Seeds covered with pesticides are killing bees

There’s something about bees. While they’re not cuddly and many of them can sting, we’re quick to act when we hear that they’re declining. 

Maybe it’s about proximity. Unlike howling wolves, breaching humpbacks or bugling elk, bees are right outside our windows – in our yards, gardens and balconies. Maybe it’s because they’re pollinators, and we understand that bees are essential for the web of life and much of our food production. 

Regardless, when the news is bad, people and many lawmakers respond. 

Bees have gone missing

The American bumblebee once had a huge range, buzzing from flower to flower in much of North America. Here in the U.S., bombus pensylvanicus (as scientists know it) ranged from Pennsylvania to Wyoming, from Texas to North Dakota. 

While still found in its southern range, the American bumblebee has gone missing across its northernmost and westernmost range. How bad is the situation? That’s the question in front of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is delayed in evaluating whether this bee warrants protections under the Endangered Species Act. 

Another native bee that once covered the Midwest and beyond, the rusty-patched bumblebee, is already on the endangered species list. It has disappeared across 87% of its range. The Western bumblebee and Southern Plains bumblebee are following similar sinking trajectories. 

In total, one in four bumblebee species is considered vulnerable to extinction. 

Use of a 1990’s pesticide has exploded 

There are about 4,000 native bee species in the U.S. With many on decline, scientists are probing to understand what’s happening. The answers? Disease, changing weather, habitat loss and pesticides, in particular one that was designed to kill insects. 

A class of insecticides called neonicotinoids was introduced in the 1990’s. Usage soared in the 2000’s due to the practice of coating the pesticide onto seeds. The EPA estimates that between 70-80% of corn, soybeans and cotton seeds are treated with the bee-killing pesticide. Wheat and other types of seeds are coated or “treated,” too.

When death isn’t immediate, non-lethal exposure is causing nature’s very best pollinators to decline. Baby bumblebee brains are damaged, bees can’t navigate properly, reproduction is impaired and much more. 

Neonics on seeds don’t stay put

Researchers found that about 5% of neonics stay on the plant. 

The pesticide rubs off during planting, creating a cloud of pesticide dust. Wind can blow the dust cloud onto nearby bee habitat. Additionally, the pesticide leaches off the seed and builds up in the soil and nearby waterways. 

Even when the neonics do stay on the plant, the chemical is taken up into every fiber — its stem, leaves, flowers, pollen and fruit — making the entire plant a threat to bees. 

Birds are harmed, too 

Neonics are insecticides, which is to say that insects are the intended targets. But it’s not just insects that are harmed. Research found that a single neonic-coated corn seed can kill a songbird. 

Additionally, a study of white-tail deer spleens in Minnesota showed a marked increase in neonic contamination, and a South Dakota research project connected neonics with fawn mortalities. More research is needed to determine the harms caused to deer and the predators that eat deer (including us). 

When is a pesticide not a pesticide? 

When it comes to addressing neonic-coated seeds, a huge challenge is that the EPA has tied its own hands behind its back. Long ago, the agency determined that pesticides coated onto seeds are not pesticides and not subject to the same level of regulation and scrutiny. States have followed this same legal framework. 

It’s a loophole large enough to drive several tractors through, allowing 150 million acres of neonic-coated seeds to go largely unchecked. 

Weighing the pros and cons 

One might assume that a calculation has happened, that somebody looked hard at the numbers to weigh the threats to bees and birds against the need to feed a hungry nation. 

That hasn’t happened and if were to, odds are that the threats to bees outweigh the anticipated benefits. Why? A compilation of research found a limited-at-best increase in crop yields — for example, only 12% of corn trials showed an increase in production with neonics. Results like these fail to offset the increased costs and harm of treated seeds.

More governors need to lead. 

It would be best if the seed companies decide to stop coating seeds in bee-killing neonics. We’ve asked one major company to do so, but thus far, we’re not seeing movement. Another best-case scenario is that farmers decide to stop buying these types of seeds, but the challenge for them is that untreated seeds can be hard to come by.

It leaves us looking to state lawmakers and in particular governors, who can address the issue through state agency actions or by using their soapboxes to cal for bills in their legislatures.

We’ve seen progress before. Twelve states representing more than 1 in 4 Americans have restricted the sale of neonics to regular consumers, i.e. people like us who do not have a pesticide applicator’s license. These laws are very important and we’re thrilled that the states have acted, but they don’t address the problem with seeds. But now that’s starting to change.

New York and Vermont recently passed laws that block the use of neonic-coated seeds — with some exceptions. The basic gist of those laws is this: if there’s a proven pest problem that calls for the use of neonic seeds, then ok, but no longer will neonic-coated seeds be used without evidence of a problem. 

More states need to follow suit. Join us in calling on governors to lead this effort and save the bees.