Earth Watch Report - Biological Hazards
© Unknown
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Jon Radjkovic
thepost.on.ca
Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:16 CDT
Elmwood
- Local beekeepers are finding millions of their bees dead just after
corn was planted here in the last few weeks. Dave Schuit, who has a
honey operation in Elmwood, lost 600 hives, a total of 37 million bees.
"Once the corn started to get planted our bees died by the millions,"
Schuit said. He and many others, including the European Union, are
pointing the finger at a class of insecticides known as neonicotinoids,
manufactured by Bayer CropScience Inc. used in planting corn and some
other crops. The European Union just recently voted to ban these
insecticides for two years, beginning December 1, 2013, to be able to
study how it relates to the large bee kill they are experiencing there
also.
Local grower Nathan Carey from the Neustadt, and National
Farmers Union Local 344 member, says he noticed this spring the lack of
bees and bumblebees on his farm. He believes that there is a strong
connection between the insecticide use and the death of pollinators.
"I feel like we all have something at stake with this issue," he said.
He is organizing a public workshop and panel discussion about this
problem at his farm June 22 at 10 a.m. He hopes that all interested
parties can get together and talk about the reason bees, the prime
pollinators of so any different plant species, are dying.
At the farm of Gary Kenny, south west of Hanover,
eight
of the 10 hives he kept for a beekeeper out of Kincardine, died this
spring just after corn was planted in neighbouring fields. What
seems to be deadly to bees is that the neonicotinoid pesticides are
coating corn seed and with the use of new air seeders, are blowing the
pesticide dust into the air when planted. The death of millions
of pollinators was looked at by American Purdue University. They found
that, "Bees exhibited neurotoxic symptoms, analysis of dead bees
revealed traces of thiamethoxam/clothianidin in each case. Seed
treatments of field crops (primarily corn) are the only major source of
these compounds.
Local investigations near Guelph, led to the
same conclusion. A Pest Management Regulatory Agency investigation
confirmed that corn seeds treated with clothianidin or thiamethoxam
"contributed to the majority of the bee mortalities" last spring.
"The air seeders are the problem," said Ontario Federation of
Agriculture director Paul Wettlaufer, who farms near Neustadt. This was
after this reporter called John Gillespie, OFA Bruce County president,
who told me to call Wettlaufer. Unfortunately, Wettlaufer said it was,
"not a local OFA issue," and that it was an issue for the Grain Farmers
of Ontario and representative, Hennry Vanakum should be notified.
Vanakum could not be rached for comment.
Yet Guelph University entomologist Peter Kevan, disagreed with the EU ban.
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A
bee here or a hive there may be chalked up to chance of a landscaping
company with heavy-handed pesticide applications, like the case where an
estimated
25,000 bees were killed
in a small Oregon town. But when millions of bees are dying at once, in
locales across Canada, there may be something more serious afoot. One
thing these casualties have in common—
recent corn plantings and the related insecticides.
According to
The Ontario Post,
one local Elmwood beekeeper lost 600 hives, a total of 37 million bees
following nearby corn planting. He and others believe the culprit may be
a class of insecticides, neonicotinoids, made by Bayer CropScience Inc.
A smaller operation in nearby Hanover was similarly wiped out this
spring when neighboring farmers began planting corn.
“Once the corn started to get planted our bees died by
the millions,” Dave Schuit said, the beekeeper who experienced the loss
of 600 hives and 37 million bees. “I feel like we all have something at
stake with this issue.”
Neonicotinoids were recently banned
by the European Union for two years (a period starting Dec. 1, 2013) so
that they can study how they are related to the dying bees in Europe.
They are completely legal in both the U.S. and Canada, however.
The pesticides coat the corn seed. New air-seeders launch the seeds
for planting while the pesticide dust is blown into the air. These tiny
particles make their way to nearby honey operations and the bee
population at large.
Purdue University looked closely at the mass casualties of U.S. bees and found,
“Bees
exhibited neurotoxic symptoms, analysis of dead bees revealed traces of
thiamethoxam/clothianidin in each case. Seed treatments of field crops
(primarily corn) are the only major source of these compounds.”
