Thanks for the Mercury

It isn't every day that a state's largest polluter gets honored, let alone receives a national environmental prize. But odds are better when the polluter -- and its buddies -- start and sit on the board of group giving the award. The Maryland-based Wildlife Habitat Council gave biodiversity conservation awards to 21 companies, including the Lafarge cement plant in Ravena, New York. The award was given to Lafarge for it's 150-acre Deer Mountain Nature Preserve and was awarded six months ago. But the honor was not publicized until the company came under fire for mercury contamination from its plant that is affecting a local high school. Federal reports show that the smokestack at that plant was New York state's largest mercury emitter for three years running. Environmentalists smell a case of greenwashing. "'At first I thought it was a joke. Then I was astonished and horrified,' said Laura Haight, an analyst with the New York Public Interest Research Group who has called on the state Department of Environmental Conservation to clamp down on the plant's mercury emissions." Joining Lafarge on the Wildlife Habitat Council's board of directors are representatives from Monsanto, Exxon Mobil, DuPont, ConocoPhillips and Waste Management. The conservation group Ducks Unlimited, which is funded by both Exxon Mobil and Anheuser-Busch, also holds a seat. The Council also awarded "Signatures of Sustainability" to DuPont and Anheuser-Busch Companies, both of which had a role in founding the group.