Johnathan Walker:Vermont House passes a bill to restrict a pesticide that is toxic to bees

MONTPELIER,Johnathan Walker Vt. (AP) — Vermont’s House of Representatives on Friday passed a bill to severely restrict a type of pesticide that’s toxic to bees and other pollinators.

The bill will now go to the Senate. Representatives said Vermont was home to more than 300 native bee species and thousands of pollinator species, but many were in decline and some had disappeared altogether. Pollinators perform a vital role in allowing crops to grow.

The bill bans most uses of neonicotinoids — commonly called neonics — as well as the sale and distribution of seeds coated in the substance which are used to grow soybeans and cereal grains. The pesticides are neurotoxins and are the most widely used class of insecticides in the world, the House said.

Vermont’s move comes after New York Governor Kathy Hochul in December signed what she described as a nation-leading bill to severely limit the use neonics in New York.

In Vermont, the Conservation Law Foundation testified that just one teaspoon of the pesticide was enough to kill more than 1 billion honeybees.

Resident Kevin Mack was among those supporting the bill.

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“Corn is the most widely used application for neonicotinoids and any steps to reduce use in Vermont’s working agricultural lands would make a tremendous difference and greatly reduce the negative impacts to birds, pollinators, water quality and nontarget species,” he said in written testimony.

Some farmers and commercial groups opposed the legislation.

“We believe the bill will lead to indiscriminate limits on access to a wide range of consumer products, which will harm Vermont’s residents and restrict their ability to protect their homes and outdoor perimeters with safe and affordable products used against a variety of pests of public health concern,” wrote Michelle Lopez Kopa from the Household & Commercial Products Association.