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Pesticides and Bees:Ecological-Economic Modelling of Bee Populations on Farmland

Author

Listed:
  • Ciaran Ellis

    (University of Stirling)

  • Nick Hanley

    (Department of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St. Andrews)

  • Adam Kleczkowski

    (University of Stirling)

  • David Goulson

    (University of Sussex)

Abstract

Production of insect-pollinated crops typically relies on both pesticide use and pollination, leading to a potential conflict between these two inputs. In this paper we combine ecological modelling with economic analysis to investigate the effects of pesticide use on wild and commercial bees, whilst allowing farmers to partly offset the negative effects of pesticides on bee populations by creating more on-farm bee habitat. Farmers have incentives to invest in creating wild bee habitat to increase pollination inputs. However, the optimal allocation of on-farm habitat strongly depends on the negative effects of pesticides, with a threshold-like behaviour at a critical level of the impairment. When this threshold is crossed, the population of wild bees becomes locally extinct and their availability to pollinate breaks down. We also show that availability of commercial bees masks the decrease in pollination services which would otherwise incentivise farmers to conserve the wild pollinator population, therefore indirectly leading to local wild bee extinction. The paper demonstrat es the importance of combining ecological modelling with economics to study sustainability in the provision of ecosystem services in agro-ecosystems.

Suggested Citation

  • Ciaran Ellis & Nick Hanley & Adam Kleczkowski & David Goulson, 2016. "Pesticides and Bees:Ecological-Economic Modelling of Bee Populations on Farmland," Discussion Papers in Environment and Development Economics 2016-04, University of St. Andrews, School of Geography and Sustainable Development.
    • Handle: RePEc:sss:wpaper:2016-04
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Richard J. Gill & Oscar Ramos-Rodriguez & Nigel E. Raine, 2012. "Combined pesticide exposure severely affects individual- and colony-level traits in bees," Nature, Nature, vol. 491(7422), pages 105-108, November.
    2. Hanley, Nick & Breeze, Tom D. & Ellis, Ciaran & Goulson, David, 2015. "Measuring the economic value of pollination services: Principles, evidence and knowledge gaps," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 14(C), pages 124-132.
    3. Kassar, Ilhem & Lasserre, Pierre, 2004. "Species preservation and biodiversity value: a real options approach," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 48(2), pages 857-879, September.
    4. Matteo Convertino & L James Valverde Jr, 2013. "Portfolio Decision Analysis Framework for Value-Focused Ecosystem Management," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 8(6), pages 1-14, June.
    5. Kenneth J. Arrow & Anthony C. Fisher, 1974. "Environmental Preservation, Uncertainty, and Irreversibility," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 88(2), pages 312-319.
    6. Fisher, Anthony C & Krutilla, John V & Cicchetti, Charles J, 1974. "The Economics of Environmental Preservation: Further Discussion," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 64(6), pages 1030-1039, December.
    7. Dara A. Stanley & Michael P. D. Garratt & Jennifer B. Wickens & Victoria J. Wickens & Simon G. Potts & Nigel E. Raine, 2015. "Neonicotinoid pesticide exposure impairs crop pollination services provided by bumblebees," Nature, Nature, vol. 528(7583), pages 548-550, December.
    8. Maj Rundlöf & Georg K. S. Andersson & Riccardo Bommarco & Ingemar Fries & Veronica Hederström & Lina Herbertsson & Ove Jonsson & Björn K. Klatt & Thorsten R. Pedersen & Johanna Yourstone & Henrik G. S, 2015. "Seed coating with a neonicotinoid insecticide negatively affects wild bees," Nature, Nature, vol. 521(7550), pages 77-80, May.
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    Cited by:

    1. Farfan, Javier & Lohrmann, Alena & Breyer, Christian, 2019. "Integration of greenhouse agriculture to the energy infrastructure as an alimentary solution," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 368-377.
    2. Narjes, Manuel Ernesto & Lippert, Christian, 2019. "The Optimal Supply of Crop Pollination and Honey From Wild and Managed Bees: An Analytical Framework for Diverse Socio-Economic and Ecological Settings," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 278-290.
    3. Kleftodimos, Georgios & Gallai, Nicola & Rozakis, Stelios & Képhaliacos, Charilaos, 2021. "A farm-level ecological-economic approach of the inclusion of pollination services in arable crop farms," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    4. R. David Simpson, 2019. "Conservation Incentives from an Ecosystem Service: How Much Farmland Might Be Devoted to Native Pollinators?," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 73(2), pages 661-678, June.
    5. Faure, Jérôme & Mouysset, Lauriane & Gaba, Sabrina, 2023. "Combining incentives with collective action to provide pollination and a bundle of ecosystem services in farmland," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    6. G. Kleftodimos & N. Gallai & Ch. Kephaliacos, 2021. "Ecological-economic modeling of pollination complexity and pesticide use in agricultural crops," Journal of Bioeconomics, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 297-323, October.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    pollination; pesticides; wild bees; commercial bees; ecological-economic modelling;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q12 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Micro Analysis of Farm Firms, Farm Households, and Farm Input Markets
    • Q57 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Ecological Economics

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