The EPA's Pollinator Risk Assessment Guidance is part of a long-term strategy to advance the science of assessing the risks posed by pesticides to bees, giving risk managers the means to further improve pollinator protection in our regulatory decisions. Among other things, the EPA anticipates the guidance will allow the Agency to assess effects from systemic pesticides quantitatively on individual bees as well as on bee colonies. This guidance is an outgrowth of the 2012 FIFRA Scientific Advisory Panel Meeting on Risk Assessment for Bees.

The pollinator risk assessment guidance is also available in Spanish. Lea la Guía de Evaluación de Riesgos de Plaguicidas para las Abejas.

Also below are frequently asked questions for registrants and contract laboratories conducting honeybee toxicity testing. These FAQs are made up of responses to inquiries EPA commonly receives about protocols used to generate honeybee toxicity data for submission in support of pesticide registration.

• Guidance for Assessing Pesticide Risks to Bees (PDF)(59 pp, 2 MB)
• Guidance on Exposure and Effects Testing for Assessing Risks to Bees (PDF)(44 pp, 1 MB)
• Process for Requiring Exposure and Effects Testing for Assessing Risks to Bees during Registration and Registration Review (PDF)(26 pp, 394 K)
• Honeybee Toxicity Testing Frequently Asked Questions – August 16, 2018 (PDF)(18 pp, 599 K)