Bill would open state land to bee foraging

The Assembly has passed a bill that would allow beekeepers to use state land so their bees could forage, a response to widespread malady called colony collapse.

AB2185 passed Tuesday on a 73-0 vote. Democratic Assemblywoman Susan Eggman of Stockton says her bill is one way of providing more land for beekeepers.

It directs the state Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Department of Transportation to encourage beekeeping on lands they manage, expanding opportunities for bees to find nectar and pollinate flowers.

An Assembly hearing on colony collapse disorder last fall identified more foraging land as an important tool in maintaining healthy bee colonies. Declining bee populations in recent years threaten native and commercial plants that rely on the insect for pollination.