October 20, 1999
ERMA New Zealand Chief Executive Bas Walker today expressed surprise at comments from the Green Party on the review of the New Zealand King salmon genetic modification programme.
Dr Walker said that the statement showed a misunderstanding of the processes involved.
The King Salmon programme was approved under the old voluntary regime and then ‘transferred' to the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act (HSNO) when it started up last July.
"The reassessment process for transferred approvals has a number of steps. We are working through these in an appropriate way. They include:
- Reviewing all transferred GMO approvals to see if they might need reassessment under HSNO;
- A formal request from the Chief Executive to the Authority to decide if there are grounds for a reassessment. In the case of King Salmon, the Authority decided there were;
- Preparing an application from the Chief Executive to the Authority on the salmon development work;
- Reassessment by the Authority;
- Publication of the final decision.
"We are up to step 3 at this point. The application is on track and has been completed. At this stage we are just checking the format before putting it forward. This is the very first reassessment under HSNO and we are taking care to set a good pattern for the future. I expect that it will be formally submitted within the next week. It is then up to the Authority to take the time it needs to consider the application and make a decision."
" I need to stress that this reassessment will be a review of the controls on the development work. There has never been any suggestion that the Authority will review the entire approval itself ie the right to do the development work. The New Zealand King Salmon company continues to operate with its original approval from the Minister for the Environment."
Dr Walker rejected suggestions that the Authority was contravening its own Act.
The Authority had to decide if the work constituted a development or a field trial of a GMO. It decided that this work was clearly of a development character.
"The HSNO Act then provides the Authority with the discretion to decide if it will notify a GMO development. In this case, which is focused only on the controls, they decided that it did not require notification."
Ends.
For further information:
| Bas Walker Chief Executive Ph. 04 473 8426 |
Karen Cronin Communications Manager ph 04 496 4826 or 04 918 4826 |