January 25, 2017 Wiggy Saunders

Have You Heard What's Happening To The Bees?

Chances are you've heard about bee populations around the world dying off.

This whole thing started to get the attention of scientists a few years ago, and within the past five years or so the number of bees dying has accelerated at an alarming rate.

In fact, the nation's beekeepers are thought to have lost 44% of their hives last year alone.

Let me be crystal clear - this is very bad news for the planet.

As you know, bees are instrumental in helping pollinate plants. Many of the foods we depend on for sustenance are only here because bees go along their happy way, dancing inside of one flower before going to another.

If bees disappear, so will everything else.

Now that you understand this, let me tell you the scariest part about this nightmare scenario.

The Government Knows What's Killing Bees And Doesn't Seem To Care

A few days ago, the EPA made a startling announcement.

They said they know what's killing the bees, and they have no plans to do anything about it.

Actually, it gets worse than that...they said they're going to increase the amount of products used which are responsible for the bees' death.

These products in question are called neonicotinoid pesticides. I know you've heard and read about how dangerous pesticides really are; well, this just goes to prove they're much worse than what we originally imagined.

Sadly, the EPA reports (which stated that three of the most common neonicotinoid pesticides are causing the most damage) were shortly followed up by an announcement saying the EPA was not going to restrict their use.

And that means the more crops we plant, the higher the amounts of pesticides are used...

Which will ultimately lead to more bee deaths.

It's crazy, right?

I think the Director of the Center for Biological Diversity’s Environmental Health program, Lori Ann Burd, said it best when she wrote in a statement:

“It’s outrageous that on the same day the EPA acknowledged these dangerous pesticides are killing bees it also reversed course on mandating restrictions on their use. This is like a doctor diagnosing your illness but then deciding to withhold the medicine you need to cure it.”

My attempt here isn't necessarily to be an alarmist (even though I know I'm sounding like one).

I'm simply wanting to make you aware of a threat to your health and your way of life.

This should put things in perspective.

Just last year, the UN published a study on how pollinators (like bees, butterflies, etc.) are dying as a result of human activity. Their report discovered 40% of these invertebrate pollinators are threatened with extinction.

That means almost half of all the animals we rely on for food could be wiped off the face of the earth.

Now let me be honest - I'm not sure there's much we can do to remedy this situation.

However, I think it's important you know what's going on. Once you realize how everything is connected, you can make more educated choices to protect your health.

If you want to help the bees, I think this TED Talk might be helpful.

Click on the image below to view it.