biotechnological products will reinforce the treadmill” usually associated “pesticide with genetic uniformity and reduction of biodiversity in agro- ecosystems. To the extent that transgenic further entrench the current clean crop monoculture system, they discourage farmers from using other ecologically based pest management methods (Altieri, 1996), including simple ecological approaches like bio- diversity islands, field margins, and corridors. Monocultures also limit the extent to which farm lands— which cover large areas of the world (e.g., 70% on the United Kingdom; Hails, 2003)—can contribute to conservation of wildlife.” The GMO-induced decrease in genetic diversity has harmful economic impacts. Warrant: Garcia, Maria Alice. Crops: Implications for Biodiversity and Sustainable “Transgenic Agriculture.” Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, Vol. 25, No. 4, August 2005. t> the onset of agricultural modernization, farmers and researchers have been “Since faced with an ecological dilemma arising from the homogenization of agricultural systems: an increased vulnerability of crops to unpredictable arthropod pests and diseases, which can be devastating when infesting genetically uniform, large-scale monocultures (R. A. Robinson, 1996). Examples of disease epidemics associated with homo- geneous crops abound in the literature, including the $1 billion disease-induced loss of maize in the United States in 1970 and the 18 million citrus trees destroyed by pathogens in Florida in 1984 (Thrupp, 1998).” Warrant: Herbicides also decrease biodiversity by completely removing all types of weeds. Garcia, Alice. Crops: Implications for Biodiversity and Sustainable “Transgenic Agriculture.” Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, Vol. 25, No. 4, August 2005. t>
biotechnological products will reinforce the “pesticide treadmill” usually associated with genetic uniformity and reduction of biodiversity in agro- ecosystems. To the extent that transgenic further entrench the current clean crop monoculture system, they discourage farmers from using other ecologically based pest management methods (Altieri, 1996), including simple ecological approaches like bio- diversity islands, field margins, and corridors. Monocultures also limit the extent to which farm lands— which cover large areas of the world (e.g., 70% on the United Kingdom; Hails, 2003)—can contribute to conservation of wildlife.” Warrant: The GMO-induced decrease in genetic diversity has harmful economic impacts. Garcia, Maria Alice. “Transgenic Crops: Implications for Biodiversity and Sustainable Agriculture.” Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, Vol. 25, No. 4, August 2005. t> “Since the onset of agricultural modernization, farmers and researchers have been faced with an ecological dilemma arising from the homogenization of agricultural systems: an increased vulnerability of crops to unpredictable arthropod pests and diseases, which can be devastating when infesting genetically uniform, large-scale monocultures (R. A. Robinson, 1996). Examples of disease epidemics associated with homo- geneous crops abound in the literature, including the $1 billion disease-induced loss of maize in the United States in 1970 and the 18 million citrus trees destroyed by pathogens in Florida in 1984 (Thrupp, 1998).” Warrant: Herbicides also decrease biodiversity by completely removing all types of weeds. Garcia, Alice. “Transgenic Crops: Implications for Biodiversity and Sustainable Agriculture.” Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, Vol. 25, No. 4, August 2005. t>
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