Information on the public register shows that, after treatment to inactivate waste, companies still expect to be releasing waste containing hundreds, or even millions, of GMMs per litre. Extraordinarily, the Environment Agency, which is responsible for pollution control in the UK, has no information on where and how GMMs are being used in factories and therefore no knowledge of what GMMs are being released in waste streams or in aerial discharges by the companies involved. The HSE, which is responsible for implementing the regulations covering the use of GMMs, conducts no monitoring and no enforceable levels of allowed pollution are established. GeneWatch has written to all the companies registered as using GMMs on a large scale. None of the companies using GMMs were prepared to supply details of what they were producing or releasing into the environment, their monitoring plans or data.
Commercial research focuses on the use of GMMs to produce drugs and other products.
The HSE estimates that there are around 5,500 new projects using GMMs on a small scale each year. The users conduct the risk assessments themselves and if they categorise a project as safe, no information is disclosed to the regulators. Researchers at public institutes and universities appear to be the most irresponsible about the risks of GMMs even though they are often dealing with more dangerous organisms. Birmingham University - Prohibition notice. Kings College School of Medicine and Dentistry - Voluntary cessation of work.