Killing Nature to Save It: Conservation Science, Biotechnology, and Ethical Extermination

There is a deep tension within conservation: The field aims to protect the well-being of flora, fauna, and ecosystems, but often goes about doing this by mass-killing invasive animals. Traditional techniques, including hunting, poisons, and diseases, also often involve prolonged suffering, and cycles of harm that lead to multiple generations of invasive species being killed with no clear end in sight. Into this picture comes biotechnology, a field of research that modifies the fundamental building blocks of life. Gene-drive approaches to invasive species control, in comparison to traditional techniques, seem to offer win-win solutions from an ethics standpoint – they not only cause less death, but do so in ways that are consistent with compassionate conservation goals. In line with recent work by Rohwer, I argue that we are morally obliged to fund these technologies, and take seriously their potential deployment on a wide range of invasive species. The second half of this talk is, however, dedicated to tempering our expectations of gene-drives from an ethics perspective. These techniques, while promising along some lines, run the risk of shifting harms rather than removing them. In particular, they involve the risk of off-target effects including mutations and, perhaps more seriously, the accidental global extinction of target species. They also may threaten concepts of ‘naturalness’ that underpin traditional conservation, albeit largely because they offer increased control over animal biology rather than because they pose a novel threat, and finally, in some cases gene-drive techniques may shift harms from the invasive species back on to native ecosystems, meaning these aren’t necessarily clear-cut win-win scenarios. For all these issues, however, this talk is an optimistic one, arguing that while we ought to be cautious, we also ought to think that the future of conservation will be a kinder, and more effective one, if gene-drives live up to their potential.