Around the North

Provincial highway construction work soldiers on with contracts awarded for new improvement projects.

Grain led the way in boosting cargo figures through the Port of Thunder Bay in August. The Thunder Bay Port Authority reported 692,862 tonnes of grain in the month, compared to 458,033 during the same period last year.

The provincial natural resources minister won't issue a permit for a controversial Thunder Bay wind farm project saying it will kill an endangered bird species. In a Sept.

Canada is a world leader when it comes to global mining acquisitions according to a study by Ernst & Young. In the first half of 2011, 196 deals were recorded.

The Anishinaabe Treaty 3 First Nations are asking for a judicial review through the Ontario Superior Court of Justice to stop the sale of AbitibiBowater's hydroelectric dams in northwestern Ontario.

The sports facility at Algoma University is going green, with a plan to sell back energy generated from solar panels to the provincial grid. A total of 540 panels will be installed and generate 135 KW AC at a cost $1.

A funding grant from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corp. (NOHFC) will allow the expansion of a wireless communications network north of Elliot Lake along Highway 108.

Temiskaming Shores and two area First Nation communities are sharing $1.2 million from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corp.'s Infrastructure and Community Development program.

Ignace may regain its moniker as a forestry town with AbitibiBowater planning to reopen a shuttered sawmill. AbitibiBowater is investing $32 million to upgrade the northwestern Ontario mill with plans to resume operations by late 2013 or early 2014.

Thunder Bay's Fladgate Exploration Consulting is getting $27,500 from FedNor to hire a youth intern to support the firm's plans to expand into international markets. In an Aug.