B/BE/17/V3

The risk of spread of the modified properties to the environment is mitigated by removing the tassel, thus preventing the spread of modified pollen to non-modified maize plants in the surroundings. The formed modified seeds are well retained in the cobs and these cobs will be very carefully hand harvested, thus preventing any spread of seeds to the environment. In case some seeds would be lost during the harvest, they are not expected to result in the establishment of the maize outside the field. There will be monitoring on volunteers in the year following the field trial and any volunteer maize plants will be removed and inactivated. The chances that maize generates volunteer plants in Belgium are extremely low, but not zero. In the six years of field trials that was performed with modified maize plants one have never observed a volunteer. The field trial plot is surrounded by a 1.80 m high wire fence to prevent accidental trespassing and accidental removal or spread of GM material.