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Province looking at honeybee health plan

There are lots of beekeepers in our area, and bees help in the production of foods we eat.

There are lots of beekeepers in our area, and bees help in the production of foods we eat.

That's why Ontario is taking action to strengthen bird, bee, butterfly and other pollinator health to ensure healthy ecosystems, a productive agricultural sector, and a strong economy.

Crops such as apples, cherries, peaches, plums, cucumbers, asparagus, squash, pumpkins, and melons need help from pollinators to grow.

According to the Canadian Honey Council, the bee population in Canada has dropped by an estimated 35 per cent in the past three years.

The federal Pest Management Regulatory Agency has found a link between planting corn and soybean seeds treated with neonicotinoids — an agricultural insecticide — and bee deaths in Ontario. 

To save the bees, the province is working towards a goal of 80 per cent reduction in the number of acres planted with neonicotinoid-treated corn and soybean seed by 2017 to reduce the over-winter honeybee mortality rate to 15 per cent by 2020.

It wants to establish a comprehensive Pollinator Health Action Plan

If approved, new rules on the use of neonicotinoids will be in place by July 1, of next year, in time for the 2016 agricultural planting season.

“Improving pollinator health is not a luxury but a necessity," says Glen Murray, Minister of the Environment.

"Pollinators play a key role in our ecosystem and without them, much of the food we eat would not be here."

According to the Ontario Provincial Winter Loss Survey, in 2013-14, bee deaths in Ontario reached their highest recorded level at 58 per cent.

Scientific evidence shows that neonicotinoids harm bees by disrupting their ability to feed, navigate and reproduce, making them more succeptible to bacterium, virus, or other microorganisms that can cause disease.

Bees and other pollinators are responsible for pollinating roughly 13 per cent of agricultural crops in Ontario, and support $26 million annually in honey production.


Jeff Turl

About the Author: Jeff Turl

Jeff is a veteran of the news biz. He's spent a lengthy career in TV, radio, print and online, covering both news and sports. He enjoys free time riding motorcycles and spoiling grandchildren.
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