Tell the EPA to ban bee-killing neonic pesticides today!

The EPA is refusing to protect bees from bee-killing neonic pesticides. This month, it could greenlight further use of one of these toxic pesticides.

This decision would be detrimental to our food system. Honeybees alone are responsible for 1 in 3 bites of food we eat. But there’s still time to take action for pollinators and our food system.

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Dear Mr. Keigwin,

Bees and other pollinator populations are declining at alarming rates. I urge you to ban neonicotinoids to protect people, pollinators and many other species.

The science is clear that neonicotinoids are a massive threat to pollinators and other beneficial insects.  Following the science on their harm to bees, the European Union has banned the three most common neonicotinoids and Canada has passed critical restrictions. It is time for the U.S. to follow the science and take action.

Pollinators are essential to a diverse and abundant food supply. Bees and other pollinators are responsible for one in every three bites of food we eat. They contribute as much as $577 billion in global food production and nearly $24 billion in the U.S. alone. Without them we would run short of many of our healthiest foods such as apples, almonds and blueberries.

In recent years, beekeepers have lost an average of 40 percent of their hives with some beekeepers losing 100 percent of their operations. Native bees are dying at alarming rates, too. In March 2017, the rusty patched bumble bee was listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act after having declined 87 percent in recent years.

Neonicotinoids are widely used in agriculture as well as in gardens and landscapes. A large and growing number of studies have pinpointed neonicotinoids as a leading factor of bee declines. Acute exposure to these pesticides can directly kill bees and make them more vulnerable to pests, pathogens and other stressors while impairing their foraging and feeding abilities, reproduction and memory. The harm caused by neonicotinoids is even more egregious given that multiple studies, including analysis from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, have found that their primary use as seed coatings on commodity crops like corn and soy provide little to no economic or yield benefit to farmers.

Research from the European Union shows that banning neonicotinoids has not harmed farmers and that it helps bee populations to recover. In 2008, Italy instituted a ban on use of neonicotinoids as seed treatments for corn. In an evaluation five years later, researchers found a “clear and dramatic improvement” in the number of bees and colonies in the region.
A recent peer-reviewed study found that U.S. agriculture has become 48 times more toxic to insect life in the past two decades. Neonicotinoids account for 92 percent of this increase because they are considerably more toxic to insects and far more persistent in the environment than other commonly used insecticides.

Another recent ground-breaking study estimates that over 40 percent of insect species face extinction in coming decades and that insects are declining at a rate of extinction eight times faster than other organisms. This comprehensive global meta-analysis concluded that if no action is taken and current rates of insect decline continue, we could face “catastrophic ecosystem collapse” which will also have a devastating impact on our food system. The authors of this study found that this rapid decline of insects is part of one of the largest extinction events in Earth’s history and is driven by intensive agriculture coupled with the overuse of synthetic pesticides like neonicotinoids. On the heels of this meta-analysis, the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services published a report warning that the declining state of the world’s biodiversity threatens our food security, nutrition, health, livelihood and environment.

Research also shows that neonicotinoids can harm human health. Exposure to neonicotinoids has been linked to endocrine disruption and may affect the developing fetus and child, possibly leading to changes in behavior and attention, including an association with autism spectrum disorder.

This is concerning because research shows that Americans are exposed to neonicotinoids in their food and water. The U.S. Geological Survey found neonicotinoid pesticides in tap water and determined that the byproducts formed by the chlorination process may be more toxic than the original compounds. In addition, studies find residues of these pesticides on our food. Neonicotinoids are among the most commonly detected pesticide residues in baby food.

In the face of federal inaction, Maryland, Connecticut and Minnesota have all placed restrictions on neonicotinoid use. In addition, more than 100 municipalities and universities in the U.S. have restricted use of neonicotinoids. Further, more than 140 retailers including the two largest home improvement retailers in the world, Home Depot and Lowe’s, as well as Walmart, True Value, Kroger, Ace Hardware, Costco, Whole Foods and BJ’s Wholesale Club, have committed to eliminate use of neonicotinoids on garden plants and/or products.

It is vitally important that EPA takes action to protect people and pollinators from this toxic class if pesticides. I urge EPA to ban neonicotinoids immediately.

Sincerely,
{user_data~First name~A concerned constituent}, {user_data~Last name}
{user_data~City}, {user_data~State}, {user_data~Postcode}

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