August 2017

MORE THAN 16,000 NEW ZEALANDERS SAY 'NO' TO GE TREES

GE Free Northland 

13 August 2017 Media Release

MORE THAN 16,000 NEW ZEALANDERS SAY 'NO' TO GE TREES

Pressure on the Ministry for Primary Industries over the last two years has resulted in MPI removing controversial clause 6.4 (GE trees) from the new National Environmental Standards for Plantation Forestry.

The new NES-PF (1) gives foresters, councils, and communities clear guidelines on how to protect the environment while achieving a sustainable forestry industry.

GE Free Northland welcomes the removal of the clause that would have permitted the planting of GE trees anywhere in NZ and specifically overriden any precautionary or prohibitive GE policies and rules of local councils (including those       of Northland and Auckland).

“We are pleased MPI has listened to the many thousands of submitters who have called for the removal of the controversial clause,” said Martin Robinson, spokesperson for GE Free Northland.