In These New Times

“Schacker says there’s a proven fix for CCD. When the French government stubbornly ignored the initial findings against imidacloprid, irate beekeepers protested and the use of that insecticide was suspended. When farmers stopped using imidacloprid on their crops, the bees that pollinated those same crops returned in great numbers. Colony collapse disorder averted.”

Great efforts are being made to justify the latest “official cause ” of CCD i.e. pesticides, in ways which are , perhaps, not entirely truthful. Compare the above claim with these below:

“Selon les derniers chiffres de l’AFSSA (Agence Francaise de Securite Sanitaire des Aliments) a paraître dans le prochain magazine Valeurs Vertes, les colonies d’abeilles sont en partie decimees dans 14 departements francais. Deux ans apres l’imbroglio politico-mediatique sur les abeilles et l’interdiction de pesticides, les abeilles meurent toujours.”(16th July, 2006, futura-sciences)

[According to the latest figures of the AFSSA(French Health and Safety Agency) to be published in the next issue of Valeurs Vertes, bee colonies are in serious decline in 14 departnents. Two years after the media controversy over bees and the banning of pesticides, the bees are still dying.](futura-sciences)

“The banning in 2005 of two potent pesticides used on sunflower and corn crops, suspected of killing off the bees, appeared to have stemmed the massive die offs and reversed nearly a decade of declining honey harvests.

But end-of-winter mortality rates have shot up once again, with up to 60 percent of some hives missing in action.’(The Peninsula)

A Spring Without Bees: How Colony Collapse Disorder Has Endangered Our Food Supply

by Michael Schacker
The Lyons Press,
292 pages, $27.50
I live in a rural Saskatchewan town so anachronistically hooked on Roundup that almost every property bears the scorched earth of its handiwork. Our town administrator even pens a bossy column in our local newspaper every spring that urgently reminds us of our civic duty: kill all dandelions! Those who don’t maintain their lawns (and gardens) risk fines and scorn.

My eco-friendly partner and I hand-weed our dandelions and seed wildflowers (weeds) right on our front lawn. During our first summer here, we were cited for non-compliant long grass and weeds and the town administrator threatened to give us a fine. We cut the taller grass in the back, but refused to buy pesticides or pull the wildflowers. Guess whose garden is abundant with native bees, birds, bats, butterflies and wasps?

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