BUENOS AIRES, Argentina - Argentina formally complained to Uruguay on Wednesday about a permit that country issued to Finnish forestry group Metsa-Botnia to extract water from the shared Uruguay River, the latest dispute in a wider battle over Botnia`s pulp mill project. Argentina has challenged the mill at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, claiming neighboring Uruguay violated a bilateral treaty by not providing enough information on the riverside project.

Buenos Aires went on the offensive again on Wednesday, saying Uruguay had made another "unilateral" decision in September when it authorized Botnia to extract "a significant volume" of water from the shared river. "This aggravates a situation that is already tense between the two countries," Argentine Foreign Minister Jorge Taiana said in a letter to his Uruguayan counterpart, adding that the decision could affect the quality and quantity of river water.

Argentina fears the mill, which is due to begin operating in the third quarter of 2007, will damage the environment and also hurt tourism and fishing in the area. Environmentalists in Argentina have blocked highways leading to Uruguay in protest over the project, costing Uruguay millions of dollars, Montevideo has said.

The court in The Hague refused to order a halt to construction, but a broader decision is not expected until late next year, sources at Argentina`s foreign ministry have said. Spain`s Ence had planned to build a pulp plant next to Botnia`s mill, but the company announced it would relocate it. The two mills were estimated to cost about US$1.7 billion, representing the largest private investment in Uruguay`s history.
(Planet Ark, 03/11/2006)
http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/38808/story.htm