Sir

The Commentary by Benny Haerlin and Doug Parr, leading members of Greenpeace, is an insult to science and to the scientists who carry out their daily work on the basis of the scientific ethos (Nature 400, 499; 1999). Greenpeace is a para-political force, and one cannot expect that its activists will appreciate the inherent value system of the scientific enterprise. It is hardly qualified to advise on how to restore public trust in science.

Integration of academic research into industrial innovation does not necessarily imply that scientists lose their intellectual and moral independence. However, my colleagues and I agree with Greenpeace that academic research in the pursuit of truth requires freedom from commercial competition. I have enjoyed this freedom all my life.

In my experience as a science adviser to the government, dialogue with Greenpeace is difficult or impossible because its activists are not willing to accept scientific standards as the basis of communication. Haerlin and Parr also imply that the attitude of scientific institutions in demanding proof to justify an assertion or ‘preventive action’ is not acceptable to Greenpeace.

But this does not matter since the organization's goal is not scientific truth or neutral technology assessment but to sow mistrust in science and technology. Greenpeace has performed admirably in this regard. I agree with Haerlin and Parr that the prejudices firmly established in public opinion in Europe cannot, at present at least, be overcome by means of any science-based technology assessment. Over many years Greenpeace has contributed to the build-up of distrust between the scientific community and the public. It has undermined the credibility of scientists in assessing technologies.

I thought that Nature was devoted to the advancement of scientific thinking and practice. This hypocritical Commentary is clearly not intended to support the scientific community in its efforts to contribute to a higher degree of rationality and to a better world. The article is an attempt to further undermine the public prestige of science.