GM alfalfa injunction overturned in U.S.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday that a district court judge was wrong to grant a country-wide injunction against growing a genetically modified alfalfa, pending an environmental review.In a 7-1 vote, the court said the standard needed to grant an injunction was not met and the U.S. Department of Agriculture should be able to allow the production of Roundup Ready GM alfalfa on a restricted basis while the environmental review is conducted.The review is ongoing and is expected to wrap up in about a year. If it passes, the herbicide tolerant GM alfalfa could be grown without restriction.The case, which garnered international attention, began in 2006 when conventional seed companies, led by Geertson Seed Farms, and environmental groups sued the USDA, saying it had not followed its own policy of requiring an environmental study when it approved the herbicide resistant GM alfalfa in 2005.The district court agreed, ordered the environmental review and imposed an injunction on all production until the review was complete.Some growers and environmentalists fear that the genetic modification will spread to non-GM alfalfa, creating environmental problems and destroying lucrative markets for non-GM seed.The Supreme Court found no evidence that there would be irreparable harm should the USDA allow GM alfalfa cultivation under restrictions that would limit the likelihood of cross-pollination. As a result, it found no reason to impose an injunction.Justice Samuel Alito wrote while delivering the majority decision that “an injunction is a drastic and extraordinary remedy, which should not be granted as a matter of course.”Monsanto, which created the GM alfalfa, argued that it should be up to USDA scientists rather than the courts to decide how to safely proceed with GM crops.It said 5,500 growers planted Roundup Ready alfalfa on more than 220,000 acres before the injunction.The Center for Food Safety, which filed the original suit against the USDA, said production will remain restricted “until a full and adequate (environmental impact statement) is prepared by USDA and they officially deregulate the crop.”Said centre executive director Andrew Kimbrell in a news release: “This is a year or more away according to the agency, and even then, a deregulation move may be subject to further litigation if the agency’s analysis is not adequate.”

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