To the East Hampton Town Board: Please Ban Imidacloprid and Save the Human Race

The Group for the East End and other environmental organizations are hoping to  pesticides, atrazine, metalaxyl, and imidacloprid, which have been found in Long Island drinking water. Long Island has been a farming community for hundreds of years, with Suffolk County leading the state in agriculture and horticultural sales. Farming is part of our history, and now the remnants are part of our water, and consequently, part of us! (That is if you consume local water or food.)

Imidacloprid, a neurotoxin, is widely used to kill aphids, whiteflies, leafhoppers, scales, mealy bugs, longhorn beetles, potato beetles, grubs, termites, locusts, and even fleas. The problem, besides the fact that this chemical is found in our DRINKING WATER, is that is has recently been linked to colony collapse disorder, which is the term given for the disappearance of our planets honeybees (Apis mellifera).

Imidacloprid affects bees because of its efficient movement from the soil into the leaves, pollen, and nectar of the plant. It is highly toxic to honeybees at very low levels, and is quite persistent, with a half-life as long as 6 months! A report issued yesterday in the Independent links this chemical pesticide to the collapse of honeybees, and calls for its ban. Matt Shardlow, the director of Buglife, an invertebrate conservation charity, said yesterday, "The science is now clear, bees poisoned by neonicotinoid pesticides are much more likely to die from disease, gather less food and produce fewer new bees. Buglife's 2009 review of the science of environmental impacts from neonicotinoid pesticides showed that there was serious cause for concern. We called for a ban then, and as subsequent research has only added to concerns, including the revelation that neonicotinoids make bees prone to a diseased death, we are repeating our call for these toxins to be banned."

Since 2006, we have witnessed the loss of about 50 percent of our honeybee population, and “wild bees” are now almost non-existent. So why do I care about honeybees and why should you? I happen to be a beekeeper, and have about 100,000 little lives to care for. You should care about honeybees because they are responsible for the pollination of 71 of 100 crop species that provide 90 percent of our global food production. Honeybees were responsible for a 14.6 billion dollar crop in the USA in 2006! Honeybees are the most economically important pollinator on the planet and yet they are disappearing at an alarming rate. Click here for a good article from the New York Times, and here  for another interesting honeybee article.

Honeybees are not alone in their vanishing act. A 2006 UNEP study states that a sixth major extinction event is underway. Birds, bats (click here for an article on the loss of over 6 million bats), bees, and even fishes are in decline worldwide.

Global biodiversity is plummeting. Are we to blame?

OK, back to banning imidacloprid. YES, we must insure and protect crop production because we all need to eat, but there are non-toxic, or less toxic alternatives to these dangerous chemicals that farmers and home gardeners can use. Biological pest control utilizing natural enemies and environmentally friendly solutions can control unwanted pests, and we can keep the honeybees.

An ecological catastrophe will occur if we lose the honeybee. Some attribute this quote to Einstein, “If the bee disappears from the surface of the earth, man would have no more than four years to live. No more bees, no more pollination … no more men!” It does not take a genius to figure out this one.

I almost forgot- The purpose of this blog is to ask the East Hampton Town Board to BAN imidacloprid. Please exhibit ENVIRONMENTAL HOME RULE, Supervisor Wilkinson and take a bold step to save humanity from collapse and starvation! What a legacy you could leave! Come on East Hampton Town Board, do the right thing! Be a trailblazing group of saviors to the human race. Issue a public notice, hold a public hearing, and ban imidacloprid in and everyone will BEE happy.

The future will thank you!