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Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

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Subject:
From:
Peter Loring Borst <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Fri, 20 Jan 2017 14:24:53 -0500
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> WE don't get to ban these things,  to do so would cause a collapse of our food supply,  to do that just for our bees is not only unlikely its scary to ponder.

If a specific product causes specific harm and there are viable alternatives, then, yes the product can be prohibited. 

The so-called inerts are not inert at all. Surfactants are very strong chemicals. You may know them as "wetting agents" and they are used in detergents. We all know that detergents are very lethal to insects, they are often used alone to kill insects. BUt as Chris has been saying, surfactants are supposedly safe, hence they are referred to as inert. 

> OSS’s (organosilicone surfactant adjuvants) are widely used in pesticide tank mixes applied to agricultural crops including wine grapes, tree nuts and tree fruits, and there are currently no restrictions on their use around pollinating insects. 

> Although they are classified as inerts, OSS’s have exhibited toxic effects on honeybees. Worldwide OSS production in 2008 was estimated to be 1.3 billion pounds and yearly use has continued to increase, while in California almonds, hundreds of thousands of pounds of OSS formulations are used every year, often during bloom.

Clearly, they are used heavily in almonds, but they are used pretty much everywhere spraying is going on, such as orange groves in Florida, apples in New York state, etc., hence the East Coast connection. 

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