In Corvallis, NW RAGE volunteers displayed signs voicing our dissent. We handed out flyers to participants with The Top 10 Questions To Ask The USDA, such as, "Will Monsanto and Scotts now have a claim to the Crooked River National Grassland because of drifting pollen from their genetically engineered grass? Will they have a claim to the grass in Oregonian's backyards like they did when patented canola drifted onto Canadian farmer Percy Schmeiser's land?" We included the EPA map showing the GE bentgrass contamination that we super-imposed onto another map of the area, showing that the grass almost certainly contaminated the Crooked River National Grassland, Oregon's only national grassland, and the Warm Springs Indian Reservation. (Government officials have so far been silent on this aspect of the contamination.)
RAGE volunteers also put on a play to voice our demand that Monsanto and Scotts should be forced to clean up their mess.
We brought along our own independent videographer who taped an interview we conducted with USDA public affairs representative Larry Hawkins. He refers to the GE bentgrass pollen contamination as a "wind event" that was apparently completely unforeseen and even "historical." Mr. Hawkins dodged many of our questions by saying he couldn't talk about some aspects of the contamination because of a current lawsuit.
One of the questions we had was whether or not Monsanto or Scotts, the lawn company who helped to develop this grass, were going to be fined for contaminating our state with GE bentgrass. At first Mr. Hawkins hedged, saying once again that he couldn't discuss the matter. Later, however, when pressed by NW RAGE volunteers and our videographer, he withdrew this statement and admitted that Monsanto and Scotts had indeed been fined, not for the contamination, but for not reporting the contamination appropriately. (One unconfirmed USDA source at the forum quoted the fine as $345,000, which is a small price to pay and pocket change to a corporation the size of Monsanto, which sets aside a budget of $10 million a year solely to sue farmers who the company says are illegally growing their patented GE crops.)
Our demands, which we made very clear at the forum, include:
- That Monsanto and Scotts be forced to clean up this GE bentgrass contamination
- That Monsanto and Scotts be fined
- That this field trial should never have happened in the first place and no more field trials should be conducted
- and that the USDA and Oregon Department of Agriculture (who signed off on the test site) should start to consider the needs of Oregon's farmers and economy and stop dabbling in the bad science of biotechnology.
So, what exactly is wrong with this GE Bentgrass? Many things. First of all, while Monsanto and Scotts claim that less RoundUp will be sprayed on the grass, it will more than likely actually mean that more chemicals will be used, not less. This is because golf course groundskeepers can spray RoundUp anywhere they wish, and not just use it as spot weed control. Golf course management is already extremely chemically intensive, and we should be working toward using less chemicals in our environment, not more.
Bentgrass is already considered an invasive species, and is a serious weed in many areas. If this GE Bentgrass is approved, it will be the first-ever commercial release of a recognized weed enhanced specifically to resist a leading weedkiller. Futhermore, Bentgrass cross-pollinates with at least a dozen other wild relatives, meaning that it could pass the resistance gene onto other grasses. If it is approved, it will surely contaminate every area of the U.S.
The Willamette Valley is the grass seed capital of the world. It is our 5th largest crop, and brings in more than $300 million a year for our economy. The commercialization of this grass surely means that our grass crop will become contaminated. If this happens, farmers will lose their export market to countries that don't accept GE, and this would be huge, since 12 percent of the grass seed crop is exported to about 60 countries. Farmers seem to be split on the issue since the grass seed industry in Oregon was in a downturn until last year, and some see this grass as a way to revive the market. However, other farmers are concerned the grass will escape, cross with other Bentgrass, and become a weed on their land, not to mention the effect on the economy.
In addition, the government's regulatory program is seriously flawed, with many former biotech employees now in positions of power at the USDA, EPA, and FDA. In fact, the USDA recently disclosed that one of its scientists working to possibly deregulate the grass, Dr. Virgil Meier, is a former Scotts employee.
The good news in all of this is that you have the chance to make your voice heard. The government is conducting the first-ever Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) of a genetically engineered crop, and you have until June 1 to submit your comments to the USDA. After all comments are in, they will prepare a draft EIS, ask for more public comments, and record the final EIS before they make a decision on whether or not to approve this GE grass for sale to golf courses around the country.
To submit your comments electronically, go to EDOCKET at http://www.epa.gov/feddocket, click on "View Open APHIS Dockets," and locate agency Docket No. 03-101-4. Written comments can be mailed by sending an original and three copies to Docket No. 03-101-4, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3C71, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238.
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