Among other recommendations, the report said the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) should reassess neonicotinoids, a type of insecticide used to control sap-sucking insects such as aphids. The European Union has placed controls on its use in member countries.
The report also recommended assessing surfactants – chemicals used to bind a pesticide to a plant – to determine whether they should be registered.
“This is great news for agriculture and those dependent on crops, as approximately 71 of the top 100 crop species, producing 90% of the world’s food, are bee-pollinated,” Green Party agriculture spokesman Steffan Browning said.
“We think that reassessing these chemicals, which could contribute to the declining number of bees, is a step the EPA needs to take urgently.
“We’d like them to take it a step further and look at the total composition of pesticides, not just their base ingredients, to determine their effect on bee health and the health of the people consuming the food produced,” Browning said.
