[NAFEX] Happy update on Pavlovsk experiment station

Betty Mayfield bmayfield at opusnet.com
Tue Aug 24 20:42:30 EDT 2010


To the list,

Here is an encouraging update on the possible fate of the Pavlovsk 
experimental station in Russia, described in messages from Sam 
Brungardt and dylanford on Aug. 11.
*****************
Aug. 11 from nature.com (Nature, an international weekly journal of science)

Europe's largest berry bank faces closure
A Russian court ruling favours housing over plant diversity.

Ralf Strobel

The future of Europe's largest repository of rare berries and fruit 
has been thrown into doubt by a court decision today. Russia's 
Supreme Arbitration Court in Moscow has ruled against an appeal to 
preserve Pavlovsk Experimental Station, a federally run gene bank 
housing more than 5,000 varieties of crop that are hard to breed from 
seeds and so cannot be stored frozen as in typical seed banks. . .

The Vavilov Institute of Plant Industry in St Petersburg, which runs 
the facility, now has one month to appeal to the superior High 
Arbitration Court to overturn the Supreme Arbitration Court's decision.
*******************
Aug. 16 from guardian.uk

Russia launches inquiry into Pavlovsk seed bank after Twitter campaign

John Vidal, environmental editor

The Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev, has ordered an immediate 
inquiry into the potential destruction of the world's oldest seed 
bank following a court case and a Twitter campaign by Guardian 
readers and others.

The fate of the station appeared to be sealed last week when a court 
ruled in favour of the Pavlovsk research station and its surrounding 
farmland being turned into private housing. It holds the world's 
largest fruit collections and was protected by 12 Russian scientists 
during the second world war who chose to starve to death rather than 
eat the unique collection of seeds and plants which they were 
guarding during the 900-day siege of Leningrad.

More than 90% of the plants are found in no other research collection 
or seed bank. Its seeds and berries are thought to possess traits 
that could be crucial to maintaining productive fruit harvests in 
many parts of the world as climate change and a rising tide of 
disease, pests and drought weaken the varieties farmers now grow. At 
stake, say campaigners for the station, are more than 5,000 varieties 
of seeds and berries from dozens of countries, including more than 
100 varieties each of gooseberries and raspberries.

As it is predominantly a field collection, Pavlovsk cannot be moved. 
Experts estimate that even if another site were available nearby, it 
would take many years to relocate the plants.

The court ruling was instantly appealed, giving the station one month 
before development plans for a housing estate that would destroy the 
station can move forward. This judgment means the order can only be 
revoked through a direct command of the president or prime minister, 
Vladimir Putin.

The Civic Chamber, a Russian state institution with a remit to 
monitor parliament and the government, then sent a telegram to 
Medvedev to request a formal appeal to protect the collection. And 
numerous supporters of the research station have made their feelings 
felt on Twitter (using the #pavlovsk hashtag). On Friday, following a 
week of lobbying Medvedev tweeted back: "Received the Civic Chamber's 
appeal over the Pavlov Experimental Station. Gave the instruction for 
this issue to be scrutinised."

The campaign may have already achieved more than the UN Food and 
Agriculture Organisation which last year appealed unsuccessfully to 
the Russian government to include Pavlovsk in the global network of gene banks.

However, the ongoing heatwave is thought to have also put pressure on 
the government. Russian agricultural minister, Elena Borisovna 
Skrynnik, had fought for the station to be saved on the grounds that 
its heritage was crucial for food security as climate change grew more serious.

Much of the Russian wheat harvest has been destroyed in the last 
month by the heatwave, which has been linked to climate change.

Yesterday, the Crop Diversity Trust, which has been leading western 
attempts to save the station, urged people to continue to petition 
the Russian authorities. A statement on the trust's website said: 
"Over the next four weeks, we will continue our fight to save 
Pavlovsk, and we need your help. We need to persuade the political 
authorities of the importance of the irreplaceable crop diversity 
growing at Pavlovsk station, and request that the judgment be revoked."











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