SPEC Headlines, May 23, 2004

Over 1,000  gather in Belledune
Ottawa reminded of pollution control convention

BELLEDUNE (NB) - Over1,000 people gathered in Belledune on May 16th to
remind the federal government of its obligations to control and reduce heavy
pollutants, since Canada was the first one to sign the Stockholm Convention
in May 2001.
    The rally was held in front of the incinerator of Bennett Environmental.
The construction of the soil burning facility is almost completed. Organized
by the Return to Sender and Environnement Vie coalitions, the demonstration
was held a day prior to the official coming into force of the Stockholm
Convention. By treating soils contaminated with hydrocarbons and creosote,
the Belledune incinerator will  produce dioxins and furans, two substances
appearing on the list of the "persistent organic pollutants", or POP,
precisely targeted by the Stockholm Convention.

QFL Solidarity Fund hands out $12,5 million to Gaspesia contractors
Gilles Gagné

    CHANDLER - The Solidarity Fund of the Québec Federation of Labor will
reimburse 25% of the legal hypothecs owed to contractors who did the
construction work on the site of the Gaspesia mill in Chandler. The deal was
announced after several days of negotiations between both parties.
    Since modernization work at the paper plant was suspended on January
30th, 33 contractors, who are owed between $45 million and $50 million,
asked that their debt be reimbursement,  arguing that the government, as a
partner in the initiative, should have watched the situation more closely,
knowing long before the end of January that the project would go well over
budget.
    According to the agreement between contractors and the Solidarity Fund,
up to $12.5 million could be paid to the 33 construction companies.

$5.1 million Aquaculture and Fisheries Carrefour to be built in Grand River
Gilles Gagné

    GRAND RIVER - The Québec government and the Town of Grand River are
investing $5.1 million for the construction of  Carrefour national de
l'aquaculture et des pêches, an aquaculture and fisheries carrefour that
will have tourism, research and development as well as explaining the
scientific aspect to visitors.
    The first idea to create such a carrefour emerged 30 years ago, when the
defunct Marine Biology Station was attracting about 15,000 visitors each
summer in a Grand River building that was far from designed for tourists.
But people wanted to see live fish and shellfish. They still do.
    The project was forgotten for a while, and revived in 1997 by Richard
Loiselle, director of the Grand River Fisheries School and André Dubois, who
was then director of the Centre aquacole marin of Grand River, the Marine
Aquaculture Centre, operated by the Department of Agriculture, Pêcheries et
Alimentation. The concept will actually make the link between the two
institutions, physically and figuratively.