The impact of GMOs on

biodiversity is widely debated.

- [ ] According to pro-GMO researchers,
farmers can use fewer insecticides if crops
are genetically modified for pest resistance.
- This will allow the local fauna, including
birds, rodents, and insects, to survive.
Scaled-back insecticide use allowed by
GMOns does not suppress secondary pests
that would have been eradicated with
extensive insecticide treatment. The birds
and rodents that prey on the secondary
pests are still able to survive because these
secondary pests are still present. Arid or
flood-prone ground can also be exploited
for crop cultivation thanks to the
development of drought- and flood-
resistant cultivars. As a result, less land with
a high biodiversity needs to be transformed
for cultivation. –
[ ] On the other side of the debate, GMO
skeptics have argued that up to 75% of plant
genetic diversity has been lost since farmers
switched to uniform GM crop varieties. –
According to this perspective, less common
non-GM seed kinds are being overlooked.
Furthermore, extensively utilized GM crop
varieties may spread to nearby farms and
eventually contaminate non-GM crops. A
farmer who wants to continue using non-
GM seed varieties or who wants to keep his
crops organic must take potentially
expensive precautions to prevent
contamination or cross-pollination with his
neighbor's GM crops. Additionally, it has
been suggested that the excessive
popularity of some M crops may increase
their vulnerability to pests and illnesses.
Pests could develop to specifically target
overgrown monocultures of popular crop
kinds. Moreover, it has been argued that
the evolution of glyphosate-resistant weeds
has required farmers to make ever greater
use of glyphosate, the toxicity of which
poses dangers for human health.

- [ ] It has been hypothesized that GM crops

can harm insect species that are not pests. –
- Insects that feed on GM crops will carry
GM pollen, which may prove toxic in the
long term and result in depletion or even
extinction of insect populations. The genetic
integrity of any plant or insect that lives in
close proximity to GM crops can be
compromised because gene transfer from
one organism to another can occur, and
such genes may pose unanticipated risks.
GM traits have been found transferred to
insects, water life and soil. And that is all for
our report. This is Group 2, thank you for
listening.
L /. Ll .l

.A
nd that is all for our report. This is Group 2, thank you for listening.