How to pinpoint regional hotspots for pesticide load on bees How to pinpoint regional hotspots for pesticide load on bees? GeoFARMatics2010 International Conference Cologne 24-26. Nov 2010 Jens Erik Ørum, Institute of Food and Resource Economics Søren Navntoft, Department of Agriculture and Ecology University of Copenhagen

Bees, insects and other arthropods Bees, and other insects and arthropods are important for environment, biodiversity, and human health and wealth Some are pests – others are beneficial for agriculture More bees and wild pollinators would be beneficial for agriculture We use, however, a lot of pesticides to control the pests, eventually killing bees and other beneficial insects and arthropods

Pesticide load on bees When – Where – What and How? It matters to the bees ,insects and arthropods, when, where and how often the fields are sprayed Also the type of pesticides and the spraying method matters Thus, some crops will cause a higher pesticide load to bees etc. than others Bees and many insects and arthropods are, however, very mobile and may be exposed to pesticides in more than just one crop

Efficient means to reduced the loading Thus, in our search for efficient precision farming techniques, IPM methods and regulation, ... to reduce the pesticide load on bees and other mobile insects and arthropods, ... We must not forget the where parameter. The “where parameter” has been investigated and mapped in a Danish survey based on CAP GIS data (2003) Danish EPA pesticide statistics (2007) Footprint (2009) acute 48h LD50 values for bees Regional hotspots has been pinpointed

Regional hotspots for pesticide load on bees Acc Regional hotspots for pesticide load on bees Acc. 48h acute LD50 values for bees (10 x 10 km2) Red cells have a 3-4 time higher loading than the average cells

Conclusion Bees and other mobile insects and arthropods are exposed to pesticides in more than just one crop In our search for efficient means to reduce pesticide load on these insects and anthropoids we have to take the regional aspect into account Geo information from CAP in combination with Footprint database, and national pesticide statistics may be an efficient tool to analyse the regional pesticide load and to pinpoint regional hotspots

Conclusion Than you for listening! Bees and other mobile insects and arthropods are exposed to pesticides in many crops In our search for efficient means to reduce pesticide load on these insects and anthropoids we have to take the regional perspective into account Geo information from CAP in combination with Footprint database, and national pesticide statistics may be an efficient tool to analyse the regional pesticide load and to pinpoint regional hotspots Than you for listening!