European Parliament Urges Creation of Bee `Recovery Zones’

With honeybee populations continuing to decline across the continent, the European Parliament has approved a measure calling on member states to establish uncultivated bee “recovery zones” where the insects can feed on flowering plants rich in nectar and pollen. The main proponent of the measure, British parliament member Neil Parish, said he hopes that European nations will set aside at least 1 percent of the continent’s currently cultivated areas as unplanted meadows where bees can browse. Switzerland, which is not a part of the European Union, has passed a law requiring that 1 to 2 percent of cultivated lands be left unplanted as “environmental compensation zones.” In what has come to be known as “colony collapse disorder,” bee populations have plummeted recently in Europe and the U.S. One cause of the decline may be pesticide use, but scientists also suspect the conversion of meadows to monoculture crops, such as corn and soybeans, may be depriving honeybees of essential habitat.