The toll of chemical spraying on my father’s honey bee hives

Written by Old Rochester Regional High School junior and Rochester resident Miah Motta, this article examines the impact of pesticides and chemical spraying on her father’s beehives. Ryan Motta, her father, has cared for beehives on his property in Rochester for a decade.

ROCHESTER — Every spring, my father pulls on his faded beekeeping suit and walks out to the hives with the same quiet dedication he’s shown for years. He checks each box with steady hands, listening for the familiar hum of life. For him, beekeeping isn’t just a hobby, but a relationship, a responsibility and a source of joy. 

However, in recent years, that joy has been clouded by grief. Too often, he’s opened a hive to find it silent, with the colony gone. The culprit most often points back to the growing problem of chemical spraying. 

This issue isn’t personal. Pesticides and other sprays are harming bee populations nationwide. According to the American Beekeeping Association, beekeepers across the United States have reported significant colony losses.

Compared to 1947, the population has declined by 60 percent, with some operations experiencing up to 100 percent losses. This is not a coincidence or poor hive management; it’s a crisis. 

Bees are essential pollinators that increase crop values each year by more than $15 billion and pollinate over 80 percent of cultivated crops. From almonds to apples, bees support nearly one-third of the food we eat. Without them, ecosystems and food systems would collapse. 

Since the 1990s, pesticides have been widely used in agriculture, backyards, and homes. They are designed to protect crops from pests, but they fail to differentiate them from pollinators. 

Direct contact is often lethal to bees, while ingestion causes memory loss, disorientation, reduced foraging ability and suppressed immune systems. Even without direct contact, bees forage on treated plants and bring poisoned pollen and nectar back to the hives; sometimes death follows silently. 

My father has the unfortunate circumstance of residing near acres of cranberry crops, an industry heavily reliant on spraying.

Even as careful as he is, bees cannot be confined. Their ability to travel up to three miles from the hive makes not only direct contact dangerous, but also secondhand exposure through contaminated flowers, water or air. 

Despite his efforts to create a haven, his bees return carrying more than pollen — they bring back toxins with the power to eradicate a colony.

This isn’t just about our backyard — it’s happening across the country. Small-scale beekeepers, who often work closest to nature, are being hit hardest by a problem they didn’t cause. 

While the dangers of spraying are serious, there are still safer ways to manage pests. Even small changes in how and when pesticides are applied can make a difference. Honey bees are most active in the daytime, so pesticides should never be sprayed then. By waiting until evening, farmers can reduce the chance of direct contact. 

Some pesticide types are less dangerous than others. Dusts and powders are especially harmful, while liquid solutions or granules are better options. Newer pesticides with low toxicity and short residual times are safer for bees. Farmers can also avoid aerial spraying, spraying on windy days and use more precise ground methods. 

Consumers have power too. Supporting organic products, planting pollinator-friendly gardens, avoiding tick and mosquito control companies and advocating for regulation can help shift the tide. For beekeepers like my dad, awareness and policy change offer hope. 

When the spraying stops, the buzzing might come back. For me, this issue is not only scientific, political and environmental, it’s also personal. It’s the sound of a quiet hive. It’s the look in my dad’s eyes when another colony is gone. It’s the belief that by raising awareness, even in a small way, we can help protect the pollinators that feed our world and the beekeepers who care for them.