Economics of Sequestering Carbon in the U.S. Agricultural Sector

http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/tb1909/tb1909.pdf

Economics of Sequestering Carbon in the U.S. Agricultural Sector. By Jan

Lewandrowski, Carol Jones, and Robert House, Resource Economics Division,

Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; Mark Peters,

Agricultural Marketing Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; Mark Sperow,West

Virginia University; and Marlen Eve and Keith Paustian, Natural Resource Ecology

Laboratory and Colorado State University. Technical Bulletin No. 1909.

____

Strategies that have been proposed to mitigate global climate change typically

focus on reducing energy-related emissions of greenhouse gases (including carbon

dioxide) into the atmosphere. But atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases

also can be reduced by withdrawing carbon from the atmosphere and storing, or

sequestering, it in soils and biomass. In examining the economics of sequestering

carbon in the U.S. farm sector through changes in agricultural land use and

management practices, this study focuses on two questions:

● How much of the estimated “technical” potential for carbon sequestration

is economically feasible?

● How cost effective are alternative designs for incentive payments that

might be used to encourage carbon-sequestering activities?

Model-based findings reflect the provision of financial incentives to landowners

for sequestering carbon through changes in land use (converting cropland to forest

or grassland) and cropland management practices (adopting conservation tillage or

alternative crop rotations):

● Agriculture can provide low-cost opportunities to sequester additional

carbon in soils and biomass. At a price of $10 per metric ton for permanently

sequestered carbon, the ERS model estimates that from 0.4 to 10 MMT of carbon

could be sequestered annually from adoption of the land-use changes or

management practices analyzed; and at $125 per ton, from 72 to 160 MMT

could be sequestered, enough to offset 4 to 8 percent of gross U.S. emissions of

greenhouse gases in 2001.

● The different sequestration activities studied become economically feasible

at different carbon prices. The model predicted that farmers would adopt cropland

management (primarily conservation tillage) at the lowest carbon price, $10

per metric ton permanently sequestered carbon, and would convert land to forest

as the price rose to $25 and beyond. The model predicted farmers in most

regions would not convert cropland to grassland up through a $125 carbon price

(in the absence of other incentives, such as Conservation Reserve Program payments),

in part because conversion to afforestation was more profitable with its

higher sequestration rate per acre. These estimates are comparable with estimates

in earlier studies.

● The estimated economic potential to sequester carbon is lower than previously

estimated technical possibilities. Soil scientists have estimated that

increased adoption of conservation tillage on U.S. cropland has the technical

potential to sequester as much as 107 million metric tons (MMT) additional carbon.

The ERS model estimates economic potential by factoring into farmers’

adoption decisions the tradeoff between the additional costs of sequestering

practices, relative to the additional returns from the per ton carbon payments. We

estimate that farmers could sequester up to an additional 28 MMT by adopting

conservation tillage on additional lands at the top carbon price we studied, $125

per ton. For the other activities studied—afforestation and, particularly, for

conversion to grassland—the estimated economic potential also was less than

the literature estimates of technical potential.

vi ● Economics of Sequestering Carbon in the U.S. Agricultural Sector / TB-1909 Economic Research Service/USDA

● Incremental sequestration from agricultural activities can continue for

decades. Conversion to conservation tillage could sequester additional soil carbon

for 20-30 years, at which point a new equilibrium level of soil carbon would be

attained. But carbon may be released relatively rapidly if farmers shift back to

conventional tillage. Additional sequestration from afforestation may continue for

many more decades, depending on region, species of trees, and harvest decisions.

These findings have implications for policy:

● Payments for carbon sequestration may exceed their value if sequestration

is not permanent. To have the same greenhouse gas mitigation value as a unit

of carbon emissions reduction, a unit of additional carbon sequestration must

remain stored in soils or biomass permanently. If a program makes per ton payments

equal to the value of permanent sequestration (“asset” payments), overpayments

will occur if subsequent changes in land use or management practices

release carbon back into the atmosphere—unless compensation is adjusted for

the releases. “Rental” payment mechanisms, which pay farmers to store carbon

for specific periods by maintaining carbon-sequestering practices, can help avoid

this problem—particularly for contract renewals after the period when a new

equilibrium level of soil carbon is reached and no more carbon is being added to

the soil.

● An incentive system that includes both payments for carbon sequestration

and charges for carbon emissions may be much more cost effective than a

system with payments only. For example, at a carbon price of $125 per ton of

permanently sequestered carbon, changes in tillage practices account for 7 MMT

of additional sequestered carbon with a rental payment system that includes both

payments and charges. Annual government expenditures for storage of this carbon

during the 15-year contract period total $300 million. In contrast, when the incentives

include only carbon payments, a price of $125 per ton results in half the

sequestered carbon (3.5 MMT), while annual government expenditures increase

tenfold to $1.5 billion.

● Adding a cost-share subsidy does not appear to improve the cost effectiveness

of incentive systems. A 50-percent cost-share for cropland conversion to forestry

or grasslands would increase sequestration at low carbon payment levels but not at

high payment levels. The implications for cost per ton are minimal.

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Looking Ahead

The United Nations General Assembly has declared 2012 as the International Year of Cooperatives, highlighting the contribution of cooperatives to socio-economic development, in particular recognizing their impact on poverty reduction, employment generation and social integration.
The United Nations General Assembly Resolution A/RES/64/136 encourages all member States, the United Nations and all relevant stakeholders to take advantage of the IYC to promote cooperatives and raise awareness of their contribution to social and economic development and promote the formation and growth of cooperatives. The resolution A/RES/64/136 - Proclamation of 2012 as International Year of Cooperatives is available in all UN six official languages: English | Français | Español | Русский | عربي | 汉语
Goals of the International Year of Cooperatives             

• Increase public awareness about cooperatives and their contributions to socio-economic development and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.

• Promote the formation and growth of cooperatives

• Encourage Governments to establish policies, laws and regulations conducive to the formation, growth and stability of cooperatives

Realization of the Obama Singh MOU

A release by the CII SME Business & Trade delegation says that US India SME forum will be the anchor to promote bilateral trade between India and the US.

The CII Business & Trade delegation consisted of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) who explored trade & business opportunities in the States of Illinois (Chicago), Washington (DC), Indiana (Indianapolis) and Ohio (Cincinnati) as part of the five day visit of the CII delegation to the US from September 20 – 24.

The forum suggested a five fold objective to increase bilateral trade and investment between India and the US with particular emphasis on SMEs to understand the opportunities for Indian SMEs in the businesses they represent vis-à-vis the scenario in the US; to trade and to enter into strategic business alliances with counterparts – (SMEs/ OEMs/ aftermarket suppliers) in both and/or third countries.

