Paul Morden

The fourth annual Corunna Street Festival will close part of Lyndoch Street on Sept. 19 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., offering vendors, live music, Indigenous dance, children’s activities, food and family entertainment. Started during Corunna’s 200th-anniversary celebrations in 2023, the free event has continued because of strong community support and funding from St. Clair Township, Lambton Creative County and sponsors. Organizers expect roughly 1,000 visitors, with highlights including a larger toy car race, a family fun zone, foam party and free ceramic tile painting.

More than 500 people joined the unsanctioned St. Clair River float down from Sarnia and Point Huron despite repeated Canadian and U.S. Coast Guard warnings and a forecast of possible thunderstorms. Canada and the United States closed part of the river to boat traffic, deploying more than 50 personnel, emergency vessels and shore teams to monitor the event. Authorities reported no major incidents by mid-afternoon but remained vigilant, citing the event’s history of serious risks, including a death in 2014 and a mass shore landing in 2016.

Nearly 750 handwritten land-record ledgers dating back to 1821 have returned to the Lambton County Archives after four decades at the University of Windsor. The 746 ledgers, transferred on long-term loan from the Archives of Ontario, contain deeds, mortgages, bankruptcies and wills and include alphabetical indexes that make genealogical and local-history research easier. Improved shelving installed at the county archives in 2019 enabled the transfer, and staff plan to digitize the original card catalogue to improve access for researchers.

Sarnia is promoting good trail etiquette after city council permanently approved e-bike use on the municipal trail system in 2025. The city has about 52 kilometres of shared trails and pathways, including the 16-kilometre Howard Watson Nature Trail, with some sections recording thousands of daily users. Officials are urging walkers, runners, cyclists and e-bike riders to share the trails respectfully by keeping right, controlling speed, yielding to pedestrians, signaling when passing, leashing pets, staying on designated paths and protecting wildlife and natural areas. Further trail connections and improvements are planned this year.

CF Industries is studying the construction of a urea liquor upgrade plant at its manufacturing site near Courtright in St. Clair Township. The proposed project could add more than 400,000 tons of annual capacity, with a final capital decision expected in 2027. Local economic-development officials and the township mayor welcome the potential investment, citing construction, supplier and permanent employment opportunities, while CF Industries says no further details are currently available.

Owen Byers, a former mayor of Oil Springs and warden of Lambton County, died at age 86. He served on Oil Springs council from the 1970s through 1997 and was elected county warden in 1993. Byers was also a longtime chair and board member of the Charlotte Eleanor Englehart Hospital foundation in Petrolia, where he advocated for rural health care, supported fundraising, and helped preserve the foundation’s history during its recent amalgamation with the Bluewater Health Foundation. Colleagues remembered him for his kindness, dedication, community involvement, and pride in his family.

Canadian and U.S. coast guards are warning people not to participate in the unsanctioned Port Huron Float Down on the St. Clair River because of cold, fast-moving water, inadequate flotation equipment, alcohol consumption and the risk of collisions with vessels. Water temperatures typically range from 17 to 19 C, creating a serious hypothermia risk, and previous events have included a death and the rescue and cross-border processing of about 1,500 people. Vessel traffic will be restricted from noon to 6 p.m., while Canadian and U.S. emergency agencies will coordinate a response. Those who participate are advised to wear approved life jackets, bring paddles and identification, avoid alcohol, stay near shore, use the buddy system and follow other precautions.

Lambton Works Centre is accepting resumes from qualified personal support workers for a targeted hiring event organized with S&R Group in Sarnia. About 25 positions are available, with selected candidates scheduled for interviews on Aug. 18 at the Lambton Shared Services Centre. The centre says PSWs remain in demand across long-term care, retirement and community-care settings, and it supports both job seekers and employers by reviewing resumes, arranging interviews and providing recruitment assistance.

Cabot Corporation is discussing the timeline with Ontario’s Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks for a proposed $250 million to $300 million project at its Sarnia plant to reduce sulphur dioxide emissions. The company’s technology would generate a hydrogen-rich byproduct that could be used to produce steam or electricity. Cabot is also consulting Aamjiwnaang First Nation and says it may temporarily shut down part of the operation when local sulphur dioxide levels are high. The plant employs 122 people, produces up to 120,000 tonnes of carbon black annually, and supplies tire and other industrial customers in Canada and international markets.

Tourism Sarnia-Lambton is offering a free Aug. 27 digital media workshop in Sarnia for tourism-related businesses across Lambton County. Led by experienced content creators, the session will cover audience identification, engaging storytelling, content planning and digital marketing. The agency also plans a familiarization tour and a culinary and agri-tourism workshop later in the year. Interim executive director Adam Veen said the initiatives aim to help small businesses attract visitors, build stronger brands and develop regional tourism, which recorded 1.9 million Canadian visits and 97,000 U.S. visitors last year.