The Cornell Report - Environmental Groups Response

[Paul Cherubini]

Yesturday Professor Chip Taylor/ Monarch Watch wrote:

>No one is claiming that Bt corn is going to have a major impact on monarch
>populations - only that it has the potential, yet to be determined, to
>reduce monarch numbers. 

True, but the public doesn't hear "it MIGHT have a major impact on
monarch populations ," but instead "it WILL have a major impact." Thus,
with a knee jerk reaction, the conclusion is "Save the butterflies, ban
all Genetically Modified Crops. Below are the reactions of some large
environmental organizations:

GERMAN GREEN PARTY: 

Hiltrud Breyer, a German Green European deputy, called for an immediate
suspension of all Bt crops approved or pending in the EU.``This research
confirms what we have been saying for many years -- the use of
engineered insecticides such as Bt which are claimed to be targeted only
at crop pests causes widespread environmental damage,'' Breyer said.

GREENPEACE:

Doug Parr, Greenpeace's campaigner on GM crops said the results came as
no surprise. ``As far as we're concerned this is exactly the sort of
unintentional impact we've been warning about,'' he said. Testing was a
waste of time and resources. ``Instead of more GM, we should go down a
sustainable agriculture route - which is organic.''

FRIENDS OF THE EARTH:

``(We have) been saying for years that Bt plants are not an ecological
solution to pest control,'' said Gill Lacroix of Friends of the Earth
Europe's biotechnology programme.
``The European Union should take immediate action to stop commercial
planting of GM maize in Europe now. There is no benefit of such crops
either for consumers or the environment, but rather a very significant
risk,'' Lacroix said in a statement.

HOMERO ARIDJIS AND MEXICO"S GROUP OF 100  +  GREENPEACE:

 MEXICO CITY (AP) - Environmentalists on Thursday urged the government
to ban imports and use of genetically engineered corn, citing new
research that it could contribute to deaths of monarch butterflies,
which mainly winter in Mexico. The call was made in a joint news release
by Liza Covantes of Greenpeace and Homero Aridjis, head of the Group of
100 leading poets, artists and intellectuals, saying a ban should remain
at least until there is more study of the corn's effects.

The Mexican government has approved cultivation of genetically
engineered corn on an
experimental basis since 1993 and only in certain regions. But it has
increasingly imported
genetically modified corn for human consumption.

Covantes also said she is concerned that the genetically modified corn
could affect some 300 varieties of native Mexican corn.

Paul Cherubini, Placerville, California