World Bank and India: India Shows Its Teeth on Tigers

An Editorial on How to Approach India; using World Bank's Tiger blunder as an Example

Gandhi said India is a nation that can be found in its 700,000 villages. His quote is often cited without much depth as to the deeper context of the statement. Myself included. As an American having lived full-time in India for nearly four years, I can attest that only in the past year do I (somewhat) fully understand the subtext of a 'nation of villages.' It is the economic driver, true- but it's also a strong statement of the complex-often loosely tied network that makes up what the map shows and labels 'India.' It is the reason behind much of what is good and bad in a country of a billion. A country where dialect of local language changes every 50 kilometers and altogether when crossing state borders. Grasping this concept is the first step in understanding how to- and how not to- integrate 'western' and 'foreign' notions with Indian social culture.

India's official rebuke of World Bank's insistent offer that it borrow for the preservation of tiger (which includes oversight by 'foreign' experts) is exemplar of what not to do when dealing with any critical subject in India. One's initial impression re India's response to World Bank would be that India is demonstrating 'typical' stubbornness, arrogance and turning blind to a global crisis. This would be an overly simplistic analysis, and has been the bane of many foreign NGO's who have come to India with noble causes and lofty ideals. Granted there is a strong sentiment that Indian ingenuity is all that is required to solve any internal matter. However, it was really more the fault of World Bank's approach that was the true culprit. Their action demonstrates a lack of appreciation of how processes actually work and the limitations that outsiders have no matter how much money they are offering.

In short, World Bank hadn't drunk enough tea. What anyone doing business in India needs to know is that in any venture-for any reason- you need to first know the ground realities and meet the people who can either pave the way or create impenetrable roadblocks. That process requires many meetings without any obvious agenda, many cups of tea, and an ability to listen on multiple channels.

Many first time visitors to India say it's controlled chaos. What you are actually seeing and feeling is layer upon layer of systems and hierarchies- some conflicting, some congruous- all occurring simultaneously. The 'tiger issue' is one of these many layered systems. It's an international issue, a national issue, an issue involving several powerful states, and powerful districts, and industries who pay homage to political parties, and communities and villages led by local panchayats (governors) and a slew of Ministries and even more indigenous NGO's and activist groups. These groups all have their own systems, conflicts, alliances and agendas. Some underpinned by cultural tradition dating back a 1000 years. None of which have anything to do with tigers. I and my team have seen many foreign charities barrel into India with the very best of intentions, making the fatal assumption that everyone will appreciate their benevolent agenda. Those same charities often are given the bum's rush out of India, beleaguered and bewildered as they try to grasp what went wrong and why.

The simple fact is that without respect and interaction with every level of play, and making all interested aware of your objective and how they fit in it, one has about a good of a chance of succeeding as trying to convince them that American baseball is better than cricket. And yes there is the whole issue of Indian pride, but it is more about getting to acknowledge the key individuals, the likely issues and political geography relevant to your mission. If done methodically, ethically and with due respect, one can find India a comfortable working environment and in turn your Indian counterparts will see the wisdom of adopting foreign techniques and processes over trying re-invention of the wheel.

And despite the obvious downside for the tiger, World Bank's big brother approach has erected a barrier that will be now more difficult to remove.

-Frank Costanzo

Senior Eco-Business Facilitator

Managing Director, Peerless Green Initiatives

***

COPY OF ARTICLE FROM TIMES OF INDIA

India refuses to let WB play big brother in Project Tiger

Tells Bank It Doesn’t Need Money, Expertise From Other Countries

Nitin Sethi | TNN

New Delhi: In a snub to the World Bank (WB), the government has informed the latter that it won’t allow the lending institution to play big brother and manage and monitor its efforts to conserve the Indian tiger under the Global Tiger Initiative (GTI), a recently floated project that is highly favoured by bank president Robert B Zoellick.
   The GTI has organised a summit of heads of state of countries having tiger population, in Russia in November. But India will only be sending a ministerial-level delegation to the meeting. The Prime Minister would not be attending the summit, where the WB along with some foreign conservation NGOS are expected to hold fort.
   WB has been keen to get India on board, as it would be odd to sell a global project to save the tigers when the country with the largest population of the big cat in the wild is unwilling to be a part of it. Earlier, the bank had lobbied hard that India borrow money from it to conserve and protect tigers. But the government has recently made it clear that it neither required money nor expertise from other countries.
   However, not intending to outright reject a proposal from the multilateral funding agency it decided to participate in the GTI to enhance global cooperation on issues that did not involve direct conservation work in the tiger reserves.
   The Indian government has informed the GTI that conservation of tiger is a sovereign issue, and it would not accept that the WB dictate terms to it. Having learnt its lesson earlier when a WBfunded project on Tiger led to displacement and agitation by tribals and increased corruption in some tiger reserves, the government has told the GTI that its interference would only lead to alienation among the local population. Though most conservationists had backed the government, some high profile ‘tiger-wallahs’ were keen to get WB involved in it.
   Considering that much of the healthy population of tigers survive only in India despite the increased pressures of a developing economy and a large population base, the government has instead told the WB it would be ready to lend help to other countries. The government is not keen to see ‘international experts’ and NGOs swooping down to teach lessons to Indian experts on money borrowed from the WB, a source said.
   While the communications between the bank, GTI and Indian officials have adhered to diplomatic niceties, sources said, the government’s intention and views have been put forth emphatically.

ON EDGE: Most conservationists have backed the Indian government’s decision to follow an independent policy

Advertisement

In city, rich jostle with the poor for free television sets

Ajitha Karthikeyan | TNN

Chennai: The long, serpentine queue on Vembuli Amman Koil Street in KK Nagar was a perfect symbol of social equality. Crumpled lungis blended with branded trousers, and tattered saris mixed freely with designer wear. Unmindful of the sweltering heat and dust, the affluent waited patiently with the poorest of the poor for their turn to receive free colour TV sets distributed by the Tamil Nadu government.
   Some came in cars and some with assistants in tow. Not that they don’t have TV sets at home, but because they did not want to miss out on something that came free of cost. “When the government is offering it free, why not take it? Of course, we have two TV sets at home. We’ll keep this one in our second bedroom. However, this will not influence my choice of voting in the elections. I’ll take a decision only after evaluating who is good and who is bad,” said Priya (name changed), a homemaker whose husband runs two industrial units in the Ambattur industrial estate.
   What was announced as a scheme for the poor has now been extended to both the haves and have-nots with assembly elections round the corner. An official said that as per a government order, the distribution was only for households that did not have colour TV sets, but roughly 83% of the 1.96 crore family card holders in the state would now be covered. Of all the freebies given out by the DMK regime, the colour TV has turned out to be the mega-sop, costing the exchequer a whopping Rs 4,000 crore. (1 Billion USD)
   By December, the government hopes that about 1.63 crore households will have received the TV sets, a figure that implies that over six crore people would have benefited. This is nearly 90% of the state’s projected population of 6.8 crore.

