This week, the EPA gave the green light to a powerful new poison made by Dow Chemical. It sounds like a story we’ve heard before, but it’s not. In this case, Dow’s Sulfoxaflor, which is another neonicotinoid pesticide, is the new poison. We have already called attention to dangerous chemicals made by Dow[1], and the approval of Sulfoxaflor seems to be another example of the EPA supporting the corporate interests of industrial chemical producers over the interests of the general public, organic farmers, natural systems and sectors, and, of course, bees.
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Dow wins again, while the bees (and the rest of us) lose again. Well, not quite yet. All is not lost because a number of champions have come forward to take on the EPA and Dow on behalf of the bees. These are the Pollinator Stewardship Council, the American Honey Producers Association, the National Honey Bee Advisory Board, the American Beekeeping Federation, and three beekeepers (Bret Adee, Jeff Anderson, and Thomas R. Smith). This is good for them and for us. Together, and with the help of Earthjustice, these bee advocates “have filed an appeal against the Environmental Protection Agency in the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.” [2]
Earthjustice says, “The only way to fight the EPA’s decision is through the appeals process through the courts.”
[2] We find it hard to believe that the EPA approved the chemical in the first place, especially since it is so clear that neonicotinoids are to blame for the massive deaths of honeybees, which pollinate one-third of the world’s food crops. [3] Recent research from Harvard University makes a strong case. Chensheng Lu, who led the study, said, “We showed again in this study that neonicotinoids are very likely to be the cause of CCD in honey bee hives that were healthy before winter came.” [4]
Because of this, Ecology Florida thinks that the EPA should turn down Dow AgroScience’s request to expand the registration of sulfoxaflor, which will kill even more honeybee colonies. Bees are much more important than another poison from Dow Chemical.
Visit the Earthjustice website to learn more about the EPA’s approval of this new poison and the appeal by Earthjustice. You can also add your voice to the appeal.
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