From: <[log in to unmask]>
Newsgroups: sci.agriculture.beekeeping
Sent: Sunday, January 14, 2001 11:03 PM
Subject: Re: Wave Goodbye to Tucson BeeLab


> > >The Tucson Bee Lab staff was informed this morning that the entire
> > >Tucson bee research program will be tranferred to Weslaco, Texas. Last
> > >working day in Tucson will be March 23, 2001. All permanent employees (
> > >4 scientists, 2 technicians ) are being given directed transfers to
> > >Weslaco, or separation by retirement or resignation. This brings the
> > >almost fifty-year history of the Tucson Lab to an end.
> >
> > This seems such a great shame. What is the rationale? Do you view this
as
> > a political decision or one having significant merit, even if sad?
>
> This is what I hear from my sources:
> The stated plan is to eventually close all USDA bee labs, and transfer all
> federal honey bee research to Weslaco, Texas (near Brownsville, at the
extreme
> southern end of Texas). The Weslaco lab has had two fully funded bee
scientist
> positions unfilled for the last 6 months to one year. They have remained
> vacant, even though vigorous efforts have been made to recruit scientists.
> Beekeepers should be mystified as to the reasons why ARS would close
another
> lab with 4 scientists and two career research technicians, and transfer
the
> positions to the Weslaco lab. Not one of the six federal employees in
Tucson
> intends to transfer, leaving these positions funded and empty at Weslaco.
None
> of the six were offered transfers within the commuting area, as is
customary,
> but only to Weslaco or (early) retirement. All technicians with temporary
> (two-year) appointments, cooperative work/study students, and college and
> junior college students (about 10-12 total) will lose their jobs. In
addition,
> the Tucson lab has over 300-400,000 dollars (more than any other bee lab)
in
> outside grants for work on almond pollination, varroa control, private
industry
> cooperation, chalkbrood, and other subjects. Grants also are in effect
with the
> Tohono O'odham (Pima) Tribal Council for student education and small
business
> development on the San Xavier Reservation. These grants will all stop as
the
> lab closes. The lab has been given ten weeks to close, a timetable which
is
> unrealistic. One might ask why this is happening.
>    - Sandra Edwards, Tucson, Arizona