GM maize 'has polluted rivers across the United States'

[ensho]

http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/gm-maize-has-polluted-rivers-across-the-united-states-2091300.html



An insecticide used in genetically modified (GM) crops grown extensively in the United States and other parts of the world has leached into the water of the surrounding environment.

-snip-

The researchers detected the bacterial protein in the plant detritus that was washed off the corn fields into streams up to 500 metres away. They are not yet able to determine how significant this is in terms of the risk to either human health or the wider environment.

-snip-

All of the stream sites with detectable insecticidal proteins were located within 500 metres of a corn field. The ramifications are vast just in Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana, where about 90 per cent of the streams and rivers – some 159,000 miles of waterways – are also located within 500 metres of corn fields.

After corn crops are harvested, a common agricultural practice is to leave discarded plant material on the fields. This "no-till" form of agriculture minimises soil erosion, but it then also sets the stage for corn byproducts to enter nearby stream channels.
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bad news

[Greyhound]

1. K&R.

[valerief]

2. I thought the corn was genetically modified so it wouldn't need pesticides.

:shrug:

[Recursion]

6. Where would the money in that be?

It's modified to work with one manufacturer's type of pesticide.

[mike_c]

13. that is just utterly ignorant....

I suggest you do some study. Look up Bt. It's a naturally occurring soil bacterium that produces extremely target specific natural biocontrol proteins that attack insects-- and only target insects-- through their midguts.

Bt transformed crops REDUCE the need to apply chemical insecticides.

The biggest drawback is that increased exposure is beginning to produce insect resistance to Bt. That is a REAL problem.

[northernlights]

8. most likely the corn grows its own pesticides

most likely a gene spliced out of a non-culinary plant that codes for low levels of the compound and spliced into the corn dna and maybe mofidied to grow high levels.

Wish I could remember the name of the compound I'm sort of thinking of....BT? We can tolerate low levels of it, but in high levels it causes kidney damage in one sex and liver damage in the other, based on hormonal and metabolic differences. They got around that by combining the data from men with that from women, so the incidence of both types of disease fell within normal ranges. It should *never* have been approved because the deliberately messed with test results.

[appal_jack]

10. more from the article

"The GM maize, or corn as it is called in the US, has a gene from the bacterium Bacillus thuriengensis (Bt) inserted into it to repel the corn borer beetle. The Bt gene produces a protein called Cry1Ab which has insectidical properties."

You're right about the source of the spliced gene being Bt, but that's short for the name of the bacterium, not a non-culinary plant. Also, it is my understanding that the Bt bacteria produce the Cry1Ab protein encased in a larger protein that limits its toxicity to non-target organisms (i.e. - anything besides a caterpillar eating a leaf with Bt on it). The GMO corn, on the other hand, produces the naked Cry1Ab protein in every cell of the plant, from the roots to stem and leaves, to its pollen and even the corn kernels themselves.

It would be illegal for me to feed you some DiPel (one of the organically acceptable formulations of Bt sprays), but somehow it's OK for Monsanto to feed you Bt in 85% of the corn on the US market! Bad juju.

k&r

-app

[northernlights]

14. hey, my memory is not so bad then

just overwhelmed. I was mixing up BT with plant-based repellents in my barn spray :D

And yes, that's what I remember about the GMO corn. Every cell produces the protein.

[SpiralHawk]

3. The vast quantities of herbicide used on GMO crops is mutating the soil, too

I saw a study on that earlier in the summer -- the biota in the soil are MASSIVELY MUTATING after repeated doses of the toxic crap poured on farm fields to support the mutant crops -- many of which go to produce HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup) which is then used to infest just about every frikkin processed food served up -- all done occultly, without any labels warning the public that they are eating mutant corporate crapola.

Eat clean food. Do not give a nickel to support this mutant destruction of the food chain. Ptooooey.

[ensho]

4. this article made me wonder about that - thanks for the soil info

nt

[thereismore]

9. I like sweetcorn in a can. What can I do to avoid mutant corn if it isn't labeled? nt

[SpiralHawk]

11. choose organic

The GM is prohibited ...so far.

[Atman]

5. DON'T FUCK WITH NATURE.

These stories make me cry. Democrats tend to understand the ramifications of changing "nature." Republicans look at it from a profit motive. How many stories like this have we discovered over the the centuries? Kudzu in the deep south. Water hyacinth in Florida. Clams in Lake Tahoe. Hell, Bittersweet in your own backyard. When you introduce non-native species into unfamiliar environments, it never works out well. Yet we not only keep doing it, now we're actually INVENTING our own non-native species. And yet, we still seem surprised when things go drastically wrong. WTF is wrong with us?

[ensho]

7. nothing is wrong with us - its the money suits doing the wrong

which causes us to have a hard time bucking them. they have the money but we have the power if we use wisely

[Karenina]

12. DEATHWI$H.

We're too $tupid to live. :evilgrin: $orry, it'$ true. I called it at 10, regained hope between 15 and 30 but once St. Ronnie was elected, took down the solar panels and turned the weakest out into the streets to fend for themselves...

Predatory Capitalism has NO RESPECT for Pachamama. She is no more than a resource to be exploited as are all female forms in this patriarchy-dominated world.

How 'bout those bedbugs, eh?