Environmental groups and the official Opposition have united in their criticism of the P.E.I. government following two recent appointments to the board of Health PEI.

On May 26, government announced four new appointees to the board, including Blaine MacPherson, a potato farmer and a former vice president with Cavendish Farms, and Warren Ellis.

Ellis is a business owner and former potato farmer. In 2014 he was fined $70,000 in relation to two fish kills. One in the Trout River in 2011, and another in Barclay Brook, a tributary of the Trout River, in 2012. He pleaded guilty to releasing a harmful substance into a watercourse. He was fined an additional $2,200 after pleading guilty to violating the provincial Crop Rotation Act.

Defence lawyers at the time told the court Ellis applied the pesticide according to directions in response to a provincial advisory to spray for blight, but that the rainfall that followed was unusually heavy.

The group Earth Action has collected more than 700 signatures so far on an online petition calling on Health Minister Robert Henderson "to remove these two compromised appointees from the Health PEI board and replace them with people not affiliated with the potato and pesticide industries."

Earth Action co-ordinator Sharon Labchuk said she's particularly concerned about the role the Health PEI board has in advising the minister of health.

"So if policies come up that the board needs to discuss or advise the minister on that pertain to the use of agricultural pesticides on P.E.I., I think we can safely say that their sympathies are going to lie with the pesticide users, not the people in this province who are looking for action on preventing health issues that are related to the use of pesticides."

Meanwhile three other groups — Pesticide Free PEI, the PEI Environmental Health Cooperative and Citizens' Alliance of PEI — have attached their names to an open letter to Premier Wade MacLauchlan asking that the two appointments be revoked, and also asking how many other people applied to fill the positions, and what qualifications they had.

A government spokesperson told CBC News in an email that both appointments were made through Engage PEI, a government-run website that allows Islanders to apply to be a part of various agencies, committees and boards.

The spokesperson added that the "Health PEI Board of Directors is a competency-based board. Mr. Ellis and Mr. MacPherson bring a business and community perspective to the Board which complements a full range of skills and perspectives."

The spokesperson explained that the selection process includes application to Engage PEI; screening and interviewing by the Nominations Task Group of the Board; and criminal records check, and that all those things were done.

Regarding the appointment of Ellis, the email stated, "Warren Ellis is a well-known businessman and community volunteer who has contributed in numerous ways, including organizing the annual successful Grass Roots and Cowboy Boots fundraising event for the Prince County Hospital Foundation."

Meanwhile, the government press release described not only MacPherson's background with Cavendish Farms but also his role in a number of community organizations including the PEI Harness Racing Industry Association and the Holland College Foundation board of directors.

Both Ellis and MacPherson spoke with CBC News. MacPherson said he applied for the board position after seeing it advertised. He said he hopes to use his business experience to improve the P.E.I. health care system, making it smoother and more efficient.

Ellis said he applied for several board positions through the Engage PEI website. He too said he hopes to use his business background to improve the health care system. He also said he's been passionate about fundraising for the Prince County hospital for several years.

Ellis said he sees no relationship between the pesticide fines and this appointment.

Both said they did not seek positions on the board of Health PEI to represent the potato industry and would not be biased should the issue of pesticides come up.

"I would sooner not use any if possible ... but it's a necessity," said MacPherson.

Ellis said he's out of the business.

Both the Progressive Conservative party and the NDP have also criticized the government appointments.

"It makes you wonder what kind of vetting process there is if a person was put on the Health PEI board who… was fined tens of thousands of dollars for violating provincial and federal environmental legislation that resulted in a major fish kill in Prince County," interim PC leader Jamie Fox was quoted in a PC media release.

Meanwhile NDP leader Mike Redmond expressed concerns over Cavendish Farms' request that the P.E.I. government lift its moratorium on high-capacity irrigation wells, and the appointment of its former VP to the board of Health PEI.

"This once again demonstrates the Liberal Party's move towards lifting the moratorium on high capacity wells," Redmond was quoted in an NDP media release. "They are stacking the deck at Health PEI, moving towards a corporate agenda."

There are 11 members on the board of Health PEI, including four health professionals.