Many BPL families sell off TVs
Chennai: Keen on covering as many households as possible ahead of the elections, the government recently announced that 10 lakh more TV sets would be procured to meet the requirement. The government machinery has also been geared up to complete the distribution by the end of the year.
   Though the government, in its policy note tabled in the assembly, stated that the “unique scheme is to sensitise people on the policies and programmes of the government and to increase their aspiration level,” the objective is far from achieved. Several families, mainly belonging to the below the poverty line (BPL) section, have chosen to sell off the “free gifts”, which cost the government between Rs 2,061 and Rs 2,965 per set, for a throwaway price of Rs 1,000.
   Agents can be seen buying TVs from the beneficiaries emerging out of distribution centres.
   “What’s happening is quite deplorable. Why should the rich and educated get free colour TVs when they already have one and can afford to buy another? It only reflects their anti-social attitude and behaviour. It’s a sad situation in the country where corruption of mind has taken place, which in turn will sustain corrupt politicians,” said Gnani, a noted columnist.
   He said the government should not be implementing it as it was not a welfare scheme. “The funds for such freebies come from selling liquor (which is controlled by the state). Almost all the BPL families have at least one member as an alcoholic. Thus, the government is cheating the poor by depriving them of their income by guiding them to liquor shops and distributing free television from their own money,” he charged.

ONE FOR THE BEDROOM: A woman gets ready to carry home a TV on her bike

ON THE SAME DAY, SAME NEWSPAPER, THIS STORY:

TSUNAMI REHAB PROJECT IN LIMBO

Locals Oppose World Bank-Funded Resettlement Programme, Seek Better Tenements

Julie Mariappan | TNN

Chennai: It’s been six years since tsunami struck the Chennai coast, but the state government is still struggling to complete the tenements proposed to be built for those hit by the disaster under a World Bank project. Reason: Panchayats are not cooperating with the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board, the agency executing the project.
   Records show that the board has received 346 crore for construction of tenements along the Marina, Okkiyam Thoraipakkam in the southern suburbs and on an All India Radio plot in north Chennai. The project includes construction of 2,468 temporary shelters at a cost of 17.23 crore. Once the affected people move to these temporary shelters, the TNSCB will pull down the crumbling quarters they are inhabiting at present, and construct new homes for them under the project. Each affected family will be eligible for a single dwelling unit in a three-storeyed apartment. The flat will be spread over 357 sq ft, nearly 100 sq ft larger than the houses they are presently living in.
   However, the rehabilitation project has
been delayed because of the residents’ refusal to move out. “We are way behind schedule. The locals neither agree with our beneficiaries list, nor are they happy with the tenement we are providing,” said a senior TNSCB official. The department is groping in the dark as to how to convince the locals, who are demanding houses not only for themselves but also for their heirs in the proposed buildings.
   Demolition of the existing slum tenements along the Marina is part of the World Bank’s Emergency Tsunami Reconstruction Project. In their place will be built ‘stilt plus four’ buildings that will house both the tsunami-affected and the slum dwellers. However, save Nochi Nagar, the state has failed to convince the residents of Nochi Kuppam, Duming Kuppam, Selvarajapuram, Foreshore Estate and Srinivasapuram to vacate the existing TNSCB apartments and make way for the new project.
   There is more bad news. The plan to build 2,048 units in far-off Okkiyam Thoraipakkam still remains on paper. The officer on special duty, Emergency Tsunami Reconstruction Project, at Ezhilagam, is bombarded with appeals from thousands of people for inclusion of their names in the list of beneficiaries. “There are many outsiders filing false claims. Many groups have the backing of local politicians,” TNSCB sources said.
   At least 50 petitions reach the Chennai district collectorate every month, seeking houses in the Marina project. An assessment by the collectorate in 2007 revealed that 17,805 houses were affected by the tsunami in Tondiarpet and Mylapore taluks. But insiders say since there is more than one ration-card holder with the same address, identifying eligible beneficiaries remains a big challenge for the revenue department.
   As part of the tsunami rehabilitaion project, the TNSCB has so far managed to build only 3,616 units, at a cost of 139.51 crore, on an AIR plot along the Ennore Expressway. Rehabilitating the affected families in Kasimedu, Thalankuppam, besides a number of other fishing colonies, still remains on paper. Construction of sewers and water lines, stormwater drains, pre-schools, ration shops and health centre has not yet started for want of contractors. Following a request from the government, the World Bank has now sanctioned a new deadline — December 2011 — to complete the tsunami housing projects in the city. The previous deadline lapsed in December 2009.

POST-DISASTER: The construction of the buildings meant to accomodate the tsunami-affected is yet to be completed

CASE STUDY ON “APPROPRIATE” TECHNOLOGY WIND ENERGY; CRISIS MANAGEMENT

PGI has after 3 three years of intensive crisis management assistance to an Indian based wind energy company, has recovered its 20 SLG 30kW wind turbines from a unscrupulous wind-energy promoter in California.

The experience of PGI in this matter amounts to a case study and fine example of the value of due diligence and verifiable durability of consumables and players who wish to profiteer from the green movement.

CASE HISTORY:

If PGI’s client had procured a small amount of germane business intel, their involvement with an unscrupulous vendor (and the small fortune it cost to obtain justice, could have been avoided.) The subject 20 wind turbines had been manufactured by 1996 by Nevada based Synergy Energy Co. In 2004, the turbines were promoted in India under the company name Appropriate Energy, Inc., Nevada, in hopes of becoming an approved supplier and technician in Tamil Nadu’s lucrative  Remote Area Village Rural Electrification Program.  Their claims were many, included sound-bites regarding social responsibility and the ‘challenges’ of India’s need to commit to sustainable energy to cover its demand.  All the truth of their vision unfortunately washes away when the curtain was pulled back to show that the turbines (with gearbox-gen-set operating ranges between 0-40C; and bench tested performance rating in dry air/ dust free/ 15C air ) could not operate in the intense humid heat of Tamil Nadu’s summers. As such, in Appropriate’s ‘test proven proven technology’ report, failed to report that its only India based performance tests in a remote village caught fire and burned due to excessive heat.  Appropriate/Synergy blamed ‘unskilled India labor’ for the fires, despite the well known standard that all companies in India (including Auroville Future Center for Urban Research) maintain that systems must be able to maintain 60C operating temperatures in order to be safe and appropriate.

