Maine_Beekeeper
03-30-2008, 12:19 PM
Hello All:
I apologize for the long post and thank you in advance for your assistance.
I am hoping that I might recruit as many members of Beesource as possible to send e-mail to the South Portland Maine city council in opposition of their proposed Beekeeping ordinance. Will you please take a moment to drop a quick note in support of our fellow beekeepers?
Please cc me on your e-mails so I can keep track of how many are being sent. queenbee@overlandhoney.com
Here's a link to the proposed ordinance and related documents: Please see agenda item #3
http://www.southportland.org/index.asp?Type=B_LIST&SEC={4B69C0D1-42C5-4C2E-9744-BE32D6BFE195 (http://www.southportland.org/index.asp?Type=B_LIST&SEC=%7B4B69C0D1-42C5-4C2E-9744-BE32D6BFE195)}
These are the addresses for the city councilors and city manager
Jsoule@southportland.org; cvzm@maine.rr.com (cvzm@maine.rr.com); kloring@maine.rr.com; MBeecher@maine.rr.com;
JHughes@hbisoftware.com; lrb@maine.rr.com; TEblake@aol.com;
Jgailey@southportland.org
if you'd like to include the code enforcement officer this is her address:
pdoucette@southportland.org (pdoucette@southportland.org)
this is a copy of the letter which I just sent myself, feel free to use any parts you wish in your own e-mails.
Dear Mr. Soule and other South Portland officials,
Thank you very much for your note and for your willingness to consider other perspectives.
I am hoping that I might be able to convince you to reconsider enacting a beekeeping ordinance.
I am currently in the process of obtaining my Master Beekeeper certification through Cornell University. One of the primary purposes of Master Beekeeper programs is to educate and advocate in situations such as this. I have just returned from a regional Beekeeping conference in Albany, New York and in a presentation given by the Pennsylvania State Apiarist it was noted that the third biggest threat to honeybees (after Varroa mites and habitat loss) is restrictive beekeeping ordinances.
The ordinance proposed by the City of South Portland, although well intentioned I am sure, sends a message to current and potential backyard beekeepers that beekeeping is unwelcome in South Portland. I sincerely hope that this is not the intention of the City Council. To my knowledge, at this time there are only three people within the South Portland city limits keeping honey bees.
While I understand that a nuisance complaint was the origin of this ordinance, I ask that the City Council step back for a moment and consider whether an ordinance is really necessary in South Portland. It is my understanding that the neighbor who issued the complaint did not speak to the Beekeeper prior to calling the Code Enforcement officer. If the neighbor had spoken to the beekeeper, or if an experienced Beekeeper had been contacted regarding the issue, I believe the entire incident could have been easily resolved. It is my understanding that the majority of the complaint stemmed around bees foraging for water in the neighbor's yard - this problem could have been very easily resolved by "retraining" the bees to an alternative (more desirable) water source. This is easily accomplished by establishing a second water source (often slightly laced with sugar water to make it more attractive) at the location of the first water source and then move the second source away from the first, causing the bees to reorient to the new location of the second water source. This would have been a simple solution to a situation I believe has been blown out of proportion by people who do not understand honeybee behavior or Beekeeping. Had an experienced beekeeper been consulted, the problem would have been resolved with very little fanfare.
Honeybees are facing a myriad of challenges in today's world. Pesticides, diseases, diminishing habitat, Varroa and Tracheal mites, and now Colony Collapse Disorder all are threatening this valuable pollinating insect. Feral honey bee colonies have been decimated in the last 20 years. The number of beekeepers is also dramatically in decline. There are currently less than half the number of Beekeepers in the United States than there were in 1970. It is critical to our ecosystem and our food supply that pollinating insects including honeybees are allowed to remain and thrive in all areas. Regulating Beekeeping with ordinances such as the one proposed sends a message to potential beekeepers and the public that beekeeping is something to be feared and regulated and that the City of South Portland does not welcome Beekeepers. The proposed licensing fee, even at $25.00 is clearly punitive and discouraging to potential beekeepers. In addition, the threat of a $1,000 fine for non-compliance with such a vague ordinance is intimidating to say the least.
Is it possible that you might table the ordinance for some period of time to see if other complaints are lodged and if not, allow South Portland beekeepers to continue without regulation?
With regard to the original complaint, Mr. Ghayebi has made arrangements of his own volition to reduce his colony number to two at his property in South Portland. In addition, through this process Mr. Ghayebi has met and become acquainted with a number of other Cumberland County beekeepers so his resources in terms of expertise and experience are greatly increased. I feel confident that Mr. Ghayebi will continue to manage his colonies in conformance with the "Best Practices" recommended by the Maine State Beekeepers Association. Mr. Ghayebi's colonies are now and will continue to be monitored by our State Apiarist, Tony Jadczak and Mr. Ghayebi's Maine State Apiary license is now and will remain current.
Again, I ask that you reconsider instituting a Beekeeping ordinance in South Portland. It would be very unfortunate if the City of South Portland creates a law restricting beekeeping as a result of one person's complaint of honey bees foraging for water in his yard. As mentioned at your workshop, Fred Hale kept honey bees in South Portland for many years without regulation. I would hope that you might allow South Portland's current and future beekeepers to do the same.
Thank you for your time, please feel free to contact me at any time if you would like additional information.
