After attending the information session on August 28th on the declining bee population I sent the following letter to Hon. Kathleen Wynn. I would encourage all concerned readers, whether they’ve signed a petition or not to write letters expressing their concerns. Letters are much more powerful than petitions.
HON. Kathleen Wynne
Queens Park
Rm 281
111 Wellesley Street West
Toronto, ON M7A 1A1
September 3, 2013
Dear Hon. Wynne:
It is shameful the Sierra Club of Canada has been excluded from the Ontario Bee Health Working Group due to a lack of economic interest. I write as an individual. My economic interest comes from having to pay ever-increasing prices for food I feel is safe. It is unbelievable to me the safety of systemic pesticides need to be studied. The mere notion of sub-lethal doses of these toxins percolating up through our food chain in increasing concentrations makes me shudder.
That said on January 16, 2013 the European Food Safety Authority issued a press release, which stated they had identified high acute risks for bees in regards to three neonicotinoids (clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiametoxam). In light of this the European Commission has adopted a proposal to restrict the use of these substances and a number of European countries have already adopted these restrictions.
It is time to err on the side of caution. I request Ontario adopt a moratorium to ban the use of these substances until their sub-lethal effects both short-term and long-term are understood.
I have an economic interest and I believe the plight of bees should be flowers not pesticides.
Sincerely,
Teresa L. Gregg
C.
Ted Arnott MPP
Wellington Halton Hills
Hon. Rona Ambrose
Minister of Health Canada
Hon. Gerry Ritz
Minister of Agriculture and Agri-food
Michael Chong
MP Wellington Halton Hills
Teresa L. Gregg