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--></style></head><body lang="EN-US" link="blue" vlink="purple"><div class="WordSection1"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">Today’s news is that Ortho has announced that it will phase out neonics from its garden and lawn care products. There are a bunch of stories about this on various media sites. They don’t all have the same information, so here are the two most common variations of the story.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">Matthew</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">*********************</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">FROM: CBS News</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"><a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ortho-to-phase-out-chemicals-that-may-be-killing-bees/">http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ortho-to-phase-out-chemicals-that-may-be-killing-bees/</a> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#1f497d">Ortho phasing out chemicals that may be killing bees</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#1f497d">DENVER - </span></b><span style="color:#1f497d">Garden-care giant Ortho said Tuesday it will stop using a class of chemicals widely believed to harm bees.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">The company plans to phase out neonicotinoids by 2021 in eight products used to control garden pests and diseases.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">Ortho will change three products for roses, flowers, trees and shrubs by 2017 and other products later, said Tim Martin, vice president and general manager of Ortho, a division of Marysville, Ohio-based Scotts Miracle-Gro (<a href="http://markets.cbsnews.com/SMG/quote/" target="_blank">SMG</a>).</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">The chemicals, called neonics for short, attack the central nervous systems of insects. Some advocates say neonics are one of several reasons behind declining populations of bees, which are major pollinators of food crops.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">About one-third of the human diet comes from insect-pollinated plants, and honeybees are responsible for 80 percent of that pollination.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">Ortho is acting out of concern for possible threats to honeybees and other pollinators and to reassure customers that "Ortho's got their back, taking care of whatever they need controlled in the most responsible manner," Martin said.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">The change might require gardeners to apply the reformulated products more frequently, but it will be easier to target pests while reducing the chances of hurting bees, he said. The cost of the products won't change significantly, Martin said.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">It wasn't immediately clear what effect Ortho's decision would have on the health of the overall bee population. Neonics are used in a number of chemicals applied to food and textile crops such as corn and cotton as well as individual gardens.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">The severity of the effects of neonics on bees appears to vary depending on what type of crops or plants they're used on, according to a study by the U.S. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">Environmental Protection Agency and California's environmental agency that was released in January. Another study published last year showed neonics might hit wild bumblebees harder than domestically raised honeybees.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">Bayer CropScience and Syngenta (SYT), the top manufacturers of neonics, have said the research has exaggerated the risks and understated the benefits.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">Concern about bee health is growing. Last week, the Maryland General Assembly passed a bill that would allow only certified applicators, farmers and veterinarians to apply pesticides containing neonics. In March, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said it would consider whether to protect two species of wild bumblebees under the Endangered Species Act amid declines in their numbers.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">The environmental group Defenders of Wildlife, which asked the service to consider protecting the bees, said neonics were one a factor in the bees' decline.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">FROM: USA Today</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#1f497d">Ortho to stop using chemicals considered to be harmful to bees</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"><a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2016/04/12/ortho-stop-using-chemicals-considered-harmful-honey-bees/82926930/">http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2016/04/12/ortho-stop-using-chemicals-considered-harmful-honey-bees/82926930/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">Ortho, the insect control product maker, said Tuesday it would begin “to transition away” from using chemicals that are harmful to honey bees and other pollinators, responding to growing pressure from environmental advocates.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">The Marysville, Ohio-based company, which is a subsidiary of ScottsMiracle-Gro, will discontinue neonicotinoid-based pesticides for outdoor use. The move follows Lowe's and Home Depot's announcements last year that they will stop selling neonicotinoid-based products in their garden care sections.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">Ortho also plans to work with the Pollinator Stewardship Council, an advocacy group that supports beekeepers, to start a customer education program and lobby for the use of label language that clarifies the purchase of non-neonic pesticides.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">"This decision comes after careful consideration regarding the range of possible threats to honey bees and other pollinators,” said Tim Martin, general manager of the Ortho brand. “While agencies in the United States are still evaluating the overall impact of neonics on pollinator populations, it’s time for Ortho to move on.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">"We encourage other companies and brands in the consumer pest control category to follow our lead,” he said.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">Ortho has previously worked with the Pollinator Stewardship Council to support pollinator habitat, and their new multi-year program will use online channels and social media to "develop homeowner education related to the responsible use of pesticides where pollinators can be found," Ortho said.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">“Bees and butterflies are essential to our ecosystem and are increasingly facing a struggle to survive," Michele Colopy, program director of the Pollinator Stewardship Council, said in a statement. "We join Ortho in asking other consumer pest control brands to also transition away from the use of neonics.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d">In January, ScottsMiracle-Gro also announced a program that will result in the creation of 75 pollinator gardens in the U.S. this year.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d">________</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d">Matthew Shepherd</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d">Communications Director</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d"><img border="0" width="128" height="48" id="yiv7410395064_x005f_x0000_i1026" src="cid:image001.jpg@01D19498.A2EC25A0" alt="Xerces-logo-CMYK-email_Outlook"></span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d">Protecting the Life that Sustains Us</span></i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d">Stay in touch</span><span style="color:#1f497d">: </span><b><span style="color:#67cfe3"><a href="http://www.xerces.org/" target="_blank"><span style="color:#67cfe3">xerces.org</span></a></span></b><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span><b><u><span style="color:#21ae49"><a href="http://www.xerces.org/blog/" target="_blank"><span style="color:#21ae49">Xerces blog</span></a></span></u></b><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span><b><span style="color:#acc37e"><a href="http://www.xerces.org/enewsletters/" target="_blank"><span style="color:#acc37e">E-newsletter</span></a></span></b><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span><b><span style="color:#007298"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Xerces-Society/193182577358618" target="_blank"><span style="color:#007298">Facebook</span></a></span></b><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span><b><span style="color:black"><a href="https://twitter.com/xerces_society" target="_blank"><span style="color:black">Twitter</span></a></span></b><span style="color:black"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d"> </span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d">628 NE Broadway, Ste 200, Portland, OR 97232-1324, USA</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#1f497d">Tel: (503) 232-6639 ext. 110; Toll free: 1-855-232 6639 ext. 110; Cell: (503) 807-1577</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:#0070c0"><a href="mailto:matthew.shepherd@xerces.org"><span style="color:blue">matthew.shepherd@xerces.org</span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1f497d"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"> </p></div></body></html>