Biosecurity (Varroa Mite) Order No.12 is now in effect in NSW

Extended permit for flood movements

The Group Biosecurity Permit allowing flood-affected hives to be relocated has been extended for a week, to 17 July 2022.

Please note that you may only move your hives if they are located in the area defined by the BOM Flood Watch notice. You must notify the new location to the DPI, and you cannot move them back to their original position.

The current situation

Thank you to the hundreds of amateur beekeepers who conducted alcohol washes and sugar shake tests in the yellow zone over the weekend!

The Response Teams have also been making the most of the improved weather and receding floods to conduct intensive surveillance in the purple zone.

There have been no new detections today!

All these negative results form a ring around the red zone, and are vital to the epidemiologists’ understanding of the spread of the Varroa mite.

Moving bees

For the eradication program to be successful, it is vital to eliminate the spread of Varroa. For this reason you must not move hives anywhere in NSW.

Handling bees and extracting honey

If you are in the red (eradication) zone, you must not or disturb, interfere with or feed bees, including by removing honey or honey comb from a hive. The only exception is if you are directed to do so by an authorised officer, or to inspect for mites by one of these approved methods: sugar shake test, alcohol wash or brood uncapping.

If you are outside the red (eradication) zone, you are now allowed to work your bees as long as the hives are not moved from their current location. You may also extract honey, but please be aware there are strict rules which you must follow. Please refer to Clause 13 Moving of honey supers and extraction of honey in the current Biosecurity Order for details.

Where are your hives?

Find out which zone your hives are in by entering the address in the search box on the interactive map.

If your hives are located in the red (eradication), purple (surveillance) or yellow (notification) zones, you MUST report the location of your hives to the DPI via the Beekeeper Notifications - Varroa mite online form. You can also use this form to report feral hives in the red, purple or yellow zones.

Important information for beekeepers in the red (eradication) zone

If you are a registered beekeeper in the red zone, you should have received an SMS message from the DPI. If you have not received a message you should check that your location has been properly recorded with the DPI. Call the Hotline on 1800 084 881 for assistance.

Remember that you must not open your hive or handle your bees in the red zone unless instructed by the DPI, or to conduct a mite inspection.

Important information for beekeepers in the purple (surveillance) zone

If you are a registered beekeeper in the purple zone, a DPI officer will be in touch with you in the next few days. This officer will be calling to advise you of an upcoming visit by a Response Team to conduct testing on your hives. If you miss a call from the officer they will attempt to call at a later time.

Important information for beekeepers in the yellow (notification) zone

We urgently need test results from beekeepers in the yellow zone, particularly in north-east Sydney and the lower Central Coast. The most effective way to test is to perform an alcohol wash on at least three brood frames. If you are unable to perform an alcohol wash you can do a sugar shake test or brood uncapping instead.

Please report your results by calling the DPI Hotline on 1800 084 881 (9am to 5pm, 7 days a week). It is important that you report negative as well as positive results so that the Emergency Response Team can build a comprehensive map of where there are mites, and where there are none.

Report bees moved from the Newcastle region in the past year

Regardless of where you live, if you have acquired honeybees (including queen bees, nucleus hives and hives with honeybees) from within 50km of the Port of Newcastle (the red, purple and yellow emergency zones) in the past 12 months, please report this to the DPI, to help us detect and eradicate the varroa mite.

Report these honeybees using the DPI’s online reporting form.

Volunteering to join Response Teams

The Response Teams are made up of DPI staff working with the NSW Rural Fire Service and volunteer beekeepers from the ABA and other AHBIC member bodies. If you are a member of the ABA (or another AHBIC member body) and wish to volunteer, please check your inbox for email containing a link to the volunteering form.

You are not alone

These are distressing times for all beekeepers, but for those in the red zone most of all.

Please be sensitive to your fellow club members’ suffering and be kind to each other.

Support for beekeepers

There are free and confidential support services available to beekeepers during this difficult time.

Accessing small business and mental health and well-being support early is encouraged. The services listed below are open to all beekeepers: large or small, urban or rural. The friendly staff understand the situation and can connect you with the help you need.

• Business owners can contact the Rural Financial Counselling Service for advice and support to review their financial situation and assist with future planning. Call Badar Musad on 0439 956 165.

• The Rural Financial Counselling Service will support all beekeepers and will connect you with suitable services depending on your situation.

• The Rural Financial Counselling Service can assist with assessing eligibility of beekeepers to the Farm Household Allowance.

• Business owners are encouraged to speak with their banking institution and/or lenders to discuss their situation and develop a plan together.

• The Rural Adversity Mental Health Program is available to support beekeepers who would like to chat about their situation, and they can refer you to other services. Call Matthew Milne on 0437 989 044.

• Beekeepers in the Central Coast region can call Lauren Shields, a social worker with the Central Coast Local Health District on 0428 250 610 to discuss mental health and wellbeing.

• You can call the NSW Mental Health Line for yourself, or if you are concerned about someone. This line is open 24 hours, 7 days a week on 1800 011 511.

• Charitable assistance is available to support households with items such as food and groceries, household items and household bill support. Charities such as Rural Aid will provide support to commercial beekeepers.

Sheila Stokes, assisted by Linda Winn, is the ABA’s Industry Liaison Officer at the Local Control Centre in Maitland.

If you are interested in understanding how the Emergency Response is organised, you will find a wealth of information on the Plant Health Australia website.

Have a specific query? Contact us on beehelp@beekeepers.asn.au