PLANET IN PERIL

EcoWatch The Air Force has dispatched big spray planes to control pests which they claim pose a health risk to rescue workers around Houston. Sadly, those "pests" include the good ones, like bees. Story here.

POPULAR   SCIENCE Plus some bee-utiful photography. STORY HERE. RELATED:  Pesticide increases probability of bumblebee extinction. Will New Research From Europe Nudge Canada Toward a "Neonic" Ban? Bumble bees forage on chives in a  Manitoba garden.  PinP  photo.

Nature Ecology & Evolution A bumblebee forages on a sunflower.  PinP photo. Pollinators are in global decline and agricultural pesticides are a potential driver of this.  Story here. RELATED:  Will New Research From Europe Nudge Canada Toward a "Neonic" Ban?

ScienceDaily Wikimedia Commons Researchers find that bees fed with thiacloprid  (a neonic) significantly reduces their social interactions,  suggesting that foraging bees that encounter  high  doses of insecticide in the field may be less likely  to recruit others to nectar sources.  Story here. RELATED:  Will New Research From Europe Nudge Canada Toward a "Neonic" Ban? New research suggests “Neonics,” the world’s most widely-used family of insecticides, can decimate bee populations.

by Larry Powell Most Canadian fields  of canola ("oilseed rape"  in  Europe)  grow from seed treated with neonics . PinP photo. Health Canada's Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA), which tests and registers pesticides in this country, says it will take recent European research into account in deciding the future of neonicotinoids. They're the world's most widely used, and controversial family of insecticides.  A major field study, published in the journal Nature last week,  found that  neonics  did not seem to harm  honey bees and two wild bee species scientists studied in Germany.  However, it was a different story in Hungary and the U.K. There, the same species located near oil rapeseed (canola) crops treated with the neonic, clothianidin, produced 24% fewer workers the following spring!  While the European Union clamped a moratorium on neonics in 2013, Canada chose a different path. The PMRA has continued to approve their use, even tho it

 Chemical companies, who helped fund the study, believe it provides a loophole they can use to support their case for their continued use. by Larry Powell Bumblebees forage on chives in a Canadian garden.  A PinP  photo. It was the first, large-scale field trial of its kind in Europe. It looked at ways that two kinds of “neonics," (clothianidin and thiamethoxam) may affect tame honeybees and two wild bee species in the UK, Hungary and Germany.   Its findings were published yesterday in the journal, Science. In the UK and Hungary, honeybee colonies located near crops of “oilseed rape” (also called “Canola”) treated with clothianidin and planted the previous year, had almost one quarter (24%) fewer workers in the spring. ( Thiamethoxam didn’t hurt them.) As Richard Pywell, an ecologist at the UK-based Centre for Ecology & Hydrology,  puts it, “We’re showing significant negative effects at critical life-cycle stages, which is a cause for concern

+SumOfUs Fighting for people over profits The battle is on: A historic ban on bee-killing pesticides is on the table. But we’ve just learned that politicians in the European Parliament will try to stop it -- before member states even get the chance to vote! PLEASE DONATE HERE.

+SumOfUs The European Commission is poised to propose a game-changing law to protect bees and other pollinators. The new ban on bee-killing pesticides would go far beyond current protections, banning three deadly neonics from fields all across Europe. PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION. PinP photo.

Wild bees are going extinct, and yet the pesticide industry is lobbying hard to stop Canada banning one of the most widely used bee-killing pesticides in the world. Will you chip in CA$1 to help save the bees? DONATE CA$1 NOW Dear Larry, Beekeepers have warned us for years about entire bee colonies dying off and disappearing. Now researchers are telling us more than 700 wild bee species in North America are headed toward extinction -- that's more than half of the bee species tested. Canada has announced plans to ban imidacloprid, one of the most widely used bee-killing pesticides in the world, but the pesticide industry is lobbying hard to stop the ban being introduced. With so many bee species headed to extinction we’re redoubling our efforts to convince Canada to ban this bee-killer without delay. If we raise enough money we’ll buy full page “Save the Bees” ads in the Ottawa Hill Times -- the paper that politicians read  -- to make sure they know

theguardian Bumble bees forage on chives in Manitoba, CA.  PinP  photo. Exclusive: Draft regulations seen by the Guardian reveal the European commission wants to prohibit the insecticides that cause ‘acute risks to bees.’ Details here.

The Western Producer A Manitoba honeybee hive.  PinP  photo. For years, environmentalists have said insecticides must be banned to protect bees. Now, some of those same environmental groups are saying that glyphosate must be banned to protect consumers from tainted honey. Story here. Please also read:  "Are Pesticide Regulators on the Take? Canadian Regulators Refuse to Protect Precious Pollinators From Known Toxins. Is Something Crooked Going on Here?" "Field of Nightmares. Ottawa continues to embrace the widespread use of Roundup on Canadian farms, by letting corporate seduction trump scientific evidence."

the guardian The threat posed to bees by neonicotinoid pesticides is greater than perceived in 2013 when the EU adopted a partial ban, new report concludes. Story here. PinP photo Please also read how the EPA is disgracefully bowing to pressure from industry in the fight to protect bees, here.

Friends of the Earth Health Canada’s PMRA has announced imidacloprid, one of the oldest and most widely used neonicotinoid pesticides,  is being taken off the market .  A Manitoba honeybee colony.  PinP  photo.   It’s been found in just about every water body and it’s considered harmful to aquatic species and to creatures such as birds dependent on the aquatic species. Unfortunately, the PMRA is proposing a long 3-year phase-out. With your help, we want to accelerate this phase-out. PinP: Oddly enough,  Health Canada did not even consider risks to pollinators in this re-evaluation. That will happen in a separate "risk assessment."    Health Canada Release The environmental assessment showed that, in aquatic environments in Canada, imidacloprid is being measured at levels that are harmful to aquatic insects. These insects are an important part of the ecosystem, including as a food source for fish, birds and other animals. Based on currently available info

  Dear Larry, Tell the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Protect the rusty-patched bumblebee! It’s been a long and disappointing week. Donald Trump was elected to be our next President. Our planet is in real trouble. But even as we face the prospect of a Trump White House, there are still many ways you can help protect the planet. Right now, one of our crucial wild bees -- the rusty-patched bumblebee -- is on the brink of extinction. And you can help save it!

Dear Larry, This is a story of an arrogant government agency more dedicated to helping pesticide manufacturers to profit than doing its job to protect human health and the environment. It’s a story that  will make you angry . It proves beyond a doubt that pesticide management in Canada must be fixed. Here’s our story. It starts three years ago. Back in 2013, Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) was faced with the evidence of catastrophic bee kills by neonicotinoids used to coat corn and soy seeds.  Honey beekeepers were finding millions of dead and dying bees during spring planting. No one knows how many millions of wild bees were also killed on contact since no one was counting wild bees. The European Union had just decided to ban the use of three neonicotinoids until more research has done on their impact on bees - thiamethoxam, clothianidin and imidacloprid. Faced with millions of dead bees and the important precautionary ste