Zika fogging insecticides responsible for bee deaths

Fogging taking place in New Providence this week. Photo: Shawn Hanna/The Tribune

As of Friday, September 2, 2016

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribunbe Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

AN ENVIRONMENTAL Health Services executive has acknowledged that insecticides being used in fogging efforts to prevent the spread of the Zika virus are responsible for the increase in deaths of indigenous bees.

Responding on Friday to questions over health and environmental hazards related to fogging activities in New Providence, Assistant Director of the Department of Environmental Health Services (DEHS) Andrew Thompson confirmed that bee populations on the island are at risk once exposed to the chemical agents in the insecticides being used.

In recent days, there have been several instances reported of bee populations are being harmed and, to a greater extent, wiped out overnight. However, none of these reports noted fogging activities in or around the communities where the dead bees were discovered.

Eastern New Providence residents reported incidents of dozens of dead bees around their properties. One said 54 dead bees had to be fished out of her pool on Friday in a post on Facebook.

Addressing these claims, Mr Thompson insisted that the occurrence was not new, asserting that all fogging advice issued by the department calls for local bee breeders and keepers to secure their respective bees to avoid such problems.

Despite this claim, however, The Tribune could not find any recent public document presenting such an advisory.

Mr Thompson also dismissed fears that this could completely wipeout the indigenous bee populations, indicating that nature has a way of guarding against such an occurrence. “We have been doing fogging to this extent for years,” he said. “Nature has a way of correcting this course of action, I know that one line of thinking will lead to some mass panic, but the bee populations always bounce back.” He said that bees 20 or 30 feet above the ground would avoid the effects of fogging.

DEHS officials executed fogging activities in several areas of New Providence over the last week. On Wednesday evening, officials focused their attention on the Nassau Street to Mackey Street and Wulff Road to Bay Street corridors, followed by sections of eastern New Providence on Thursday.

Eight confirmed cases of Zika virus have been confirmed in New Providence by health officials. Since Tuesday’s confirmation of the four most recent cases, public health executives have promised a detailed statement. However, to date, nothing has been publicly presented.

John 7 years, 7 months ago

Thought The Tribune would have corrected the headline by now. But there is a serious with over spraying of pesticides and insecticide. The US had a serious bee shortage and had to import bees.

Well_mudda_take_sic 7 years, 7 months ago

Rumors abound that the very special "inexpensive" insecticide fog being sprayed will cause more harm to two legged animals than it will to mosquitos and bees.

SP 7 years, 7 months ago

Concoct a batch for corrupt politicians and their friends, family & lover crew of pirates to

Straight_Talk_Bahamas 7 years, 7 months ago

this is indicative of the environmental and general slackness of this country... the official notes that this has been going on for years and nature has a way of bouncing back, but have any studies been conducted any scientific data to back up that claim? or is it just a feeling?

SP 7 years, 7 months ago

......................................... Zika Spraying Killing Bees In U.S. ........................................

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-wa...">http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-wa...

BaronInvest 7 years, 7 months ago

Nice, and we are breathing that stuff as well, kids play with it... wonderful...

avidreader 7 years, 7 months ago

Who remembers the low-flying DC 3 aircraft spraying brown clouds of the insecticide Malathion in 1977 during the outbreak of dengue fever? After a while the ground was littered with dead bees, wasps, butterflies and birds if my memory serves me correctly. Unfortunately it seems to be very difficult or impossible to find and/or use an insecticide specific to mosquitoes. I stand to be corrected on this but remember that the mosquito has been the vector for many serious diseases such as yellow fever, malaria, west nile virus, dengue, etc. Recall also the tremendous and history-changing damage done throughout history by the lowly flea riding on rats and spreading bubonic plague. Like the man said: "The only thing new under the sun is the history you don't know."

jt 7 years, 7 months ago

Sigh. Yes, we have indigenous bees, but I suspect these are honeybees, brought here from Europe, important still to beekeepers and for pollinating fruit trees. They also do not fly higher than objects in their path to save energy expenditure, so the 20-30' statement is ignorant at best.

quietone 7 years, 7 months ago

Seems that we Bahamians have a penchant not to do anything until its too late. Anytime I hear that spray truck, I immediately shut every window and door in my house. I believe many of you have read or heard about the de-population program that some big companies and governments have in place. You can simply Google it or use whichever search engine you prefer and you will see what I am trying to say..

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