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Re: [SANET-MG] transgenic trees?
Hi Cheryl and John,
Danbury Connecticut is currently using GM trees to remediate a
heavily mercury polluted site. The GM trees grow well on the heavily
polluted soil but , contrary to what John indicated, they do not trap
the mercury but they do release it to the atmosphere. The promoters have
claimed that the mercury "safely" circulates in the atmosphere for years
than is deposited on earth in in rainfall and snow. The released form
of mercury is elemental mercury rather than the toxic ionic or organic
forms. The problem, in reality, is that the elemental mercury is
deposited heavily in rain and snow maily within a hundred mile radius
of the remediation site. It is like coal burning power plants and waste
sites in that both forms release mainly elemental mercury pollution.
When the elemental mercury is deposited in soil or water bodies
microbes rapidly convert it into ionic and organic mercury. Organic
(methyl) mercury cause birth defects and nerve damage in humans and
bio-accumulates in fish and game. The US EPA seems schizophrenic in
supporting both control off atmosphere mercury emission and
remediation by gm trees.
There are GM trees on the "drawing board" that sequester mercury from
the soil but these trees will release it in high amounts when the trees
are burned or decay naturally. The only true remediation of mercury may
be vitrification (adding to glass) or forming minerals trapping the
mercury.
I hope this helps, sincerely, joe cummins
John D'hondt wrote:
Greetings to the list,
Could someone explain the relationship between transgenic trees and
mercury.
Thanks,
Cheryl Mulholland NC
Any reason to promote a transgenic anything is used Cheryl.
Trees take up some mercury when they grow in a mercury polluted site.
Maybe transgenic trees take up more mercury than ordinary trees but I have
seen no convincing research for that.
Then for as long as the trees grow that mercury is for all practical reasons
out of the environment. One could say that trees therefore have a cleaning
function.
When they are burned at the end of their lives the hope is that the mercury
spreads so thin that it won't matter.
But when one talks about it enough it begins to sound that only transgenic
trees do something useful with mercury.
john
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