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Hong Kong Farmers Protest Waste Law

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From Reuters

More than 1,000 angry farmers, some waving empty rice bowls, protested a new anti-pollution law Wednesday, saying it would drive them out of business.

They gathered outside the legislature of this British colony as a bill against dumping animal waste, seen as a threat to their pig and chicken farms, was passed into law.

Ng Po-wing, secretary of the Hong Kong Assn. of Farmers which represents the colony’s 200,000 farmers, said the new law sets stringent anti-pollution standards and would force farmers to install expensive waste-cleaning systems they cannot afford. The government had offered to buy the farms at a price far below market value, Ng added.

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Government officials said animal waste washes out to sea and pollutes many Hong Kong beaches. Three beaches were declared unfit for swimming this year.

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