The book is written for policy experts, life scientists, government and business leaders, biotechnology writers and social activists. Few decision-makers realize the unprecedented degree to which transgenic technology is now possible for forests on a commercial scale. Only a handful of the 550 living conifer species is used for commodity value and even fewer species are being developed for transgenic plantations. Transgenic field trials started within the last decade but no transgenic pine plantations exist in 2005. But emergence of transgenic forest trees is still so recent that dialogue about the pros and cons is confined to the scientific community. And dialogue must move out into the public domain.
The goal of this volume is to provide content for public deliberations about the genetic composition of future forests. Its Section I is composed of provocative and opposing views on the question of transgenic conifer plantations. Sections II and III follow with research advances on relevant conifer genomics and ecology research, respectively. Section IV forecasts rates of technology adoption for different case studies. Finally, Section V compares the status of regulatory oversight of transgenic forest trees between Canada and the United States.

Pros and cons for Transgenic Conifer Plantations.- Foresters and DNA.- The Question of Commercializing Transgenic Conifers.- It's Just A Crop: Public Perception and Transgenic Trees.- Genomics Methods, Resources and Alternative Applications.- Genomics Resources for Conifers.- A New Direction for Conifer Genomics.- Using Genomics to Study Evolutionary Origins of See ds.- Metabolic Profiling for Transgenic Forest Tre es.- Viewing Transgenic Conifer Plantations on a Landscape Scale.- Dispersal of Transgenic Conifer Pollen.- Gene Flow in Conifers.- Pines as Invasive Aliens: Outlook on Transgenic Pine Plantations in the Southern Hemisphere.- Economics of Transgenic Technology Adoption.- Economic Prospects and Policy Framework of Forest Biotechnology for the Southern U.S.A. and South America.- Private Forests and Transgenic Forest Trees.- Government Regulations and Biosafety.- Canada's Regulatory Approach.- Biosafety of Transgenic Trees in the United States.