[UrbanCropCircle] Have you heard the buzz?

[Susan Helf]

Dear fellow gardeners,
Carol Isaac asked me to pass this on to you.

Susan

Dear friends across the U.S.,

   <https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_usa/?cl=895813356&v=8117>

*Bees are dying off and our entire food chain is in peril*. Scientists blame
toxic pesticides, and four European governments have already banned them,
but the deadly poison is still for sale in the USA. If we urgently get *the
government to join the ban* we could *save bees from extinction*. *Sign the
petition and forward this appeal*:

[image: Sign the
petition]<https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_usa/?cl=895813356&v=8117>
<https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_usa/?cl=895813356&v=8117><https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_usa/?cl=895813356&v=8117>
*Silently, billions of bees are dying off all over the country and our
entire food chain is in danger*.
Bees don't just make honey, they are a giant, humble workforce, pollinating
90% of the crops we grow.

Multiple *scientific studies blame one group of toxic pesticides for their
rapid demise,* and bee
populations have soared in the four European countries that have banned the
deadly products. But
powerful chemical companies are lobbying the Environment Protection Agency
hard to keep selling this poison.
It’s up to us to defend the bees and our food supply by calling for *a US
ban now*.

*We have no time to lose -- a recent study shows 96% of our four main bee
species have been wiped out*.
Let’s build a buzz across the nation calling on the EPA to outlaw these
killer chemicals and save our bees and our
food. *Sign the emergency petition now and send it on to everyone* and we’ll
deliver it to the top decision makers:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_usa/?vl<https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_usa/?cl=895813356&v=8117>

*Bees are vital to life on earth* -- every year pollinating plants and crops
with an* estimated $40bn value*,
over one third of the food supply in many countries. *Without immediate
action to save bees we could *
*end up with no fruit, no vegetables, no nuts, no oils and no cotton*.

Recent years have seen a steep and disturbing global decline in bee
populations and scientists have been
scrambling for answers. Some studies claim the decline may be due to a
combination of factors including
disease, habitat loss and toxic chemicals. But new leading independent
research has produced *strong *
*evidence blaming neonicotinoid pesticides*. France, Italy, Slovenia and
even Germany, where the main
manufacturer Bayer is based, have banned one of these bee killers. But,
Bayer continues to export its poison
across the world, and the US is one of its biggest markets.

This* lethal issue is now coming to a boil* as major new studies have
confirmed the shocking scale of this
problem. It is urgent that we get the government to act, but it won’t be
easy. A leaked document shows that
the EPA already knew about the pesticide’s dangers, and ignored them. The
document says Bayer’s "highly toxic"
product is a "major risk concern to non target insects [honey bees]".

We need to make *our voices heard to counter Bayer’s very strong influence
on US policy makers and *
*scientists*  -- they fund the studies and sit on policy bodies. The real
experts -- the beekeepers and farmers --
want these deadly pesticides
prohibited until and unless we have solid, independent studies that show
they are safe. Let's support them now.
*Sign the **petition below, then forward this email: *

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_usa/?vl<https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_usa/?cl=895813356&v=8117>

We can no longer leave our delicate food chain in the hands of research run
by the chemical companies and
the regulators that are in their pockets. Banning this pesticide will move
us closer to a world safe for ourselves
and the other species we care about and depend on.

With hope,

Alex, Alice, Iain, David and all at Avaaz

MORE INFORMATION

Researchers Find "Alarming" Decline in Bumblebees
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=12545468

Bee decline could be down to chemical cocktail interfering with brains
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jun/22/chemicals-bees-decline-major-study

Bee briefing
http://www.soilassociation.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=RXLEm9WXrHk%3D&tabid=439

$15 Billion Bee Murder Mystery Deepens
http://www.businessinsider.com/colony-collapse-disorder-still-unsolved-lead-researcher-had-connections-to-bayer-2010-10

“Nicotine Bees" Population Restored With Neonicotinoids Ban
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/05/nicotine-bees-population-restored-with-neonicotinoids-ban.php

EPA memo reveals concern that pesticide causes bee deaths
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/green/detail?entry_id=79910

Beekeepers want government to pull pesticide
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/money/beekeepers-want-government-to-pull-pesticide-1107701.html



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