States flex their muscles over GM-free zones

The rights of the states to designate agricultural zones in which genetically modified crops can be either banned or permitted has been reinforced by the body overseeing the national regulatory framework for gene technology.

It was endorsed as a policy principle at the recent first meeting of the Gene Technology Ministerial Council made up of ministers from the Commonwealth, states and territories.

The action gives force to provisions embodied in Section 21 of the Gene Technology Act 2000.

It will effectively prevent the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator from licensing genetically engineered crops for use in any GM-free zones set up under State laws, said Bob Phelps, director of lobby group GeneEthics Network.

Most states have yet to pass legislation that mirrors the Commonwealth Gene Technology Act. Those who have - Victoria and Queensland - probably will need additional legislation to address the mechanisms of setting up GM-prohibited or GM-permitted zones.

Tasmania has declared itself a GM-free zone, not through any gene technology-related laws - it has yet to mirror the Commonwealth Act - but through its Plant Quarantine Act.

A spokesman for Western Australian Agriculture Minister Kim Chance said the council decision merely formalised the rights of states to control their own destinies.

Western Australia has yet to arrive at a decision on GM-free zones. It is planning an intensive round of consultations with industry to examine the issue in more detail.

Specifically, it is seeking mechanisms that would allow governments to deal with situations where one farmer might want to use GM organisms while a neighbour opposes their use.

To date, the only GM trial approvals issued by the gene regulator have been for GM cotton trials in Queensland.

However the regulator is expected to rule shortly on applications by agri-chemical companies Monsanto and Aventis for 100 sites in South Australia, Western Australia, NSW and Victoria for GE herbicide-tolerant canola.

The council's decision is viewed as a positive step by GeneEthics' Phelps.

"The next challenge for us is to make representations to ministers to pass policies so everyone is advised in a timely way of exactly where GM releases are planned before the seed is put in the ground," he said.