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EU Bans The Use Of Pesticides Linked To Declining Bee Populations


If you’ve been reading up on environmental news for any length of time, you know the declining bee population is a pretty hot topic, and seldom do we hear good news about it. Fortunately, the European Commission has now changed things up a bit with a vote approving the ban of pesticides that are believed to be partly responsible for bee colony collapse disorder.

Presented last month, the proposal sought to ban neonicotinoid pesticides such as Iothianidin, imidacloprid, and thiametoxam. At the time, only 13 countries were in favor, nine against it, and five were absent. An appeals committee decided to address the bill on Monday, voting in favor of banning use of these pesticides on corn, sunflowers, and rapeseed for two years.

The decision didn’t come without some heated debate, either. Both environmentalists and lobbyists from the other side fought strong and hard, particularly farmers and chemical producers who say there is not enough data to support the claim that these products affect the bee population. The concern for food production has also come up, but in the end the environmental voice won and the next two years will hopefully provide insight on the accuracy of these claims.

Even if we come to find out that these chemicals have not had an impact on the bee population… do you REALLY want them sprayed on your food? I long for the day where the majority starts to care about health and safety research over profit.

Image CC licensed by John Johnston

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  • Alex Monras

    you should not forget to mention that this has been an achievement of international online pressure, through collection of millions of signatures. Perople should not underestimate the power of their humble signature.

  • http://www.the9billion.com/ John Johnston

    Indeed. If a lot of people show they want change, politicians take notice.

  • Michael Birks

    Was there just a hint of “woo, pesticides bad” at the end there?

    Sure, there’s a good correlation as far as bees are concerned, but the toxicity to humans is far less certain, at least given the dearth of references on the wikipedia article.

    I’m also not denying the cascade of effects caused by the decline in pollinators, and how that could be harmful to the human food supply chain, but that’s not what you’re implying.

    Reasoning from ‘bad for bees’ to ‘bad for humans’ is doing so in advance of your evidence, I think.

  • http://www.the9billion.com/ John Johnston

    Yes, that last statement was most definitely personal opinion. As far as the ban goes, as you say, there is no denying the cascade of effects caused by the decline in pollinators, especially in the food chain. No doubt this is what concerns the EU, and most people; it’s self Interest. In a wider sense, “saving the planet” really means saving humanity and other species, but mostly humanity. The planet will survive for billions of years more without humans, and many other species, unless it turns into a Venus-type atmosphere – which is quite possible with runaway climate change.