Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Exhibit 4: The Howard Conspiracy Against An Australian Soil Carbon Market
The headline reads "CSIRO axes outspoken expert" (Canbera Times, 20 March 2007)
Dr Maarten Stapper has been dumped by the CSIRO, amid allegations he was bullied by management for criticising GM crops. He was the only government scientist studying soil carbon and his departure brigns that to an end.
The Stapper incident is the latest in the politicisation of the CSIRO and government funded science by the Howard Government. It mirrors the Bush Government's manipulation of official science to serve its ideological goals.
The chief of CSIRO's Plant Industry division, Dr Jeremy Burdon, asked about further research on increasing carbon uptake of soils, Dr Burdon replied, "We won't be doing any more of that."
Dr Stapper was researching carbon loss in soils, restoring soil fertility by improving soil microbiology and use of biological farming methods to improve wheat yields.
Insiders reveal he was "carpeted" by management after he was overheard explaining criticisms of some aspects of GM crops while mingling with audience members after a public forum.
Dr Stapper worked as an agronomist in Canada, the US and Iraq before joining CSIRO as a principal research scientist. He developed new irrigation scheduling programs and methods of calculating nitrogen in the soil before switching his focus to soil biology and health.
Dr Stapper says working in irrigated wheat paddocks made him aware " most problems start with the soil, and
thus solutions should commence there". He argued that the use of "fertilisers, pesticides and other synthetic chemicals to
address problems in agricultural production has been leading to poor soil health and resistance in insects, diseases and weeds".
Dr Burdon confirmed that Dr Stapper was the only CSIRO scientist working on organic and biological farming systems and the research program would end when he left. He said CSIRO did not consider biological and organic farming to be "a long-term
viable strategy" and Dr Stapper's research was "not an area the division feels it can support any more". The CSIRO is in the pocket of Monsanto and the GM companies, with the consent of the Howard government.
