Environmental groups urged United Nations treaty signers to bar genetically engineered trees from the Kyoto Protocol on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Genetically engineered trees have been proposed for plantations created to offset carbon emissions as part of the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism, the organizations said in a news release. However, research has shown that native forests absorb and hold more carbon than industrial plantations. The organizations said genetically engineered trees can worsen global warming by aggravating problems associated with single-culture tree plantations or creating new issues such as altered decomposition.

News notes are courtesy of Southern Forests Network News Notes
www.southernsustainableforests.org