Endangered: EPA finally comes to defense of honey bees

[hue]

http://washingtonexaminer.com/article/2534480

Under pressure from Congress and the honey industry, the EPA is ordering an immediate reduction in the use of widely used pesticides, an admission that bug killers approved by the agency are partly responsible for the disappearance of honey bees.

The Environmental Protection Agency is changing the labeling on pesticides to reduce their use in fields when bees are present, the first significant concession provided to the honey industry which has reported bee kills of over 50 percent among some commercial beekeepers.

"Multiple factors play a role in bee colony declines, including pesticides. The Environmental Protection Agency is taking action to protect bees from pesticide exposure and these label changes will further our efforts," said Jim Jones, assistant administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention.

It comes too late for many honey bees that pollinated blueberries, nuts and fruit trees earlier this year, and even those that fly into a Home Depot or Walmart garden center to suck the nectar from flowers for sale. According to a new report from Friends of the Earth and BeeAction.org, bee-attractive plants sold at top retailers contain the pesticides EPA now plans to limit.

[The Stranger]

1. This isn't going to do shit.

I thought there was a Democrat in the White House.

What the fuck is going on here?