Beekeepers Triumph Against Deadly Insecticide
March 12, 2024 | Source: Earth Justice
What happened: Thanks to Earthjustice’s legal work, an insecticide linked to a nation-wide honey bee die-off remains banned in California.
After a California state agency approved the insecticide sulfoxaflor for use, Earthjustice successfully challenged the decision on behalf of commercial beekeepers in 2021. But industry and the state agency appealed the ruling to a higher court. Earlier this month, the state Court of Appeals dismissed that challenge, letting our win stand.
Why it matters: Rampant agricultural use of insecticides like sulfoxaflor over the past 20 years has contributed to the “insect apocalypse,” with honey bee colonies collapsing en masse. Most commercial bee colonies in the U.S. spend part of the year in California, so a ban on the pesticide in the state protects bees across the country.
The decision is welcome news not just for bees and other pollinators such as monarch butterflies that are harmed by sulfoxaflor, but for agriculture, our food security, and the wider ecosystems upon which we all depend. Earthjustice fights to sustain the biodiversity necessary for our planet to flourish, and this win is a step in the right direction.