Date: October 3, 2017

To: Dow AgroSciences

From: Marvin Yang
Subject: Prevent Unnecessary Killing of Bees

Formatted: Font: 18 pt
Introduction
We all know that bees make honey, whichThe fact that bees make honey may be the
only reason why many people think bees are important, but more importantly, bees also play
an essential role in pollinating a vast amount of our food. However, according to studies, there
has been a great decline in bee population, particularly in North America and Europe. One of
the main factors for this decline is industrial agriculture. It is my hope that you, the people of
Dow AgroSciences, would consider switching to ecological farming or alter your way of using
pesticides to prevent killing bees.

Formatted: Font: 18 pt
Summary:
Formatted: Font: 18 pt
Bees are most commonly known for their production of honey, which we often use for
consumption and medicinal purposes. Bees are also very important for their role in pollinating a
vast amount of our food. However, studies have shown that bees are declining in a high rate
due to industrial agriculture, which causes the destruction of natural habitats, lacks plant
biodiversity, and uses large amounts pesticides. To prevent bees from declining, I suggest
switching toA very effective way to prevent bees from declining is to switch to ecological
farming, which would promote biodiversity and avoid the use of pesticide. However, if
switching to ecological farming is not an option, I would also suggest altering the use of
pesticides to minimize exposure to bees. Some suggestions to minimize exposure are to apply
pesticides in the evening, choose a formulation that does not leave a powdery residue, use less
toxic and rapidly degradable pesticides, and avoid aerial application.

Formatted: Font: 18 pt
Discussion:
Formatted: Font: 18 pt
The Importance of Bees Formatted: Font: 14 pt

A simple yet important part aboutattribute of bees is that they are able tocan make
honey. Honey has a natural sweet taste and is commonly used as a sweetener in some foods
you eat like cookies and cakes. There are also some foods that use honey as their main
ingredient; mead, also known as honey wine, is made of fermented honey and water.
 Other than for its sweet taste, honey is also known for its medicinal properties. It can be
used to treat burns and wounds. During the Balkan War of 1913, the Bulgarian army ran short
of medical supplies; as an alternative, they used honey to dress their wounds. Honey is still
used very widely in internal medicines, especially in cough remedies and for mouth ulcers.
Honey has also been shown to be effective against infections like Helicobacter pylori, MRSA,
and staph.
Honey is a great product that we humans have enjoyed much from bees, but more
importantly, bees are one of the most common pollinators. Much of what we eat depends on
pollinating insects, which contributes to about a third of our food. In addition, about 60% to
90% of wild plants need animal-mediated pollination to reproduce. It has also been estimated
that 87.5% of flowering plants are pollinated from animals. , and about 75% of the worlds
leading food crops have increased fruits and seeds because of animal pollination (Decline in
Bees 13-14).

What is Killing Bees? Formatted: Font: 14 pt

Studies have shown that bees areBees have been declining in a high rate. Since 2006,
about 30-40% of commercial honeybee colonies have been lost in the US due to colony
collapse disorder (Bees in Decline 17). Colony collapse disorder is a syndrome characterized
by disappearing worker bees. Without worker bees, a hive cannot sustain itself and would
eventually die. So, what is causing this?

Overwinter colony losses (Oct 1 - April 1) of managed honey bee colonies in the United States. Credit: U.S. Department of Agriculture
 Industrial agriculture is one of the main factors of bee decline. It causes the loss of
valuable natural habitats such as agroforestry systems, grasslands, old fields, shrublands,
forests, and hedgerows. It promotes more monoculture crops, lacking in plant biodiversity,
which limits the amount of food that pollinators have access to. It uses methods such as tillage,
irrigation, and the removal of woody vegetation that destroy nesting sites of pollinators. Finally,
its common use of pesticides can lead to mortality and/or altered foraging abilities for both wild
and managed bees.
Insecticide, a class of pesticide, is a chemical specifically designed to kill insect pests of
crops and livestock. Although bees are not pests, they are still insects, meaning they are still
affected by insecticides. Exposure to insecticides tends to be ubiquitous for several reasons.
One reason is that agriculture now uses a very large amount of pesticide globally. Another
reason is that insecticides can persist in farm soils, be mobilized in dust and air, reach
watercourses around farms, be present in pollen and nectar of crop plants and neighboring
weeds, and they may ultimately be found in the wax of hives. Lastly, Some insecticides can
enter the plant system and become distributed through the plant stems and leaves.

