ILLUSTRATION: TRASK BEDORTHA
BEE KILLS LEAD TO
NEW RESTRICTIONS
Studies have shown the links between
neonicotiniod pesticides and pollinator
deaths, but some jurisdictions have been
quicker to ban the bee-killing chemicals
than others. The city of Eugene banned
them on its properties in February, but the
June incident in Eugene where 17 sprayed
linden trees killed more than 5,000 bees
and other pollinator species calls attention
to the fact that the city ban does not apply
to private properties or all properties under
the city’s management. The incident at Ja-
cobs Lane Apartments involved two trees
in the city’s right-of-way and was on a
Housing and Community Services Agency
of Lane County property.
In addition to a statewide restriction af-
fecting 2014 products that called for a label
statement saying the neonics imidacloprid
and dinotefuran were not to be used on lin-
den trees or other tilia species, the Oregon
Department of Agriculture has now sim-
ply banned the use of those chemicals for
180 days, and the ban applies to all private
homeowners and professional applicators.
The Eugene incident and another recent
bee die-off in Beaverton involved neonics
with older labels.
“We’re hoping that our action on the
restrictions will provide a little more assur-
ance that we won’t have repeat incidents
of bee kills involving these products,”
says Bruce Pokarney of the ODA. Pokar-
ney says the investigation into the Eugene
bee kill, which has already resulted in the
suspension of the applicator’s license, will
be finished in the next few weeks and will
result in a fine for the company, Glass Tree
Care & Spray Service. The company has
apologized to the city and the county.
Jacobs Lane Apartments, where the
pesticide imidacloprid was sprayed, is
owned and managed by the Housing and
Community Services Agency (HACSA) of
Lane County, which provides housing for
low-income families, elderly citizens and
people with disabilities. Executive Direc-
tor Larry Abel says that HACSA has an
integrated pest management policy that in-
cludes “judicious use of pesticides.” HAC-
SA is not explicitly a part of the county and
has separate policies, according to Abel.
“We definitely do not spray toxic stuff,”
Abel says. “These guys screwed up, and
they used it when they weren’t supposed
to.”
Although two of the linden trees were
on city right-of-way, that is not the same
as city property according to Mark Sny-
der, Eugene’s urban forester. While city
property is owned by the city of Eugene,
city right-of-way is only maintained by
the city.
In a statement released by Oregon
State University on June 23, Ramesh Sa-
gili, an entomologist at OSU, said that 10-
15 percent loss of bee colonies is consid-
ered acceptable loss, since there is enough
replacement to revitalize the colony. Cur-
rently the rate of colony loss in Oregon
is 21.1 percent, according to OSU. Sagili
says that “we have reason to be alarmed,”
as these rates are far above what is consid-
ered survivable. — Anna V. Smith
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eugeneweekly.com • July 3, 2014
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