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Glofish on the loose in Ireland
Posted: Tuesday, June 16, 2009 2:35 pm
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St. Patrick banished snakes from Ireland, and now, the Irish Environmental Protection Agency must do the same for GM fish that supposedly glow in the dark. Four of the fish were apprehended in a garden pond, and if the agency prosecutes, a fine of up to €3,000 and/or 12 months imprisonment could be imposed in the district court. If the case is heard in the Circuit Court, a fine of up to €15,000 is applicable and/or 10 years in prison.

Glofish are tropical zebra fish, about an inch long, which contain a gene from a sea coral that makes them a bright pink under normal light and fluorescent under ultraviolet light.

"The EPA is investigating the illegal importation of glofish," it said in a statement. "This happened on foot of notification received that this had happened in the UK and the Netherlands."

"There is no impact on human health or the environment," it added.

Reassurances from the EPA did not deter Paul Melia, a reporter with The Independent (Ireland), from making astounding claims about the fish. Not even whilst quoting the EPA's statement.

He says the fish "glow in the dark", though you can't see them in the dark, and that "if accidentally released into the wild they could have a detrimental effect on native fish species."

The shock horror of this episode is reminiscent of the Great Glofish Roundup that rocked New Zealand in 2007, which saw Biosecurity New Zealand officials and security guards confiscating and euthanizing literally hundreds of Glofish under provisions of the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act.

Even Amsterdam-based multinational Greenpeace admits being overwhelmed by the fish threat, saying it has "no way of predicting what havoc they will cause when they are released into the wild."

Yikes! Maybe they're even worse than snakes!
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