attack of the super crab grass

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USDA Sued to Stop GE Grasses

 

January 15, 2003

 

Recently, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) was sued over its

failure to recognize the dangers associated with grasses genetically engineered

to be resistant to herbicides. On January 8, 2003, the International Center for

Technology Assessment (CTA) and the Center for Food Safety sued USDA arguing

that creeping bentgrass and Kentucky bluegrass, both of which are being

engineered to resist Roundup (glyphosate), are already serious problems in some

natural areas and would become " super weeds " if herbicide resistance was built

in. Monsanto, maker of Roundup, and Scotts Company, a home garden and pesticide

products company, have asked for USDA approval to commercialize a genetically

engineered (GE) variety of creeping bentgrass popular for golf course greens and

commercial and residential lawns.

 

Once released into the environment, the herbicide tolerant grasses could

proliferate at will. Because gasses are wind-pollinated species with pollen that

blows for hundreds of yards, they hybridize easily. Some species' seeds can

remain viable for 10 to 15 years. Turfgrasses are ubiquitous in and near almost

every type of habitat in which the U.S. populace lives, works and plays,

including an estimated 40,000,000 residential lawns and parks, at least 40,000

athletic facilities, more than 17,000 golf courses, and countless other

landscapes where they have been planted or invaded on their own.

 

CTA's complaint termed the GE grasses " a unique, man-made form of biological

pollution " with the potential to both out-compete native grasses and genetically

pollute native vegetation. Concerned about the risks of biotech super weeds, CTA

petitioned USDA in July 2002 to list genetically engineered varieties of these

grasses as " noxious weeds. " Instead, since last July, the agency has continued

to allow open-field testing of the Roundup resistant grasses on approximately

100 acres in 15 states.

 

Turfgrass is the second largest seed market in the United States after hybrid

corn, with annual sales estimated between US$580 million and US$1.2 billion. The

U.S. turfgrass seed export market amounts to US$70 million per year. Scotts

Company executives are reported to believe the eventual market for GE lawn

products will reach US$10 billion.

 

Prominent organizations including the American Society of Landscape Architects

(more than 14,000 members nationally), the Foundation on Economic Trends and The

Nature Conservancy (the largest holder of private land preserves in the world)

have also submitted comments to USDA urging a moratorium on release of GE

turfgrasses.

 

" Biotech grasses represent a very real environmental and economic threat to

communities and natural areas throughout the country, " said CTA Executive Andrew Kimbrell. " Going to court was the only way to ensure that these

" 'super weeds " are not released into our neighborhoods. "

 

According to CTA, beyond their impacts as weeds, other potential impacts of GE

herbicide resistant grass include:

 

** increased glyphosate use, misuse, and resultant foreseeable chemical

pollution, damage and injuries; the very purpose of the product being to allow

turfgrass managers and landowners of all types to spray more Roundup weed killer

on a broadcast rather than a spot basis;

 

** increased glyphosate resistance in weeds such that they will be more harmful

in the future; as more and more glyphosate is sprayed the selection pressure on

weeds to develop resistance will increase (see PANUPS, 12/20/02

http://www.panna.org/resources/panups/panup_20021220.dv.html );

 

** economic harm due to genetic contamination of fields of non-GE turfgrasses

intended for conventional markets, and the necessity for the impacted turfgrass

farmers to use more expensive, environmentally damaging, and even more dangerous

herbicides instead of glyphosate to kill GE infestations; and

 

** economic harm to organic farmers near any GE grass plantings because of the

increased presence of adventitious GE materials in their crops and the potential

for increased herbicide contamination, both of which are rejected by premium

markets for organic products.

 

Sources: Press Release, International Center for Technology Assessment & the

Center for food Safety, Lawsuit Filed Against USDA to Halt Commercialization of

Genetically Engineered Lawn Grass, Center for Technology Assessment's original

legal petition is available at: http://www.icta.org/petit-grass.htm; the legal

complaint is available on line at: http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/.

 

Contact: International Center for Technology Assessment, Center for Food Safety,

660 Pennsylvania Ave., SE, Suite 302, Washington, DC 20003; phone (202)

547-9359; fax (202) 547-9429; email info; Web site

http://www.icta.org/.

 

PANUPS is a weekly email news service providing resource guides and reporting on

pesticide issues that don't always get coverage by the mainstream media. It's

produced by Pesticide Action Network North America, a non-profit and

non-governmental organization working to advance sustainable alternatives to

pesticides worldwide.