The county
commissioners are expected to decide whether genetically modified organisms
(GMOs) will continue to be grown on county open space as early as the week of
Dec. 12.
The
commissioners have scheduled a public hearing on the issue for Dec. 8. Two
county advisory groups, the Food and Agriculture Policy Council and the Parks
and Open Space Advisory Commission, disagreed this week with a third
committee’s recommendation to allow GMOs on county land. (The commissioner-appointed
Cropland Policy Advisory Group voted 6-3 in September to approve a policy draft
that is permissive of growing genetically modified foods.)
County
Commissioner Will Toor told Boulder Weekly that the board could make the final
decision on GMOs the week after the public hearing.
“If
we feel like we have enough information at that point, we will then plan on a
decision the next week or early the following week,” he said via email. “It is
possible that there will be questions raised that will require additional
research, in which case the decision could be delayed, but I think at this
point just about all of the questions have probably been raised.”
