The notification invites scientific and technical experts from parties, other governments and relevant organizations to undertake a scientific review of the Guidance on LMO Risk Assessment, and invites nominations for the Open-ended Online Expert Forum on Risk Assessment and Risk Management.
4 February 2011: The CBD Secretariat is inviting technical and scientific experts from parties to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, other governments and relevant organizations to undertake a scientific review of the Guidance on Risk Assessment of Living Modified Organisms (LMOs).
The notification states that the fifth meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol (COP-MOP5) decided to conduct further review and testing of the guidance document to establish its overall utility and applicability to LMOs of different taxa introduced into various environments. Reviewers are invited to fill in the review form annexed to the notification and submit comments by 15 March 2011. The comments will be published on the Biosafety Clearing House (BCH) website. The notification also states that COP-MOP 5 decided to extend the Open-ended Online Expert Forum and the Ad hoc Technical Expert Group on Risk Assessment and Risk Management, noting that experts to the Forum may be nominated through the BCH website, preferably before the start of the next round of online discussions, tentatively scheduled for mid-March. [The Notification] [Online Forum on Risk Assessment and Risk Management] [Guidance on Risk Assessment]