[July 1, 2010]  Sierra Club, Dogwood Alliance, and four other non-governmental organizations have filed suit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to stop field trial planting of genetically engineered, cold-tolerant eucalyptus trees in seven southern states. On May 12, 2010, the USDA approved permits to plant that had beeb requested by ArborGen, a joint venture of International Paper, MeadWestvaco and New Zealands’s Rubicon. The permits authorize the experimental planting and flowering of a new genetically engineered hybrid on 28 sites in the Southern U.S. The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in Southern Florida, claims that the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service did not prepare an  environmental impact statement before issuing the permit, and did not consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service concerning the adverse effects of the plantings on threatened and endangered species in the region. The plaintiff organizations are the Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club, Dogwood Alliance, International Center for Technology Assessment, Center for Food Safety and Global Justice Ecology Project. A copy of the complaint can be downloaded here.