A planning law introduced in the city of Brighton and Hove, England, calls for new buildings to include special bricks that provide nests for solitary bees.
Dezeen writes:
Brighton & Hove Council’s policy stipulates that all new buildings above five metres should include bee bricks, as well as bird nesting boxes suitable for swifts.
These bee bricks are the same size as regular bricks, but integrate a series of narrow openings like those where solitary bees are known to nest.
The aim is to increase opportunities for biodiversity. With solitary bees making up nearly 250 of the approximately 270 bee species in Britain, they play an important role in the natural ecosystem.
“Bee bricks are just one of quite a number of measures that really should be in place to address biodiversity concerns that have arisen through years of neglect of the natural environment,” said Robert Nemeth, the councillor behind the initiative….
Bee bricks replicate known habitat
Nemeth proposed the move in 2019 and the stipulation has been included in planning permissions granted by the council since 1 April 2020.
While swift bricks already feature in many UK planning policies, the inclusion of bee bricks is a relatively new development. ..
Faye Clifton of Green&Blue [said]
“Solitary bees nest in crumbling mortar work and old brickwork,” …, “but modern buildings are so perfect that all the cavities are blocked.”
“We’re putting a habitat into each building in the same way that has occurred naturally for hundreds of years,” she told Dezeen.
“If these weren’t put in, it would just be a closed wall….
Scientists flag potential health hazards
Scientists are divided over the effectiveness of bee bricks in improving biodiversity….
Lars Chittka, a professor in sensory and behavioural ecology at Queen Mary University, said that bees would be able to mitigate potential issues themselves, “which should to some extent counterbalance the risks that come with such long-term nesting opportunities”.
Benefits outweigh risks say supporters
Nemeth, who works as both a property developer and a professional beekeeper, is confident that the benefits outweigh the potential risks.
“It’s always easy to list the drawbacks with any solution but the key is to keep trying,” he said….
Green&Blue launched its bee brick in 2014 and it was the winner of the Soil Association’s Innovation Award the same year….
A third of the world’s food production depends on bees and other pollinators, yet approximately one in 10 bee species in Europe is facing extinction.
Solitary bees are particularly under threat, partly because most bee-friendly initiatives are focused on honey bees…