CRISIS AND ITS MANAGEMENT:

The 20 mills were sold back on UCC terms to the manufacturer’s representative in the U.S., who immediately breached the payments and perfection of security to the India company. Thinking it could take advantage of the distance between India and the U.S.; and the inability for an Indian company to seek quick justice in India, the unscrupulous green-pioneers secreted the goods and refused all modes of settling the matter amicably.

Enter Peerless Green Investments.  PGI was approached in 2008 for a crisis management project to determine what could be done by the India company to recover its lost assets wit a value well over seven figures USD.  PGI crisis-management team immediately organized and mobilized its professional in-house team of international lawyers, auditors, policy experts and energy specialists …and within 6 months had the turbines located, verified, liened allowing the India company to obtain Justice in the U.S. while sitting comfortably at their offices in India.  In early 2010, the remainder of the structured settlement was breached and again PGI crisis management intervened and now the India company enjoys free and clear ownership of the SLG inventory.  Furether, an unscrupulous promoter group has been erased from the California and international map of energy promoters and developers.

CONCLUSION:

  It turns out the US wind energy promoter was not licensed in California, and had been “re-selling’ as investment and outright the turbines without disclosing the judgment lien to potential buyers.  The moral of this story is simple: KNOW WHO YOU ARE DEALING WITH…. Not all in the green revolution have an eye on making the world a more sustainable place.  Do not be swayed by incredible self-promoting claims and the unverifiable reports of experience and results. Whether you are a homeowner looking to reduce your monthly utility bill or an international NGO facilitating a scaled international social sustainability objective, get information that is third party verified and audited.  Else you will spend years lamenting your victimization.  An ounce of prevention is the rule of thumb no matter what your level of investment.  Sustainability is the urgent need of the day, and many nefarious agents capitalize on the well-intentioned. Should you have questions or need assistance, please contact info@peerlessgreen.net Subject: Due Diligence.

POLICY NEEDS FOR BAMBOO DEVELOPMENT

by N.S. ADKOLI, IFS (Retd) The National Forest Policy of 1952 was revised in 1988 to exclude supply of raw material to wood based industries from the forest lands. Imports and farm forestry were advised for supply of raw material to forest based industries. Whereas some relaxations were made for encouraging timber imports, no incentives or policy interventions were made to encourage tree and bamboo cultivation on private estates and farms. Farm forestry and Social forestry were included in the eleventh schedule by amendments to the Constitution of India in 1992. But statutory changes to suit these amendments have not been made. Bamboos and other forest produce are still under the statutory control of the forest department. These controls have become obstacles to the healthy growth of farm forestry in India, even though some technological advances have been made to achieve improved productivity from unit areas.

Abstract:-

Urgent need for the changes in the attitude of the governments to relax controls and provide incentives to the farmers and investors has been suggested on the basis of a study and statistics of supply of raw material to the wood based industries in the country. It is concluded that the National goal of reaching one third of the geographical area under tree cover, can be achieved only by relaxing controls on farm trees, incentives for the growth of farm forestry and providing adequate share of state investments for tree cultivation outside forests. Encouragement to private investors by tax incentives and policy on land holding can help in the National Afforestation program. Being a signatory to the ‘Copenhagen accord’ in 2009, India is duty bound to arrest climate change through massive tree cultivation for which there is a vast scope outside forests and by extensive use of bamboos.

Key words:- Forest policy, Forest controls and farm trees.

1. Policy:- The National Forest Policy:- The National Forest Policy of 1952 had included growing, harvesting and supplying forest produce to meet the requirements of industries, defense, housing, communication and the people etc from our forests. But the revised National Forest Policy of 1988 gave emphasis on forest conservation and sustainable supply to meet the needs of the community. The forest based industries were required to depend on imports and tie-up with the farmers for their raw material. Bamboos form important raw material for the pulp, paper and rayon industries, besides their use as substitute for timber in panel products. Bamboos form the source of livelihood to millions in India and have uses in all sectors of economy. Import of timber was liberalized and customs duty was slashed after the 1988 forest policy. Unfortunately, no efforts were made nor any incentives given for growing trees, bamboos and canes as a follow up of revised forest policy. Dependence on import for timber and products of wood to meet the needs of industries is a retrograde step, when such products can be grown in our forests and farms, with large economic, environmental and social advantages.

2. Provision in the Constitution of India:- By the 42^nd amendment to the Constitution of India, forestry became a concurrent subject in early 1977. Hence, the forest policy for all the states and the union territories has to be identical to the National Forest policy. Social Forestry and Minor forest produce have been included in entries 6 & 8 in the Eleventh Schedule and Urban forestry in entry 8 under the twelfth schedule of the constitution of India under article 243 g w.e.f 1992 & 1993 respectively, as a result of the 72^nd and 74^th amendments. These subjects are now governed by the Panchayat Raj institutions of the state. Powers and functions under the Karnataka Forest Act (1963) & rules (1969) and under the Karnataka Preservation of Trees Act-1976, have to be delegated to these Panchayat Raj Institutions. It has become constitutionally necessary to make amendment to the state forest act and rules.

1. State Control on Bamboos :- In view of the amendments to the Constitution of India, control on felling and transport of bamboos under the State Forest Acts is repugnant to the provision in the Constitution. By an order on 29-10-2006, a division bench of Karnataka High Court, while hearing W.A Nos; 2972/2003,3019 &3054/2003, has ruled that bamboos grown on private lands become “agricultural produce”. It is learnt that the government of Andhra Pradesh has termed trees and bamboos grown on farm lands as “agriculture produce”. Continuance of bamboos in the list of “forest produce” under the definition in section 2(7) of the state forest act is repugnant to the high court ruling.

2. Changes in wood production:- Farm forestry was given more importance in the national development plans to increase the tree cover outside the forests. Poplar, Eucalyptus, Rubber, Casurina, Subabul, Sissoo, Silver oak etc have been accepted by the farmers in agro-forestry in the last thirty years. These trees are grown on private estates and farms for which the consumer industries have provided promotional assistance. Even high-tech cultivars have been identified and introduced for higher productivity. Hundreds of wood based industries have come up in the states like Haryana, Punjab and the plains of Uttar Pradesh, Orissa and Karnataka, dependent entirely on farm trees. The report of the Forest Survey of India and the EMPRI in 2009 have mentioned that less than 1.5 % of timber used by the industries in Karnataka originates from the forest and 98.5 % comes from Farm Forestry and imports. The assumptions by CEC, the Supreme Court and the forest administration that the Woodbased industries cause forest decimation is erroneous and the governments should guide the court properly.

