EDITOR DUNCAN ANDERSON | Lifestyles TOP FOUR RANKED CAUSES OF BEE COLONY MORTALITY IN B.C., AS CITED BY BEEKEEPERS IN 2016/2017 WINTER LOSS SURVEY 1. WEATHER Beekeepers in Western provinces say most bee colonies died in April, which was the coldest, wettest/ snowiest April in years 2. STARVATION The inability of bees in weak colonies to store enough food during the fall. 3. POOR QUEENS Prince Edward Island reported the highest winter losses of 41.8 per cent in 2017 with poor queens cited by beekeepers as the most frequent cause of colony mortality. 4. WEAK COLONIES IN THE FALL Caused by some beekeeping operations making splits late in the season to increase numbers of colonies. SOURCE: WWW.CAPABEES.COM One of many beehives at EquiFlora micro apiary that beekeeper Janne Potter looks after all year round ivosey Lovo PHOTO To bee or not to bee Proper winterization is key to hive survival = By LINDSEY LLOYD ith winter around the corner, beekeep- ers in Vancouver are readying their hives to prevent bee deaths. Apiculturists, otherwise known as honey farmers or beekeepers, have many different techniques to keep their colonies alive year round, but getting through the winter sea- son is difficult. According to a study by the Ca- nadian Association of Professional Apiculturists, beekeepers across the country have reduced their winter losses to about 17 per cent of the hives, compared to 33 per cent in previous years. Janne Potter, the owner of Equi- Flora micro apiary, said she esti- mates deaths over winter vary be- tween 10 and 30 per cent. “When I first started doing this, I would agonize over the loss of a hive but you begin to realize it’s go- ing to happen,” Potter said. “I think the biggest concern going into the winter is that you have enough bees, healthy bees, and that, cross your fingers, your queen doesn't die in the winter.” Paul van Westendorp, the pro- vincial government’s apiculturist, said that it is hard to identify a sin- gular cause in the deaths. One major factor in the deaths “You don't have a chance in hell if you don't have mite control.” JULIA COMMON, CO-FOUNDER OF HIVES FOR HUMANITY is the Varroa mite, first detected in B.C. in 1990, according to van Westendorp. The mites transmit dangerous diseases responsible for decimating many bee populations around the world. “There is nothing more severe and nothing more damaging than Varroa mites in terms of diseases,” van Westendorp said. Julia Common, co-founder and chief beekeeper at Hives for Hu- manity, monitors for mites all year long because of their destructive nature. “The mites end up reducing the immune system of the bee which gives them all sorts of secondary in- fections,” Common said. “You dont have a chance in hell if you don't have mite control.” Other practices for the winter- ization of bees include putting boxes filled with water absorbent material on top of hives and cover- ing them to prevent damp weather from intruding. Building T earns Langara is first with energy technol- ogy but falls short of platinum = By BECCA CLARKSON angara’s Science and Tech- nology Building earned 67 LEED points, missing the 80 points required for the highest level of certification, it was revealed last month. Leadership in Energy and En- vironmental Design is a rating system challenging buildings to be as environmentally friendly as pos- sible. It was announced last year that Langara received a gold cer- tification, though the its score was not divulged. To earn platinum, the highest level, a building has to have its own energy source. The first ever Thermenex-In- A-Box is installed on the roof of Building T, according to Jeff » ff SUBMITTED PHOTO “T've got this idea, I'm pretty sure it will work and it's going to be revolutionary if it does. Weston, Thermenex engineer. Ther- menex is patented piping that com- bines heating and cooling systems so energy can be recaptured from its exhaust. “We went to Langara and said ‘T've got this idea, I'm pretty sure it will work and it's going to be revolutionary if it does’,” Weston said. “They teach their students to be entrepreneurs and risk takers, so Langara practices what they teach.” Stephen Teeple, architect at Teeple Architects, one of the firms that designed Building T,, said sci- ence buildings can be large energy consumers. Reports from Teeple Architects show that Thermenex technology saves the building 46 per cent in costs, and 63 per cent in energy consumption. ‘Thermenex un —JEFF WESTON THERMENEX ENGINEER 67 LEE was first used by Langara in Build ing C and the Students’ Union Building in 2008. “To make them work efficiently for the college is a massive savings in annual energy costs,” Teeple said. As well as environmental sustain- ability, the team behind the Build- ing T also designed with social sus- tainability, according to Kori Chan, architect at Proscenium Architects & Interior. “The vortex lounges connect at half levels, so we're hop- ing that as a student from the fifth ; points floor comes to work in the lounge, someone from the fourth floor also comes up. Then you'll have students from every department working and socializing together,” Chan said. The infrastructure of the Build- ing T is set up for solar panels to be installed in the future, according to Chan, and the physics department also hopes to install monitoring instruments and incorporate that data into their course work. BECCA CLARKSON PHOTO ZI , : : The students lounge in Langara’'s environmentally sustainable Building T THURSDAY, OCT 12,2017 | THE VOICE 9 Coffee CUpS a grande waste Over 20 per cent of waste at Langara is generated from cups m= By NATALIA BUENDIA CALVILLO hile coffee cups are gen- erally low cost for busi- nesses and consumers, convenience comes with a high cost on the environment. Coffee cups comprise 20 per cent of the total waste produced at Langara College. In 2016, Langara launched a ‘think green’ campaign that focused on reducing waste on campus. Engagement among stu- dents has increased since the imple- mentation of the campaign. “Coffee cup waste is the plight of all schools and being creatures of habit, it's difficult to convince cur- rent students to sacrifice a few sec- onds,” Marco Buktaw, the coordi- nator of the Green Team volunteer program, said. _———" } PLASTIC UD Recyele in Mixed Recyelables. CARDBOARD SLEEVE 6 Recyclein cur Mined Papers, Recycle in Organics. SUBMITTED PHOTO Buktaw has a team of 10 to 15 students whose job is to re-evaluate how recyclables are disposed at big events such as Langara’s Welcome Week and Orientation Week for international students. A June 2017 report by Vancouver City Council mentions there is an increasing trend towards single use items that is driven by convenience, lack of free time, marketing and food and health safety. ‘The administrative report stated that in Vancouver alone, an esti- mated 2.6 million paper cups are thrown away as garbage each week. Also, disposable cups, lids and sleeves make up 22 per cent of large litter items and are the most com- mon. A first-year health and sci- ences student at Langara, Naudeep Kaur, is already on board with bringing her own mug. “I do not drink coffee everyday but when I do I bring my mug," Kaur said. “[It’s] more environmen- tally friendly.” Coffee drinkers on campus use disposable cups more than personal mugs because it is more convenient. “T think it would be more envi- ronmentally friendly to bring your own mug, but disposables may be good if you don't drink coffee every day,” Langara student, Sumit Dhull said. Buktaw, who is currently doing a co-op program, will continue to fight towards sustainability and waste reduction even after his co- op term is finished.