Pollinator Health
Okay, so this is not a Paradise Honey hive thing, so I won’t say much, but as beekeepers, we can see what is happening to nature.
Scientific Reports
Over the long term, 19% of pollinator species became more widespread (8% exhibiting a strong increase), and 42% of pollinator species became less widespread (21% exhibiting a strong decline) from a 1980 baseline. Between 2017 and 2022, there has been little or no change (sampling of 394 species in one km grid square across the UK): JNCC.
Paper policy documents
There were EU and British government reports regarding pollinators in 2014. More recently, an Action Plan report 2023 was revised in November 2023 and a Parliamentary Select Committee 2023. I have only skimmed through the 2014 (36-page document), and it is well-meaning, but funding is needed to support change and there is no mention of pollinator competition. There is a possibility that the reports are blah, blah, blah.
Farmers have the Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMS), but uptake is slow (spring 2024) because incentives are inadequate.
Beekeepers as Heroes
There are two ways of living.
Put a “someone else’s problem field” around an issue, or take responsibility for it.
In “The Hitchhiker Guide to the Galaxy,” Douglas Adams created a character called Slartibartfast. His mission in life was to fly around the universe, insulting people. He could land his spaceship in a crowded stadium without anybody noticing because he put a “someone else’s problem field” around it. That’s just what we do in life to stay sane.
Can we make a difference? You can get fired up. Here are some links: