Issue Ecological risks of gene-edited trees: gene flow, biodiversity loss and water use

Summary

The report considers carbon-boosting edited trees promising but acknowledges that they raise significant challenges. Some experts caution that genes could spread unintentionally, biodiversity could decline and water consumption could rise. Greater water use in particular could become a problem in areas already under water stress. These trees are engineered with tools such as CRISPR-Cas or base editing to raise photosynthetic efficiency and growth and to lock carbon in deep roots. Living Carbon's modified poplars have reached the pilot plantation stage in the south-eastern United States since 2023. The report believes that, if managed cautiously, such trees could help expand carbon sinks and strengthen climate action.