USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has given preliminary approval to the first of a new generation of pesticide-promoting, genetically engineered crops designed to survive spraying with multiple herbicides. This GE corn variety was developed by DuPont subsidiary Pioneer Hi-Bred International to tolerate applications of glyphosate (the active ingredient in Roundup) and acetolactate synthase-inhibiting herbicides (ALS inhibitors). This latest petition to deregulate a new, untested, and complex GE crop poses food safety, environmental, and agronomic concerns that were not adequately evaluated by the Bush Administration's USDA.
In a move that is characteristic of the Bush era, APHIS has failed to adequately address a range of health and environmental risks in its draft environmental assessment (EA), including novel food safety concerns, increased pesticide use and increased prevalence of weeds resistant to glyphosate, ALS inhibitors and to both herbicides. The draft EA also gets basic facts wrong, and does not provide a meaningful analysis of the cumulative impacts from introduction of Event 98140 in association with the current widespread use of other glyphosate-tolerant corn and other glyphosate-tolerant crops.
Tell USDA to stop this approval and prepare and publish a through Environmental Impact Statement before making a decision. DuPont-Pioneer's dual herbicide-tolerant corn represents the first of a new generation of multiple herbicide-tolerant crops that require extremely careful consideration. USDA should also extend the public comment period so that all interested parties can thoroughly examine the materials and comment appropriately.
USDA is only accepting comments until February 6th – please send your comment today!
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