§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement about the environmental implications of genetically modified food. [87938]
§ Mr. Meacher [holding answer 1 July 19991The purpose of the current EU and UK legislation is to prevent or minimise any damage to the environment which may arise from the escape or release of genetically modified organisms.
Each application for the release of genetically modified (GM) plants is supported by a risk assessment, which is evaluated by Government experts and independent scientists on the Advisory Committee on Releases to the Environment (ACRE). If there were any reason to believe 10W emissions from coal-fired power stations for the latest year for which statistics are available; what percentage of the total of such emissions from United Kingdom power stations this represents; and what steps he will be taking to reduce those emissions. [89128]
§ Mr. MealeThe emissions from United Kingdom coal-fired power stations, set in the context of total power station emissions and total emissions are given in the table. The figures are taken from the National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory.
that a release would be harmful to human health or the environment then it would not be allowed. The environmental assessments are available on the public register together with reports of monitoring carried out during and after the trial.
All GM crops intended for general cultivation must be covered by a valid Part C (marketing) consent issued under Council Directive 90/220/EEC on the deliberate release into the environment of genetically modified organisms. Under the Directive a consent will be issued only where the environmental risk assessment demonstrates that the marketing will not cause significant harm to human health or the environment.
The farmscale evaluations will allow the Government to study the effects on the environment of the larger scale growing of GM crops year by year. If trends are spotted about possible adverse effects, we will have a sound basis for following these observations up and taking precautionary action. The work will be reviewed each year and we will use this to decide how best to proceed with the managed development of GM crops in the UK. This approach ensures that large-scale plantings do not proceed until we have sufficient evidence that the particular GM crop does not harm the environment.
DETR carries out research on the environmental impact of GM crops. Two important recent reports are "Environmental Risks of Herbicide Tolerant Oilseed Rape" and "The Commercial use of Genetically Modified Crops in the United Kingdom: the Potential Wider Impact on Farmland Wildlife". Copies of both reports are in the Library.