Catalan agriculture and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) - An application of DPSIR model

Although there is a strong controversy regarding the introduction and commercialisation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in Europe, GM maize has been sown in Spain since 1998. Stakeholders' positions on the role that GMOs play in trends of the state of agriculture and environment in Catalonia are analysed. The application of the Driving forces -Pressures - State - Impact - Responses (DPSIR) framework in this case study highlights its potential for organising and structuring information. However, the model can be ambiguous when used as an analytical tool in value-laden complex situations. Thus, GM agriculture is sometimes seen as a pressure on the agro-environment and sometimes as a modernising response to an economic and environmental crisis. A redefinition of the DPSIR categories is proposed, aiming to reflect on these situations by better acknowledging different legitimate perspectives and narratives. This is done, on the one hand, by allowing alternative descriptions of causal chains and, on the other hand, by taking into consideration social and political aspects besides the relationship between economics and environmental spheres.