Difference between revisions of "Team:Tec-Chihuahua/sandbox"

The importance of the environment for the subsistence of life on earth is unquestionable. The magnitude of its value is represented by the human right to a healthy environment, a prerogative that protects the environment as a fundamental legal right and expresses the relevance of this to have a dignified life. This human right constitutes a guarantee for the realization and validity of the rest, since human being are in an indissoluble relationship with its environment and nature¹. For this reason, achieving sustainable development would ensure the quality of present and future life. In this sense, the dignity, autonomy, and sanctity of the person depend on the health of the planet, its resources, and species.

Food Security is a central topic in the global agenda. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that by the year 2050, world population will exceed 9,000 million, of which 150 million will dwell in Mexico. This should increase agricultural production by 60% in the country by that year ².

Beekeeping is a fundamental activity to achieve Food Security in Mexico and the world, which is why authorities, researchers, farmers, beekeepers, and members are aware of the importance of bees. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) says 100 crop species provide 90% of the food worldwide, and bees pollinate 71% of these³. It is for this reason, given by the engineer Manuel Ramirez Salcido, that bees have been presented as a parameter of environmental health, talking about ecology.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA) says that if bees disappear there would be a food crisis; 84% of cash crops depend on their pollination ⁴. In the same way, SAGARPA states that multiple varieties of fruit trees depend on cross-pollination that uses animals as vectors, such as bees; that is to say that there is an enormous amount of zoophilic plants.

According to the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT), the links between the population, environment, and natural resources are mediated by multiple factors. The immediate environmental impact of urban settlements derives from a change in land purpose⁵, reducing the size of crops that can be pollinated by bees, generating an effect similar to that of habitat loss and with this, nutritional complications in bees, conferring susceptibility to diseases. This is one of the points suggested by the engineer Alejandro Bianchi during our meeting on June 15, 2018.

However, there are actions that seek to provide a healthy life for bees and their existence. There is a concern for the negative impact on anthophiles by irresponsible human activities; it is vital to prevent and attack the causes of bee reduction or loss at their roots. As we learned thanks to MEXMUN 2018, the objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity should be used. These objectives are:

Currently, the importance of carrying out a risk analysis is integrated in our legal plan, as per the Enviromental Risk Assesment Guide. In addition to the aspects mentioned in the assessment of the quality control within the legal plan, the following steps are involved, such as the guidelines for animal health risk analysis according to the Regulation of the Federal Animal Health Law, which are the following:

Dr. Ernesto Tanus Sánchez mentioned the importance of avoiding the burning of hives, due to the limited accessibility to the wood with which they are made. Cedar, specifically red cedar (Cedrela odorata), is considered the best type of wood to make a hive. However, this species is subject to special protection according to NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010, which means factors that negatively affect its viability may threaten it. Obtaining permission to perform the practice of incinerating hives becomes an arduous and even deficient process. Due to the virulence of Paenibacillus larvae, American Foulbrood sweeps entire hives before there is an answer by the authorities.

In other Latin American countries, the action plan presents variations. Ph.D. David De Jong explained us how in Brazil, it is not permissible for someone to incinerate a beehive if it is not a beekeeper, sometimes the firefighters do it in an emergency. Bryan Saavedra, mentioned how in Chile, they have the Agricultural and Livestock Service (SAG) who is in charge of incinerating hives in case the disease is present.

All modern human endeavors are, one way or another, economic activities. Beekeeping is no different. This income-generating activity plays a crucial role in the food industry, thanks to both pollination services and honey production.

Classic economics tells us that it is time put into a product or service which gives it its value. Beekeepers know about this; they work all the time, with a lot of hives. They must take care of each colony, all while creating smoke to keep the bees passive. At the IV State Beekeeping Forum, emphasis was made on what a laborious activity this job is.

UN risk assessment researcher, Maria Mercedes Roca, Ph.D. , mentioned how economic activities are central to the functioning of our interconnected world. Beekeeping must be propelled to make for economic gains, especially in countries such as Mexico where a large part of its economy is based on the primary sector. Mr. Manuel Ramirez also referred to this topic; Our country plays a significant role as a honey trader, with most of our exports making their way to the EU. However, there are several obstacles. EU imports can have neither genetically modified content nor most antibiotics. One can’t add anything to a product that would alter its sensorial characteristics without expecting a negative impact. Dr. David de Jong considered we should check what amount of AMPs make their way to honey products, aspect revised in the IV State Beekeeping Forum with Dr. Sóstenes Rafael Rodríguez where we ensured AMP’s are not a problem when it comes to EU honey exportation analysis. Since the national Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA) is also strict on contaminants, Guillermo Rodriguéz told us, a natural product against foulbrood is needed both nationally and internationally.

As explained in the chronology of the aforementioned facts, while the project was being developed and basing us on the comments and concerns expressed by professionals, we were able to ensure that our product would not impede exportations and importations of honey. The world honey market reported historical records during 2015, with volumes of operation exceeding 2.3 billion dollars¹ and it represents substantial revenues not only for Mexico but countries like China, Argentina, Spain, etc. More than ensuring that highest AMP concentrations in honey would not result in an exportation problem, our project fosters to make exportations go up since there will be no problem with antibiotic residues in honey when beekeepers have to deal with diseases.

The economic part of our project is also made up of the development of the entrepreneurial area where the implications for the sale of the final product are analyzed.

Our project fosters Foulbrood for no longer generating huge economic losses (by killing bees and necessitating antibiotics) but instead become a small nuisance in an otherwise thriving industry.

Three of our human practices activities stood out in determining points that led us to reflect and to investigate more in the situation. Is saving bees our duty? Is our project good? Is it worth taking risks involved? Bioethical dilemmas that will be addressed below.

From the meeting we had with Dr. Roca, we discussed the importance of not only considering human rights but also environmental rights. The next question arose: Should humanity intervene and conserve biodiversity by any means?

Based on comments from Ph.D. David de Jong, Dr. Ernesto Guzmán Novoa, M.S. Alejandro Romo Chacón and M.S. Adrián Ponce de León. We realized that there are no regulations to experiment with bees in Canada, Brazil, and Mexico. This led us to question whether the use of bee larvae is justified in order to obtain relevant data for the project to advance. Can even be considered morally relevant?