What's Killing The Bees ?
October 16th, 2013
Owen Sound Sun Times
Province Of Ontario
Selected And Adapted Excerpts
It seems the plight of the bees is being left behind in what is shaping up as more of a political fight.
Those that support keeping the neonicotinoid ( neonic ) insecticides have the, " We can't do without it and the world will starve " statements, and name those who want to ban it as, " not real farmers or good managers ( bee keepers organic) even if they do call themselves farmers, " syndrome.
There is a call to have science provide the solution, and both sides are LINING UP WITH THEIR TOKEN SCIENTISTS, calling the pesticides from safe to poison.
What is known is that bees are dying by the millions, which many are blaming on neonics, as witnessed by ANTI-PESTICIDE LUNATIC-BEEKEEPER Dave Schuit, who this year lost more than half his 2,000 hives. [ Why is Schuit one of just few few bee-keepers who are losing bees ?!?! And why are we just taking his word for it ?!?! ]
Canada's losses last winter reached nearly 29 per cent of the colonies across the country, a death of more than 200,000 colonies. [ See below for more exact details. ]
That's double the percentage of losses in the previous year.
Manitoba saw the largest losses, with 46.4 per cent of colonies dying, while Ontario had the second highest rate of loss at 37.9 per cent. [ ?!?! ]
The Ontario Federation of Agriculture ( OFA ) maintains that their position on this troubling issue is a call for more, " sound science-based solutions by Health Canada's Pest Management Regulatory Agency ( PMRA ). " [ Canadian Honey Council, representing Bee-Keepers all across Canada, ACTIVELY OPPOSES PROHIBITION against Neonicotinoid Insecticides, arguing that the harm to growers would be SUBSTANTIAL, and that there will be NO NOTABLE CHANGE in bee mortality. ]
Their membership affiliates, the Grain Farmers of Ontario, recently LAUNCHED A CAMPAIGN BY MAILING OUT 28,000 POSTCARDS TO GRAIN FARMERS ACROSS ONTARIO, asking that they lobby their MPs and MPPs not to ban the use of neonic pesticides.
Local ANTI-PESTICIDE LUNATIC-ORGANIC GRAIN GROWER and member Sean McGivearn, challenged his own association, by asking which directors initiated this political action on behalf of all grain growers, how much it cost to send out 28,000 post cards, and the minutes of the meeting.
The response from the GFO to the first question: which of 15 directors agreed to the motion, " This information will not be released," to the second on cost, "The costs/budget of the post cards will not be released, " and as to the minutes, " The circulation of the GFO board minutes will remain as they have in the past. "
John Cowan, vice president of the GFO did say that, " Neonicotinoid seed treatments are an IMPORTANT TOOL for Ontario's corn, soybean and wheat farmers and without it farmers have a potential yield loss of three to 20 bushels per acre, which would significantly cut their incomes. "
Yet results from Purdue University field trials in Indiana, USA, from 2011 and 2012 could not prove any measurable statistical yield gain from using neonic seed treatments. [ This is a nonsense report. Besides, if PROHIBITION is IMPOSED, there is a HIGH PROBABILITY many corn growers would switch to other insecticides that are MUCH MORE HARMFUL TO BEES AND ENVIRONMENT. ]
Recently, the federal government, trying to take the sting out of a general population's concern over the use of these pesticides and bees dying as a result, came out with a report titled, Action to Protect Bees From Exposure to Neonicotinoids Pesticides.
This report came out after they approved the use of neonics for next season.
" Health Canada's Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) has determined that current agricultural practices related to the use of neonicotinoid treated corn and soybean seed are affecting the environment due to their impacts on bees and other pollinators. "
Among the planned measures are forcing corn and soybean farmers to follow certain seed-planting practices, improving labels on pesticide and seed packages and requiring seeds to have " dust-reducing " lubricants.
" Basically I see it as a band-aid, " said ANTI-PESTICIDE LUNATIC-BEEKEEPER Schuit, operator of Saugeen Country Honey located in Elmwood.
" (The Pest Management Regulatory Agency) should've done their study before they approved this pesticide, " he added.
Yet there are some leaders in the farm community who are acknowledging the problem of bee deaths, even though their provincial counterparts are saying something differently. " Farm seed coated with the pesticide neonicotinoids is seen as the major culprit in the deaths of bee colonies, " said Grey County Federation director Jacquie Hendry. [ According to Agriculture Canada, there is NO bee crisis since CANADA’S HONEY YIELD IS TWICE THE WORLD’S AVERAGE. According to a U.S. FEDERAL STUDY, there is NOT ENOUGH EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT A PROHIBITION against Neonicotinoid Insecticides, and that THE COSTS OF PROHIBITION MIGHT EXCEED THE BENEFITS. ]
The European Union partially banned the use of neonics for the next two years. [ It is perhaps worth pointing out that France PROHIBITED against Neonicotinoid Insecticides in the 1990s, and it has seen NO MARKED REDUCTION in Bee Colony Collapse Disorder. ]
The Ontario Beekeepers Association wants the same.
