Havering Friends of the Earth

Save the Bees

by Rosina Purnell; first published 1-Mar-2024

A bee on a Fleabane flower (once believed to repel fleas) - John Robinson

People in Havering are well informed these days about the importance of bees to our environment and wellbeing. They are crucial to our future and are the mainstay to the production of our most essential foods. So why do scientific experts now say we are facing what they call Insect Apocalypse?

Pesticides are a key reason for the decline of bees and other pollinators. They affect the health of humans, especially children. They poison our rivers and lakes and pollute our soil.

Glyphosate, and other chemicals used in weedkillers, could badly affect honey bees and the wider environment. They also kill wildflowers which bees need for food.

Some flea treatments for pets contain powerful insecticides, which persist on the hands of vets or pet owners, and flow down household drains when they wash their hands. Ultimately this can impact insect, fish and bird wildlife. We should question whether routine use of these treatments is really necessary.

Also very worrying is our country's backsliding from EU environmental standards since Brexit - we were promised something better than this. The UK has continued to allow 36 harmful pesticides that have been banned in the EU. One of the most infamous is the neonicotinoid, thiamethoxam. This substance is highly toxic to bees. It causes them to lose their sense of direction and weakens their immune systems. A single teaspoon is enough to kill 1.25 billion bees (that is not a misprint). It was banned in the EU because of the risk to bees, but has been authorised again in the UK this year for "emergency" use.

It seems that politicians everywhere are rolling back on green policies; the EU itself has recently announced that it is shelving its intention to halve pesticide use, due to pressure from farmers.

Our work within the green movement is cut out for us; we must continue to fight to save the bees.

Written in memory of Jill Luff, Havering Friends of the Earth secretary, who gave talks about bees all around our borough for many years. She sadly passed away in December. Her knowledge of the natural world, and her concern for its preservation to enhance human wellbeing, will be sorely missed.