Genetically Engineered “Factory Trees”: Sustainable Way Forward or Dangerous Diversion?
Center for Food Safety (CFS) is pleased to offer a new report, Genetically Engineered Trees: The New Frontier of Biotechnology, which explores potential ecological and socioeconomic hazards of genetically engineered (GE) trees.
As you may know, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is considering whether to allow unrestricted planting of the first GE forest tree: eucalyptus engineered by ArborGen to grow in colder climates. If approved, this would allow eucalyptus to be grown throughout the Southeast for the first time, where short-rotation plantations would be established to provide pulp for paper and biomass for energy.
A variety of other GE trees are in the research pipeline, suggesting that “factory forests” are on the horizon.
Energy, paper and pulp, and biotechnology companies promote GE trees under a banner of environmental sustainability. However, the opposite is true. GE trees will facilitate expansion of monoculture tree plantations that require fertilizers and pesticides, use high amounts of water, reduce biodiversity, and can increase greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs).
Here are some key findings of the report:
- GE eucalyptus plantations will likely be grown to respond to the burgeoning demand for wood pellets. Already the largest exporter of wood pellets, the US ships them to the EU to co-fire power plants in efforts to reduce sulfur dioxide emissions and mitigate climate change. However, while using wood pellet biomass may reduce sulfur dioxide emissions, emerging science reveals that burning wood pellets increases other pollutants and may not reduce GHGs over the long term.
- GE eucalyptus tree plantations will intensify scarcity of fresh water resources in the southeast. A US Forest Service environmental assessment reported that GE eucalyptus water usage is likely to be at least two-fold greater than existing native forests in the southeast.
- Poplar, pine, and eucalyptus trees are being engineered to alter lignin content to make it easier to process into biofuels as well as other wood-based products. But lignin maintains structural integrity of trees and helps repel pests and pathogens, among other benefits. Forest health could be seriously compromised if the GE altered-lignin trait is passed on to closely related wild forest trees.
- Special attributes of trees make them particularly susceptible to transgenic contamination. For instance, trees have long life spans and produce large quantities of pollen and seeds that are often dispersed over great distances.
- Proponents claim that GE tree plantations will protect forests. However, tree plantations have increased rates of deforestation in many parts of the globe. For example, oil palm plantations have been a major factor in the astounding 60 percent loss of Indonesian forests since 1960. Increasing demand for palm oil —used for a range of products from cosmetics to foods, and more recently, biofuels—creates economic incentives to replace forests with plantations.
The bottom line is that GE trees will accelerate and expand large-scale, chemical-centric, monoculture plantations stocked with proprietary GE trees. While devastating to the environment, “factory forests” would likely be very profitable for biotech companies. For instance, if GE eucalyptus is approved, ArborGen, the leading biotechnology tree company, has projected its profits will boost from $25 million to $500 million in five years.
This report aims to increase awareness of potential harms that GE trees pose and catalyze a visible civil society movement to address this growing threat. As the report notes, we need to explore other alternatives to GE trees before taking this path in the woods.
You can view the full report here.
