Bees, both commercially managed honey bees and wild bees, play an
important role in global food production. In the United States, the
value of honey bees only as commercial pollinators in U.S. food
production is estimated at about $15 billion to $20 billion
annually. The estimated value of other types of insect pollinators,
including wild bees, to U.S. food production is not available.
Given their importance to food production, many have expressed
concern about whether a "pollinator crisis" has been occurring in
recent decades. In the United States, commercial migratory
beekeepers along the East Coast of the United States began
reporting sharp declines in 2006 in their honey bee colonies. The
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reports that overwinter
colony losses from 2006 to 2011 averaged more than 32% annually.
This issue remained legislatively active in the 110th Congress and
resulted in increased funding for pollinator research, among other
types of farm program support, as part of the 2008 farm bill (P.L.
110-246). Congressional interest in the health of honey bees and
other pollinators has continued in the 112th Congress (e.g., H.R.
2381, H.R. 6083, and S. 3240) and may extend into the 113th
Congress. This report: Describes changes in managed and wild bee
populations, given readily available data and information. It
focuses on managed and wild bees only, and excludes other types of
pollinators, including other insects, birds, and bats. Data on
managed honey bees are limited, and do not provide a comprehensive
view of changes in bee populations. Data for wild bee populations
are even more limited; Provides a listing of the range of possible
factors thought to be negatively affecting managed and wild bee
populations. In addition to pesticides, other identified factors
include bee pests and diseases, diet and nutrition, genetics,
habitat loss and other environmental stressors, and beekeeping
management issues, as well as the possibility that bees are being
negatively affected by cumulative, multiple exposures and/or the
interactive effects of each of these factors; Briefly summarizes
readily available scientific research and analysis regarding the
potential role of pesticides among the factors affecting the health
and wellbeing of bees, as well as the statutory authority and
related regulatory activities of the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) related to pesticide use. A 2007 report by the
National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences,
Status of Pollinators in North America, provides a more detailed
scientific context for this report and may be consulted for more in
depth understanding about bee health. That study concluded that
many factors contribute to pollinator declines in North America,
and CRS accedes to that conclusion. Accordingly, the focus of this
report on bee exposure to pesticides is not intended to imply that
pesticides are any more important in influencing the health and
wellness of bees than any of the other identified factors
influencing bee health. Pesticides are only one of the many
influences on bee health. Because neonicotinoid pesticides have
been the focus of concerns in Europe and in the United States, this
report briefly describes recent scientific research related to
possible effects of exposure to these pesticides on bees. The
report concludes with a summary of recent regulatory activity
regarding neonicotinoids at EPA, the federal agency charged with
assessing risks and regulating U.S. sale and use of pesticides.
General
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