All across the UK, Friends of the Earth groups and other campaigners are staging a fortnight of ‘Action for Bees’ – with the aim of highlighting some very specific issues. IoM Friends of the Earth is joining in
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The ‘Action for Bees’ fortnight is taking place because bees (and here we’re largely talking about wild bees, not managed colonies) are in real trouble.
And if they’re in trouble, we are, too, as most of the food crops we rely on, and the trees and wildflowers which play such a big role in nature, are pollinated by them.
Across Britain, things are pretty dire – there has been a huge fall in the number and variety of wild bees, with England witnessing the biggest decline of anywhere in Europe.
Since 1900, the UK has lost 20 species of bee – another one became extinct only last year – and 35 more species are under threat.
But it’s not just in the UK where they’re struggling, though it’s doing worse than most places.
In Europe, almost one in 10 species is at risk of disappearing.
Why? Well, there are a number of reasons – from loss of habitat to the use of pesticides (of which more later), the spread of pests and diseases and, increasingly, climate change.
It’s so important to our health, environment, food security and economy that the last UK Government drew up a National Pollinator Strategy.
This was a good start – but it had a huge failing: it was pathetically lame in how it dealt with the use of pesticides.
This comes as little surprise – the UK Government, under much lobbying from the chemicals industry and parts of the farming industry, has consistently denied the need to implement restrictions which the EU brought in, back in 2013, on neonicotinoid pesticides, or ‘neonics’.
Indeed although it had, begrudgingly, to ‘comply’ (it is the law, after all) it actually created exemptions from the ban for parts of England earlier this year, after some farmers claimed their rapeseed crops were failing because they couldn’t use the banned chemicals. In the event, these claims turned out to be incorrect.
So the theme of the fortnight of action is that the UK Government (and, we’re suggesting, the Isle of Man too)should now:
– Recommit (or in the case of the Isle of Man, commit) to protecting wild bees and other pollinators by having a sound strategy with strong action on pesticides;
– Have a permanent ban on neonics, the worst ones of the lot; and
– Refuse emergency authorisations for use of neonics because the damage they can cause is so great, and the risk to the economy, environment and human food supplies outweighs any potential gain.
Why are neonics such bad news? It’s because, for certain insects, they act as neurotoxins. That means they interfere with the bees’ nervous systems.
And because they’re so readily absorbed in sprayed plants – or plants grown from treated seeds – their residues are found in pollen and nectar.
In 2013 three neonicotinoid insecticides (imidicloprid, thiametoxam and clothianidin) were restricted for use in the EU following a thorough review of evidence by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
They found a ‘high acute risk’ to honey bees when neonics are used on crops attractive to them.
And the risks to some other types of wild bees, which are our chief pollinators, are much greater, as they seem to have different effects on their neurological systems.
The makers of these products have tried to claim that they don’t, in fact, kill bees. But their tests have tended to focus on hive-managed bees, which are less affected by the neonics; wild bees don’t die immediately (ie they’re not poisoned on the spot), but they lose the ability to navigate, stop foraging for themselves, grow weak and die within a reasonably short time frame.
Since the restrictions were put in place, several more studies have come out, all of which add to the weight of evidence that neonics are harmful to bees (and especially wild bees).
This is of huge concern given the impact on the nation’s ability to feed itself. And as I’ve said, manufacturers’ tests conveniently only currently take place on the less-affected, and (from a pollination perspective, somewhat less helpful) honey bees.
In June last year, the largest global study ever on the issue was published. It involved 29 scientists and more than 1,000 papers on the effects and risks of systemic pesticides, and was published by the Task Force on Systemic Pesticides.
It concluded that neonics ‘are causing significant damage to a wide range of beneficial invertebrate species and are a key factor in the decline of bees’.
And in April 2015, the highly respected European Academies Science Advisory Council cited ‘clear scientific evidence for sub-lethal effects on bees and other pollinators exposed to very low levels of neonicotinoids over extended periods’.
So what are we doing? Well, we’re halfway through a fortnight of action, which began with a Bee Information Day at the Green Centre on September 12. We’ve been organising some new plantings, plus talking to Douglas Corporation about whether we can get their wonderful wildflower drifts up at Douglas Head and Noble’s Park registered as ‘Bee Worlds’, and maybe consider some more.
And by the time you read this we’ll have swarmed our stripy way to last weekend’s Isle of Man Food and Drink Festival to tell people what the issues are, ask them to sign our petition for a neonic-free island, and encourage them to make bees welcome in their gardens and window-boxes.
To find out more about Friends of the Earth in the island, and how you can get involved, call down to our next monthly meeting, tomorrow ( Wednesday) at 7.30pm at the Green Centre in Douglas.
For more information, email iomfoe@manx.net