Election dwarfs shrimp fight

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While millions of Americans are focussed on the Palm Beach area, awaiting the results of the presidential voting there, another important but much less-noticed fight is unfolding in Broward County’s courthouse.

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DIBSA, a large Ecuadorian shrimp farming company, has filed suit against Du Pont, claiming one of the megacorporation’s many agricultural products is crippling Ecuador’s important shrimp industry. This chemical, the shrimp company claims, is polluting their waters and killing their shrimp.

A BROWARD-PALM BEACH NEW TIMES article reports that DIBSA’s lawyers say the chemical to blame is a fungicide called Benlate. This isn’t the first time Benlate has come under fire: Du Pont has already paid out hundreds of millions of dollars in suits brought against it for damage allegedly wreaked elsewhere by the chemical.

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We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

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