Loxton apiarist the second to claim bee deaths from poisoning

Hugh Schuitemaker, Murray Pioneer

A well-known Loxton man is the second Riverland beekeeper to recently claim his bees died due to poisoning by PIRSA.

Loxton-based apiarist Ian Cass claims 12 of his beehives were killed due to adverse impacts from PIRSA’s spraying program, aimed at eradicating fruit fly from the Riverland.

“I would point out in every case of extreme bee deaths in the Riverland area in the last couple of years that one common denominator was present: PIRSA operators spraying Naturalure,” Mr Cass says in a letter to the editor in today’s Murray Pioneer [below].

“As to the ‘extensive investigations’, in my case I am very certain PIRSA killed 12 of my hives and damaged 80 more hives.

“They visited the property to take photos six weeks after the deaths and never ever even contacted the property owner, so I don’t call that ‘extensive investigation’.

“When it first happened, I feel I was fobbed off on numerous occasions and told a senior manager would ring me, but they never did.

“(At) the Riverland Field Days, PIRSA asked me to get a bee sample, and then lost it for another five weeks, until it was finally tested and I was told they couldn’t find spinosad, so therefore PIRSA was not responsible.”

Mr Cass’s letter follows similar claims made previously to the Pioneer by Paringa-based apiarist Robert Johnstone.

PIRSA declined to comment further on the matter when contacted by the Pioneer in regard to Mr Cass’s claims.

Mr Cass claimed a number of his other hives were also lucky to survive a spraying event by PIRSA in 2024.

“PIRSA operators are very aware where I have 20 beehives at my home property,” he says.

“They put in a ‘don’t spray order’, then waited until mid-October 2024 and sprayed right against my fence line, in contravention of their own agreement and far less than the 50m rule.

“When I rang the head office in Loxton this was denied, until I told them I had photos of them doing this. They then told me it must have been a mistake… fortunately the wind was blowing away from my hives that day, so the bees survived.”

Letter to the Murray Pioneer Editor

Reply to no conclusive evidence

PIRSA states there is “no conclusive evidence” bee poisoning (Murray Pioneer, 5/2/25) yet in 2020, PIRSA paid two beekeepers compensation for the loss of beehives after they were poisoned by PIRSA.

Plus we have the documentation from PIRSA itself, including the payment details.

In the Pioneer article, PIRSA states after extensive investigations it has found no evidence, and in reply the public need to know that the chemical spinosad, which is the active ingredient in Naturalure – the main chemical being used by PIRSA – has a very short half-life.

And we have been told that it isn’t able to be detected in bee samples as it simply degrades before the sample can be tested.

This does not mean it was not the killer, it simply means it is almost impossible to prove that PIRSA was responsible.

I would point out in every case of extreme bee deaths in the Riverland area in the last couple of years that I believe one common denominator was present: PIRSA operators spraying Naturalure.

Let us look at the chemical spinosad, which PIRSA points out is organic and safe.

I would like to point out in reply to that statement that snake venom is organic, and spinosad is about as lethal to bees as a human getting a brown snake bite.

As to the extensive investigations, in my case I am very certain PIRSA killed 12 of my hives and damaged 80 more hives. They visited the property to take photos six weeks after the deaths and never even contacted the property owner. So, I don’t call that ‘extensive investigation’.

When it first happened, I feel I was fobbed off on numerous occasions and was told a senior manager would ring me, but they never did.

After being what I feel was confronted at the Riverland Field Days, PIRSA asked me to get a bee sample, and then lost it for another five weeks, until it was finally tested and I was told they couldn’t find spinosad, so therefore PIRSA was not responsible.

I was never even given a copy of the lab report and have been since told by PIRSA that it could have been anything that killed my bees. I asked “what do they suggest, as I have never had any other bee deaths like that?”.

They shrugged their shoulders.

PIRSA states they do everything according to the label. In July 2023, in my case, PIRSA sprayed black box trees covered in flowers, which my bees were working at the time, on the river flats, at Gurra, after the 2022 flood. This is a complete disregard to the label.

PIRSA has stated to beekeepers that 50m is a completely safe distance to spray a lethal insecticide away from beehives, yet the label states to be careful of drift and despite PIRSA saying this is safe, I don’t know of a farmer or blockie who would say 50m is a safe distance to use a lethal chemical in very windy conditions.

I have personally seen PIRSA operators using Naturalure in very windy conditions, yet in my view they don’t care as it isn’t their back pockets hurt by the damage of this very dangerous insecticide. Their operators are told how safe this chemical is.

PIRSA operators are very aware where I have 20 beehives at my home property. They put in a ‘don’t spray order’, then waited until mid-October 2024 and sprayed right against my fence line, in contravention of their own agreement and far less than the 50m rule.

When I rang the head office in Loxton this was denied, until I told them I had photos of them doing this. They then told me it must have been a mistake. I am the one who loses if they make a mistake, but fortunately the wind was blowing away from my hives that day, so the bees survived.

believe this program has had complaints by numerous beekeepers, and several homes who have lost a dog, guinea pigs and poultry.

Yet every time, guess what? It wasn’t PIRSA.

I question their statement at the start of “no conclusive proof” of bee poisoning. I think this is very conclusive.

Ian Cass, Loxton

This article appeared in the Murray Pioneer, 19 February 2025.