GE Free Waikato (Waikato GE Free Network)
PO Box 23 034
Hamilton
www.gefreeseeds.com

Put in a Submission at Your Council on the LTCCP on GMO's

In light of the recent medical catastrophe involving a young New Zealander participating in a GE drug trials in the UK; the continuation of the global ban of terminator seeds at the Convention of Parties 8 on the Convention on Biodiversity and the MOP 3 Cartgena Protocol in Curitiba Brazil last month; the contamination of Spanish crops due to co-existence policies with GMO species, and the Joint International Genetically Modified Opposition Day (JIGMOD)

http://altercampagne.free.fr

WE ARE SEEKING YOUR SUPPORT

Genetic engineering – local and regional councils have their draft Long Term Council Community Plans open for submissions for the next few weeks.

Northland peninsula councils (ie. Waitakere City Council and Rodney District Councils, as well as the Northland councils have investigated the costs they might incur if a GE release in their area went wrong and they had to pay for the clean up. They have commissioned two independent GE reports and two legal opinions by Dr. Royden Somerville, QC The GE Reports are:

"Community Management of GMOs: Issues, Options and Partnership with Government"

"Community Management of GMOs II- Risks & Response Options"

Those reports show that there are exposures for both local authorities and ratepayers for GE cleanup costs

" To encourage your councils to follow this lead and move to adopt a precautionary approach to GE and ban GMO land uses, please send in a submission..."

An easy way to do it is to use the electronic submission form at

http://www.gefreeseeds.com/submission_to_council.htm.

Submission will state;

I submit that, using powers in the Resource Management Act 1991, Local Government Act 2004 and Health Act 1956, the council inserts into the

Long Term Council Community Plan the following:

"Council will adopt a precautionary approach to the management of biotechnology in general and to GMO land uses in particular. It will investigate ways of maintaining the district's environment free of GMOs until outstanding issues such as liability, economic costs and benefits, environmental risks, and cultural effects are resolved.

This means that, outside of laboratory containment, there should be no further development and field testing of transgenic organisms envisaged for agriculture, horticulture and forestry, nor any commercial release ,until the risk potential has been adequately identified and evaluated and a strict liability regime put in place.

Or send in your own submission to your local council.

GE Free Waikato, PO Box 23 034, Hamilton

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