G.M.(n)O's and the Environment

As college students, it’s easy to not think about where our food comes from. Most of the time, if we have food in our stomach that we didn't have to pay more than two dollars for, we’re happy. When I bite into something, the last thing I think is, “What negative impacts did my meal make on the environment?”. But the fact is, we should be concerned with what we're eating.

Cue in gmo’s, genetically modified organisms. These have been making big headlines. Since their beginnings in the 1990's, they have been a concern for those concerned with basic fundamental rights such as: health concerns, and more recently environmental concerns. These environmental concerns range from water pollution and air pollution, and yet the FDA continues to approve the genetically modified plants.

So what are these exactly? Genetically modified organisms are organisms that have been genetically engineered with another, totally different organisms’’ traits to produce a completely new organism with new traits. So in short, the big juicy tomatoes that you see in the store could very possibly have a gene from a fish. But, the great thing about that fish gene is that it causes the plants to be herbicide and insecticide resistant, which leads to GMO supporters arguing that these guys are very good for the environment.

But here’s what the supporters fail to mention, however, is for the plants being so herbicide resistant, there is a LOT of herbicide that is contributed directly from them. In an article by Mike Barrett published by Natural Society, he refers to a piece published by the US government that shows that 88,000 tons of Roundup, a popular herbicide, was used for the plants. 88, 000 tons. Niiiice.

                                                                     

                                                 

                                                                                       

                                                      Image courtesy of Twisted Sifter

The spraying of herbicide obviously contributes to air pollution, but it does not stop there. Roundup contains a very special ingredient: glyphosate. This chemical is very bad news and can be extremely toxic. But, as Barrett continues to show, the glyphosate has reached a point where it has contaminated ground water.

If that wasn't alarming enough, studies in Germany have found a link between glyphosate and human urine, which means that the chemical is not just a supposed threat; it is in the human system (Barrett).

Another environmental concern is the harm to other non-modified plants. GMO plants are not immune to the natural (excuse the pun) cycle of plants: their seeds being carried to other plants and breeding others. Unfortunately, as article by Emily Glass states that biodiversity is lost from this, and soil used from the GMO plants are useless after use (Glass).

The bottom line is: these “plants” absolutely suck. They're bad news. They're not good for human health. They're not sure as heck not good for the environment.

We're the generation that is equipped to change the world. We're the generation is going to change the world. It's been drilled into our head since we went into kindergarten.

But to do this, we have to care. And we can start caring about what is going in our mouth.

Work Cited:

Glass, Emily. "The Environmental Impact of GMOs." One Green Planet. N.p., 2 Aug. 2013. Web. 30                       Nov. 2013.

Barrett, Mike. "Causes of Water Pollution – GMO Farming, Glyphosate Big Contributors."Natural Society.              N.p., 02 Nov. 2012. Web. 01 Dec. 2013.