(Montreal) It is the turn of the Parti Québécois (PQ) to ask for help for beekeepers in Quebec who are struggling with an unprecedented mortality rate of their bees this year.
Posted at 1:32 p.m.
The PQ calls on the two orders of government to immediately grant the emergency aid of 12 million requested by the grouping of Apiculteurs et des apicultrices du Québec (AADQ), which claims to need this sum to fight against parasites and other enemies of bees.
Quebec must also ban the use of neonicotinoid pesticides and glyphosate, according to the PQ, not only because of their impact on the reduction of bee colonies, but also because of their harmful effects on other aspects of our environment.
The MNA for Gaspé and PQ spokesperson for agriculture and food, Méganne Perry Mélançon, explained in an interview with The Canadian Press that it is imperative to protect bee colonies, since the decline in the number of pollinators jeopardizes all agricultural production in the province.
Each year, beekeepers observe the death of 20 to 35% of their colonies on average after winter, but this rate can reach 60% this year – a level deemed alarming by the AADQ.
Among the causes that explain this jump are climate change, the excessive use of pesticides and the arrival of a parasite particularly harmful to colonies, the varroa destructor.
The PQ considers that governments must act where they can now, that is to say by releasing the funds requested by beekeepers and by banning harmful pesticides.
A PQ government would ban neonicotinoid pesticides and glyphosate in the first 100 days of its mandate.