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Pesticides, which endanger bees, were discovered in the majority of English waterways tested last year, according to data analysis by two environmental charities. Neonicotinoid pesticides were found in 85% of rivers in England tested between 2023 and 2024 by the Environment Agency, according to the Rivers Trust and Wildlife and Countryside Link.
The government has guaranteed its commitment to “ban the use of neonicotinoid pesticides that threaten bees and other vital pollinators” following the data analysis. The previous government approved the banned pesticide’s emergency utilization to tackle sugar beet crop diseases, a decision being currently investigated by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The Office for Environmental Protection is undertaking the examination to determine whether the neonicotinoid use against virus yellows, a disease spread by aphids, failed in compliance with environmental laws.
Neonicotinoids are insecticides employed in agriculture, horticulture, and veterinary medicine for pest control; they harm not only bees but also other beneficial insects. Sugar beet farmers use them to protect their crops against the disease, but environmental charities are calling on the government to ban the use of the pesticide altogether. Moreover, a greater proportion of water pollution is caused by agricultural waste than sewage in the UK. Neonicotinoids can also damage marine life, including river insects, which occupy the base of the food chain.
Dr Richard Gill, an Imperial College principal researcher, has indicated that neonicotinoids may have “cumulative, sub-lethal” effects on bees, affecting the pollinators’ behavior and even their genes, even at lower levels. The increasing use of pesticides, changes in agricultural land use, urbanisation, climate change, and emerging pathogens constitutes factors contributing to the waning of bee populations. It is critical to monitor these waterways’ chemical concentrations, says Dr. Gill.
The Rivers Trust and Wildlife and Countryside Link’s data analysis was based on a limited sample size of data provided by the Environment Agency. The two charities urge the regulator to enact better river monitoring, as only a small number of the country’s river sites were tested for neonicotinoids in the past year
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