This has the potential to be of far greater harm to the environment than DDT ever was and there is no way to avoid it. It will be in our food and we won't be any labeling. This has terrible implications for Australia! Trudy ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ SMH Green light for new crops that could poison animals Date: 28/06/99 By MARK RAGG and MURRAY HOGARTH Farmers will be allowed to grow genetically modified crops that are toxic to birds, insects and grazing animals, and which could make some weeds resistant to herbicides, under a new Federal Government policy. Crops "which may pose a hazard to the environment" will not be banned, but farmers must take "special care" to minimise risks to wildlife, stock and other plants. The Herald has found that the "Good Agricultural Practice Guidelines for the Use of Genetically-Modified Plants", which could be extended to cover animals, were adopted as Government policy this month without public consultation or fanfare. The policy aims to ensure the rapid but safe introduction of genetically modified crops, warning that Australia could fall behind its competitors. But a leading campaigner against genetically modified crops and foods, Mr Bob Phelps, director of the GeneEthics Network, last night called the guidelines "a fast track to disaster". "The lack of precaution that is indicated is monumental," he said. "It defies description, really." The guidelines were developed by the standing committee on agriculture and resource management, which reports to Federal, State and Territory agriculture ministers. Government sources say the policy opens the way for a backlog of genetically modified crops to be released for planting. Genetically modified varieties of cotton and carnations are already growing, but marketing approval for a number of other crops had been on hold pending adoption of the national policy. These include herbicide-resistant varieties of canola, clover and cotton, and an insecticide-resistant strain of peas. Other plants which could be expected on the market soon include genetically modified potatoes, pineapples, tomatoes, sugarcane, apples, poppies, tea rose, chrysanthemums, lupins and white clover. An application by the multinational AgrEvo to market a form of canola resistant to the herbicide glufisonate ammonium is one example. The Government's Genetic Manipulation Advisory Committee, which decides on such applications, said that because canola cross-breeds, marketing approval "would be likely to lead to the development of glufisonate-resistant weeds in the long term". Despite this, the committee approved the growth of at least 400 hectares of AgrEvo's canola in 1998-99. It rejected AgrEvo's application for general release only because the new policy was not operating. This material is subject to copyright and any unauthorised use, copying or mirroring is prohibited. ------------------------------------------------------- RecOzNet2 has a page @ http://www.green.net.au/recoznet2 and is archived at http://www.mail-archive.com/ To unsubscribe from this list, mail [EMAIL PROTECTED], and in the body of the message, include the words: unsubscribe announce or click here mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20announce This posting is provided to the individual members of this group without permission from the copyright owner for purposes of criticism, comment, scholarship and research under the "fair use" provisions of the Federal copyright laws and it may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner, except for "fair use." RecOzNet2 is archived for members @ http://www.mail-archive.com/
