EPA Buzz Kill - What Are They Hiding About Colony Collapse Disorder?

good article dingler,

Maybe the acaricides are the cure worse than the cause? They seem to have found a substantive buildup in the wax.

"We do not know that these chemicals have anything to do with Colony Collapse Disorder, but they are definitely stressors in the home and in the food sources," says Dr. Frazier. "Pesticides alone have not shown they are the cause of CCD. We believe that it is a combination of a variety of factors, possibly including mites, viruses and pesticides."

So they attempt to break down the chemicals through irradiation of the wax,

"They used radiation levels at the high end of that used to irradiate foods. Irradiation broke down about 50 percent of the acaricides in the wax."

But ot doesn't sound too promising...

"Beekeepers cannot manage the environmental pesticide contamination as easily as the wax contamination. The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency does regulate and monitor pesticides, but they do not have the ability to monitor the interaction of these chemicals. With the large number of pesticides found in bees and pollen, interactions are likely.

"We are finding fungicides that function by inhibiting the steroid metabolism in the fungal diseases they target, but these chemicals also affect similar enzymes in other organisms," says James Frazier. "These fungicides, in combination with pyrethroids and/or neonicotinoids can sometimes have a synergistic effect 100s of times more toxic than any of the pesticides individually."

If I recall, wasn't Rachel Carson dubbed "crazy" for making this very same statement?

Thanks for the kind words.

Something to keep in mind is how many of the GMO crops do honey bees actually get nectar or pollen from?

The answer is not typically corn maybe soybeans in certain climate, definetely canola and cotton. The Bayer seed coatings are mostly used on corn right now although that could change soon.

While I am concerned about GMO and Bayer chems the peer reviewed literature showing serious problems with these technologies concerning honeybees is just not there. With so many interests looking into this possible problem especially in the EU, one would think that by now we would have some good data.

My goal is to expose the massive contamination of hives by beekeepers, we clearly have the data and even the industry itself admits that 85% or more beekeepers use harsh chemicals and even antibiotics in their hives on a routine annual basis.

If we want to do something to save honeybees besides rant on blogs and say how we're all going to die yada yada etc., we could start with delisting Apistan and Checkmite as section 18 legal products. Many feedlot beekeepers buy the active ingredient fluvalinate and compaphous and make their own illegal treatments (the chemical is only legal when sold as an end use product) . Thus the additional step is to get EPA to allow zero tolerance of these chemicals in honey. That would shut down the massive and widespread use of these chemicals.

Fipronil or what ever name it is given kills bees. Colony collapse and fipronil have a direct link. Where ever there is fipronil in the environment there are no bee's.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=7200

What I meant was that the bees are more sensitive to environmental factors than we are and if something is killing them we should pay attention, it is much more than just losing a major pollinator and a lot of food crops. There silence is much more meaningful. the canary is lying dead in the bottom of the cage.

And frogs are going this way, too. Dan Hallo had a seed on it.

If you google five legged frogs you will be amazed and probably a little concerned.

Pamela,

Here you go.

Pamela -- I had a story on Atrazine implicated in frog deaths here. Hope you like it.

Interesting comment by Thom Theobald at the bottom of the article:

Bayer spokesman Greg Coffey is either sadly misinformed or intentionally misleading when he says that neonicotinoids couldn't possibly be the culprit since their use has been widespread for many years and CCD is "a recent occurence".
To the contrary, I began reporting high colony losses with symptoms now described as CCD in 1995, as did many other beekeepers. CCD simply exploded on the national scene in 2006, but has been present for many years. Imidicloprid use began in 1994. Look more closely. Don't be misled by these desperate attempts at evasion and spin doctoring by Bayer and it's pestitute opologists in the EPA, the USDA and academia.

It gets even more interesting when you check out who some of the largest corporate agribusiness land owners are. Big surprise, it's the chemical companies that make all that crap in the first place.

The military-industrial complex has expanded to contaminate acedemia.

Much funding (cash, the latest lab equipment etc) goes to scientists who then act as the R&D arm of industry. Though this isn't necessarily a bad thing, it incurs "conflict of interest" when objective analysis is to be done - who wants to bite the hand that feeds? Another issue I have with it is that industry is using publicly financed institutions (infrastructure) to realize massive cost savings in R&D. So, IMO, on our backs they get the research, they get the patents, and the get the test results they demand, none of which is good for the citizenry.

Most likely the next attempt at intelligent life will be aquatic. Oops, it's already there.

Without the opposable thumbs to go with the consciousness, developing a civilization will be a bit difficult.

But then (for anything with a human form, not to mention anything that does not possess the "sacred" human form), holding deeper understanding, awareness and compassion within the consciousness, sometimes referred to as "elitist" in some quarters, has proved near impossible for many of our species.

Without the opposable thumbs to go with the consciousness, developing a civilization will be a bit difficult.

Pincher's work. Or suckers, or tentacles. Thumbs are overrated. Bush has them and look how stupid he is.

Probably the story of most of our lives, so much potential at the beginning to wind up where we are. Like I tell everybody, My one contribution to the human race is that I didn't create another entry.

Thumbs are overrated. Bush has them and look how stupid he is.

Thanks for the laugh Dan - that's true.

And we all know where he's hiding those thumbs.
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atsidiwashichu

My one contribution to the human race is that I didn't create another entry.

That's the way I look at it too. This overpopulation problem we have, with its attendant social and habitat problems, is more the result of mindless cultural repetition than of any desire to create a better world. There are a lot of folks pushing out babies through sheer ignorance whether it be fomented by religious belief or simple unawareness of birth control. In a case like this "every child is a blessing" is more a curse: It's the worship of the human form to the detriment of anything that doesn't look like us.

