Energy Minister says proposed pipeline will protect Canadians, put Sarnians to work
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Knights take second-generation player in import draft
July 13, 2026
Barry Wright/The Independent
Mark and Dale Hunter of the London Knights turned to Finland for its two picks in the CHL import draft last week.
They selected Luca Santala in the first round with the 40th choice and then nabbed Juho Piiparunen in the second round with the 101st selection.
Santala, a right-shot forward, turns 17 later this month.His father Tommi played more than 1,400 pro games in North America and
Europe after he was selected by the the former Atlanta Thrashers in the late 90’s.
Piiparunen, a lanky right-shot d-man, was a first round selection by the Vegas Golden Knights last month in Buffalo.
His father Jarkko played about 400 games of pro hockey.
The Knights have had recent success drafting players from Finland including Kasper Haltunen, now in the Ottawa Senators organization, in 2022 and Islanders prospect Jesse Nurmi in 2024.
London passed on its third-round selection.
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Energy Minister says proposed pipeline will protect Canadians, put Sarnians to work
July 15, 2026
Cathy Dobson/Local Journalism Initiative Ontario’s Energy and Mines Minister Stephen Lecce was in Sarnia Wednesday rallying support for a new all-Canadian pipeline from Alberta to Ontario that would remove dependency on the U.S. for crude oil delivery. The 3,300-kilometre Northern Shield Energy Corridor is proposed from Hardisty Alberta to Sarnia-Lambton’s refining hub, and would travel through Saskatchewan, Manitoba and northern
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Burn ban in affect in Plympton-Wyoming
July 15, 2026
The Independent Plympton-Wyoming has an open air burn ban in effect. The town’s Open Air Burn bylaw says burning isn’t allowed on poor air quality or smog days. Environment Canada has issued an orange air quality warning because of the smoke from wildfires in Northern Ontario. Officials say smoke from an open fire can further degrade the air quality. Town
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Former principal joins Petrolia council race
July 15, 2026
Second mayoralty candidate in Brooke-Alvinston Heather Wright/The Independent A former LCCVI principal has thrown his hat into the ring for Petrolia council. Greg Nemcek filed to run for a councillor’s position Monday. Nemcek retired last year and currently is the chair of the Lambton OPP Detatchment Group board. He’s one of five people running for the councillor seats – only
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Air quality deteriorates because of wildfire smoke
July 15, 2026
FROM LAMBTON PUBLIC HEALTH Lambton Public Health is encouraging residents to take precautions following an ‘Orange Warning – Air Quality’ issued for Sarnia-Lambton by the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks and Environment and Climate Change Canada. This warning is issued when the Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) is forecast to reach, or has reached, the ‘very high-risk’ category
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