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Daily Edmonton Sep 8 - Sep 8, 2026

NAIT Breaks Ground, $1.66B Orphan Well Suit & Elks Win — Edmonton Tuesday

18 articles 1 hour ago 13

🏛️ Government & Politics

  1. NAIT breaks ground on a $779-million Advanced Skills Centre that will add 5,500 student spaces. NAIT says the 625,000-square-foot centre on the north end of campus will house 29 trades programs and raise annual capacity to more than 15,000 students; the project is funded 75 per cent by a $384-million provincial contribution and aims for completion in fall 2030.

  2. Business Council of Alberta urges Albertans to "Choose Canada" ahead of the Oct. 19 separatism referendum. The council, made up of more than 130 chief executives, warned voters that separation would create “massive uncertainty” and called the promise of Alberta being “master of its own destiny” a “fiction,” urging fence‑sitters to consider economic risks.

  3. Alberta separatist leader Jeffrey Rath faces a $108.9-million debt claim from U.S. funder Diriba Investments. Court documents allege RathPC defaulted on a financing agreement tied to litigation cases two years ago; the claim is nearly $109 million plus interest and costs, and legal experts say a secured creditor could force enforcement against Rath's assets.

Environment

  1. Landowners launch a court challenge over the Alberta Energy Regulator’s orphan well levy, citing $1.66 billion in cleanup costs. Applicants, represented by Ecojustice, say the Orphan Well Association’s inventory cleanup is pegged at $1.66 billion while the 2026‑27 levy was set at $154.56 million, up from $144.45 million the prior year, and seek judicial review in Court of King’s Bench.

  2. A small black bear was filmed roaming Cumberland and Canossa neighbourhoods overnight in northwest Edmonton. Residents captured video just after midnight of the bear moving between yards in Castle Downs; witnesses said it showed no aggression, and security-camera footage recorded the animal being chased by a coyote in one cul‑de‑sac.

🎨 Community & Culture

  1. Edmonton Elks erased an 18-point deficit to beat the Calgary Stampeders 38-28 on Labour Day. The Elks overcame the deficit and secured the win in Calgary on Labour Day, a result that stands in the CFL standings and was reported on the game day recap.

  2. Parents are pushing back on classroom screen time in a growing 'techlash' over school technology. Reports say parent groups are questioning the amount of classroom screen time and pressing school systems to limit devices in lessons as debate over in-class technology use grows.

📰 Also Today

  • Calgary executive committee backs a surface Green Line LRT down 10 Avenue S.W., voting 12-1.
  • Alberta landowners launch legal challenge over amount collected for orphan well cleanups.
  • Experts say Edmonton bear sighting likely a pre-winter meal search.
  • Business leader calls Alberta separation promise of 'master of its destiny' a fiction.
  • Calgary councillor Landon Johnston apologizes for leaking budget documents, says he'd do it again.
  • Food Allergy Canada calls for more schools to stock epinephrine devices.
  • New Canadian tariffs prompt debate about small businesses as 'cannon fodder'.
  • Federal government approves trial of birth-control vaccine for wild horses in Alberta.
  • Alberta man retraces steps after waking from coma following traumatic brain injury.
  • Ottawa's dollar-for-dollar tariffs on U.S. goods take effect.
  • Trump tells Bombardier it must build in U.S. to sell there, per report.
  • (Duplicate notice) Alberta landowners launch legal challenge over orphan well levy.

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Source Articles (18)

Trump to Canadian plane maker Bombardier: You can't sell in U.S. unless you build in U.S.

U.S. President Donald Trump says Bombardier would no longer be allowed to sell in the U.S. unless ​the Montreal-based airplane company starts manufacturing in the states.

General Sep 8, 2026

Elks erase 18-point deficit, beat Stampeders 38-28 in Calgary on Labour Day

The Edmonton Elks scored 24 points in the last 10 minutes of the game for a third straight victory.

General Sep 8, 2026

Parents are pushing back on classroom screen time in a 'techlash' over too much technology in schools

A pushback is emerging against screen time in school and tech tools woven into education today, with some parents linking it to a range of woes, from waning student attention spans to data breaches that put student privacy at risk.