IMO, one of the most important contributions a person can make to humanity is that of consciousness or awareness; sensitivity to the beauty of the planet and the importance of all life on it.

Several years back I was fortunate enough to hear a leacture by Craig San Roque. He's a Jungian analyst who worked with the aborigines in Australia. The tribal elders, he reported, couldn't understand how the western european mind could function. They saw us as only having half of a mind, the other half, that half tied to the earth in understanding of its significance, was conspicuously absent to them.

Very good. Perhaps that is one reason I consider myself Indian in spirit if not genetic makeup. We are all part of a whole and everything is part of everything else.

Perhaps that is one reason I consider myself Indian in spirit if not genetic makeup.

Then you may enjoy a DVD entitled The Dreamkeeper. It touches on your sentiment in a profound way. It joins together a lot of native American mythology into a fascinating storyline.

I found it inspirational and touching: The Dreamkeeper

I will make a point of finding a copy. There is a series out produced by Kevin Costner called 500 Nations. It is extremely enlightening and I am helping to get this whole thread off topic. Didn't mean to. Seems like it was originally about bees dying off. Might I suggest that if you live any where that it might be possible to do so, get a bee hive and hope for the best. You won't regret doing so. They are fascinating creatures.

Thanks Pamela,

Since I live in the city my neighbors probably wouldn't approve of me beekeeping so I do the next best thing. I naturescape as much as possbile around my crop areas ( I removed my lawn, established water catchments to ~ 600 gal, and my front yard is all berry bushes and tomato plants, backyard is the "big" garden). I plant to attract hummingbirds, Butterflies and bees. Last year my side yard was covered in Crimson Clover, the neighbors loved it and many commented on the abundance of bees that year.

I'd like to figure out how to create a small frog habitat and re-introduce crickets. I don't know if any of you live in the city but I really miss the sound of crickets at night.

Other than that no chemicals for me, it's either weed by hand or don't weed at all...usually the latter.

Chances are that your neighbors wouldn't even realize that it was you provided all the bees coming in and helping their little backyard garden along. They are actually very innocuous unless you happen to have Africanized bees, they are a bit more aggressive.

frogs should be easy if you have open water catchments---they eat bees and crickets though. If you went somewhere and caught a bunch of crickets, chances are you would be overrun with them in no time.

Apistan
Active Ingredient: Fluvalinate (8.8g/strip)

Adverse Effects: Increased adult bee mortality for fluvalinate has been assessed at 2.7 bees/day over 60 days52. Significantly less (86% vrs. 97%) drones emerged from colonies treated with Apistan than control colonies, but survival was greater for both compared to varroa infested colonies (59%). Both varroa and Apistan caused reductions in drone body weight and various glands125. In queen cages, exposure to 1% fluvalinate for 3 days caused significant mortality in worker attendants and increased supersedure in queens. Exposure for 7 days caused significant mortality in queens.

http://www.biosecurity.govt.nz/pests-diseases/animals/varroa/paper/varroa-treatment-options.htm#4

Right on, sista!

Where do I throw the javelin?

Hey, Pamela, did you read about the fireflies?

We are seeing the most massive extinction ever right before our eyes.

I am with you all the way up and down the foodchain, my friend.

That's sad, I love the fireflies. Looks like private property "rights" win out over the natural world every time.

Since I couldn't sleep lat night I law awake thinking of Taxes and how we hear a lot of complaints by the rich on their fair share..blah...blah..blah... yet we never even address the issue of what is really paying the ultimate tax: our planet. The planet and all its other life does not even have a say in our extractive and abusive methods. It's ridiculous to me. But it's easy to do when one disconnects themselves from the earth because some book told them that "god" gave the earth to them..

Thanks Pamela,

That does give me heart. I really think people are waking up to the fact that we do need to care for the earth and all living things; it's not just "hippy" stuff, it's a practical and mature approach to living in and with the universe...

BTW I send you a friendship request.

I'm getting a sore hand from clicking the Vote, for these post over the last few days..

See. This is why liberals want to conquer the world. Didn't you know?

Anymore it seems that the only choice we have (if we have one) is do we want to grease the slide our little hand basket to hell is on or do we opt for a little sand to slow it down? In either event it is most likely only a matter of time.

It seems the whole "good for business" argument is falling apart at the seams, hopefully before we destroy the planet.

I mean, look at how our business model is structured:

We have Marketing-Design-Production-Sales...

There's very little in the way of product effect (what little there is is now either entirely corrupted in its mission or encounters massive counter-attack from the manufacturers, some of which is the infantile "whiny nanny crat" statements that come from that quarter).

And the one thing that is lacking nearly completely is product reclamation and packaging disposal. All this stuff is the responsibility of the consumer.

I really think there can be a better business model but there needs to be more foresighted people. Unfortunately, many of those with foresight are pilloried by the right

Yes, I think Jefferson had it right all along. Get on the bread standard and not the gold standard.

Jefferson was right about a lot of things. Wonder what he would have to say about our current state of affairs and the Corporate States of America. He and all his contemporaries would probably be spinning in their graves looking for their guns.

Would if I could. I live out in the sticks 15 miles from the nearest town which has one little store. to shop the nearest town is Twin Falls Id. about 55 miles away. About the best I can do is read labels and buy accordingly-- if I am doing the shopping, which isn't often and I can't get her into anything of that nature because she thinks is doesn't matter.

We have been together for going on 18 years and she is only marginally into the food thing because of my ranting and raving about it all the time and is firmly convinced that there is no point in voting because of the electoral college and all the money involved in the elections. At times I think she might be right on that one.

"Dont buy a single vote more than necessary. I'll be damned if I am going to pay for a landslide" -Joseph P Kennedy. as quoted by JFK