Speaking in parliament on Tuesday, Francois Wakenhut, of the commission's environment directorate, said that "multiple causes" were responsible for rising bee mortality and the "collapse" of bee colonies. Calling for measures, he declared, "The clock is ticking and we need to act now." Wakenhut, head of unit for nature conservation and biodiversity, was speaking at a debate on "bee health in Europe", organized by the European bureau for conservation and development and parliament's intergroup on climate change and biodiversity. The official told the packed conference that it was important to stress the importance of insect pollination to the EU economy and general health. He said, "Bees face a disastrous decline in their numbers and there are multiple reasons for this." Several beekeepers attended the event and Peter Maske, president of the German beekeeping association, outlined some of the issues facing the industry. He said there was "clear evidence" that pesticides were a major contributor to bee losses, but another issue which needed addressing was the lack of professional beekeepers in Europe.
Source: Parliament.com, 26 February 2013
http://www.theparliament.com/latest-news/article/newsarticle/clock-tick…
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