February 2018

Conservation minister opposes GM-rodent plan

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11952990

CONSERVATION MINISTER OPPOSES GM-RODENT PLAN

5 December 2017 NZ HERALD

 

A group of conservationists and scientists with US military funding eyeing up New Zealand islands for gene testing have been given the elbow by Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage.

NZ Herald investigation has found the group - called Gbird - was considering how New Zealand islands would fit with US$6.5 million of US military funding.

As it did so, Gbird formed links throughout conservation and pest control networks in its push to get support for research on new gene drive technology.

Sage - a Green Party minister - said there would be serious risk to New Zealand's environmental reputation if there were field trials here using gene technology.