WRITTEN QUESTION E-0086/02

by Erik Meijer (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(25 January 2002)

Subject: Contamination of non-GM crops by GMOs

1. Is the Commission aware of the findings of a study, reported in the New Scientist of 24 November 2001, which shows that contamination from genetically modified oilseed rape is now so widespread that it has become difficult to grow crops which can be guaranteed GM-free?

2. The study, conducted by the Canadian Federal Government's Saskatoon Research Center, was conducted over six years. Does the Commission agree with the Center's conclusion that it provides valuable lessons for other parts of the world, such as Europe, that don't yet allow commercial production?

3. Does the Commission agree with the Center's suggestion, on the basis of its findings that oilseed rape pollen can travel up to 800 metres, that some crops may have to be kept far apart or even grown in separate, designated zones?

4. Does the Commission believe that a modification of Directive 2001/18(1) may be necessary in order to accommodate these new findings?

5. Does the Commission further accept that the de facto moratorium should remain in place until such a modification is agreed and implemented?

(1) OJ L 106, 17.4.2001, p. 1.

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(19 March 2002)

The Commission is aware of the study reported in the New Scientist of 24 November 2001 concerning the spread of pollen and seed of genetically modified oilseed rape that is currently taking place in Canada.

Genetically modified rapeseeds have been approved for breeding activities and import in the Community under Council Directive 90/220/EEC of 23 April 1990 on the deliberate release into the environment of genetically modified organisms (GMOs)(1). The authorisations granted under this Directive continues to remain in force after 17 October 2002 when the new Directive 2001/18/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 12 March 2001 on the deliberate release into the environment of GMOs has to be transposed into national legislation.

As provisions concerning potential effects resulting from gene transfer are already an integral part of Directive 2001/18/EC, the Commission finds that a possible amendment of this Directive to address these new findings would not be appropriate.

The overall objective of Directive 2001/18/EC is to protect human health and the environment, following the deliberate release of GMOs into the environment. As part of this objective, Member States and where appropriate the Commission shall ensure that potential adverse effects on human health and the environment, which may occur directly or indirectly through gene transfer from GMOs to other organisms, are accurately assessed on a case-by-case basis.

In this context, the principles for risk assessment under the Directive include the potential for gene transfer to the same or other sexually compatible plant species under conditions of planting the GMO and any selective advantage or disadvantage conferred to those plant species.

Furthermore, information required in the risk assessment includes appraisal of the ways and extent of dissemination (e.g. an estimation of how viable pollen and/or seeds declines with distance) and any specific factors affecting dissemination, if any. The presence of sexually compatible wild relatives or cultivated plant species and proximity to officially recognised biotopes or protected areas that may be affected must also be considered.

In terms of information on control and monitoring, details should be provided for any precautions taken in terms of distance(s) from sexually compatible plant species, both wild relatives and crops as well as any measures to minimise/prevent dispersal of any reproductive organ of the genetically modified higher plants (e.g. pollen, seeds, tuber).

Against the background of the risk assessment, GMOs are only authorised for the placing on the market when there is no reason to believe that there is an adverse effect on human health or the environment under the conditions of consent.

In the case of seed crops, minimum distances from undesirable neighbouring pollen sources have been established in the seed legislation in the case of cross-pollinated plants. These distances vary according to the species, the kind of variety and of the category of seeds. The Scientific Committee on Plants has stated in its opinion of 7 March 2001 on the adventitious presence of GM seeds in conventional seeds(2), that one of the measures to achieve a 0,3 % threshold for adventitious GM presence in the case of non GM hybrids of oilseed rape would be to increase the current isolation distance up to 3000 meters.

(1) OJ L 117, 8.5.1990.

(2) http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/scp/out93_gmo_en.pdf.