Delegates from countries around the world raised the call for a moratorium on the release of genetically engineered trees into the environment at the UN Convention on Biological Diversity’s Eighth Conference of the Parties in Curitiba, Brazil. Additional delegates also insisted that the CBD launch a thorough global examination of the risks and impacts of genetically engineered trees-risks which have not, at this point, been adequately examined.
“Yesterday was truly an historic day,” stated Orin Langelle, Co-Director of the Global Justice Ecology Project and Coordinator of the STOP GE Trees Campaign. “The alarm bells we have been sounding about the genetic engineering of trees have finally been heard,” he continued.
“Promoters of this irresponsible and dangerous technology have now officially been put on notice that people and countries around the world stand firmly opposed to genetically engineered trees-just as GM crops and terminator technology are already opposed,” stated Lambert Okrah, of the Ghana chapter of the Global Forest Coalition. “We further applaud the courageous and far-sighted positions of countries such as Ghana, Iran, Norway, Madagascar, Egypt, Philippines, Senegal, Malawi and others in raising the call for a moratorium on genetically engineered trees,” he continued.
Interventions in support of the call for a moratorium were presented by Global Justice Ecology Project for the Women’s Caucus, the International Indigenous Forum on Biodiversity, Global Forest Coalition, Greenpeace, and the Federation of German Scientists.
The release of transgenic trees will inevitably and irreversibly contaminate native forests, which will themselves become contaminants in an endless cycle. The potential effects include destruction of biodiversity and wildlife, loss of fresh water, desertification of soils, collapse of native forest ecosystems, cultural destruction of forest based traditional communities and severe human health impacts. The negative effects of transgenic trees will impact many generations to come.