Scientific report urges debate on genetic modification to control insect pests

Scientists are learning to turn the genetics of insect pests against themselves, altering the genome of familiar foes in ways that give farmers and doctors new ways to fight them. The burgeoning field offers fresh hope against old scourges such as malaria. And it could provide shiny new tools as familiar insecticides lose their punch and climate change shuffles the deck. But concerns buzz the new technology like a cloud of gnats.

“Genetic pest-control tools could dramatically shift our relationship with the environment, not only because of their potential impact on the ecosystem of which we are a part, but also because of their challenge to the social and cultural values that shape decisions surrounding their use,” says a new report from the Council of Canadian Academies.

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