Residents of the Florida Keys will vote in the November general election on whether they want genetically modified mosquitoes released on the island chain.
The British company Oxitec has proposed the first U.S. trial of the genetically modified mosquitoes in Key Haven, a neighborhood about five miles from Key West.The technology targets the mosquitoes that carry the zika virus and dengue fever.
Many residents of Key Haven oppose the trial. Gilda Niles said she was upset that the Florida Keys mosquito control board had considered testing GMO mosquitoes in her neighborhood without asking.