3. Harvest by the state agencies:- By the order of Karnataka government, harvesting of timber, pulpwood, bamboos and fuelwood in the forests is done by the department or the State Corporations since 1992. Attaching the stigma to woodbased industries for imaginary encouragement to smuggling is unrealistic and leads to an admission that the state administration is involved in such illegal activity. Continuance of state control on felling and harvest of trees grown outside the forests is unwarranted and is counterproductive to the National Afforestation Program (NAP). Farmers donot depend on the state agencies for harvest or marketing of trees grown by them.
4. Exemptions given:- By issue of notifications in 2000 and 2002, a dozen species like Eucaplypts, Casurina, Silver-oak, rubberwood etc have been given exemption from the control of the forest department on fellings and transport. This relaxation has lead to self sufficiency in the pulp-wood supply and dependence of timber industries on supply from Estates and farms. Since 1985, the industries have assisted farmers by arranging supply of quality planting stock and ready market for their produce. These examples are available to the policy makers to liberalize statutory controls on farm grown trees. The supply of pulpwood in Karnataka has risen from about 600,000 tons in 1985 to over 1.5 million tons now (2009).

3. Control of forest administration:- In the early part of the twentieth century, bamboo was considered as a weed in forestry practice. The resource was much higher than the demand and uses. Bamboos were neglected in forest management. In the Indian Forest Act of 1927 and most state forest acts, bamboos and canes (rattan) were included as “trees” in the definition under subsection 7 of section 2. Since ‘timber’ included “trees” under subsection 6 and “timber” got included in the definition of ‘forest produce’, whether found in, brought from a forest or not, under subsection 4 of section 2. Bamboos got into rigid control of the forest regulations, even when they were grown in private lands. Such control was justifiable under the National Forest Policy of 1952, but not so under the revised National Forest Policy of 1988 and the revised priorities under the National Development Plans, by which social forestry including farm forestry, got a boost in investments. The importance given to increasing green cover outside the forests under the National Afforestation Program (NAP) and the efforts made by the pulp and paper industries in the last twenty five years to promote cultivation of fast growing trees of economic importance, have helped in acceptance of tree culture by the farm community. However, the control exercised by the forest authority on felling and transport of many useful trees, bamboos and canes has become major obstacle to acceptance of farmers to grow bamboos, canes and trees for deriving economic benefits. Trees, bamboos and canes save from misery to rural population in times of calamities like famine, flood, earth quake and other disasters.

4. Relaxing state control:- For reasons already described earlier, the state should amend the definition of “ forest produce” in section 2 of the KFA-1963 to release farm trees from the state control on felling and transport. Andhra Pradesh is said to have described farm grown trees as “agriculture produce “. It is relevant to mention that ‘Agro-based industries’ have many state incentives for investment, as against “forest based industries”, which have negative priority and too many obstacles, including the wrath of the CEC and the Apex court. In the last eight years, resolutions to relax state control on felling and transport of farm trees and bamboos have been passed and sent to the state authorities in many seminars and workshops. The state authorities should be responsive to the demands of the public.

5. State policy on promotion of bamboos:- In consideration of a report of an expert committee created by the Ministry of Environment and forests in Delhi on bamboos in 1998, two National Bamboo Missions are now existing and operating in India. Unfortunately, the National Mission on Bamboo Application (NMBA) works under the department of science & technology for the past eight years and the National Mission on Bamboos for increasing resources is working for the past two years under the ministry of agriculture and horticulture. Since the major control of bamboo resources including the statutes is with the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF), there is lack of coordination among these ministries to work for a common objective. Despite the efforts made by the two missions, there is no relaxation on the statutory controls. The National Bamboo Mission has a target of additional bamboo plantations of 80,000 Ha each, in forests and nonforest areas during the eleventh five year plan. The achievements made in the last two years reveal that the progress of additional bamboo plantations in the nonforest areas is poor. This is mainly due to unrealistic allocations for nonforest bamboo development and the fear of red tape involved in felling and transport of harvested produce. Similar problem persists with regard to extension of many important indigenous economic tree species like Teak, Rosewood, Sandal, Deodar, Pines, Sal, Hollock,Hollong, Laurel, Gumkino, Benteak etc.

6. Amendments proposed:- a) Harvested produce of bamboos and trees grown on farms or private lands should be removed from the definition of ‘forest produce’ under subsecion 4 a of section 2 of the Indian and state forest acts and transferred to subsection 4 b” in these Acts. b) There should be total freedom to bamboo and tree growers on private lands to fell and transport the produce, even under the state acts for tree preservation. c) Growing of trees and bamboos should enjoy the same exemption on ceiling on holdings under the State Land Reforms Acts like growing Tea, Coffee, Cardamom, Cocoa and such plantation crops. These changes will help in healthy and fast growth of bamboos and economic trees on all private fallow lands, on the boundaries and bunds of private holdings, roadsides, canal banks, below high tension power lines, bunds of tanks and rims of water reservoirs, along either side of railway lines etc. Besides, tax incentives for tree cultivation should be given to investors.

7. Neglect of farm forestry in the guidelines for use of CAMPA funds:- On the basis of a direction of the Supreme Court in its order dated 30-10-2002, the ministry of Environment & forests (MoEF) has collected over Rs 6000 crores as Net Present Value (NPV) and kept the sums in Nationalised bank in interest earning deposits. Together with the accrued interest, the bank deposit is now in excess of Rs 11,000 crores. After years of court wrangles and legislative efforts, the MoEF has issued guidelines on July 02, 2009 for creation of state agencies for utilization of these funds ordered for release by the Supreme Court. It is regrettable that the guidelines have shut out development of tree cover outside the forests, in spite of the mention in the report of the Forest Survey of India (FSI) in its publication of 2005, that the scope of increasing tree cover in India is better and higher outside the government forests than in the legal forests. Such adverse policy decisions and legal constraints have stifled the development of bamboos and trees on private lands. The media in our country is content with publishing popular rhetoric and policy gimmick by the governments, instead of a proactive role of scientific analysis of the policies, investments and the statutory hurdles in promoting massive planting of trees, bamboos and canes for the environmental and economic well being of the nation.

