French farmers encourged to go organic for water quality Water from the forests and fields of the Seine-et-Marne region has fed the taps of Paris apartments for over a hundred years. In the 20th century, treatment plants were built to deal with toxins in the water originating in large part from chemicals used in farming. Now, the Paris water authority is going to the farmers themselves to encourage changes to techniques and crops that could improve the quality of drinking water at the source. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES