All new buildings in Brighton & Hove above five meters are now required to have bee bricks in the wall of the building so that bees can nest in them.
Bee bricks are the same size as normal bricks but include small holes in them so that the bees can fit in and nest.
“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,” – Robert Nemeth, the councillor behind the initiative.
With the re-introduction of banned pesticides and neonicotinoids now being used again in the UK, the threat to the bee population has now risen, meaning we should be doing all we can to do help these creatures.
These bricks can help create safe spaces for bees to rest, as 250 out of the 270 bee species in Britain fly alone, meaning that the bricks are perfect for them to find safety.
However, not everyone agrees with this introduction in Brighton & Hove and argue that they cause more harm than good, as they may have too be cleaned regularly to keep harmful mites from living there, as well as the fact that some of the holes may be large enough for a nest, which would be armful to bees who fly alone.
Despite this, research has been done to show that mites will disappear after one or two seasons and therefore will not need to be cleaned. Also, bees would asses the risk before going in and nesting, so they would only go in if they were safe for them to use.
Green & Blue, a certified B Corporation (B Corps), launched its bee brick in 2014. Certified B Corporations, or B Corps, are companies verified by B Lab to meet high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability.
