GMO
A matter of rangatiratanga In 2016, TE KARAKA published Environmental Watchdogs, an article about the crucial but largely unseen work of the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms (HSNO) Komiti. Five years later, and with the renewed threat of GMO on the horizon, we return to the topic as the komiti calls on Ngāi Tahu whānui to make sure their voice is heard, writes ANNA BRANKIN.
“back in the 90s you only had to mention gmo at hui-ā-tau and people would be on their feet, because that was the passion that was around at the time,” says komiti chair Edward Ellison (Ngāi Tahu – Ōtākou). “Most of our people back then immediately saw the potential impact of genetically-modified organisms on our rangatiratanga, kaitiakitanga, on our taonga species and our whakapapa.” These days, Edward says the komiti struggles to get anywhere near the same level of engagement from the iwi – but this does not mean risk is no longer there. Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu established the HSNO Komiti in 2003, in the wake of national controversy surrounding GMOs that led to the passing of the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996 and the Royal Commission on Gene Modification in 2001. The iwi made a submission opposing GMO to the Royal Commission, whose report ultimately led to strict regulation of the import, development, testing and release of GMOs in Aotearoa. These activities must be approved by the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA). The HSNO Komiti was created to work with the EPA on behalf of the iwi, drawing on mātauranga Māori to influence its decision-making. As the-then Deputy Kaiwhakahaere with an existing environmental portfolio, Edward was the natural choice as chair. “We principally work with the Environmental Protection Agency on behalf of Te Rūnanga, to engage on applications for the import of hazardous substances and new organisms,” Edward explains. “We make submissions and attend hearings, we put pressure on the EPA to ensure that they notify us of all applications.” Edward describes the work of the komiti in terms of trying to foresee and prevent “unintended consequences”. He uses the example of rabbits being introduced to New Zealand in the 1830s to provide game for British settlers. Less than 40 years later, their numbers reached plague proportions and they were recognised as an ecological threat. The solution? The introduction of ferrets, weasels and stoats to control the rabbit population – leading to the predation of our native bird species. “What we do now is different, in that it is very technical in detail and a wee bit intangible,” says Edward. “The point of it is to have a komiti who are familiar with these unintended consequences, so they can identify cultural elements that might be at risk.” Today the komiti consists of Dr Emma Wyeth, Dr Benita Wakefield, Stephanie Dijkstra, Kyle Davis, Nicholas Denniston and Gail Gordon, 54 TE KARAKA MAKARIRI 2021
“One of the things that came out of my thesis and the discovery of my Ngāi Tahutanga was a sense of activism – wanting scientists to understand what it means to work within Te Tiriti and that it’s not a detriment. Having access to mātauranga and a dataset that is hundreds of years old is only a value-add.” STEPHANIE DIJKSTRA Hazardous Substances and New Organisms (HSNO) Komiti member
