Sloppy info lets many bad agrichemicals in

Beekeepers say there is not enough public scrutiny of new agricultural products. PHOTO/FILE

I find it scary that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) publicly advertises only some of the applications for new agricultural products that it receives, despite the fact many of the others may affect bees.

This contrasts with the worldwide concern about colony collapse disorder, the banning of neonicotinoids in Europe and local encouragement to plant trees and gardens that attract and nurture bees.

The October issue of The NZ Bee Keeper magazine included an article on their Technical and Submissions Committee's activities.

It was here that I read that many substances are approved by the EPA without any opportunity for public comment or scrutiny.

Products can be self approved, or approved by a "rapid assessment" process, both of which provide no public transparency or critical analysis from affected parties with respect to their suitability for approval.

The article then goes on to report upon some applications that were publicly notified, and the submissions made by the NBA's Technical Committee. In the NBA committee's view, one company's application was "incomplete, inaccurate and/or out of date".

Their comments on another application were "very little information presented, such as the name of the pheromone, as required by the HSNO Act 1996".

In the application for Kasumin, a systemic bactericide proposed for use on kiwifruit to control Psa, the Committee said "the applicant did not identify any benefits for the grower!"

The Committee felt there was very little information provided, and they had concerns about the effect on bee health when sub lethal doses of the antibiotic were brought back to the hive with pollen.

It was good to read that the NBA's Technical Committee is valued by the Ministry for Primary Industries, who have requested the Committee to make submissions on the re-registration of two antibiotics proposed for use on kiwifruit. But you have to wonder about some in the agri-chemical industry. Bayer CropScience ran a promotion in the 3rd September edition of the Rural News, encouraging farmers to buy 5kg of Gaucho treated brassica seed and win a trip to the Melbourne Grand Prix. Yet this product contains imidacloprid, one of the neonicotinoid products already subject to a European ban.

Bees are critical to our survival, as Einstein (reportedly) said, "if the bee disappears from the surface of the Earth, then man will only have four years of life left".

I'm very grateful that the NBA has a technical committee working hard to provide sensible comment and scrutiny of proposed agricultural products. It is a shame the EPA does not provide them with more opportunities to provide that critical analysis and public scrutiny on our behalf.

My thanks to NBA committee member Don MacLeod for a very informative article, which I could share with you.

Graham Pearson is a beekeeper and member of the Sustainable Whanganui Trust, which recently won the Trustpower Energy District Whanganui District Community Supreme Award.