Beekeeping restrictions lifted for Hobart residents
Hobart will allow the city's residents to keep bees in their backyards, following a worldwide trend to foster urban beekeeping.
Hobart City Council voted to relax restrictions surrounding beekeeping, dispensing with a by-law that restricted households to two hives at least 50 metres from the nearest dwelling.
Tasmanian Beekeepers' Association's Lindsay Bourke welcomed the decision.
"I'm very surprised that we even had that!" he said.
"I'm pleased we've got rid of those silly ideas and come back to reality."
The decision comes on the back of growing popularity for urban beekeeping elsewhere in Australia, with hives being established on rooftops, and in backyards and community gardens in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide.
A global movement - which has also seen hives spring up in New York, London and Paris - started at the same time as the first reports of declining bee numbers, a phenomenon known as colony collapse disorder.
The cause is still unknown, but some attribute the decline to habitat loss, pesticides and climate change, as well as the varroa destructor mite.
Australia is currently the only country varroa-free but it is only a matter of time before the pest arrives.
Mr Bourke expected a lot of Hobartians would take up the hobby to try to bolster bee populations to help combat the threats.
"It's a growing industry, people are very keen to look after the honey bees because they're under threat throughout the world," he said.
"Tasmania's clear [of varroa] at the moment but we're very keen to keep this industry and hobby going."
As well as a constant supply of free honey and increasing genetic diversity, hobby beekeeping would also help Tasmania's farmers by increasing the number of bees pollinating plants.
Mr Bourke encouraged Tasmanians to contact their local beekeeping organisation and consider keeping hives of their own.
"It's a worthwhile hobby, a very satisfying hobby and something that appeals to all walks of life," he said.
The by-law will be replaced by a Code of Practice developed in consultation with the industry.
Other states have similar codes of practice which suggest limits for the number of hives on different-sized properties, encourage only docile strains of bees and give guidelines for keeping hives safe and tidy.
