The pigshit challenge

Planning a leisurely trip down Highway 10 to the Eastern Townships this fall? Going to see the leaves turn colour in all their splendour? If so, you might want to keep your car windows rolled up during the drive: the smell of pig manure is so intense, and lasts for so much of the drive, you might decide to turn around and go home.

According to the Canadian Institute for Business and the Environment (CIBE), a Montreal-based environmental think tank, Quebec is a haven for large-scale pork producers thanks to big subsidies and lax environmental enforcement.

"They're not really farms, they are virtual chemical plants," says CIBE director Gary Gallon. "It's extreme, intensive production of hogs for meat." Quebec City has shelled out over $100 million in subsidies for these pork factories. Meanwhile, a report by Quebec's environment ministry admits that "the volume of manure... exceeds 9 million cubic metres and the spreading surface available... is only sufficient for 3.6 million cubic metres per year." :

--Philip Preville