After Mayor Lydia Lavelle started the discussion by saying she hoped it would not be a sting operation, the Carrboro Board of Alderman voted unanimously October 7 to become the third Bee City USA community! The idea started with Marty Hanks of Just Bee Apiary and Randy Dodd, Carrboro’s Environmental Planner. In September they asked the Environmental Advisory Board to endorse the town’s resolution and application.

In Dodd’s presentation, he called attention to the many ways Carrboro was already pollinator-friendly in its community interests and in its adopted policies. The beekeeping community is strong and the town’s landscaping emphasizes native plants. The community celebrates local food and is a national leader in its Least Toxic Integrated Pest Management policy adopted in 1999. Carrboro even bought a steam machine to kill invasive weeds with hot water rather than using a synthetic herbicide! Alderman Chaney quipped, “It’s not even a question of whether to bee or not to bee, we are!”

As the network of Bee City USA communities grows, we will teach each other how to make our planet safer for pollinators and ourselves.

View a video of the discussion here which ended with an alderman suggesting that the presenters just buzz off.