25-year GM pine tree test gets green light

Environmental regulators have given a green light to a 25-year field test of genetically modified, also referred to as genetically engineered or GE, pine trees "in containment" at Rotorua.
The Environmental Risk Management Authority (Erma) yesterday approved state science company Scion's application to test genes influencing plant growth, reproductive development, herbicide tolerance, biomass utilisation, wood density and stability in 4000 trees on a 4 hectare site.
Each tree will be grown for a maximum of eight years before being destroyed.
The chairwoman of Erma's panel, Val Orchard, noted it was not deciding whether the submitters or their views were correct, but making a balanced decision to allow benefits of new organisms to be realised if the risks could be safely managed.
Scion - formerly the state Forest Research Institute - is in its 14th year of field-testing GM pine trees and in 2000, received approvals from Erma to field test radiata pine over 22 years with engineered genes controlling reproductive development and over 11 years for herbicide resistance.
It now wants to introduce new traits with "commercial potential" to boost production of wood and fibre-based products, bio-fuels, other chemical extracts from trees, and for increasing carbon capture through tree planting.
Plantation forests already earn the country $3.2 billion a year, and Scion has said world demand for forest products is expected to increase over the next 30 years.
The company has developed GM herbicide-resistant radiata pine and spruce, and insect-resistant radiata pine for indoor containment studies it said showed an ability to deliver additional genetic gain.
Scion said it would be collaborating with commercial partner ArborGen Australasia.
DNA sequences will be copied from organisms such as bacteria, fungi, and non-native plants and the GM trees will be assessed for herbicide tolerance, biomass acquisition, wood characteristics and expression of the new genes. Environmental impacts will also be assessed by monitoring the micro-organisms and insects living in association with pines.
Scion is seeking increased stability of wood dimensions - less shrinkage in drying - and improved plant growth and better suitability of glue-like chemicals, known as lignins, in the wood to being pulped or broken down by microorganisms or enzymes.
And because foresters growing conventional trees don't want genetic contamination from GE forests, it plans to control reproductive development - producing trees that won't produce viable pollen or seed cones - which may allow extra energy to be transferred to plant growth.

Soil and Health spokesman Steffan Browning said Erma's controls for the GM pines were little different than those made for GM brassicas at Lincoln, where GM kale was wrongly allowed to flower.
Non-government organisations critical of the technology would monitor Scion's latest project as closely as possible to check that GM leakage from field trials did not occur.
"We cannot rely on the scientists or government agencies entrusted with that responsibility," he said.