Bees buzzing in Toronto backyards

Spring has sprung, the flowers are blooming, and the bees are buzzing – though not necessarily where you might expect.

Torontonians are keeping bees in the big city. They’re on top of downtown landmarks, near public parks, and in west-end backyards.

According to records from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, on July 19, 2011, there were 107 registered beehives in the City of Toronto – or about two officially-registered honeybees for every Torontonian in the high season.

“It’s great working with the bees,” said local apiarist Fred Davis of Fred D’s Bees. He maintains beehives at several locations around the city, including at the Opera House and Casa Loma.

“They’re an extremely fascinating insect, very beneficial to the environment. That makes me feel good about working with them as well – giving back to the city a bit makes me feel good about what I’m doing.”

Bees pollinate flowers and crops, and of course, produce honey as a result – even in the middle of downtown Toronto. “Bees will fly three to five kilometers from their hive to find nectar. And in the city, a lot of us aren’t aware how much natural food there is for them. So I’m not that worried about them being able to feed themselves and produce honey for us on the side,” he said.

Although honeybees range far and wide to find nectar, people shouldn’t be worried that they will get stung, said Oliver Couto of the Toronto Beekeepers Co-operative. He said that honeybees are extremely docile and unlike wasps, worker bees cannot sting repeatedly. “They’re vegetarian, so they just go for the plants, unlike wasps that go for your hot dogs or sugar sources,” he said.

However, according to the Ontario Bees Act, you can’t place a hive just anywhere. They must be at least 30 metres away from the property line separating the beekeeper’s property from a dwelling, community center, public park, or other place of “public assembly or recreation.”

This would seem to eliminate a lot of urban areas. “Obviously in the city we have very small lots. For the majority of people, this excludes beekeeping,” said Couto.

Yet, according to the files obtained by Global News from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, there would seem to be registered beeyards that are very unlikely to be 30 metres away from a residential property line or public area, such as in a residential area of Etobicoke, near Pape and Mortimer Avenue in the east end, and even downtown properties such as on top of the Royal York Hotel.

The Ministry did not directly reply to a question about why these registrations took place when the beehives likely violate the Bees Act, but did indicate that ministry inspectors are conscious of distance separations and work with beehives they think might need to be modified. The Ministry also said that they take complaints very seriously and investigate them, although fewer than 10 complaints are usually received every year.

A request for clarification was not answered by deadline.

In 2006, the City of Vancouver changed a local bylaw that prohibited urban beehives. Now, residential property owners can have a maximum of two or four beehives, depending on the size of their lot, subject to certain guidelines.

Couto thinks that Ontario’s Bees Act could also be changed. “I think in conjunction with a good educational program for safe, responsible urban beekeeping, you could relax that legislation at some point, sure.”