Legislation has been introduced in the state Senate to amend the state Agriculture and Markets Law regarding honey bees. P-J file photo

Legislation introduced last week in the state Senate aims to protect honey bee colonies.

Sen. Alessandra Biaggi, D-Bronx, introduced S.6763 to amend the state Agriculture and Markets Law to require any person in the state to contact the Plant Industry Division of the state Agriculture and Markets Department before exterminating a honey been colony or hanging swarms.

Biaggi said in her legislative justification for the bill that New York state beekeepers lost 40% of their colonies from 2017 to 2018, a loss Biaggi said could be especially harmful to New York state’s farmers and the $300 million worth of crops they grow each year. There are no laws at the federal or state level to protect honey bees when bee swarms and colonies pop up around homes and businesses. A similar law has been passed in New Jersey, she said.

“While the dramatic loss of honey bee colonies poses an urgent threat to the livelihood of people everywhere, the economic impact on the state should not be ignored,” Biaggi wrote. “In New York state, honey bees are responsible for pollinating $300 million worth of crops, but in order to manage crop yields and to make up for colony loss, honey bees are currently being shipped into the state.”

Chautauqua County is home to the Chautauqua County Beekeepers’ Association, currently under the leadership of Dennis LaMonica, association president. The association has an apiary — a collection of artificial beehives — behind Ring Precision Components near the Chautauqua County Airport in Jamestown. LaMonica told The Post-Journal last year that it is important to preserve not only bees, but all pollinators and that honey bees are actually in less danger than other pollinators.

“Even though (honey bees) are the poster child, they’re not in danger,” LaMonica said during an observance of World Bee Day.

Locally the Chautauqua County Beekeepers Association tries to help local beekeepers learn of best practices to help the bee population and to help beekeepers raise bees locally rather than importing them from other areas.