ONTARIO, Ore.—Environmental groups blasted USDA’s Jan. 17 decision to deregulate a genetically engineered creeping bentgrass that has taken root in two Oregon counties.
In a joint news release, the Center for Biological Diversity and Center for Food Safety sharply criticized USDA’s decision to deregulate the grass, which was genetically modified to resist applications of glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto Corp.’s Roundup weed killer.
Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. and Monsanto developed the grass for use mainly on golf courses.
Since it escaped field trials in 2003, it has taken root in Malheur and Jefferson counties in Oregon, as well as part of Canyon County in Idaho, and Scotts has been tasked by USDA with controlling it and eradicating it where possible.
The CBS and CFS news release said that in approving deregulation, USDA relinquishes any authority it had over the grass, “leaving local landowners and the state of Oregon to wrestle with the problem.”
Lori Ann Burd, director of CBD’s environmental health program, said USDA “has left us with no choice but to explore our legal options to return the burden of controlling this weedy grass back to the shoulders of the corporate profiteers who brought it into the world.”
Source: www.capitalpress.com