Tamworth beekeepers sickened by news of growing Varroa threat

NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) tracing discovered two new Varroa mite infestations in beehives recently moved from Kempsey to Tamworth, the first in New England since a detection in Narrabri stung the local beekeeping industry in July last year.

In response, the DPI has established two 10-kilometre eradication zones and 25-kilometre surveillance zone in the area around Singleton.

Local beekeepers told the Leader if the Varroa mite isn't brought under control it will wreak havoc on both the apiary industry and the native environment.

"There will be no natural pollination in people's backyards because the first thing Varroa will do is kill every wild hive," owner of Tamworth Beekeeping Supplies Tony Bradbery said.

All bees in the 10km 'red' eradication zones are to be killed, and beekeepers will not be allowed to move their hives in or out of the 25km 'purple' surveillance zones until all hives are tested.

More than 130,000 hives across the state have been tested for Varroa mite as the NSW DPI continues its quest to completely eradicate the pest, a goal that would make Australia the first country in the world to repel a Varroa mite invasion.

The two detections in Tamworth are the latest in a major setback from January, when much of NSW was declared free of the deadly pest.

The two in Tamworth bring the total number of infested hives to 236, with more infestations detected in the last month than in the previous six combined, leaving local beekeepers trapped in limbo.

"There's absolutely nothing I can do. Just gotta wait, see if the zones get expanded, and keep checking my bees to see if they've come up with it. It's primarily spread by drone bees and there's no way to stop drone bees from other hives from coming into your hive," Mr Bradbery said.

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Mr Bradbery said the NSW DPI's newly-imposed movement declarations, which were responsible for discovering the Tamworth infestations, have given the DPI "a shot" at controlling the spread, but he thinks the overall response needs to be much more strict.

"Honestly, I think they should put a standstill order up to stop moving bees completely until they get on top of it," he said.

"Varroa by itself spreads very slowly, beekeepers move it around a hell of a lot quicker."

Many beekeepers move their hives on a seasonal basis, pollinating almonds on the border of Victoria to canola fields near Gunnedah and the Central West, and finally up to Queensland for macadamia season.

"We're not gonna get it under control as long as beekeepers are moving bees hundreds of kilometres," Mr Bradbery said.

Hive lock downs cost last year's almond harvest an estimated $200m, but the beekeeping supplier says it's all about accepting short-term pain now to avoid long-term pain in the future.

"The pollination industry has done a lot of lobbying to keep bees moving, but they need to suck it up and accept they might have a bit less pollination this year. They struggle to get bees now, but they'll have it a hell of a lot harder if we can't control Varroa," Mr Bradbery said.

If the mite isn't eradicated it could be devastating for the future of bee-dependent businesses, many of which have already been affected, like Narrabri honey producer Ray Jones, who lost more than three fourths of his hives to the mites.

Mr Jones said while big pollinators can recoup the costs of a temporary lockdown, small beekeeping businesses like his are the most at risk when the Varroa mite spreads.

"People like us, I had to go on the old age pension to survive, borrowing money off my family just to pay bills," he said.

He said he wants the NSW DPI to consult with local communities to help avoid a worst-case scenario, pointing to a $140 million class action lawsuit as evidence of the government's failure to work with beekeepers on the issue.

"They should've never allowed 'em to move out of Kempsey ... they should've never let these beekeepers move off the coast because now they're just spreading it everywhere,"

"It's just a bloody mess, everything's a complete mess. People are getting sick of it."

For the DPI's part, the department has called its Varroa Mite Emergency Response the biggest plant pest response ever undertaken in NSW, establishing hundreds of red and purple zones across the state to halt the spread.

The DPI is distributing Varroa testing strips at recently-established red zones in Southern NSW and the Leader has been told the department will hold a meeting this week to determine what actions they'll take in Tamworth.

For now, all beekeepers within the red and purple zones must report their hives to NSW DPI by filling out an online form at www.dpi.nsw.gov.au or by calling the Varroa Emergency Response Hotline on 1800 084 881.

For more information visit, www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/emergencies/biosecurity/current-situation/varroa-mite-emergency.

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