Sincerely,
Erin Forbes
I apologize for the long post and thank you in advance for your assistance.
I am hoping that I might recruit as many members of Beesource as possible to send e-mail to the South Portland Maine city council in opposition of their proposed Beekeeping ordinance. Will you please take a moment to drop a quick note in support of our fellow beekeepers?
Please cc me on your e-mails so I can keep track of how many are being sent. queenbee@overlandhoney.com
Here's a link to the proposed ordinance and related documents: Please see agenda item #3
http://www.southportland.org/index.asp?Type=B_LIST&SEC={4B69C0D1-42C5-4C2E-9744-BE32D6BFE195 (http://www.southportland.org/index.asp?Type=B_LIST&SEC=%7B4B69C0D1-42C5-4C2E-9744-BE32D6BFE195)}
These are the addresses for the city councilors and city manager
Jsoule@southportland.org; cvzm@maine.rr.com (cvzm@maine.rr.com); kloring@maine.rr.com; MBeecher@maine.rr.com;
JHughes@hbisoftware.com; lrb@maine.rr.com; TEblake@aol.com;
Jgailey@southportland.org
if you'd like to include the code enforcement officer this is her address:
pdoucette@southportland.org (pdoucette@southportland.org)
this is a copy of the letter which I just sent myself, feel free to use any parts you wish in your own e-mails.
Dear Mr. Soule and other South Portland officials,
Thank you very much for your note and for your willingness to consider other perspectives.
I am hoping that I might be able to convince you to reconsider enacting a beekeeping ordinance.
I am currently in the process of obtaining my Master Beekeeper certification through Cornell University. One of the primary purposes of Master Beekeeper programs is to educate and advocate in situations such as this. I have just returned from a regional Beekeeping conference in Albany, New York and in a presentation given by the Pennsylvania State Apiarist it was noted that the third biggest threat to honeybees (after Varroa mites and habitat loss) is restrictive beekeeping ordinances.
The ordinance proposed by the City of South Portland, although well intentioned I am sure, sends a message to current and potential backyard beekeepers that beekeeping is unwelcome in South Portland. I sincerely hope that this is not the intention of the City Council. To my knowledge, at this time there are only three people within the South Portland city limits keeping honey bees.
While I understand that a nuisance complaint was the origin of this ordinance, I ask that the City Council step back for a moment and consider whether an ordinance is really necessary in South Portland. It is my understanding that the neighbor who issued the complaint did not speak to the Beekeeper prior to calling the Code Enforcement officer. If the neighbor had spoken to the beekeeper, or if an experienced Beekeeper had been contacted regarding the issue, I believe the entire incident could have been easily resolved. It is my understanding that the majority of the complaint stemmed around bees foraging for water in the neighbor's yard - this problem could have been very easily resolved by "retraining" the bees to an alternative (more desirable) water source. This is easily accomplished by establishing a second water source (often slightly laced with sugar water to make it more attractive) at the location of the first water source and then move the second source away from the first, causing the bees to reorient to the new location of the second water source. This would have been a simple solution to a situation I believe has been blown out of proportion by people who do not understand honeybee behavior or Beekeeping. Had an experienced beekeeper been consulted, the problem would have been resolved with very little fanfare.
Honeybees are facing a myriad of challenges in today's world. Pesticides, diseases, diminishing habitat, Varroa and Tracheal mites, and now Colony Collapse Disorder all are threatening this valuable pollinating insect. Feral honey bee colonies have been decimated in the last 20 years. The number of beekeepers is also dramatically in decline. There are currently less than half the number of Beekeepers in the United States than there were in 1970. It is critical to our ecosystem and our food supply that pollinating insects including honeybees are allowed to remain and thrive in all areas. Regulating Beekeeping with ordinances such as the one proposed sends a message to potential beekeepers and the public that beekeeping is something to be feared and regulated and that the City of South Portland does not welcome Beekeepers. The proposed licensing fee, even at $25.00 is clearly punitive and discouraging to potential beekeepers. In addition, the threat of a $1,000 fine for non-compliance with such a vague ordinance is intimidating to say the least.
Is it possible that you might table the ordinance for some period of time to see if other complaints are lodged and if not, allow South Portland beekeepers to continue without regulation?
With regard to the original complaint, Mr. Ghayebi has made arrangements of his own volition to reduce his colony number to two at his property in South Portland. In addition, through this process Mr. Ghayebi has met and become acquainted with a number of other Cumberland County beekeepers so his resources in terms of expertise and experience are greatly increased. I feel confident that Mr. Ghayebi will continue to manage his colonies in conformance with the "Best Practices" recommended by the Maine State Beekeepers Association. Mr. Ghayebi's colonies are now and will continue to be monitored by our State Apiarist, Tony Jadczak and Mr. Ghayebi's Maine State Apiary license is now and will remain current.
Again, I ask that you reconsider instituting a Beekeeping ordinance in South Portland. It would be very unfortunate if the City of South Portland creates a law restricting beekeeping as a result of one person's complaint of honey bees foraging for water in his yard. As mentioned at your workshop, Fred Hale kept honey bees in South Portland for many years without regulation. I would hope that you might allow South Portland's current and future beekeepers to do the same.
Thank you for your time, please feel free to contact me at any time if you would like additional information.
Sincerely,
Erin Forbes