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The NIAB research study on MONITORING LARGE SCALE RELEASES
OF GENETICALLY MODIFIED CROPS conducted for DEFRA has provided
some illuminating results and poses more questions on the
unpredictability and uncertainty regarding pollen movement
of oil seed rape.
www.defra.gov.uk/environment/gm/research/epg-1-5-84.htm
It is clear that the current conditions attached to consents
to release GMOs for trial purposes are inadequate to control
contamination of sexually compatible species or future volunteer
growth of oil seed rape.
Swindon Friends of the Earth believe that all past, present
and future releases of GM oil seed rape will need to be monitored
for at least five years post harvest and possibly for up to
ten years. The NIAB study revealed that in one incidence transgenic
oil seed rape volunteers persisted until 2000 at least from
a crop harvested in 1996. Other studies have shown persistence
of oil seed rape seed varieties for 8 years whilst the seeds
can remain dormant for around 10 years. Clearly the current
one year post harvest monitoring programme is inadequate for
detecting and destroying transgenic brassicas before flowering.
Moreover, in order to secure seed purity, in subsequent oil
seed rape crops, it is clear that other varieties of oil seed
rape should not be grown in the same field for up to ten years.
A new approach needs to be taken to monitoring the whole
area around the GMO release site in order to control the accidental
release of GMOs into environment that are not covered by the
deliberate release consent conditions. The study found 1.5%
contamination of transgenic material in conventional oil seed
rape seed harvested at 100m, 0.8% at 200m and 0.5% at 250m
from GM trial sites. There is mention of "3.2% herbicide
tolerance .. found at the edge of one field of the varietal
association Gemini, at 105m distance from a small block of
transgenic herbicide tolerant OSR." Clearly the 50m buffer
zones that are currently monitored (or 100m in the case of
varietal associations) are grossly inadequate to secure seed
purity standards and to control future releases of GMOs into
the environment. Whilst we recognise that there are many variables
that can affect the degree of contamination found (and the
report confirms this fact), it would seem prudent to monitor
and remove any sexually compatible brassica plants that might
appear within a buffer area of 800m to 1.5km of a GM crops
with the option to reduce the monitoring area with advancing
years.
We are alarmed that the report states that "seed dispersal
was usually associated with spillage and distribution by agricultural
machinery, particularly combine harvesters. In the contract
from 1994 to 1997, it was found that some combine harvesters
were not cleaned after the harvesting of the GM crop, and
the crop harvested subsequently flushed out the GM rape seed
onto the ground causing contamination of this field".
If guidelines for good agricultural practice for the growing
of GM crops are not stringently adhered to, it is clear that
transgenic oil seed rape could grow anywhere outside the trial
area and buffer zone.
We cannot see a future for growing GM oil seed rape crops
for either trial or commercial purposes in the UK if we seek
to achieve acceptable seed purity standards and to prevent
the herbicide tolerant trait spreading to other brassica varieties.
Jean Saunders
Swindon Friends of the Earth
Pear Tree Cottage
Longcot
Faringdon
Oxon SN7 7SS
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