Tweaking Genes to Save Species; New York Times, 4/16/16

Hillary Rosner, New York Times; Tweaking Genes to Save Species:

"This kind of genetic meddling makes many environmentalists deeply uncomfortable. Manipulating nature’s DNA seems a hugely risky and ethically fraught way to help save the natural world. And yet, we may need to accept the risks...

But many people — and many conservation biologists — argue that it is hubris to think that we can plan how this interference will unfold. History is full of examples of good intentions gone awry...

We can’t save every species, of course. The planet is losing its biodiversity at an alarming rate, and there are too many species circling the drain. Conservation professionals acknowledge that we will need to perform a sort of conservation triage, a painful process of deciding which species to try to rescue and which to let go. As an increasing number slip away, we will face ever more difficult ethical decisions — not just about which species we want to save, but how far we are willing to go to save them, and even what “saving” them really means."