GM cress could seek out landmines

[papau]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3437019.stm

GM cress could seek out landmines
By Dominic Bailey
BBC News Online

Danish scientists say they have developed a genetically modified plant that will detect unexploded landmines.

There are believed to be about 100 million unexploded landmines around the world, posing a daily threat to life.

Plants developed by Copenhagen firm Aresa Biodetection are said to turn from green to red when they come in contact with explosives in the soil.

But some international mine clearing firms have raised concerns about how practical the plants would be. <snip>
Traditional methods

But the Halo Trust, the Scottish-based international mine-clearing charity with 5,500 deminers and 120 heavy mine-clearing machines around the world, has raised some concerns about the project.
Director Guy Willoughby said he was worried that the fresh growth could attract livestock into the mined areas. <snip>


"The biggest task in mine clearing is proving that there are no landmines in an area," he told BBC News Online. "This is not going to give you any more than an indication and we already have that, from the local population." He said land would still have to be totally cleared afterwards to be declared safe.