8. Copenhagen Accord-2009:- India is a signatory to the Copenhagen accord during the world meet on climate change in December, 2009. At item 6 of the accord, there is mention of quote- “enhance removal of greenhouse gas emissions by forests” unquote. Under item 8 of the accord, there is mention of creation and use of “Copenhagen Green Climate Fund” of U.S $ 100 billion by 2020 on reducing such emissions. The climate and soil in south India are very friendly for increasing tree cover to enhance the carbon sink. Since there can be minimal increase in the forest area of the state, the scope of increasing tree cover on farms which cover over 50 % of the geographical area, is very high. Bamboos form the best species under farm forestry in terms of easy establishment, fast rate of growth, absorption of greenhouse gases and quick economic returns to help in prosperity to farmers. Bamboos co-exist with a large number of trees of high commercial value

9. Suggested amendment:- In the definition for “Forest Produce” in subsection (7-a) of section 2 of the Karnataka Forest Act-1963, the words “or not” deserve to be dropped or deleted to exclude all forest produce resulting from trees of non-forest lands from all controls.

1. The amendment bill to the Karnataka Preservation of Trees Act-1976 may be passed by the legislature with minor modifications to the draft bill to allow the Panchayat Raj Institutions to exercise the powers, in addition to the notified forest officers. Our association has suggested a few changes in the draft bill of 2005 in a recent representation sent to the government.

2. Alternately, all farm grown and nonforest species can be added to the exemption list. This list should also become a Schedule to subsection 8 of section 8 in the draft bill to be introduced for amendment to the Karnataka Preservation of Trees Act-1986 and enjoy exemption from chapter xvi of Karnataka Forest Rules-1969.

3. Besides the above proposal of exemption, the state may also consider to expand the list of authorised officers to a) act as tree officers under the KPT act-1976 and b) Chapter xvi) of KFR 1969 in consideration of the 72^nd & 74th amendments to the constitution of India in 1992 and 1993. Such changes have been suggested in the proposed amendment to KTP Act-1976.

4. These changes are overdue if social forestry, farm forestry and urban forestry have to succeed under the prestigious National Afforestation Program (NAP), the National Rural Employment Guarantee (NREG) scheme and the Joint Forest Management (JFM) schemes of the Government. The Agroforestrtry Farmers Association will do everything possible for the success of farm forestry in Karnataka to enable farmers to augment their income for rural prosperity.

5. Restraints under the Forest Conservation Act-1980 (FCA):- Under subsection (iii) of section 2 of the FCA, there is total restraint for assignment of forest lands to any person, authority, corporation or organization not owned or controlled by the government. Under subsection (iv) of section 2, clearing of naturally grown trees even for reafforestation is prohibited. Both these legal restraints are counter-productive and discriminatory. Prior permission by the union ministry of forest has been given and continues to be given for lease of forest lands for mining, airports, irrigation & power projects, communication, wind energy farms and many other non-forestry uses. It makes little sense to discriminate between government owned undertakings and privately owned corporates for assignment of forest land, and more so, for the purpose of reafforestation. In most advanced countries, large scale forest plantations are owned by corporates and individuals. The “state of the forest’ report of the Forest Survey of India- 2009 shows that nearly 40 % of the total forest areas in most states is degraded and having a crown cover of less than 40 %. Allocations under the development plans for the forestry sector are hardly one percent of the budgets. It makes sense to allow investments by the private corporates in re-afforestation of degraded forests, as long as the legal status of the land is unchanged.

10. Emulate examples:- Exemption provided to Silver oak, Eucalypts, Rubber, Casurina etc from the control of the forest regulations in the last ten years has resulted in a) the pulp and paper industries of the state are raising nearly 200 million seedlings of pulpwood species and selling them to farmers at concessional prices b) the coffee and tea estates are supplying about 100,000 Cum of Silver oak timber p.a. to the market c) the farmers are growing and selling about 1.3 million tons of poles and pulpwood to the market every year. d) the farm community earns Rs 1500 crores per annum at stumpage value of trees e) 87 % of timber to saw mills and plywood mills in Karnataka comes from the farm forestry sector. f) Rubber plantations have spread in Shimoga, Chikmagalur and Uttara Kannad districts. Contribution of timber from the forests of Karnataka to the saw mills and industries is less than 1.5 % and pulpwood is less than 25 %, including the captive plantations of the Mysore Paper Mills Ltd. If control of the forest regulations is relaxed for Bamboos and all important timber trees grown on farmlands, the state will be able to send excess grown produce to other states within ten years.

11. Conclusion:- The forest administration both at the Centre and States need to orient their role to become friendly to the needs of the people, rather than monopolizing resources and create adverse conditions for the growth of forests, harvests and meeting the needs of the produce to the people and industries. The research institutions in the states and under the ICFRE should be continuously engaged in improving yield per tree and unit area and provide quality seeds, seedlings and extension services to the farmers to improve their economy, besides improving goods and services. Policy and statutory changes have to be made to help farm forestry. Private and public investments for tree cultivation should be equally divided between the forests and the farms to achieve the policy goal of tree-cover on one third of the geographical area of the country.

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A special thanks to Mr. Adkoli for his assistance and continued support of PGI's Surabhi Bamboo Project, a state-of-the art integrated plan of sustainable bamboo farming, manufacture and marketing. http://www.surabhibamboo.com/ 

Poverty and Malnourishment in India: Layers of the Onion

Preface: The recent reports of India's world position as a hungry, malnourished country, arrives in stark contrast to its international fame as an emerging economic powerhouse. The view of the Hunger Report from PGI's headquarters in Chennai, (a city in India's 'organized sector') is like viewing the night-sky through a telescope that captures only 5-10% of the star field. As such, PGI spends most of its time in the rural field examining the 'unorganized sector' where most of the billion strong population reside and subsist. From this exposure and experience, PGI finds its voice, and this essay is a primer compilation of the key components in need of discourse. The solution to the malnourishment and poverty of such an unprecedented proportion is complicated and often times discouraging for those who have spent their careers studying its root causes. For PGI, the past four years vested in-theater interfacing with leading scholars, policymakers and NGO's in companion with the farmer, the local panchyats, activists, businesses and Ministry-heads, has created an integrated basis for our opinion.

The following is a summary of the issues in most need of attention. If addressed by the best minds and strongest facilitators we stand a chance of addressing an issue that is-right now- at the tipping point of humanitarian crisis of proportions never before known. PGI invites the input of all those with theories, plans and experiential data that can advance the agenda. PGI also invites all those interested to the UNEP International Year of Biodiversity Celebration in Calcutta this November 22-23, 2010. It is sponsored by Lady Brabourne College and PGI and will highlight the critical issues of crop biodiversity as it relates to food security and the agribusiness industry. It will provide a unique opportunity for scholars, NGO's, inter-government agencies and private industry to club their perspectives and perhaps emerge with a road map for solution. If interested in attending, or would be interested in participating as a speaker, sponsor or planner, contact PGI at info@peerlessgreen.net , subject IYBD.

