The neonic debate: science or sensationalism?
August 6, 2014
From: Manitoba Co-operator
Laying the blame for a collection of environmental issues at the feet of a single technology is very convenient, but hugely overly simplistic
Bold, apocalyptic headlines make for great front-page news stories, there’s no question. Unfortunately, when it comes to highly complex and scientific issues, these kinds of headlines usually do a disservice to the topic at hand.
Scientific research is filled with intricacies and rarely yields answers that can be conveyed in a single headline. Far too often in this day and age we’re seeing sensationalism trump science. The issue of neonicotinoids (a type of insecticide) and bee health is a prime example of this.
Earlier this year, a study out of Harvard University claiming to show negative impacts of neonicotinoids on bees captured media attention across the globe. The media overwhelmingly concluded that neonicotinoids are at the heart of bee health challenges.
The Harvard study dramatically overexaggerated typical exposures of bees to neonics and made a link to colony collapse disorder that simply isn’t supported by the evidence.
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