US Drafts Mutant Fungus into “War on Drugs”
Tens of Millions Spent on Bio-weapon, Food Supply of Millions Threatened
February 7, 2000 (From Peru Action and News, March 2000)
The US ‘war on drugs’ in Latin America, long known as a ploy and cover for unleashing the US and its military machine against insurgent groups, is developing a new weapon that could have dire consequences on the environment and people. New fungus strains are being developed to spray over areas of coca and opium poppy fields. The organisms being used for this development are some of the most persistent and deadly soil microbes known. They remain in the soil for up to 40 years and have damaged crops as varied as tomatoes, watermelons, chickpeas, and bananas throughout the world.
Holding the US funded bio-weapon fungus fusarium oxysporum
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According to recent reports, the US has allocated $23 million for research into developing genetically engineered plant pathogens lethal to drug crops. A USDA team, including scientists from Iowa State and Montana State Universities, has developed at least two varieties of fusarium oxysporum (photo left) targeted for coca and opium poppy eradication. One company alone, Ag/Bio Co of Bozeman, Montana, has a $10 million research budget for these herbicides. Ag/Bio Co and Florida Drug Czar John McDonough have proposed the use of these genetically altered microbes at the Gainesville quarantine facility which has created a public outcry. Advocates of using these plants pathogens claim they do not harm other plants, animals or humans. However, David Stuhs, Secretary of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, has cautioned; “Fusarium species are capable of evolving very rapidly. Mutagenicity is by far the most disturbing factor in attempting to use (this) species as a bioherbicide.”
Three major concerns have been raised about these “mycoherbicides”: epidemics of infection might spread to non-target plants (i.e. the toxins may not be specific and could damage food crops and the environment); they could be used in drug producing countries without the consent of the national governments; and that the technology used to develop these plant pathogens could be used to develop even more aggressive, offensive biological weapons capable of targeting a political opponent’s food producing capabilities.
US Congress Approves $1.3 Billion in Military Aid for Region
These bio-weapons come at a time where the US Congress has just approved a $1.3 billion military aid package for Colombia, Peru and Bolivia. This would not be the first time the US has imposed drug eradication schemes on Andean nations which have disastrous consequences for the people and the environment. In the 1980’s the chemical herbicide Spike was used in the Upper Huallaga Valley in Peru with devastating results not just to coca plants, but the entire ecosystem of the area. Make no mistake, the US and its allies are willing to threaten the food supply and environment of millions of people under the guise of the “war on drugs.”
