincially, 58 per cent of field peas have been seeded, 40 per cent of lentils, 25 per cent of durum, 23 per cent pf spring wheat and 18 per cent of canola. Crops moisture is rated at 13 per cent surplus, 85 per cent adequate and two per cent short. © The Canadian Press, 2012 http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/story/2012/05/18/sk-seeding-sask-1205.html?cmp=rss

Charles Wiebe says he will seek the mayor’s chair in Regina. (CBC) Charles Wiebe, a 37-year-old man who says he wants City Hall to be more inclusive, is planning on running for mayor of Regina. There are currently five other people saying they will run. The formal nomination process is months away, but Wiebe joins Chad Novak, Michael Fougere, David (Bob) Loblaw, Jim Elliott and Meka Okochi in declaring an intention to be on the ballot. Voting in municipal elections is set for Oct. 24. Wiebe works for a Regina-based charity. He said one of his priorities, if elected, would…

Police in Saskatoon say they tried to prevent a man from jumping off the Broadway Bridge, but he fell to his death Friday morning. According to police, witnesses reported seeing a man sitting on the west edge of the bridge with his feet dangling over the side, around 11 a.m. CST. Police were notified and officers went to the scene. Despite their efforts, the man jumped. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Police said one eastbound lane of the Broadway Bridge along with the west side walkway would be closed to traffic as officers conduct their investigation. The man…

PotashCorp and two other companies use the marketing consortium Canpotex to market their potash. (CBC) Saskatchewan potash marketer Canpotex Ltd. says it’s planning to make its first shipment to Burma. The decision comes following the federal government’s removal of economic sanctions against the country also known as Myanmar. CEO Steve Dechka says Canpotex also plans to help train and support farmers in the Asian country to help them improve crop yields. The company has been exporting potash fertilizer to developing countries for the last 40 years. Canpotex is the offshore marketer for Saskatchewan’s three potash-producing companies: Agrium Inc., Mosaic Canada…