Plans for barn renovation uncover a honey of a problem in Zelienople
Monday, May 08, 2006
By Nate Guidry, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Georgia Berner and her husband, Jim Farber, were planning to remodel a part of their old Zelienople barn. They were going to transform one wing into a family room, ideal for entertaining friends as well as viewing the valley that sprawls in the distance.
But there was one problem.
Actually, there were thousands of buzzing little problems.
Several colonies of wild honeybees had settled into a wall in the exact area Ms. Berner planned to renovate. They had been colonizing for nearly 12 years.
Over the years, Ms. Berner said, she and the bees had lived in harmony. She had gotten used to them and they seemed all right with her.Ms. Berner, who is a Democratic congressional candidate in the state's 4th District, didn't want anything to happen to the bees, so she phoned Kevin Lutz, a beekeeper who lives just up the road, and asked for his help.
[snip]
Mr. Cella [a Pennsylvania bee inspector] said honeybees pollinate about 90 percent of all fruits and vegetables, including apples, peaches, soybeans, pumpkins, grapes and snap beans.
He said the honeybee population is dying off because of mites and viruses and estimates there are precious few wild bees left in America.
"I thought all I was going to do was remove a colony of honeybees, but discovered an impending natural and economic disaster," said Ms. Berner.
"The commercial beekeepers and small farmers are going to lose their livelihood if bees are not saved in the United States."
You can read the entire article here.
You can find out more about candidate Georgia Berner at: www.georgiaberner.com/
5 comments:
Let me get this straight...the bees had been there for 10 years and she had them removed a week before election day and notified the press to cover it? Hmmmm. One of the weakest publicity stunts I've ever seen. Her campaign must really be struggling.
And a big welcome to the Jason A. campaign for visiting the blog -- it's been a while since you guys have commented. I believe the last time was when I reminded readers that Jason says one thing about Choice to pro-choicers and another to anti-choicers...
Remind them about this:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06106/682364-183.stm
Editorial: Altmire in the 4th / This Democrat would give Hart a real fight
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
...Although both are eager to take the fight to Rep. Hart, the Post-Gazette gives Mr. Altmire, 38, the advantage and recommends his nomination.
...because of his greater command and expertise on the pivotal issue of health care, we give Jason Altmire the edge and the Post-Gazette endorsement.
Yeah, because our government doesn't have enough healthcare industry lobbyists...I had to laugh when I read that.
Remind yourself:
Jason Altmire is a lobbyist for an HMO who has spent his career learning and advocating for a health care system that is broken.
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