Sound Bites: Rural MD Needs Immigration Reform | Update: Gather Baltimore | Why Bees Are Dying

Why Bees Are DyingAugust 13, 2013 – Segment 4

It’s another episode of Sound Bites. We start by talking to Lucie L. Snodgrass, Maryland state executive director of the USDA’s Farm Service Agency about an op-ed she wrote for The Baltimore Sun titled, “Rural Maryland needs immigration reform.”

Later in the hour, current OSI-Baltimore Community Fellow Arthur Morgan gives us an update on his project Gather Baltimore, a volunteer-based program that collects and gleans fresh produce donated by farmer’s markets and farms for distribution to people with limited access to healthy food in Baltimore. He talks about a few upcoming events and initiatives.

Then, we discuss a new study done by the University of Maryland and the US Department of Agriculture that points to why large numbers of bees are dying. Scientists identified a mixture of pesticides and fungicides that contaminate pollen and subsequently kill bees. Joining us are:

  • Dr. Jeff Pettis, Research Leader in the Bee Research Laboratory for the Agricultural Research Service at the U.S. Department of Agriculture who co-authored the report;
  • Steve McDaniel, certified master beekeeper and past President of the Maryland State Beekeepers Association;
  • and Meme Thomas, director of Baltimore Honey, a nonprofit that works to maximize local honeybee pollination coverage for local food security.

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