Sign the Petition

Add your name to stop US government approval of the widespread release of unproven genetically engineered (GE) trees into forests. The risks are huge.

If approved, these trees, GE American chestnuts, will spread their GE pollen and seeds freely. This would be the first-ever GE tree approved in the US, opening the floodgates to others.

It would also be the first-ever intentional release of a fertile genetically modified organism (GMO) into wild ecosystems, opening the door to other uncontrollable GMO releases.

Engineers think they can (re)create nature in the lab, but neither trees nor any species can be replaced by with GE facsimiles. This is not restoration, but dangerous open air experimentation.

This experiment would threaten wild American chestnuts with contamination from GE chestnut pollen. Decades of progress to restore wild American chestnut trees would be lost.

There are no long-term risk assessments of this scheme and scientists warn such assessments are not possible. American chestnuts can live hundreds of years and have deeply intertwined relationships with other trees, and with insects, songbirds and other wildlife.

Join individuals and organizations across the world in demanding the rejection of this and all genetically engineered trees. We cannot allow this kind of dangerous experimentation with our forests.

You can find detailed information about these threats in the white paper Biotechnology for Forest Health? The Test Case of the Genetically Engineered American Chestnut