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GE Trees cut down.
The biosecurity containment facility at Scion (Forest Research Institute Ltd)in Rotorua has been breached and investigations by MAF are underway. The breach was reported to MAF on Monday night. GE Free (NZ) was told that entry was gained into the site by cutting of a wire fence underground where the GE trees were cut down. A GE Free sign had been left.
This comes in the wake of ERMA and MAF looking into containment facility control conditions where rabbits had large burrows running alongside the perimeter fence. These holes were fairly deep and the fence wire was exposed. They were also given a picture of a pile of pruning’s half dead and exposed to the elements that audit and enforcement controls required to be incinerated, however we were told that a s.67A non notified amendment allowed the pruning to be left on site.
There have been regular breaches in CRI protocols and containment facility standards that have not been fully looked into. These include the illegal importation of GE onion seed, impregnation of GE embryo’s into surrogate GE cows, and large rabbit holes around the Scion site.
In the December issue of OrganicNZ magazine published photos of a rabbit warren where the animals were getting in and out of the facility. Some of rabbit holes had moss and algae growing in the passages showing that they were well established. It appears that the mandatory weekly fence inspection had not been conducted.
“Rabbits had been a continuing problem over the four years and inspection was clearly not being regularly conducted” said Claire Bleakley of GE Free (NZ) in food and environment
“Each year GE Free (NZ) raises concerns over issues in teh annual plan to do with compliance and they are always fobbed off. I only hope that no GE material was taken out of the facility. Responsibility for this negligence and carelessness leading to the breach should lie in part, with the inspection and monitoring agencies”.
ENDS
Claire Bleakley 027 348 6731
Jon Carapiet 021 050 7681
References:
OrganicNZ magazine, December/January 2007 issue.
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GE-Free New Zealand 