General Sep 8, 2026
Alberta separatist leader Rath faces $109M debt claim from US investors 

Alberta separatist leader Rath faces $109M debt claim from US investors 

An American litigation funder is threatening to call in more than $100 million in alleged debt from Alberta separatist leader and lawyer Jeffrey Rath and his firm

Investigations Sep 8, 2026

Ottawa's dollar-for-dollar tariffs on U.S. goods take effect

General Sep 8, 2026

‘I need to know’: Alberta man retraces his steps after traumatic brain injury, waking from coma

When Stan Dworkowski awoke from an eight-day coma with 24 broken ribs and a fractured skull, he could not recall his own age or the faces of his closest friends. He is now retracing his steps, hoping to piece together the hours before he was injured.

General Sep 8, 2026

Alberta gets federal approval to test birth control vaccine on wild horses

The Alberta government will work with the Wild Horses of Alberta Society to use contraception for horse population control this fall, with Health Canada granting a research authorization for a birth control vaccine in August.

General Sep 8, 2026

Canada's new tariffs: Are small businesses 'cannon fodder' in the trade war?

Experts say Canada's new tariffs will have an outsized impact on the country's small and medium-sized businesses, with few consequences for individual consumers.

General Sep 8, 2026

Not all schools stock epinephrine devices. Food Allergy Canada wants that to change

Food Allergy Canada says Alberta is the only province that legislates all schools to stock epinephrine devices that aren't designated for a particular student.

General Sep 8, 2026

Separation making Alberta master of its destiny ‘a fiction,’ business leader says

With fewer than 45 days to go until the Alberta referendum, a provincial business organization has launched a new initiative intended to make the case for Alberta to remain in Canada.

General Sep 8, 2026

Bear spotted in Edmonton was likely hungry for a pre-winter meal, experts say

A black bear has been spotted roaming the streets of northwest Edmonton and experts say the animal was probably simply in search of a pre-winter picnic in the city.

General Sep 8, 2026

Alberta landowners launch legal challenge over amount of money collected to clean up orphan wells

A group of landowners and landowners’ rights groups have filed legal action against the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), arguing that the agency is undercharging oil and gas companies for the handling of orphan wells, which in turn extends the amount of time it will take to clean them up.

General Sep 8, 2026
Alberta landowners challenge ‘chronic underfunding’ for orphan well cleanup

Alberta landowners challenge ‘chronic underfunding’ for orphan well cleanup

Landowners are going to court over what they allege is the Alberta Energy Regulator's failure to fund the cleanup of oil and gas sites with no company responsible for them.

Environment Sep 8, 2026
Black bear wanders through Edmonton neighbourhoods overnight

Black bear wanders through Edmonton neighbourhoods overnight

Some north Edmonton residents woke to some unusual surveillance camera notifications: a black bear, wandering the streets of the Cumberland and Canossa neighbourhoods overnight.

Environment Sep 8, 2026
City councillor apologetic but unrepentant over leaking Calgary budget documents

City councillor apologetic but unrepentant over leaking Calgary budget documents

Calgary city councillors have been told they can’t do anything to sanction Landon Johnston for the leak, because law changes by the provincial government took that power away.

Politics Sep 8, 2026
Choose Canada, businesses urge Albertans ahead of ‘risky gamble’ referendum

Choose Canada, businesses urge Albertans ahead of ‘risky gamble’ referendum

The Business Council of Alberta is joining the chorus of other groups who warn a vote to quit Canada will create massive uncertainty, putting jobs and the economy at risk.

Economy Sep 8, 2026
Surface Green Line LRT route in downtown Calgary endorsed by city committee

Surface Green Line LRT route in downtown Calgary endorsed by city committee

The surface alignment for the Green Line LRT through Calgary's downtown core chosen by a city committee was the only option that fell within the project's available budget.

Traffic Sep 8, 2026
NAIT breaks ground on Advanced Skills Centre, adding 5,500 student spaces

NAIT breaks ground on Advanced Skills Centre, adding 5,500 student spaces

The Advanced Skills Centre will have 29 programs teaching construction, transportation, manufacturing and energy — increasing NAIT's capacity to more than 15,000 students a year.

Education Sep 8, 2026