Can chemical-free beekeeping save the world?

In the January Prairie Fire, Dr. Marion Ellis’ article on Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) outlined current research on the serious issue of bee loss and the need for multiple approaches to the problem. What follows is an alternative examination and possible holistic approaches by practitioners.

By Twyla M. Hansen

Honeybees and other pollinators are in trouble. Most flowering plants rely on insects, birds, bats or other animals to carry pollen from male to female plant parts, leading to fertilization and food production. In the last 10 years there has been a die-off of insect pollinator species. In North America and parts of Europe, a high percentage of the managed honeybee colonies have been lost to colony collapse disorder (CCD), honeybee pathogens, and other cultural and environmental problems. Yet few people realize that one-third of the food we eat depends on these underappreciated friends doing their work.

Most honeybee decline research focuses on finding the cause of CCD or a treatment for mites, viruses and fungal diseases that plague domesticated honeybees. No single cause has been identified, and the subject is controversial.

Commercial hives are now routinely treated with antibiotics and other chemicals. Agricultural pesticides and pesticide residues continue to wreak havoc. In a recent reversal, the EPA banned carbofuran—known toxin to children, workers, wildlife and bees—in food and drinking water. Researchers have recently detected high levels of a number of pesticide residues—insecticides, fungicides, herbicides—in honeybee brood nest wax and pollen. In combination with other environmental factors, these may contribute to the decline in bee health. “Sublethal” levels of pesticide use could be a huge factor in pollinator decline.

Other possible factors include stress from long distance bee-hauling, timing of intensive commercial orchard pollination versus natural bee cycles, lack of variety in bee diets, air and water pollution, feeding supplemental corn syrup instead of honey, climate change and earlier plant bloom periods, imported queens, queen inbreeding, introduction of foreign bee species, invasion of Africanized bees, pesticide-resistant predator species, large cell size of commercial foundation, crop seed coat treatments, genetically engineered crops, lack of ecological diversity and natural habitat, and increased use of cell phones resulting in electromagnetic field pollution. Mul­tiple factors must be considered in research, making solutions more elusive.

Commodity and horticultural crop farms using pesticides to control weeds and insects also destroy the natural habitat of native pollinators like bees, wasps and ants that could possibly take the place of imported honeybees. The loss of native and non-native pollinators affects the production of most edible fruits, nuts and vegetables. Ecosystems depend on diversity, sadly lacking in today’s conventional agriculture. Current high commodity prices are causing more farmers to plow native prairie, drain wetlands, remove windbreaks, and push marginal and erosion-prone land into production. This further reduces natural areas for pollinator habitat and shrinks the natural ecosystem.

According to Bees for Devel­opment, an independent organization working on sustainability in developing countries, researchers at the beginning of the 20th century predicted that continued organic farming methods would lead the farmer to ruin. Now, there are researchers and others who predict the opposite view: In the long run, “conventional” agriculture will lead the farmer to ruin. In the meantime, chemical-free beekeepers have apparently experienced few problems with bee losses. Advocates of organic systems claim that honeybees do not need treatment or special diets to survive, simply a variety of flowering plants and a chance for bees to do their natural work. Interest is building in chemical-free beekeeping among commercial and noncommercial beekeepers.

Can chemical-free beekeeping save the world? Present un­scientific evidence suggests organic methods might help save a third of our food crops world-wide. The health of the ecosystem we depend on is at risk; agricultural production should encourage more biological pest control and rely less on pesticides. Most agricultural research is focused on plant bioengineering, crop yields and chemical solutions. Little research has been conducted on native pollinator populations, which are adapted to local conditions but also suffer from loss of habitat and introduced pathogens. More studies are needed to understand impacts of the conventional agricultural system we have imposed on the landscape and the long-term effect it has on pollinators and other wild species.

Property owners can help. Diverse plantings provide food and shelter for wild insect, bird and animal survival. We all know that as natural areas continue to be developed throughout the world for production and urban uses, wild populations disappear. Organic farmers and gardeners have long recognized the importance of diverse plantings for beneficial insects and natural predators. Landowners, including businesses, can encourage wild and domesticated bee habitat by planting a mix of native flowering plants, grasses, shrubs and trees on their property instead of a maintaining large areas of frequently mowed and chemically treated lawn. A new generation of radical green actions just might save the world for pollinators as well as the humans that depend on them.

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