Sort of like injecting beef cattle with antibiotics “just in case”,
farmers are using seeds covered with insecticides. This so-called
preventative use does more harm than good in both cases.
Read More Here
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Again and again: 37 million bees found dead
Arjun
Collective-evolution.com
Mon, 01 Jul 2013
© Unknown
Shortly after 50,000 bees were found dead in an Oregon parking lot (read more
here),
a staggering 37 million bees have been found dead in Elmwood, Ontario,
Canada. Dave Schuit, who runs a honey operation in Elmwood has lost 600
hives. He is pointing the finger at the insecticides known as
neonicotinoids, which are manufactured by Bayer CropScience Inc. This
also comes after a recent report released by the British Beekeepers
Association (BBKA) that recorded its largest loss of honeybees ever. You
can read more about that
here.
The European Union has stepped forward, having banned multiple
pesticides that have been linked to killing millions of bees. You can
view the studies and read more about that
here.
The loss comes after the planting of corn. Neonicotinoid pesticides
are used to coat corn seed with air seeders. This results in having the
pesticide dust blown into the air when planted. The death of millions of
pollinators was studied by Purdue University. They discovered that Bees
exhibited neurotoxic symptoms. They analyzed dead bees and found that
traces of thiamethoxam/clothiandin were present
in each case. The only major source of these compounds are seed treatments of field crops. You can view that study
here (1).
Read More Here
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Save the Bees!
Posted by
Molly O'Connor
Scientists theorize that Colony Collapse Disorder may cause the next big
extinction. This is because honeybees pollinate and pollination is an
essential part of a stable ecosystem. Bees fly from stamen to stamen to
collect pollen, to then spread to neighboring plants that can then
accept the pollen, which allows the plants egg to develop into a source
of food or shelter. This life cycle is vital for not just humans, but
for all living organisms. To have a healthy terrestrial ecosystem, the
plant, soil, and atmosphere must have beneficial or at least
commensalistic interactions. In a community with CCD infected honeybees,
there can be significant loss of plant life. For example, detritivores
exist within a community to decompose dead material and this
decomposition resupplies the soil with nutrients. If after a generation
or two of lower honeybee populations, there would be less pollinated
flowers, thus less fruit. In a local population sense, this would mean
there would be a lower amount of fruits to decompose by the
detritivores, which overall means there are fewer nutrients returned to
the soil. That is just one simple example, but to imagine a whole
country without pollinating bees would impact many other factors
nationwide, such as photosynthetic levels. This is due to fewer seed set
and plant growth, thus less carbon dioxide being converted into oxygen
and organic compounds. In the big scheme of things, this would affect
the atmosphere and the soil. It is hard to believe that every single
thing in this world is connected, but these are just two examples that
show that even a honeybee can affect the terrestrial environment.
If
honeybee populations continue to fall this could potentially cost
billions of dollars in the agriculture industry. Honeybees have
estimated value of about $15 billion dollars in the United States, and
over $215 billion dollars worldwide. It is estimated that one-third of
the food eaten by U.S. citizens is thanks to honeybee pollination,
either directly or indirectly. Not to mention that honeybee pollination
plays an important role in pollination of other plants that are vital to
maintaining an ecological balance (VanEngelsdorg 2009).
Since
2006 scientists have been trying to find some explanation for the
disappearance of honeybees, but even after 6 years the data has come out
inconclusive. There are many suspected causes for CCD, such as
malnutrition, pathogens, immunodeficiency, pesticides, and genetically
modified crops. Most researchers agree that while the exact cause of CCD
remains unknown, it must be multiple factors working together that are
causing the most serious die-off of honeybees ever reported. Albert
Einstein once said, “If the bee disappears from the surface of the
earth, man would have no more than four years to live. No more bees, no
more pollination … no more men!” Nationwide there is an urgent plea for
more funding and research to sustain the honeybee populations and now it
rests in scientists hands to save the earth from possibly the next big
extinction.
Read More Here
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