Question Earthority!

“Greenpeace is calling for the Quebec government to quash its pact with the provincial farmer’s union that exempts it from some environmental laws before 2010. The province is battling with the proliferation of blue-green algae in dozens of lakes. The pond scum has already cleared beaches and hit tourist-related business in parts of Quebec. Greenpeace says farmers enjoy lax regulations and are to blame for the algae outbreak. ‘We are facing a crisis and instead of doing something about it, Quebec let farmers pollute as much as they want until 2010,’ says Eric Darier, a spokesman for Greenpeace. The Union des producteurs agricoles was stunned by the Greenpeace comments. ‘They’re making scapegoats out of us, it’s pretty obvious,’ said Patrice Juneau, a spokesman for the Union des producteurs agricoles. Farmers acknowledge their responsibilities, said Juneau, but they are not to blame in most blue-green algae outbreaks.” (07/31/07)