The Bee Hub — Developing an Integrative Platform for Pollinator Health Data
Sep 4, 2020
BeeLife has initiated the development of The Bee Hub, an integrative platform to centralise and communicate pollinator-related data. The Bee Hub aims at gathering data, processing it and making it available to the public so that agents can further develop beneficial measures for pollinators and make timely decisions. Thanks to a network of field practitioners, researchers and data scientists, as well as the support of the EU Bee Partnership, the development of a Bee Hub Proof of Concept (PoC) has now finalised.
Neonicotinoid-Ban Derogations Loom over France
Sep 3, 2020
In early August, the French government announced its wishes to grant a three-year derogation to the neonicotinoids ban.The goal is to give emergency authorisations for the use of neonicotinoid-based substances due to sugar beet growers' challenging conditions this year. Nevertheless, this is a troubling proposal that not only dismisses the focus on existing, viable and potential alternatives but could also induce more derogations (i.e. maize). If the EU and its Members States wish to achieve the sustainability goals agreed in the EU Green Deal, they need to avoid these setbacks.
European Bees Under Peril
Jul 23, 2020
The Standing Committee on Plants, Animals Food and Feed (SCoPAFF), with the participation of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), discussed the Bee Guidance Document, and the Specific Protection Goals defining what level of effects of pesticides are considered acceptable. EFSA proposed four different approaches to Member States for the determination of Specific Protection Goals (SPGs) [1] (which establish the threshold of acceptance for the effects of pesticides on the environment and non-targeted species). However, all four scenarios seem to lead to less-than-ideal results for the future of bees.