Ontario Premier and Agricultural Minister Kathleen Wynne appointed a, bee health working group, made up of bee keepers, grain growers, academics and others, to report back with findings next spring.
But the last word may actually be up to farmers and anyone who is concerned.
The PMRA has asked for public input on their latest report on this pesticide. People can comment until December 1, 2013 by email at: pmra.publications@hc-sc.gc.ca, or fax to 613-736-3758, or write a letter to Pest Management Regulatory Agency, 2720 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0K9 or even phone at 1-800-267-6315 or 613-736-3799.
http://www.owensoundsuntimes.com/2013/10/16/whats-killing-the-bees-depends-on-who-you-ask
NORAHG RESPONSE
Bees Are Being Harmed By Bee-Keepers Using Illegal Products
Shuit's STATEMENTS ARE FALSE, and he is clearly NOT an expert on pest control products. Bee-keepers are falsely blaming bee deaths on Neonicotinoid Insecticides. When used properly by growers, with Best Management Practices, neonicotinoid insecticides cause no harm, and do not hurt bees. It is far more likely that bee-keepers themselves are harming bees, and not insecticides. What is MORE ALARMING are the reports about the bee-keepers themselves. There are reports that bee-keepers all over North America are violating federal law by using illegal and unregistered pest control products. http://wp.me/p1jq40-70c Recently, in Alberta, bee-keepers were fined for using unregistered pest control products to combat mite infestations, resulting hefty fines from Health Canada. Bee-keepers violate federal law by using products like AMITRAZ, which is known to cause cancer, and is known to kill people. In 2006, the United States Environmental Protection Agency ( USEPA ) classified AMITRAZ as a Group C, a possible human carcinogen. Furthermore, exposure of men to greater amounts of AMITRAZ can lead to death due to respiratory failure, mainly after oral uptake or inhalation. In Turkey during 1989, 41 cases of deadly AMITRAZ intoxications were detected. Other frequently occurring symptoms after massive AMITRAZ intoxication are bradycardia, depression, hyperglycemia, hypothermia, loss of consciousness, miosis, respiratory depression, and vomiting. In other words, bee-keepers are illegally using products that are known to cause cancer, and are known to kill people. It has been concluded that bee-keepers are producing potentially dangerous honey. And yet, these same bee-keepers complain about neonicotinoid insecticides, which, in fact, do not cause cancer, are scientifically-safe, and cause no harm. If bee-keepers are lying and cheating by using illegal products, then, are they also lying and cheating with their public statements about bee deaths and neonicotinoid insecticides ?!?! Sadly, bee-keepers are the least credible and the least qualified to provide any advice concerning neonicotinoid insecticides.
Background Information From An Independent Perspective
More information about BEES on The Pesticide Truths Web-Site …
BEES — CANADA'S HONEY YIELD IS TWICE THE WORLD'S AVERAGE — THERE IS NO BEE CRISIS ( Reports )
https://pesticidetruths.com/2013/10/17/28297/
BEE-KEEPERS ARE LIARS WHO ARE KILLING THEIR OWN BEES – RANDY OLIVER
BEES — MYTH-BUSTING – BEE COLONY COLLAPSE DISORDER – PESTICIDES HURTING BEES IS A MYTH ( Web-Page )
https://pesticidetruths.com/toc/bee-colony-collapse-disorder/
BEES — THERE IS NO BEE CRISIS — BJORN LOMBORG
https://pesticidetruths.com/2013/09/16/there-is-no-bee-crisis/
BEES — LUNATIC ONTARIO BEEKEEPER ASSOCIATION — THE PUBLIC NEED TO KNOW HONEY CAUSES DUMB 6, 7 AND 8 YEAR OLD CHILDREN ( Audio Recording
)
BEES — ONTARIO ANTI-PESTICIDE BEE WORKING GROUP — WE ARE SO SCREWED — MAJORITY OF MEMBERS WILL VOTE IN FAVOUR OF PROHIBITION AGAINST NEONICOTINOID INSECTICIDES — RIGGED & UNDEMOCRATIC
BEES — WHAT HAPPENED TO THE BEES THIS SPRING ? — RANDY OLIVER
BEES — RENEGADE BEE-KEEPER TRADE ASSOCIATIONS
https://pesticidetruths.com/2013/09/01/renegade-bee-keeper-trade-associations-2013-01-09/
BEES — NEONICOTINOID BAN NOT THE BEST OPTION
BEES — EONICOTINOID BAN NOT THE BEST OPTION — MANITOBA COOPERATOR — HEPWORTH RESPONSE
BEES — HONEY CAN KILL CHILDREN WITH BOTULISM — BEE-KEEPERS ARE UNEDUCATED AND INCOMPETENT — THEIR FALSE ALLEGATIONS SERVE AS A MERE PLOY TO ATTRACT COMPENSATION
BEES — BEE-KEEPERS STEAL AND STEAL AND STEAL … AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN — THEY ARE THIEVING UNRELIABLE BASTERDS !
