EPA - Ban Pollinator-Killing Neonics and Pesticides
EPA - Ban Pollinator-Killing Neonics and Pesticides
The Issue
Think long and hard about the meal you had last night. Chances are, most of the food on your plate was grown with the help of pollinators. Bees and other pollinators benefit upwards of 35% of the world's crops. Many of your favorite foods, including cocoa and coffee, are dependent on pollinators and also carry 5 times more value in the market than those that are not pollinator-dependent. Pollinators take care of natural ecosystems, increase farmers' crop yields, and supply much of the food we enjoy today.
However, our pollinators are coming under threat. And that threat is only growing. While different forms of pesticides have been around since 2000 BC, neonics are a relatively new threat that is gravely endangering pollinator populations around the world. Neonics are insecticides that bind to and attack the nervous systems of insects. Once sprayed onto a plant, neonics can make the plant and the soil around it toxic for years. Neonics are now the most popular insecticide in the US and have directly contributed to both water contamination and pollinator loss. Up to 100% of conventionally grown corn has been treated with neonics. Last winter, there was a 40% decline in honeybee populations alone. Neonics also have harmful affects on other species, such as birds, insects, and butterflies.
Neonics, although meant to deter pests, also end up in the food we eat. A study found that around 86% of food grown in the US contains neonics. The detrimental effects of neonics aren't only limited to pollinators. Over time, they can have bad effects on us, too, such as developmental defects or memory loss.
Neonics are also often overused in crops where they are not effective. According to an EPA study the use of neonics on soybeans "likely provides $0 of benefit to growers."
However, some have recognized the horrible impacts of widespread neonics use and have taken steps to limit it. Both the EU and Canada have recently passed legislation that will phase out the use of neonics. So why is the US so slow to act?
The only beneficiaries of the neonic industry are Big Ag corporations such as Bayer-Monsanto and Syngenta. These companies have spent vast amounts of money on lobbying and funding research in an attempt to undermine the direct link between pesticide use and pollinator loss. And these actions have worked on our government. The EPA has recently issued an ‘emergency’ approval to spray around 16 million acres of US crops with bee-killing pesticides, and have introduced new regulations that promote the Big Ag agenda.
The Environmental Protection Agency must actually do its job - to protect the environment - rather than just putting more money in the pockets of these corporations. To protect our current and future pollinator populations and our food, the EPA must take swift legislative action to ban the use of these harmful insecticides.
So, to the EPA, Mr. Wheeler; I am calling on you to protect our pollinator populations, our global food supply, and our health by banning the use of neonics in the United States, and to instead pursue alternative insect control solutions that are non-toxic and will protect our pollinators.
Read More (Sources):
http://www.fao.org/3/I9527EN/i9527en.PDF
https://www.nrdc.org/experts/daniel-raichel/ten-things-you-always-wanted-know-about-neonics
248
The Issue
Think long and hard about the meal you had last night. Chances are, most of the food on your plate was grown with the help of pollinators. Bees and other pollinators benefit upwards of 35% of the world's crops. Many of your favorite foods, including cocoa and coffee, are dependent on pollinators and also carry 5 times more value in the market than those that are not pollinator-dependent. Pollinators take care of natural ecosystems, increase farmers' crop yields, and supply much of the food we enjoy today.
However, our pollinators are coming under threat. And that threat is only growing. While different forms of pesticides have been around since 2000 BC, neonics are a relatively new threat that is gravely endangering pollinator populations around the world. Neonics are insecticides that bind to and attack the nervous systems of insects. Once sprayed onto a plant, neonics can make the plant and the soil around it toxic for years. Neonics are now the most popular insecticide in the US and have directly contributed to both water contamination and pollinator loss. Up to 100% of conventionally grown corn has been treated with neonics. Last winter, there was a 40% decline in honeybee populations alone. Neonics also have harmful affects on other species, such as birds, insects, and butterflies.
Neonics, although meant to deter pests, also end up in the food we eat. A study found that around 86% of food grown in the US contains neonics. The detrimental effects of neonics aren't only limited to pollinators. Over time, they can have bad effects on us, too, such as developmental defects or memory loss.
Neonics are also often overused in crops where they are not effective. According to an EPA study the use of neonics on soybeans "likely provides $0 of benefit to growers."
However, some have recognized the horrible impacts of widespread neonics use and have taken steps to limit it. Both the EU and Canada have recently passed legislation that will phase out the use of neonics. So why is the US so slow to act?
The only beneficiaries of the neonic industry are Big Ag corporations such as Bayer-Monsanto and Syngenta. These companies have spent vast amounts of money on lobbying and funding research in an attempt to undermine the direct link between pesticide use and pollinator loss. And these actions have worked on our government. The EPA has recently issued an ‘emergency’ approval to spray around 16 million acres of US crops with bee-killing pesticides, and have introduced new regulations that promote the Big Ag agenda.
The Environmental Protection Agency must actually do its job - to protect the environment - rather than just putting more money in the pockets of these corporations. To protect our current and future pollinator populations and our food, the EPA must take swift legislative action to ban the use of these harmful insecticides.
So, to the EPA, Mr. Wheeler; I am calling on you to protect our pollinator populations, our global food supply, and our health by banning the use of neonics in the United States, and to instead pursue alternative insect control solutions that are non-toxic and will protect our pollinators.
Read More (Sources):
http://www.fao.org/3/I9527EN/i9527en.PDF
https://www.nrdc.org/experts/daniel-raichel/ten-things-you-always-wanted-know-about-neonics
248
The Decision Makers
Petition Updates
Share this petition
Petition created on January 26, 2020