Ban pesticides to save bees, MPs urge
Pesticides linked to declines in bee numbers must be banned from use, according to a new report by MPs.
A number of scientific studies have
singled out the harmful effects of neonicotinoids that are said to
affect the nervous systems of bees. Photo: AP
7:00AM BST 05 Apr 2013
31 Comments
The Environmental Audit Committee accused ministers of taking an "extraordinarily
complacent approach" to protecting important pollinating insects such
as bees.
Bees pollinate more than £1 billion worth of crops in the UK each year
including fruits and vegetables such as carrots, cabbages, apples and pears.
Numbers of the insects have declined dramatically over the past 25 years and
there are fears that the use of a common type of pesticides known as
neonicotinoids may be playing a role.
Many countries have already implemented a ban on their use on crops and the
European Commission has also attempted to restrict their use, but the
British government has called for greater scientific evidence before it
takes any action.
The Environmental Audit Committee said it now felt the weight of evidence now
justified precautionary action to protect bees and other insects including
moths, butterflies and hoverflies.
It said that a moratorium on the use of three neonicotinoid pesticides on
crops such as oil seed rape, which is one of the main crops that bees feed
on, should be introduced by the beginning of 2014.
The pesticides should be immediately banned from use in private gardens and golf courses to create "an urban safe haven for bees", the committee added.
Joan Walley, chair of the Environmental Audit Committee and Labour MP for Stoke-on-Trent North, said: “Defra (the Department for Farming, Rural Affairs and Agriculture) seems to be taking an extraordinarily complacent approach to protecting bees given the vital free service that pollinators provide to our economy.
“If farmers had to pollinate fruit and vegetables without the help of insects it would cost hundreds of millions of pounds and we would all be stung by rising food prices.
“There is no justification for people continuing to use these products on their Dahlias when they could be having a detrimental effect on pollinator populations.
"Banning the sale of neonicotinoids for domestic use would at least create an urban safe haven for bees.”
The report identifies three pesticides – imidacloprid, clothianidin and TMX – that should be suspended from use.
However, Defra's chief scientific adviser Professor Ian Boyd said that there was still too little conclusive evidence showing that they were having an impact on bee numbers in the field.
He said laboratory studies clearly showed that the pesticides could kill bees, but the affect they have when diluted in the environment was far less clear.
Defra has been reluctant to ban the pesticides as such a move would introduce other costs for farmers as they face increased problems with pests and reduced yields.
A spokesman for Defra said: “Decisions on neonicotinoids must be based on sound scientific evidence.
"That’s why we want the European Commission to agree to our suggestion for a major new field study to get the best, most up-to-date evidence.
"That will allow informed decision-making, rather than rushing into a knee-jerk ban based on inconclusive studies."
Syngenta, an agrochemical firm that makes neonicotinoids, said the new report failed to reflect the evidence.
A spokesman said: "The decline in bee health is one of the biggest challenges facing agriculture. Syngenta remains committed to fully understanding and improving bee health.
"The easy option is to call for a ban on neonicotinoids in the hope that it will improve bee health.
"The long-term, real world, scientific reality is that a ban wouldn’t save a single hive, but it would create significant environmental, agronomic and economic challenges."
Professor Simon Potts, a bee expert from the University of Reading, said, however, that pesticides could be replaced with biological pest control to protect food crops.
end quote from:
Ban pesticides to save bees, MPs urge
Though banning pesticide might work that likely wouldn't work in all countries. So, my thought is people should insist on organically grown food only if they can financially afford to do so and also insist on non-GMO (non-genetically modified foods) so more people can stay healthy and alive on earth.
The pesticides should be immediately banned from use in private gardens and golf courses to create "an urban safe haven for bees", the committee added.
Joan Walley, chair of the Environmental Audit Committee and Labour MP for Stoke-on-Trent North, said: “Defra (the Department for Farming, Rural Affairs and Agriculture) seems to be taking an extraordinarily complacent approach to protecting bees given the vital free service that pollinators provide to our economy.
“If farmers had to pollinate fruit and vegetables without the help of insects it would cost hundreds of millions of pounds and we would all be stung by rising food prices.
“There is no justification for people continuing to use these products on their Dahlias when they could be having a detrimental effect on pollinator populations.
"Banning the sale of neonicotinoids for domestic use would at least create an urban safe haven for bees.”
The report identifies three pesticides – imidacloprid, clothianidin and TMX – that should be suspended from use.
However, Defra's chief scientific adviser Professor Ian Boyd said that there was still too little conclusive evidence showing that they were having an impact on bee numbers in the field.
He said laboratory studies clearly showed that the pesticides could kill bees, but the affect they have when diluted in the environment was far less clear.
Defra has been reluctant to ban the pesticides as such a move would introduce other costs for farmers as they face increased problems with pests and reduced yields.
A spokesman for Defra said: “Decisions on neonicotinoids must be based on sound scientific evidence.
"That’s why we want the European Commission to agree to our suggestion for a major new field study to get the best, most up-to-date evidence.
"That will allow informed decision-making, rather than rushing into a knee-jerk ban based on inconclusive studies."
Syngenta, an agrochemical firm that makes neonicotinoids, said the new report failed to reflect the evidence.
A spokesman said: "The decline in bee health is one of the biggest challenges facing agriculture. Syngenta remains committed to fully understanding and improving bee health.
"The easy option is to call for a ban on neonicotinoids in the hope that it will improve bee health.
"The long-term, real world, scientific reality is that a ban wouldn’t save a single hive, but it would create significant environmental, agronomic and economic challenges."
Professor Simon Potts, a bee expert from the University of Reading, said, however, that pesticides could be replaced with biological pest control to protect food crops.
end quote from:
Ban pesticides to save bees, MPs urge
Though banning pesticide might work that likely wouldn't work in all countries. So, my thought is people should insist on organically grown food only if they can financially afford to do so and also insist on non-GMO (non-genetically modified foods) so more people can stay healthy and alive on earth.