How to Prevent Unnecessary Killing of Bees

Ecological Farming
The best way to prevent unnecessary killing of bees is to switch to ecological farming.
Ecological farming is farming in harmony with nature. Some of the main benefits of ecological
farming include biodiversity and ecological pest protection. As mentioned before, monoculture
and pesticides are some of the reasons for the decline of bees.
With biodiversity in farms, bees would have access to greater varieties of food. In
addition, mixing different crops and single crop varieties in one field is a proven and highly
reliable farming method to increase resilience to erratic weather changes within a farm.
Biodiversity also means no more use of herbicides which would also contribute to the
prevention of killing bees. Also, a recent long-term review of the effects of organic farming on
biodiversity shows a consistent finding of over 30 years that organic farms support 34% more
plant, insect, and animal species than conventional farms. For pollinators, the number of
different species was 50% higher on organic farms (Ecological Farming 32).
Ecological pest protection is based on improving the immunity of the agroecosystem
and promoting healthy soils and healthy plants. Ecological Farming protects crops without
chemical pesticides by using a variety of different methods. In Ecological farming, pest
protection is based on a multi-level approach in five steps. The first three steps are based on
increasing and maintaining biodiversity in a farm, which improves pest control through natural
pest protection and can result in a much stronger pest control than using pesticides. The last
two steps are used as a last resort, which include the use of biocontrol agents and biopesticides
if pests continue to be a problem.

Use Pesticides Safely

If there is a reason for not switching to ecological farming, there is also an alternative
that would minimize the killing of bees. Pesticides are killers of bees, but sometimes there are
no other options. However, altering the way how pesticides are used can limit how much bees
get exposed to it.
Applying pesticides in the evening can reduce bees getting exposed to it. Bees normally
forage during the daytime when the temperature is above 55-60 degrees Fahrenheit. When the
sun begins to set, bees would return to their hives. Since there will not be any bees on the field,
applying pesticides at that time would reduce the number of bees exposed to it.
Choosing the appropriate formulation can also avoid killing bees. Pesticides come in six
different formulations, some of which include dusts (D), wettable powders (WP), soluble
powders (SP), emulsifiable concentrates (EC), solutions (LS), and granulars (G). Solutions,
emulsifiable concentrates, and granulars are the best formulations to use because they dry
quickly and do not leave a powdery residue. Dusts and wettable powders are much more likely
to stick onto the hairs of the bees and be transported back to the hive.
Using less toxic and rapidly degradable pesticides would also reduce the number of bees
exposed. If possible, avoid using pesticides with long residual time. It is preferred to use
pesticides that have a fast residual time that would take only a few hours to degrade as
opposed to a few days or weeks.
Lastly, it is also important to avoid aerial application. Aerial application has the greatest
risk of killing bees because it has potential to drift to other places besides the target area. It is
especially very risky when it is used during a windy day. It is recommended to use granular
formulations, soil treatments, or equipment that would confine the pesticide to the intended
target.

Conclusion:
You now understand how important beesBees are with important because of the honey
they provide and the pollination they are responsible for. You also understand how However,
industrial agriculture is affecting the decline of bees with its habit of destroying natural
habitats, lacking biodiversity, and using pesticides. Now I encourage that you would help save
bees from going extinct by switching to ecological farming.Therefore, it is important to switch
to ecological farming to help save bees from going extinct. I do understand that it will be a big
step, so I hope that you would at least consider alteringAn alternative is to alter how you use
pesticides to minimize the killing of bees.

References
Pollination: Protecting Pollinators from Pesticides. University of Georgia, The University of Georgia
College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, 26 June 2017,
caes2.caes.uga.edu/bees/pollination/protecting-pollinators-pesticides.html.

Preston, Claire. Bee. Reaktion, 2006.

Six Reasons Why Agricultural Biodiversity Matters. Bioversity, Bioversity International, 25 Sept.
2017, www.bioversityinternational.org/why-agricultural-biodiversity-matters-foundation-of-
agriculture/.
Tirado, Reyes. Ecological Farming: The Seven Principles of a Food System That Has People at Its
Heart. Edited by Martin Baker and Daniel Kramb, Greenpeace International, 2015, Ecological
Farming: The Seven Principles of a Food System That Has People at Its Heart,
www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/publications/agriculture/2015/Food%2
0and%20Farming%20Vision.pdf.
Tirado, Reyes, et al. Bees in Decline. Greenpeace International, 2013, Bees in Decline, sos-
bees.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/BeesInDecline.pdf.