LATEST STUDY ON NEONICOTONOID PESTICIDES

A study by a group of Italian researchers has been published in the U.S. National Academy of Sciences regarding neonicotonoid pesticides. The Sierra Club Canada has released an on-line Media Release describing this study. Their hope is that the latest science will convince Canada's Pest Management Regulatory agency (PMRA) to recommend a ban on these pesticides. There is a molecular mechanism triggered by these pesticides which affects the immune system of bees making them susceptible to viral pathogens. The bee populations have been plummeting for several years in conjunction with the introduction and expansion of neonicotonids on crops including corn. Once again we have a case in which the negative consequences of a new tool to fight crop pests were not fully understood prior to mass distribution of the pesticide. Human beings appear to be constant optimists when it comes to applying new discoveries, with financial benefits, prematurely.