Bees in Vigo County, Ind.

We've learned through the grapevine that plans are in place to propose an animal control ordinance for Vigo County, Ind. that would restrict beekeeping to parcels of land that are more than two acres and would limit one hive for every 10 acres of land owned unless the land is zoned agricultural.

This means that countless backyard and hobby beekeepers would no longer be able to keep their hives legally. White Violet Center for Eco-Justice is urging county officials not to include these restrictions in the ordinance for they would be a detriment to our local bee populations.

As many people are well aware, honeybee populations have been in extreme stress over the past six years or more and have been in rapid decline due to pressures from pesticides, parasites and Colony Collapse Disorder.

Honeybees are a crucial link in our food system and without them to pollinate our crops, much of our agriculture would suffer greatly or collapse altogether. Bees are essential pollinators for many crops, including a few that are of economic importance in Indiana; melons, squash, cucumbers, pumpkins, apples, and more.

Now is not the time to limit the number of backyard and hobby beekeepers. In fact, it's quite the opposite! Now we need beekeepers more than ever, to help keep bee populations from collapsing, and that means that every hive counts.

In a time when the popularity of hobby beekeeping is finally on an upswing, it would be a shame to see Vigo County set back this exciting trend. We would like to see Vigo County at the forefront of this trend, allowing it to become an example of beekeeping for neighboring counties.

We hope county officials will reconsider including these restrictions on beekeeping.