Bees help pollinate more than one-third of the world’s food crops and are responsible for $30 billion a year in produce. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to survive. California especially relies on honey bees to help produce key crops and foods such as almonds. 

However, the honey bee population in North America and Europe has gone down by more than half since the 2000s, and the global honey bee population decreased by 40.7% from just 2018 to 2019 alone. Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), where entire hives of bees suddenly and mysteriously disappear, and varroa mites, a deadly parasite, are only some of the many factors that are driving this decline. The collapse of the bee population poses detrimental risks to food supply and the environment. However, in Campbell, harsh bee ordinances restrict urban beekeeping. We need urban beekeeping more than ever in order to revive the honey bee population. 

Now is the time to act. Redwood City, Foster City, Fremont, and San Jose, among others, have all recognized the importance of urban beekeeping and relaxed or removed bee ordinances. Campbell must follow suit by revising its restrictive beekeeping laws.

Campbell’s beekeeping ordinance states that “no apiary shall be located at a distance less than one thousand feet from the nearest residence, church, school, public building, corral or water area in the corral,” and that you can’t keep bees “closer than three hundred feet from any public road.” This means that only 2 properties in the entire city are legally allowed to keep bees. These restrictive regulations have already forced several budding beekeepers across the city to either move their hives elsewhere or simply abandon the craft altogether.

Our community and environment need your help now more than ever. Campbell’s restrictive ordinance is making it nearly impossible for residents to support declining bee populations, putting our food supply and ecosystem at risk. But together, we can change this. Please sign this petition so we can reach the Campbell City Council and remove the ordinances.