SPEC Headlines, May 30, 2004

Federal Environment minister to appoint a "review panel" to assess Bennett's project
Many questions still unanswered about the incinerator
Gilles Gagné

    CARLETON - Federal minister of Environment David Anderson waited until
the last minute to announce his decision to refer to a "review panel"
Bennett Environmental's proposed incinerator in Belledune.
    The announcement was made late on the evening of May 21st, the Friday
night before the long May weekend, and less than 48 hours before Prime
Minister Paul Martin asked Governor General Adrienne Clarkson to call a
general election. Mr. Anderson's decision  also followed, by a day, the
release of an analysis completed by civil servants of various federal
departments, working under the supervision of the Canadian Environmental
Assessment Agency, about Bennett's initiative.

Election campaign started before  official green light was given
Gilles Gagné

NEW RICHMOND - Two candidates of the Gaspésie-Madgalen Islands federal
riding did not wait forPaul Martin's  to visit Governor General Adrienne
Clarkson before launching their electoral campaign.
    Signs of Liberal candidate Georges Farrah were seen in the New Richmond
area as early as Thursday evening, May 20th. By the afternoon of the
following day, they could be seen regularly between New Richmond and Caplan.
    Bloc Québécois candidate Raynald Blais' helpers were installing signs in
the Carleton and Cross Point areas by Saturday morning.
    Was it legal? Officially, the campaign started on May 23rd. The Federal
Election Law imposes very small fines to organizations which do not respect
the rules. The fines are so low that hardly any complaint's are filed,
complains Michel Rivard, an organizer for the Conservative Party for Québec
and Eastern Québec.

Gaspé Tourism Association president expects a good year
Price of gasoline only  $25.00 more for 2,000 kilometers
Gilles Gagné

PORT DANIEL - Gaspé Tourism Association president Francis Dumont hopes that
the region will continue riding  the wave that was created on May 14th when
two members of the sector, Bed and Breakfast Bleu sur Mer, from Port Daniel,
and the Conseil de la culture de la Gaspésie, based in Bonaventure, came
back from the provincial Grands Prix with two major awards in their
respective category, the gold in lodging and the bronze for organizations.
    These two awards confirm that a large number of members of the Tourism
Association made the right choice a few years ago by offering quality
lodging and gaspesian cuisine,  as Benoît Pilon and Micheline Roy did at
Bleu sur Mer B & B, while the Cultural Council idea of promoting artists,
galeries and shows through yearly publications proved to be a good idea.