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- Bu səhifədəki naviqasiya:
- UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
THAILAND[24 August 2006] [SUBMISSION:ENGLISH] 
UNITED KINGDOM[19 November 2007] [SUBMISSION:ENGLISH]
If yes, please answer all remaining questions. If no, please state the reason why: There are no plantations of GM trees in the UK in the form of either commercial or experimental releases into the environment.
If yes, please answer all remaining questions. If no, please state the reason why:
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA[30 November 2006] [SUBMISSION:ENGLISH] The United States is pleased to provide the following information in response to the request from the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity for information pertaining to the potential impacts of genetically modified trees on forest biological diversity. 1. Does your country have any plantations, either commercial or experimental, of genetically modified trees? Over 300 confined field trials of genetically engineered (GE) trees have been conducted in the United States since 1989, with no evidence of environmental harm. These experimental trials have been conducted for forest trees as well as ornamental and fruit trees, including pine, eucalyptus, poplar, chestnut, elm, plum, apple, papaya and walnut. A list of field trials conducted in the U.S. is available at http://www.isb.vt.edu/. To date, the only GE tree variety that has been deregulated and that is in commercial production in the United States is papaya that has been engineered to be resistant to the papaya ringspot virus. There are over 1200 acres of GE papaya planted in commercial orchards in Hawaii. The U.S. is also currently reviewing a petition for the deregulation of plum pox-resistant plum. 2. Has your country developed any platform/discussion forum/national committee, etc. dealing with genetically modified tress? Issues relating to genetically engineered trees have been addressed in a number of different forums in the U.S. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is responsible for regulatory oversight of environmental releases of GE organisms in the U.S, including GE trees (see Question #3). In addition, if the plant has been engineered to express a pesticidal compound, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also has authority. The regulatory process is transparent and provides opportunity for public comment. A list of all field trials conducted in the U.S. is available on the APHIS website, and any decision to deregulate a GE tree variety includes opportunity for public comment. In 2001, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) formed an Advisory Committee on Agricultural Biotechnology (ACAB) to advise the Secretary of Agriculture on policy issues related to agricultural biotechnology. This committee, now referred to as AC21 provides a forum for consideration of the long-term impacts of biotechnology and for discussion of other issues that may be outside the authority of the regulatory agencies. The committee consists of over 25 members from government, industry, university and other stakeholders. AC21 meetings are held regularly and transcripts of those meetings are available on the USDA website (www.usda.gov). The most recent AC21 report (July 2006), Opportunities and Challenges in Agricultural Biotechnology: The Decade Ahead, includes consideration of both forest and fruit trees. In addition, there have been a number of public meetings over the past several years in the U.S. that included consideration of the scientific, as well as the societal, implications of the environmental release of GE trees.
3. Does your country have any guidelines or regulations for minimizing the impacts of genetically modified trees for scientific and/or commercial purposes? In the United States, three Federal agencies share responsibility for regulating plants and plant products developed using genetic engineering. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Together, these agencies ensure that the products of modern biotechnology are safe to grow, safe to eat, and safe for the environment. Links to the regulations from each agency can be found at http://nbii.usbiotechreg.gov. Under the authority of the Plant Protection Act, environmental release of GE trees is regulated by USDA/APHIS. Developers of GE trees must submit an application to APHIS prior to conducting experimental field trials. Based on tree biology, confinement conditions are imposed on trials to minimize the likelihood of establishment and spread of GE trees in the environment, including gene flow to related species or wild relatives. The conditions designed to minimize escape of GE material into the environment can include field trial isolation, prevention of flowering, or any other effective method. In addition, an applicant must control and dispose of plant material such that it does not persist in the environment. Field trials are subject to inspection and monitoring to ensure that applicants are confining the trial and to ensure appropriate disposition of plant material. Once a developer of a new GE tree variety has sufficient data from laboratory and field trials to demonstrate that the tree is as safe for agriculture and the environment as its traditionally developed counterpart, USDA regulations provide a process by which developers can petition APHIS to grant non-regulated status for that product (http://www.aphis.usda.gov/publications/biotechnology/index.shtml). APHIS scientists review a comprehensive data package submitted by the applicant that includes both a phenotypic and genotypic description of the GE and non-GE variety, typical assessments for plant pest and disease susceptibilities, protein expression assessments, field test reports and other relevant experimental data. During the process of assessing a petition for deregulation, the public is invited to comment on the developer’s petition and on APHIS’ scientific and environmental assessment of the new product. When a determination of nonregulated status is made, the product and its progeny are no longer subject to APHIS oversight. Thus, trees that have been granted non-regulated status can be grown in the environment without special restrictions such as confinement, as it has been demonstrated that they pose no greater risk than similar non-engineered trees. GE trees that are engineered to produce a pesticidal substance (any substance intended to prevent, destroy or mitigate any insect, plant or disease pest) would also be subject to oversight by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). For all pesticide products, including genetically engineered pesticides, EPA requires testing of product composition and chemical properties, human health effects, environmental effects on non-target pests, and the fate of the pesticide in the environment. Through a registration process, EPA regulates the sale, distribution, and use of pesticides, including pesticidal substances produced in GE plants and trees, in order to protect human health and the environment. U.S government regulatory agencies ensure that the products of modern biotechnology, including trees, are safe to grow, safe to eat, and safe for the environment. People or companies that violate any of these agencies’ laws or regulations are subject to high monetary fines and other punitive actions. Yüklə 0,82 Mb. Dostları ilə paylaş:
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