South Carolina officials accidentally killed millions of honey bees while attempting to control the supposed local Zika-carrying mosquito population. After using planes to spray parts of land in South Carolina with insecticide, locals are finding millions of dead honey bees throughout the landscape, wiping out businesses and destroying entire colonies.
After four cases of travel-related Zika cases were said to be confirmed in Dorchester County, South Carolina, officials decided to conduct aerial sprays of the pesticide ‘naled’.
“Naled is one of a class of insecticides referred to as organophosphates. These chemicals act by interfering with the activities of cholinesterase, an enzyme that is essential for the proper working of the nervous systems of both humans and insects…
Naled is moderately to highly toxic by ingestion, inhalation and dermal adsorption. Vapors or fumes of naled are corrosive to the mucous membranes lining the mouth, throat and lungs, and inhalation may cause severe irritation (9)…
As with all organophosphates, naled is readily absorbed through the skin…High environmental temperatures or exposure of naled to visible or UV light may enhance its toxicity (9)…
The organophosphate insecticides are cholinesterase inhibitors. They are highly toxic by all routes of exposure. When inhaled, the first effects are usually respiratory and may include bloody or runny nose, coughing, chest discomfort, difficult or short breath, and wheezing due to constriction or excess fluid in the bronchial tubes. Skin contact with organophosphates may cause localized sweating and involuntary muscle contractions. Eye contact will cause pain, bleeding, tears, pupil constriction, and blurred vision. Following exposure by any route, other systemic effects may begin within a few minutes or be delayed for up to 12 hours. These may include pallor, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, headache, dizziness, eye pain, blurred vision, constriction or dilation of the eye pupils, tears, salivation, sweating, and confusion. Severe poisoning will affect the central nervous system, producing incoordination, slurred speech, loss of reflexes, weakness, fatigue, involuntary muscle contractions, twitching, tremors of the tongue or eyelids, and eventually paralysis of the body extremities and the respiratory muscles. In severe cases there may also be involuntary defecation or urination, psychosis, irregular heart beats, unconsciousness, convulsions and coma. Death may be caused by respiratory failure or cardiac arrest (9).
Some organophosphates may cause delayed symptoms beginning 1 to 4 weeks after an acute exposure which may or may not have produced more immediate symptoms. In such cases, numbness, tingling, weakness and cramping may appear in the lower limbs and progress to incoordination and paralysis. Improvement may occur over months or years, but some residual impairment may remain in some cases (9).
Naled may cause dermatitis (skin rashes) and skin sensitization (allergies) (2, 6). It is corrosive to the skin and eyes and may cause permanent damage (3). An aerial applicator developed contact dermatitis after using Dibrom. The exposed area became red and felt burned. Later, water filled blisters formed. They became itchy and dry, then flaked off (ACGIH TLVS 4th Ed. & Supplement. 1980).”
While it is common practice to use this chemical to control unwanted pests in the U.S., this is the first time it has been sprayed from planes. This left people and animals who were living in the area extremely unprepared for what the aftermath of such an event would entail.
Before this, the county would normally spray the pesticide from trucks between the hours of 9 pm and 5 am during the week while the bees were in their hives.
County Administrator, Jason Ward admitted that the event lead to the death of beehives belonging to various beekeepers. Officials have also stated that the sprayer failed to contact those farmers affected by the mistake.
Beekeeper Juanita Stanley, co-owner of Flowertown Bee Farm and Supply, stated that by not properly informing them about the planned flight, the beekeepers were unaware of the precautions they needed to take in order to protect their bees. Because of this, over 2.3 million bees from 46 hives have been killed.
Dr. Dennis vanEngelsdorp, a bee researcher at the University of Maryland, believes that the deaths of the bees in South Carolina were completely unnecessary and that there were obvious ways to easily avoid this incident.
Yet, if this doesn’t seem bad enough, the affects of the spraying will likely become worse as time passes. Since decline of honey bees has vastly been reported over various news sources, people forget that honey bees are only one of the thousands of species of insects that are vital to the survival of many plants. This insecticide has probably had an extremely devastating impact on many species of pollinating insects in the area. This will have a negative impact on local farmers who rely on these insects for pollination, and beekeepers who rely on healthy bee populations for honey production.
Ariana Marisol is a contributing staff writer for REALfarmacy.com. She is an avid nature enthusiast, gardener, photographer, writer, hiker, dreamer, and lover of all things sustainable, wild, and free. Ariana strives to bring people closer to their true source, Mother Nature. She graduated The Evergreen State College with an undergraduate degree focusing on Sustainable Design and Environmental Science. Follow her adventures on Instagram.