https://pesticidetruths.com/2013/08/29/bee-keepers-stealing-from-each-other-modern-farmer/
BEES — HONEY CAN KILL CHILDREN WITH BOTULISM — BEE-KEEPERS ARE UNEDUCATED AND INCOMPETENT — THEIR FALSE ALLEGATIONS SERVE AS A MERE PLOY TO ATTRACT COMPENSATION
BEES — THE DANGERS OF HONEY — HONEY IS THE ONLY FOOD THAT HAS BEEN PROVEN TO BE LINKED TO INFANT BOTULISM — PROTECTING CHILDREN FROM BOTULISM — HEALTH CANADA
BEES — PRE POISONED PLANTS — SOD FARMS, GARDEN CENTERS, NURSERIES — BEE DIE-OFFS — FRIENDS OF THE EARTH — LUNATIC STATEMENTS
BEES — BEE-KEEPERS ARE MERE RUSTLERS & THIEVING BASTERDS
BEES — BEE-KEEPERS USE ILLEGAL, UNREGISTERED, DEADLY, & CANCER-CAUSING PRODUCTS
BEES — BEE-KEEPERS ARE HARMING BEES, AND NOT INSECTICIDES
BEES — GRAIN FARMERS BATTLE ANTI-PESTICIDE LUNATIC-BEE-KEEPERS OVER PESTICIDE BAN
https://pesticidetruths.com/2013/07/24/grain-farmers-battle-beekeepers-over-pesticide-ban-hamilton/
BEES — LUNATIC-MOTHER NOW BLAMES PESTICIDES FOR BEE DEATHS AND FOR MOTHER'S DEATH
BEES — ONTARIO TO EXAMINE NEONICOTINOID INSECTICIDES AS POSSIBLE CAUSE OF BEE DEATHS & AS A PRELUDE TO ANOTHER PROHIBITION
BEES — WASHINGTON REJECTS BAN ON PESTICIDE SUSPECTED OF KILLING HONEY-BEES
BEES — CANADA NOT READY TO BAN PESTICIDES BELIEVED RESPONSIBLE FOR HONEY BEE DEATHS
BEES — CHEMO-PHOBIC ANTI-PESTICIDE GROUPS WANT TO PROHIBIT NEONICOTINOID INSECTICIDES — BEE-KEEPERS HARM BEES AND NOT PESTICIDES
BEES — AUSTRALIA HAS NO STINKIN BEE COLONY COLLAPSE DISORDER
BEES — THE REAL STORY BEHIND NEONICS AND MASS BEE DEATHS — THE RESEARCH ON BEE COLONY DEATHS IS DICEY, AND OFTEN POLITICAL — VARROA MITES — EUROPEAN UNION — FORBES
BEES — BEE COLONY COLLAPSE DISORDER IS PERPLEXING AND, AFTER YEARS OF STUDY, HAS NOT BEEN ATTRIBUTABLE TO ANY SINGLE CAUSE — U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
BEES — RESEARCHERS FIND MAJOR NEW SUSPECT FOR COLONY COLLAPSE DISORDER — HONEYBEE VIRUS & FUNGAL PATHOGEN
BEES — BLANKET BANS DETER INVESTMENT IN IMPROVEMENT — BEE COLONY COLLAPSE DISORDER
https://pesticidetruths.com/2013/04/09/pesticide-trials-letters-scotsman-com/
NORAHG is the National Organization Responding Against HUJE that seek to harm the Green space industry, and the well-being of our communities.
NORAHG morally represents the VAST SILENT MAJORITY of people associated with turf and ornamental plant maintenance who are OPPOSED to Anti Pesticide PROHIBITION and the CLOSURE or ABANDONMENT of green spaces under the RIDICULOUS PRETEXT of somehow « saving » the environment. http://wp.me/P1jq40-2bo
NORAHG is a NATIONAL NON-PROFIT NON-PARTISAN organization that does not accept money from corporations or governments or trade associations, and represents NO VESTED INTERESTS WHATSOEVER.
NORAHG is dedicated to reporting PESTICIDE FREE FAILURES, as well as the work of RESPECTED and HIGHLY RATED EXPERTS who promote ENVIRONMENTAL REALISM and PESTICIDE TRUTHS. http://wp.me/p1jq40-5DD