We would appreciate it if you would help us meet this charge. We are committed to getting sufficiently broad input to ensure that all important perspectives and information are considered. Please send us a concise letter describing what you see as specific environmental issues associated with plant biotechnology that need attention. We would be particularly appreciative if you would emphasize potential positive and/or negative impacts that you think are underrepresented in most discussions of plant biotechnology. Please send your letter via e-mail to kwaddell@nas.edu. Your letter may also be faxed to him at 202–334–1978.

It would be very helpful to us if you could return your letter by September 5^th. We are planning to have a second meeting in October and will need some time to assess outside information such as that in your letter. If we have follow-up questions regarding your letter, we may contact you by phone or e-mail, or we may request that you present more details directly to our committee in October.

If you have a colleague or friend who is likely to have a novel perspective on these issues, we would appreciate your forwarding this letter to that person. While we are not trying to assess the weight of public opinion, we are trying to identify the diversity of perspectives in relation to our charge.

Attached you will find a committee membership list. You may also want to visit the National Academies’ Current Projects website at http://www4.nas.edu/cp.nsf for further information* about our committee, and the Academy’s standing committee on Biotechnology, Food and Fiber Production, and the Environment, which is examining a broader range of biotechnology related issues.

Please call Kim Waddell or Karen Imhof at 202–334–3062 if you need further information, or assistance with transmitting your letter. Your efforts will be appreciated.