Bee Colony Collapse Likely Related to Commonly Used Systemic Pesticides

I don't usually blog about pesticides unless they relate to wine grapes but this story got my attention and I wanted to share it.

Dan Rather's news reports recently (in 2011) returned to examine bee colony collapse and the use of systemic pesticides, following up on an investigation it had aired in 2006.

The pesticides are suspected as the primary culprit in bee colony collapse and have been banned in a number of countries in Europe.

 In the story, there is an interview with bee researchers at UPenn who have found that bees they are looking at have as many as 38 different pesticides in them - a chemical cocktail that scientists point out has never been studied.

See the video for more. (There are three segments - interspersed with another news story).

 Especially alarming is the fact that the EPA is not moving to take action against a substance which, experts in the video say, may be responsible for the collapse of the food chain.
 
Bee Aware from Greg Stanley on Vimeo.