SMC Science Deadline: Ecstasy, rethinking GM, water

Wellington emergency medicine doctor Paul Quigley madeheadlines this week, arguing that regulating the sale of pure MDMA would be safer than allowing people to continue taking illegal street pills with unknown contents.

“Quite frankly, there’s growing evidence that MDMA is a safe form of intoxication – especially when you compare it to alcohol and so on – but that’s not what you get,” he said in an interview with New Zealand Drug Foundation magazine Matters of Substance.

The comments were picked up by mainstream news outlets, featuring on the front page of the Dominion Post and on Radio New Zealand yesterday.

Experts contacted by the Science Media Centre were generally supportive of the idea.

"Given MDMA’s long history of use and the large body of evidence supporting its low level of harm, one might hope that as Dr Quigley suggests, New Zealand’s ground-breaking Psychoactive Substances Act legislation could be used to facilitate its availability,” said Medical anthropologist Dr Geoff Noller.

Also in agreement was Assoc Prof Julian Buchanan, a Victoria University of Wellington criminologist, who took it one step further, saying,

"While criminalisation has limited impact on usage, it does make using drugs much more dangerous, as users have no idea of the strength or indeed content, so I would go further and argue that all drugs should be regulated not just MDMA.”

You can read more expert commentary and media coverage on the Science Media Centre website.

Quoted: New Zealand Herald

"These guys basically ring back on a molecular telephone - only what we've seen is that in Europeans, the killer cells only listen to reports on Vodafone, and in Maori and Polynesians, they only listen to 2degrees reports."

Dr Geoff Chambers, Victoria University Wellington, explains ethnic differences in communication between immune cells.

Call to rethink GM approach

Treasury chief's Fieldays address kicks off debate about the country's approach to genetic modification.

In what has turned out to be a much-talked about speech, Treasury Secretary and Chief Executive, Gabriel Makhlouf said New Zealand needed to focus on "what the science tells us" when making decisions about our natural resources.

Our regime for regulating new organisms is highly restrictive compared to other countries, he added.

"I've heard it said that our current regulatory regime would deny us the choice to adopt many new plants and species that today offer us huge advantages: kiwifruit, rye grass, and even the ubiquitous pinus radiata."

"The point I want to make is that we often deny ourselves the choice over how much risk we want to take."

His comments drew support from many in the scientific community.

Dr Warren Parker, chief executive of Scion, a Crown research institute that carries out GM trials in trees, told TVNZ:

"If we had some change in this area New Zealand could be a powerhouse in animal genetics that would help our economy tremendously."

Federated Farmers President Dr William Rolleston wrote in a blog post titled "Science should guide us through controversial issues":

"Our minority reporters and conspiracy theorist have had a field day with genetic modification. We have all heard of the fish genes in our tomatoes and frog genes in our potatoes. The movement of genes from one species to another (called transgenics) sounds like scary stuff and should be banned they say."

"But scientists have discovered transgenics our own back yard in none other than that Maori staple - kumara. Not through genetic modification but through thousands of years of breeding."

Will Barker, chief executive of the biotech industry organisation NZBio, told BusinessDesk:

"Much of what is being said about GM here in New Zealand is simply inaccurate. Millions of people around the world have accepted GMOs into their environment and their food supply, because under appropriate legislation, they are recognised as having no substantial difference in risk profile to any other agriculture practice."

But hinting at the opposition any move to loosen regulation would draw, was the Sustainability Council's Simon Terry:

"Consumer opposition to GM foods is rising globally not falling and any weakening of NZ's GM laws would be a serious risk to food producers and would be working against Brand New Zealand," he told TVNZ.

River, lakes not safe yet

More work needs to be done to protect New Zealand's waterways, says the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Dr Jan Wright.

In a new report, the Commissioner outlines several recommendations for improving the government'sNational Policy Statement on Freshwater Management, which was announced last year.

“To its credit, the Government has invested heavily in developing policy to improve the management of fresh water,” said Dr Wright in a media release. “The 2014 National Policy Statement is a major step forward. Some regional councils have already begun to act and there is a real sense of momentum.”

“But we are not out of the woods yet. Some lakes and streams are below bottom lines and many others are not far above them. And in many places, water quality continues to decline.”

The Commissioners recommendations include recognising estuaries as water bodies to be included in the policy andencouraging regional councils to prioritise the protection of vulnerable water bodies and catchments.

Read more about the report on the website of Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.

Policy news & developments

Forestry consultation: The Government is seeking views on a proposed National Environmental Standard for Plantation Forestry, which aims to streamline regulation of the sector.

Hazards research: Science and Innovation Minister Steven Joyce this week announced $3.2 million in funding for 13 new research projects under the Natural Hazards Research Platform.

West Coast MPAs: Almost 10,000 hectares of ocean off the West Coast of the South Island will be protected from damaging commercial fishing, through newly announced Marine Protected Areas (MPA).

EPA Māori framework: The EPA has outlined how the they meet statutory obligations to Māori within a framework that incorporates the Treaty of Waitangi.

Insecticide rules: From 1 July 2015, the sale of organophosphate and carbamate-based insecticides will be restricted, under new EPA rules.

New from Sciblogs

Some of the highlights from this week's Sciblogs posts:

Lab in a Box - Peter Dearden unpacks the new Lab-in-a-Box initiative which will deliver exciting, relevant science activities in rural communities.

Southern Genes

Priority Organs: In the wake of recent media buzz, economist Eric Crampton shares some of his recent musings on the issue of organ donation.

A way to crunch a business model from good research ideas: Get the lowdown on Wellington's Science and Research Startup Weekend from Peter Kerr.

Upcoming events

Please see the SMC Events Calendar for more events and detail

•Glow in the dark glow-worm tour - 19 June, Wellington. Explore the Botanic Garden by night for this fascinating one-hour tour into the secret world of the glow worms and their sticky, prey-catching nets.

•Dairying for the Future Conference - 23-24 June, Queenstown. Conference of the New Zealand Veterinary Association Society of Dairy Cattle Veterinarians.

•ENEX 2015 - 24-25 June, New Plymouth - A showcase of equipment, innovation and technology solutions for the Oil & Gas industry.

•What if... nutrients could treat mental illness? 25 June, Christchurch. 'What-if Wednesday' lecture from Professor Julia Rucklidge, Department of Psychology, University of Canterbury.

•Clinical Ethics Advisory Group National Meeting - 25 June, Wellington. Covering how Advisory Groups work in New Zealand and internationally with various case studies presented.

•Australasian Association of Bioethics Health Law Conference Wellington NZ 2015 - 25-28 June, Wellington.

SMC Science Deadline: Ecstasy, rethinking GM, water

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