WASHINGTON--Human genes slid into poplar trees can help the trees clean up toxic spills, but the scientific feat also epitomizes a regulatory tangle inherited by the Bush administration.

Toxic-sponge poplar trees, drug-producing goats, oil-cleaning bacteria and faster-growing salmon are all among the possible gene-splicing breakthroughs now being cited as the Bush administration solicits further public comments on agricultural biotechnology regulations.

The Clinton administration came up with the case studies while trying to clarify the sometimes overlapping agricultural biotech rules but ran out of time before drafting recommendations.

So now it's the new Bush team's turn. California farmers hope nothing happens in the meantime that will impede the high-potential future they see for biotech.

"We need to utilize genetic engineering to everyone's advantage," Fresno County rancher John Harris said this week.

At least four different federal agencies and multiple federal laws are involved in regulating agricultural biotechnology. The Agriculture Department, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug Administration and the Food Safety Inspection Service all potentially have a hand in the rules.

Last May, after a National Research Council study pinpointing the strengths and weaknesses of the current rules, President Clinton ordered a six-month review to identify room for improvement. Clinton left office without any recommendations being made. Now, Bush's Council on Environmental Quality and his Office of Science and Technology Policy have given the public until May 1 to weigh in.

Complicating the public review, though, is the absence of new agency leadership. The Council on Environmental Quality, in particular, is the scene of a behind-the-scenes struggle as conservative groups resist the potential appointment of former Fish and Wildlife Service director John Turner to the position.

Whoever gets appointed will also get an earful about the biotech rules, which excite diverse opinions.

"Our current regulatory structure is generally sound," Rep. Cal Dooley, a Hanford Democrat who co-chairs the House Biotechnology Caucus, said Wednesday. "I don't know if we've identified a better solution at this point."

The National Research Council study likewise praised overall coordination among agencies, which have overseen introduction of gene-spliced crops, including cotton, corn, squash and sugar beets.

Tobi Jones, assistant director of the California Department of Pesticide Regulation and a member of the research council study team, said Wednesday that regulators must "clear a path for both developers of the technology, and the users, and the state regulators."

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