Denver Officials Threaten to Jail Backyard Beekeeper
Wednesday June 18, 2008
The city of Denver picked a weird time to enforce a ban on backyard beekeeping. As has been widely reported, honey bees are in serious decline. Many states and universities now offer classes for beginning beekeepers, and some even provide startup grants to encourage backyard beekeeping.
Marygael Meister took a beekeeping class at the Denver Botanic Gardens, and decided to give it a try. She invested $1,500 in hive boxes and bees, and established three thriving bee colonies in her backyard rose garden.
An anonymous neighbor complained to the city, and Meister was slapped with a violation of the city's ban on backyard hives. Unless she removes her bees by June 25, Meister could be fined $999 and sent to jail for up to a year.
Comments
Now I’m curious, did the class she took mention the city regulations? Seems to be counter-intuitive for them to offer a course on backyard beekeeping if there are city restrictions against it?
Sheesh! If they’re killer bees, maybe. We Eastern Europeans “thrive on hives.” It’s very important to the culture from a culinary standpoint and health standpoint. Honey has become awfully pricey making some people go without. Why in heavens name was this class offered if backyard beekeeping is banned? Did the woman flout provisos from the Denver Botanic Gardens or didn’t the agency provide the info?
This country is so over regulated it’s crazy! What a waste of taxpayers money!
Here we are witha international scare over a scarcity of bees. When can we start fining city officials for wasting time and resources in meaningless pursuits!!!
I have to agree with some of the above comments - that the folks taking and teaching the class should know about the city regulations - and that the regulations are pretty ridiculous. Bees are needed - bees and bats are being “persecuted” (perhaps because they aren’t “cute”). Bats are exterminated in the ‘burbs all the time when they are needed to help with the insect populations.