§ Mr. Alan SimpsonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the monitoring arrangements for each of the currently agreed field test sites for genetically modified crops, specifying(a) which sites were subject to pre-planting environmental audits, (b) what sub-surface soil changes are being monitored, (c) what criteria for above-ground environmental impact form part of the field test monitoring and (d) which Government office conducts the monitoring. [78049]
§ Mr. MeacherThe monitoring arrangements for releases of genetically modified organisms are decided on a case by case basis for each consent application. This year, some sites will be used for the farm-scale302W evaluations which will compare the effects of the management of genetically modified crops on farmland wildlife with the effects of managing conventional crops.
The Government have awarded three contracts to study the effects of the management of GM crops on wildlife to a consortium led by the Natural Environment Research Council's (NERC) Institute of Terrestrial Ecology. The consortium also includes the Institute of Arable Crop Research and the Scottish Crop Research Institute. Each contract is worth £1.1m; funding is provided wholly by my Department, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) and the Scottish Office.
The evaluations, which will take four years, will ensure that the managed development of the introduction of genetically modified crops announced at the House of Lords European Communities Sub-Committee on Agriculture, Fisheries and Food last October, will take place safely. The evaluation programme will help address the concerns which have been raised by English Nature and the Royal Society of the Protection of Birds. We need to get reliable evidence to help us decide whether the management of generically modified herbicide tolerant crops could have the potential to accelerate the decline in farmland wildlife which has taken place over the last 50 years.
In order to make comparisons between the GM and non-GM crops, the sites identified for the research in 2000 will be subject to pre-planting sampling and analysis. The research will look at the effects of the management of GM and non-GM crops on the soil; for example earthworm population monitoring provides a good indicator of the structure and fertility of the soil. Above ground environmental impact will be studied, again by carrying out surveys of plant populations and invertebrates.
This research will not only address issues relating to genetically modified crops. This is an extremely important opportunity to contribute towards a more detailed understanding of the effects of agricultural management practices on farmland wildlife generally.
This research will be monitored by an independent steering committee of experts which is currently being set up and will report to the Secretary of State; the results will be made widely available.