Neonicotinoid pesticides severely harm bees; the EU's latest draft proposes a total ban

The Guardian reports that the European Commission has proposed a draft regulation expected to completely ban the world's most widely used neonicotinoid insecticides (also known as neonicotinoid pesticides, such as imidacloprid, which is also used in Taiwan, China), on the grounds that they pose "an acute high risk to bees." If this document is approved by a majority of member states, the ban could take effect as early as this year (2017).

Scientific consensus: neonicotinoid pesticides severely harm bees

The importance of bees and other pollinating insects to food crops goes without saying, but for decades their populations have continued to decline due to habitat loss, disease and pesticide use. Neonicotinoid insecticides, which have been in use for more than twenty years, are considered to severely endanger the survival of bees.

In 2013 the EU temporarily banned three major neonicotinoid insecticides; the new ban is now a complete prohibition on field use, with only greenhouses exempted. The proposal will be put to a vote in May, and if passed, it could be implemented within a few months.

"There is already so much scientific evidence of the toxicity of these insecticides that there is no reason for them to remain on the market," said Martin Dermine of the Pesticide Action Network Europe, adding that they will keep fighting to win support from more member states.

There is already a strong scientific consensus that neonicotinoid pesticides severely harm bees, but only a small amount of evidence shows that overall bee populations are declining because of this, and large-scale field trials are expected soon. Nevertheless, based on the risk assessment of the European Food Safety Authority, the European Commission still decided to implement a complete ban.

Bayer-made "imidacloprid" will be banned

Imidacloprid and clothianidin, manufactured by Bayer, are considered by the European Commission to pose "an acute high risk to bees," while for thiamethoxam, manufactured by Syngenta, the European Commission also believes the evidence provided by the company is insufficient to rule out the risk.

However, Sarah Mukherjee, chief executive of the Crop Protection Association, which represents pesticide manufacturers, said, "We are disappointed by the European Commission's proposal, which appears to be a political judgment rather than one based on science." She criticized the data on which the European Food Safety Authority's assessment was based as an unformally approved "bee guidance document."

Matt Shardlow, chief executive of the nonprofit environmental organization Buglife, welcomed the ban. "The European Food Safety Authority has confirmed that seeds treated with neonicotinoid pesticides pose risks to more than 70 species," he said, adding that greenhouses should also be banned because the pesticides will remain in the soil.

In early March of this year, United Nations food and pollution experts released an important report on pesticides, arguing that the idea that pesticides are necessary to feed humanity is "a myth," and calling for a global convention to be launched to control pesticide use. Shardlow agreed, saying, "Given our failure to address, or even fully recognize, the ecological disaster caused by neonicotinoid pesticides, establishing a new global convention is urgently necessary."

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