By Pier V. Guidi
December 20, 2010
An open letter to:
The Honorable NJ Senator Menendez,
The Honorable NJ Senator Lautenberg, and
The Honorable NJ District 7 Representative Lance
Re: Approval of pesticides that are literally killing our honey bees.
There is a great sense of urgency regarding EPA practices related to the approval of pesticides that are literally killing one of our most precious agricultural resources: the honey bee.
We’ve all heard the horrific stories of the loss of up to 90% of our feral honey bee population in the US, and the annual loss of 30-40% of bees managed by beekeepers like myself.
The latest onslaught is the approval of the pesticide CLOTHIANIDIN. While this killer has been banned in numerous European countries (e.g. Germany, Italy, France, Slovenia) it is part and parcel of the products sold to farmers in the USA by companies like Monsanto and Bayer. The German manufacturer of this chemical cannot sell this product in Germany; this alone signals the seriousness of the devastation this chemical brings.
In 2008, Congress showed concern over the onslaught on honey bees and the negative effects on our food chain and economy, by mandating a report to find the cause of "Colony Collapse Disorder", the wanton disappearance and death of bees. But as yet we have no solution, nor do I see any steps being taken to stop this terrible onslaught on agriculture and our environment with the continued approval of "nicotinoid-class" chemicals like clothianidin since the mid-1990s.
Research in Italy shows that clothianidin pesticide, used to coat corn and other seeds (a common practice in the US), kills bees within minutes of ingesting moisture that collects on the young corn plants. After the ban, Italy saw almost ZERO hive losses in 2009. On another front in Sichuan Province, China, all bees have been killed with the use of pesticides. The farming population has been ordered to hand pollinate their pear crop in order to avoid economic disaster. These are but two data points that strongly suggest that we, in the US, need to mend our ways with regards to chemicals in our environment.
I know you are extremely busy with the onslaught of work that congress must attend to… but I sincerely hope that you can devote some of your valuable time in helping us in the agriculture and environmental community deal with a disaster that is already here.
It is time that congress take action.
Thank you.
Pier V. Guidi, Hillsborough, NJ
