Canadian Bee Keepers Sue Pesticide Manufacturers

Earlier this month, Canadian beekeepers filed a class-action lawsuit against two pesticide manufacturers in the Ontario Supreme Court. Dozens of beekeepers are joining forces and seeking $400 million in damages for the devastation on bee colonies caused by neonicotinoid pesticides.

What Are Neonicotinoid Pesticides?

The class of pesticides called “neonicotinoids” are applied to seeds prior to planting.  The chemicals coat the plant, making the entire thing poisonous.  This means that birds or insects that visit the plant for nectar or pollen are poisoned.  These deadly pesticides don’t just kill certain species of insects.  They kill them all.  One can only imagine what these pesticides are doing to the human body as well.

Why We Need Bees

There are 100 crops that 90% of the world depends on.  71 of these crops are pollinated by bees.  Without pollination, the plants cannot survive.

Bee colonies are disappearing all over the globe.  Researches believe that the primary factor behind colony collapse disorder (CCD), a phenomenon marked by honeybees abandoning their hives and dying during the winter, is because of the neonicotinoid pesticides. These pesticides have become very popular over the past 20 years.

Neonicotinoids Are Damaging our Ecosystem

According to a comprehensive international review published in June 2014, neonicotinoids are severely damaging ecological integrity worldwide, on a scale comparable to the damage done by DDT prior to the 1970’s.  Why are they being used at all?  According to researcher Dave Goulson, of the University of Sussex, England, there is no benefit to farmers.  There is not a single study that has shown they increase yield.

Create a Bee Sanctuary in Your Garden

It took many years, and many destroyed lives before DDT was banned.  Who knows how long it will be before the same happens with neonicotinoids?   In the meantime, you can help the bees survive by growing plants in your garden that attract them.

Bees love herbs like mint, basil, sage, thyme, oregano, lavender and chives.  They love all kinds of flowers including tulips, sunflowers, lilacs and wisteria. If you are lucky enough to be able to grow fruits and vegetables, add berries and melons. Include vegetables like cucumbers, tomatoes, winter squash, pumpkins and flowering broccoli.  Don’t kill the dandelions or clover.  Make sure you buy only non-GMO plants and never use chemical pesticides.  Let’s all do our part to help the bees survive.

To your Health!

Peter Gillham