Bee awareness
It is important Australian cotton growers adhere to best practice around spraying, in order to mitigate the risk of impacts on third-parties such as bee populations and beekeepers.
Below is best practice information for growers, information on two-way communication tools for growers and beekeepers, and links to further reading.
Information for growers
- myBMP modules on Integrated Pest Management (IPM) - Insects, Weeds and Diseases and Pesticide Management
- Information on mitigating the risk of spray drift
- CottonInfo's Cotton Pest Management Guide
- CropLife Australia's spray drift best practice reference guide, MyAgCHEMUse
- Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority portal to view labels for all pesticides
- Australian Honey Bee Industry Council (AHBIC) site
BeeConnected
BeeConnected is a private messaging service to connect registered beekeepers with registered farmers and contractors, enabling two-way communication on the locations of hives and crop protection product activities.
The service can be used to identify nearby crop and hive locations and to facilitate communication between spray applicators and beekeepers on planned activities. This communication allows for spray applicators and beekeepers to undertake proactive steps to reduce risk for bees and hives.
BeeConnected can be used to help spray applicators meet pesticide label requirements to notify beekeepers of an intended spray, where there is potential for managed bees to be affected by the spray or spray drift.
Bee Connected is an initiative of CropLife Australia and AHBIC is an official partner.
Click here to visit the BeeConnected website.
(Image: Flickr - vpickering)
