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While GSK does not use natural product collection as a major source
for existing products or as a major source of compounds for development
of pharmaceuticals, we do work with collaborative partners such
as Extracta in Brazil and the Centre for Natural Product Research
in Singapore to collect some natural products. Because of the impact
that their collection might have on biodiversity, medical researchers
must follow rigorous standards regarding evaluation and collection
of natural products. We are confident that our screening activities
are conducted according to the principles set out in the Convention
on Biodiversity (CBD).
Public Policy Position
- Natural resource materials are potentially valuable sources
of novel biologically active molecules which, once identified,
and their properties fully analysed, can serve as models for the
invention of new, lifesaving medicines.
- GSK recognises that all nations have sovereignty over the biological
resources and indigenous knowledge within their territorial boundaries.
Equally, unauthorised or unrestrained removal of natural materials
from their indigenous habitats can harm the ecology and economy
of the country concerned.
- GSK's drug discovery efforts increasingly focus on high-throughput
screening of synthetic chemical compounds. We therefore have limited
interest in natural material collecting and screening programmes.
However, where screening programmes are in place, the company
supports the principles enshrined in the Convention on Biological
Diversity (CBD).
- In the event of GSK developing a commercial product from our
natural material screening programmes, GSK will ensure a clear
benefit is returned to the country of origin. This benefit sharing
may amount to payment of fair and reasonable royalties or other
means determined by mutual agreement on a case-by-case basis.
- GSK has a number of patents based on natural products and it
is possible that more patents will arise from our screening programmes.
Specifically, GSK has always undertaken to:
- work only with organisations and suppliers with the expertise
and legal authority to collect plant and other natural material
samples. These include botanic gardens, universities and research
institutes around the world;
- ensure that the governments in developing countries are informed
of and consent to the nature and extent of any proposed natural
materials collection;
- protect biodiversity by classifying samples of plants and other
organisms taxonomically and only investigate species if their
supply is reproducible and sustainable;
- work with small quantities of natural materials to discover
bioactive principles. Where possible further supplies of lead
compounds and derivatives are synthesised;
- develop sustainable harvesting procedures to preserve the ecosystem
from which the source material is derived where further supplies
of the active compounds cannot be synthesised;
- where appropriate, collaborate with organisations to educate
and train local people in collecting and screening skills;
- ensure an agreed benefit is returned directly or indirectly
to the country of origin in the event of GSK developing a commercial
product based on a natural material;
- only transport potentially hazardous R&D material under
contained use conditions and in accordance with the CBD's Cartagena
Biosafety Protocol.
Conclusion
GSK is fully aware of our responsibilities towards protecting biodiversity,
respecting nature, and working with the communities in which these
natural resource materials are found. By adhering to the principles
of the CBD, we are confident that we are operating in a sustainable
manner and in a way that will enable us to continue developing,
manufacturing and marketing new and innovative medicines that enable
people to do more, feel better and live longer.
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GSK and employees in the UK have joined with community
groups, government agencies and non-government organisations
in projects that promote biodiversity in the areas close
to GSK sites. GSK's site at Ulverston, for instance,
is located at the edge of the Lake District National
Park, an area of outstanding natural beauty in the UK.
In 2002, GSK staff, in conjunction with the Cumbria
Wildlife Trust, completed a habitat and species survey
on 250 acres of GSK land around the Ulverston site.
Employees and some retired staff completed record cards
on species and then entered their work into a database
during their lunch hours. GSK employees added 8,600
records and found over 500 species. Cumbria Wildlife
Trust have produced a Biodiversity Action Plan for the
site and the site has integrated the maintenance and
enhancement of biodiversity into its EHS Management
System.
In Summer 2002, GSK's UK Barnard Castle site and Teesdale
District Council, sponsored a survey of 67km of roadside
verges across the North Pennines Area of Outstanding
Natural Beauty to identify verges that contained diverse
flora and could be improved if better managed. Nineteen
sites of prime botanical interest were identified. The
surveyors found 240 species of vascular plant and up
to 74 species of flowering plant in just one site. Five
species of Lady's Mantles (including the nationally
rare Alchemilla monticola) were identified. In November,
Barnard Castle employees accepted a challenge from the
North East Biodiversity Forum to help protect and develop
the flora of three roadside verges in upper Teesdale
which are remnants of Upland Hay Meadow which has declined
nationally by more than 45% since 1945. The challenge
was met by a team of nine GSK employees who worked to
cut brambles, coppice ash and remove cuttings to give
rare plants, like the Lady's Mantle, room to grow.
The Meads Nature Reserve, situated between Ware and
Hertford, was established in October 1999 through an
agreement between the various landowners, including
GSK, and the Hertfordshire and Middlesex Wildlife Trust.
It is the largest area of grazed, riverside, flood meadow
remaining in Hertfordshire. The Meads Nature Reserve
partnership aims to maintain and enhance the range of
species, habitats and landscapes in the Meads by sympathetic
management. Although at an early stage of the project,
recent surveys show that several key wetland species
are either increasing in population or spreading their
range throughout the Meads. More water is being retained
on the site and several breeding birds have increased
their numbers as a result. Vegetation has colonised
the wetter land, including several species that are
scarce in Hertfordshire. New fencing means that traditional
managed grazing regime is restored to most of the site.
For the last five years, GSK's Dartford UK site, along
with the UK's Environment Agency and other organisations,
has worked to safeguard the future of the Dartford Marshes,
the largest remaining fragment of marshland near London,
south of the River Thames. The marshes, which have a
history from the eleventh century, now play a vital
role in flood control. The network of ditches and mosaic
of wet grassland, reed beds, salt marsh and scrub land
provide havens for rare and protected species including
one of Britain's rarest mammals, the water vole. A new
management plan will restore the marsh to optimal conditions
for wildlife and create a beautiful place to visit.
Water voles, birds, grass snakes and bats; rare invertebrates;
plants; and human visitors will all benefit.
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