Driving out to inspect bees is a necessary part of modern beekeeping. We try to reduce our carbon footprint where possible however we also fully offset any residual emissions.
A colony of bees needs inspecting about once a week during spring and early summer – regular journeys around the countryside are therefore an unfortunate consequence of this occupation. We are mindful of the environmental impact of this and try to combine our journeys so that our residual carbon footprint as small as possible. The bees are anyway thankful if we do not disturb them more than is necessary.
It is useful to occupy several apiaries at any one time for several reasons to do with colony management, however it is also worth bearing in mind that an overpopulation of honey bees in any one area is likely to have an adverse effect on wild pollinators. For these reasons, we prefer to spread our colonies across several locations in the local area. We do not practice migratory beekeeping, which alongside environmental concerns, has also been demonstrated to aid the transfer of novel pests and diseases to new regions.
Our residual emissions are fully offset by contributing to woodland creation projects within the UK, however we also make a regular contribution to worldwide rainforest protection.
