ALBUQUERQUE ― Chile, watermelon and juicy tomatoes are among the summer staples at risk if bee colonies continue to collapse at unprecedented rates, beekeeper Tyler Schutte and Environment New Mexico said at a conference Thursday..

Bees pollinate most of the world’s most common crops, including seasonal favorites such as peaches, asparagus, and cherries. But the U.S. is losing about a third of its bee colonies each year, alarming beekeepers, farmers and chefs along with environmental advocates. Environment New Mexico staged two chile cheeseburger cookouts at Hyder Park Thursday to illustrate the impact bee die-offs could have on a popular summer pastime: one replete with chile, watermelon, and lemonade, the other with only meat and bread.

“We rely on bees to pollinate the vast majority of the world’s food including everything from summer favorites like watermelon and lemonade to New Mexico staples like chile. That’s why we need action to save the bees.”

Scientists point to the increased use of and exposure to a class of pesticides known as neonics as a major cause of the recent increase in bee deaths, which have brought the U.S. population of the pollinators to historic lows. Major garden retailers such as Lowes and Home Depot are phasing out sales of the chemicals, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is currently evaluating the impact of four types of neonics on pollinators.

Environmental advocates are urging EPA to suspend use of the dangerous pesticides now and speed up the timing of the impact study, currently not scheduled for completion until as late as 2018.

Joining with a broad range of groups in D.C. last week for a rally and celebration of “pollinator week,” representatives from Environment New Mexico delivered over 6000 petitions to EPA asking for a ban on neonics.

“Given the facts we have at hand about the links between neonics and bee die offs, the EPA should move boldly and swiftly to stop any and all uses of these dangerous chemicals,” said Dyani Chapman. “For the sake of the bees and our favorite summer foods, there’s no time to waste.”

Environment New Mexico is a citizen-funded advocacy organization working for a cleaner, greener, healthier future. www.EnvironmentNewMexico.org