Author's Note: PGI's role as a facilitator of green business and industry is based on the core multidisciplinary approach that business development must respect the tenants of the Millennium Goals via the UN Global Compact. This is the crux of PGI's Eco-Logical Fox agribusiness initiative. The following editorial identifies those key issues in need of immediate critical attention. These will be the topics of greater empirical and evidentiary discussion at the Calcutta Conference. Addressing the issue of poverty, malnourishment and hunger requires examination of culturally, politically and economically sensitive subjects in conjunction and integration with agricultural and social science. One without the other is not viable. I have written this essay in the plainest sense in order to reach the broadest readership to build capacity. Many facts, figures and empirical evidence of the opinions have been omitted in favor of this goal. Anyone interested in the back-data of any statement herein is welcome to request same at info@peerlessgreen.net subject: ELF -Frank Costanzo, COO, Deborah Connelly, CEO.

Brief Primer re the Roadblocks to Sustainable Food Security and Social Sustainability:

1. Current Economic Factors and Focus
   India has no doubt grown beyond expectations due to the growing consumerism of its population and to a lesser extent its vertical capacity as a source of IT and IT services to developed nations. The image of India, Inc., 'Brand India' promoted by popular media and investment speculators ignores the reality that very little economic prosperity and integration of developed-nation services have reached the 80% of the population that live in the rural areas and Tier II and III cities and hamlets (the 'unorganized sector'). The failure of India to allow for the trickle down of its economic prosperity has created urban islands of prosperity and vast oceans of human and economic distress which has created flashpoints of violent conflict in the North East, South Central East portions of India and the social epidemic of farmer-suicides in the breadbasket areas on the North and South. In essence India's self-consumed focus on breaking the glass ceiling of 10% annual GDP growth, has resulted in a topple prone vertical economy rather than the sustainable pyramid economy that puts its food security and health of its ag sector on a firm foundation. At risk of over-extending the metaphor, the economy and policy is being guided from the top of the precarious tower by leaders and industry who refuse to look down and realize the thinness of their footing as it relates to food security. This will be no CWG scenario wherein the common practice of India improvisation can cover planning failures, token-policies and systemic corruption.
2. Inequity of Natural Resource Management
   Land, water, soil and genetic variation of seed are a few of the issues in immediate need of intense action. Many government websites, if thoroughly researched, reflect that India's water security, both in quality and quantity are over-stressed and deteriorating. 50 foot wells that supported farming in the Western Ghats have now been redrilled to 300+ ft to find a water table. Government reserves of safe public drinking water is almost universally ignored making the sustainability of clean water extremely fragile and susceptible to crisis.
   Land is victim to rampant misappropriation, particularly in the South where land reserved for impoverished farmers (“'B' memo”) is a grey market for wealthy estate holders and public-private partnership allow government lands to be used for massive commercial mono-crop estates that use forest tribals and other disenfranchised as bonded labor.
   The use of fertilizers is largely cost prohibitive to most farmers, and subsidized fertilizers and pesticides are dispensed without adequate capacity-building leading to over-use and poisoning of land and water supplies. Irrigation is common, but upstream mismanagement has lead to water wars between states and communities.
   The introduction of climate resistant seed has fortunately made great progress, however, the economic pressures on farmers- due to their need to incur debt to farm- results in farmers' inconsistency of crops from year to year. Their pursuit is the most cash attractive crop at the moment without consideration with what is best for soil sustainability and longevity of industry.
3. Farming Infrastructure and Practices
   Other than a small sector of commercial scale farms (that have their own set of counter Millennium Goal practices) the bulk of India's food security comes from what Gandhi called 'India's 100,000 villages, that are home to hundreds of millions of farming families who own small land holdings, or are tenant farmers on 'B memo' investment-collective farms. Almost without exception, the farms sustain on the availability of increasingly diminishing irrigated water resources and 'traditional' farming which results in extremely weak crop yields that are susceptible to climate and pestilence. There are many traditional indigenous methods that are in need of study, which if scaled, could compliment modern sustainable farming practices. However, the implementation of new processes and genetically superior varieties is many times hampered by the economic stress that comes with any unknown quantity. From the farmers' perspective as 'what worked for me last year should be fine this year.' In other words, the perceived risk of changing from one crop variety to another, or any process that is not in the immediate bandwidth of 'traditional' (time tested) practices are rebuked. The risk associated with change is loss of land, life, family, social acceptance and abject poverty. Due to the dominating syndicate of non-institutional lender/brokers, the idea of transforming India into a nation of modern sustainable practice family farms is simply nonviable.
4. Cultural Beliefs and Business Practices
   India by and large finances its farming through private lending produce brokers who make direct loans (against deed, against crop, against family gold) to family farmers typically with land holdings of less than one hectare. The emergence of micro-loans by licensed banks and women-lending groups has made tremendous inroads to removing the quasi-bonded labor that farmers are forced into in order to annually harvest crops.
5. Failed Policy Practices
   India Ag policy has no long term sustainable agenda, and is satisfied to initiate short-term, pilot scale demonstrations of infrastructure development and conversion to modern farming practices. Government incentives to farmers rarely reach the farmer intact, being nibbled along the line through the systemic requirement of bribery built into the incentive program. The nature of politics in India is very much built around vote-banks, which lead the politicians into the hinterlands only during election season. Their visits are preceded by 1000's of bigger-than-life banners of the party leader, free TVs, gold give-aways and promotion of plans that have no hope of other than lip service. International humanitarian relief and non-profit investment has been the savior of many a village, however, state and national policy seems to account for this international revenue of assistance as a rationale for not investing the public funds to support and advance micro-advancements. Further, an entire culture of predatory domestic and international NGO's who profiteer from the disaster economics of the humanitarian condition, make immediate the need for enforcement and strict accounting of charitable revenues. Study of outputs should be individually carried on by every charity vested in India.
6. Field to Market Logistics
   The supply line from field to market is a study in systemic corruption and cronyism. The family farmer bears the complete downward pressure of poor production, climatic-related crop losses, inflation of per-acre farming and irregular practices of crop variety, soil management and conversion to novel practices. Farmer crops are typically insufficient to cover loans provided to small families at exorbinent interest rates, the default on which results in the loss of family land holding, threats and acts of violence and community banishment and other draconian measures by lenders which has in recent years led to farmer-suicides, murders and other humanitarian aberrations in record number. Once produce is in the hands of loosely organized brokers, it is stored until demand raises the price to maximize the broker-set's profits. The 'gambling' with food security of the nation often results in 'hording' until the produce has rot and is worthless.
7. Cultural Diet
   Many times overlooked is the lack of complete nourishment related to the modern interpretation of the traditional diet. The historic traditional diet may have been much more complete than its modern counterpart that has been promoted as a cultural and political tool to contain the extent of the problem of national food security. The Rs2 per Kg, Government rice program of low quality, poor nutrient, 'broken' white rice is a government subsidy program in need of complete revisit from its upset of sustainable farming, to the illogical subsidy of a diet 'filler' that keeps a great majority of the population just above the threshold of hunger. Coupled with the 150% inflation of the cost re the staple ingredients of the traditional diet (tomato, onion, potato, carrot, gram) has created a situation reaching tipping point of mass starvation as the household economics has not moved with the inflation of food cost, and thus, less vegetables on the plate, fewer meals per day for hundreds of millions of Indians per day. The rise in these costs have become headline news in urban centers where the rise in price is only a minor inconvenience of budget, and unseen and unheard, the rural populations are facing severe humanitarian crisis and hardship. Organizations such as our fellow partner with UNEP IYBD, M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation has made tremendous inroads in the understanding and implementation of healthier sources of foodstock and crop biodiversity that promote the true traditional diet that is far more balanced and economically sustainable.

