Bees Still in Decline Due to Insecticide Use - as the UK Works Hard to Undermine EU Restrictions
Bees are crucial to the pollination of crops and to agricultural efficiency. However they are under threat from a number of chemicals - some in a quite unexpected manner. For example selective herbicides and fertilizer might not be expected to hurt bees at all. However spray drift from herbicides and fertilizer run off from the crop areas have led to field margins becoming dominated by a sparse vegetation composed of coarse grasses, nettles, docks and hogweed. Few flowering plants thrive here and bees have insufficient blossom to feed from.