Banana & Bamboo INDIA UNEP BioDiversity Conference November 23, 2010 Calcutta

In anticipation of the UNEP BioDiversity Conference hosted by PGI and Lady Brabourne College in Calcutta this November, the following is a fine primer on the critical issue of food security, as it relates to the iconic global food staple...the simple banana.  For more information, or to participate in the event, please contact PGI at info@peerlessgreen.net or 91+8124195292

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World: Bananas are a Dying Breed

-Thanks to selective breeding, our favorite fruit can neither reproduce nor defend itself from disease
by Robert Alison, Globe and Mail
July 19th, 2003

The banana is about to disappear from store shelves around the globe. Experts say the world's favourite fruit will pass into oblivion within a decade. No more fresh bananas. No more banana bread. No more banana muffins or banana cream pie.
Why? Because the banana is the victim of centuries of genetic tampering. Scientists say they will be unable to prevent the extirpation of the banana as an edible commercial crop. And its demise may be one more powerful argument in the hands of those who are concerned about genetic modification of foods.
The banana's main problem is that it has become sterile and seedless as a result of 10,000 years of selective breeding. It has, over time, become a plant with unvarying genetic sameness. The genetic diversity needed to cope with environmental stresses, such as diseases and crop pests, has long ago been bred out of the banana. Consequently, the banana plantations of the world are completely vulnerable to devastating environmental pressures.
According to Emile Frison, newly appointed director-general of the Rome-based International Plant Genetic Resources Institute, science is helpless to prevent the demise of the banana. Already, he says, as much as 50 per cent of the world's banana harvest is lost to insects and disease.
When humankind first encountered this fruit thousands of years ago we were probably not impressed by the almost inedible giant wild bananas. Historic mutations, rare and accidental, produced seedless bananas through chromosome triplication. Ancient humans focused on these seedless, pollen-less mutants to generate progressively more edible crops. Eventually, edible banana flesh retained only a few vague traces of the viable seeds once carried in the ancestral wild stock.
Ancient plant breeders grew edible bananas by grafting sterile mutants onto wild stems. This process was repeated for thousands of years to produce the emasculated, sterile -- and defenceless -- plantation banana that currently feeds millions of people globally.
But the stage was set for the final act in the story of this beloved yellow fruit in the 1950s. By then, generations of selective breeding had long since inhibited natural banana reproduction, and genetic tinkering had all but obliterated most commercial varieties. Eventually, one morph remained, the Gros Michel variety. All domestic stock was its clone, an exact genetic copy of that one variety. Every tree was equally vulnerable to plant disease, crop pests and climate variables.
Then Panama disease, a soil fungus, attacked banana plantations and the genetically enfeebled Gros Michel banana was virtually wiped out. By 1960, the Gros Michel was no longer a viable crop. Tireless agricultural research eventually produced a successor, the Cavendish. For the past 40 years or so, the Cavendish has been virtually the only commercially grown stock available on store shelves in developed nations.
In the tropics, you can still find other, less desirable banana varieties, mainly grown as a starchy food staple rather than a sweet treat. But these tropical bananas aren't much like their commercial cousins in North American supermarkets. They taste bland. Their texture is often fibrous and mealy. North American consumers would probably find them quite unpalatable compared to the Cavendish, which is sweeter and smoother-textured.
But like its genetic predecessor, the Cavendish is also sterile, equally unprotected from diseases and crop pests. And now a powerful plant pathogen, the Black Sigatoka fungus, has appeared on the scene, attacking the Cavendish stock around the world. Banana yields have already dropped by 50-70 per cent, and banana-tree life spans have been reduced from about 30 years to just about two years. The genetic uniformity among Cavendish bananas has made them helpless to fight Black Sigatoka.
Nor can chemical spraying save the day. Commercial growers have long attempted to control the fungus using fungicides such as dibromochloropropane (now banned because it caused sterility and leukemia among banana industry workers). According to Dr. Frison, even powerful fungicides don't work against Black Sigatoka because the fungus is rapidly capable of developing resistance to them. Indeed, banana plantations in Costa Rica and the Amazon have already been largely destroyed.
The selective plant breeding that has brought us to this impasse is comparable to genetic engineering. Both change the genetic makeup of a plant, perhaps irreversibly. So the case of the banana gives ammunition to critics of genetic engineering and to their claim that much can go wrong when we tamper with plant genetics.
Such warnings aren't new. In 1995, biologists warned that changing the genetic makeup of a plant is like playing with fire. Even so, genetic alteration continues. At Oregon State University, scientists are at work on generating sterility in poplar trees; the Canadian Forest Service is looking into breeding insect resistance in white spruces; at the University of California, work is being done on changing root systems in walnut trees. And at the Independent University in Madrid, orange trees are being modified to promote early fruit-bearing and to grow oranges that are easier to peel.
The International Plant Genetic Resources Institute's Dr. Frison says biotechnology could still delay the loss of the banana, by providing the genetic blueprint of inedible wild varieties that can be genetically altered to create a genetically modified product. Does this hold out hope of an 11th-hour reprieve? Will consumers accept a GM substitute for the sweet fruit they enjoy so much?
The disappearance of the banana should be a wakeup call -- to what can result from reckless genetic manipulation, complacency and inattention. If this can happen to the world's most popular fruit with all humanity as its witness, imagine what could happen to more obscure, but no less useful plants whose fates are less publicized and open to public scrutiny.
Robert Alison, a consultant biologist based in Orillia, Ont., is a former senior biologist for the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources.

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